where to hide ECU/Vanos comp (S50B30) using adapter

[Rajvosa]

hi guys,
i should be receiving the Treehouse racing wiring adapter any day now so thinking ahead a little bit about the state of wiring etc

I wont be splicing anything, so am after advice or pictures where to mount the ECU and Vanos computer also. Car is LHD.

thank you :)

[treff-7]

you should do some research before you ask questions. otherwise you won't get much response. nobody wants to do the legwork for you.

you mount it where the original ecu was in your car. no magic needed there. if your car had a m42 engine in it the brackets for the computer will work because they have the same housing. If it had another engine you can either get those brackets from a 318 with m42 engine or come up with a different way to secure the computer. this is how i did mine because the engine harness was too short to be able to use the aforementioned brackets:

[dashboardmonkey]

Zip ties

[Rajvosa]

ok thanks for your help BUT my harness connection for the ECU goes to the driver side (LHD). is that because it came out of a RHD M3?

thats why i was asking the question...

you should do some research before you ask questions. otherwise you won't get much response. nobody wants to do the legwork for you.

you mount it where the original ecu was in your car. no magic needed there. if your car had a m42 engine in it the brackets for the computer will work because they have the same housing. If it had another engine you can either get those brackets from a 318 with m42 engine or come up with a different way to secure the computer. this is how i did mine because the engine harness was too short to be able to use the aforementioned brackets:

[Rajvosa]

so no one has fitted RHD harness into their LHD car? (without hacking it up)

[e30rapidic]

probably not, theres not really anywhere for the ECU to go and not be "out in the open" so to speak.

I pulled my harness apart and cut out the excess or unused wiring, its actually pretty easy if you take your time. I must have had 50' feet of extra wire that I pulled out.

[Rajvosa]

is it possible to flip the wiring so DME goes from one side to the other? im guessing i might have to cut some wires and rejoin them..?

[treff-7]

i see! i didn't know you have a RHD harness. that definitely adds a twist to the story.
I think it would be possible to move it over to the right side. There are critical wires in the harness that can not be cut because they are shielded and very sensitive. i don't remember which ones they are though... knock sensors maybe? anyhow those wires should still be long enough. you might need to extend the ones for the maf and oxygen sensor. those are on the right side and the furthest away from the LHD dme location which are in your case the closest to the RHD dme location.
i would open up the harness and check the wires inside while waiting for the adapter.

[RoadHazard]

So I'm assuming from above pics that the stock location on LHD E30 is on the same side as RHD. Then the ECU harness from the RHD M3 E36 will be a tad too short. I had to remove the wiring cover and make some cuts to extend the wires as much as possible. Some people could extend the wires enough that the ECU can be mounted nicely at stock location. But for me it was still too short that the ECU had to be mounted at angle. So YMMV. The VANOS computer can sit on top of the ECU.

[Rajvosa]

I just got the car running so the ECU is sitting next to the K&N filter. will be playing with the wires to see where i can hide it. i might be able to run it through the hole under the brake booster and mount it above the pedals somewhere. otherwise ill see how the wires work under the cover to extend it to the original location.

can i damage the ECU running it next to the KN filter? not doing long drives anyways..