S38 vs. S50/S52 swap

[bmw335isturbo]

I'm not being a prick, seriously, but I can not fathom how a street legal E30 with you in it could possibly weigh 1950lbs... My '84 should be right around 2600lbs stock, + or - a bit after the M30 swap (no AC system), so I am estimating with me in it she should be around 2800lbs to 2850lbs depending on the fuel load.

I Have been working a lot I just saw this I had my car weighed and dynod 1950lbs or 2000 if you want to take it their That is all I am going to say about this and that everything was striped out and off the car that it did not need every thing!!!!

[Garageaholic]

and I'm sorry if that was a bit harsh, m3fan4eva

no problem. My point was that as "digger" said, the larger the bore, the less metal you have, therefore the less weight.

[dmoffitt]

I'm gonna let the cat out of the bag (not that I post enough here for people to car or be "following" me/this) but I'm doing an s38 swap into my e30 this spring/summer (finishing gathering parts right now / getting ready to have the engine reassembled)... but only because I got a SCREAMING deal on the engine - otherwise, it'd be a far cheaper endeavor to do an S50/52 and probably make more sense.

My choice, besides the economics, was that I wanted the torque and to pretty much keep it BONE stock, and it seemed to be the right engine for the job. I am removing the AC (mine hasn't worked since I bought it and I don't really care about AC) and I installed a simple not-all-that-heavy-but-it-all-adds-up stereo (2ch+sub-amp+sub) in the truck so it shouldn't throw off percentages all that much, otherwise, my biggest worry with the "big 6" engines is more understeer...

[madjurgen]

Is it easy to overcome wiring in the ODBII harness?

[euroshark]

Understeer shouldn't be bad. Just add some ballast to the trunk (~20lbs) and you should be back where the car began in terms of balance. The S38 is just a few pounds more than the M30, which is only 55 - 57lbs heavier than the M20... So effectively, by removing your AC, you haven't added weight to the car! Wooot!

[dmoffitt]

A JL-Audio 12W6v2 and a pair of Audison amps make great ballast ;) If I was uber-concerned I'd relocate the washer bottle to the back but frankly the extra complication of running a water-laden tube through the car seems a total waste on a street car, where weight balance is by no means at such a critical level to go to that much effort... As it is, removing the AC and my audio parts will probably more than balance (if not even slightly improve) things enough to keep me happy.


Anyone have thoughts on oil-pan-to-steering-rack clearance, and if I'll have room to do a Z3 rack swap too while I'm in there??

[euroshark]

I believe you should have room, I think Ive seen one that had the Z3 rack... I'll measure the clearance I have with the stock rack as soon as I can get out there.

[Funkmasta]

Will know in a couple weeks... :)

[dmoffitt]

I believe you should have room, I think Ive seen one that had the Z3 rack... I'll measure the clearance I have with the stock rack as soon as I can get out there.

thanks a ton ;)

[bmw332i]

It'd be totally hot to see an e30s38 here. I'd love to drive one just to see what it was like (compared to my e30s52). If it were me, I'd hunt for a b38, even if they are more money to buy/fix, etc... And IF you do go with an s38b38, with a little bit more $, you can see this kind of power pretty easily:



This is a 1995 Euro 3.8l M5 with Schrick cams, custom Jim C software, and Supersprint's full exhaust system for the s38b38.

[James Crivellone]

I've still got my eyes on an E34 M5 that is currently being daily'd as a beater.

3.6L, but I find that sufficient. I've already ruled out the M88 variety, I don't want that old parts bucket, good motor, but the S38 is just more polished.

We will see, if anybody ever comes across (mainly looking in Funk's direction ;) ) of a wrecked E34 M5 (Untouched by yards, I am looking for a runner (not driver)) let me know =)

[Funkmasta]

I've still got my eyes on an E34 M5 that is currently being daily'd as a beater.

3.6L, but I find that sufficient. I've already ruled out the M88 variety, I don't want that old parts bucket, good motor, but the S38 is just more polished.

We will see, if anybody ever comes across (mainly looking in Funk's direction ;) ) of a wrecked E34 M5 (Untouched by yards, I am looking for a runner (not driver)) let me know =)

Cool, I will def let you know when one comes in... its just a matter of time. The Dinan B36 ended up not to be, unfortunately.