M54. Let the foolishness begin.

[jrdeamicis]

I was considering selling my S50 and doing an M54. Dual Vanos FTW

[bender]

this is one of my all time favorite project threads. nice work!

[hoveringuy]

I haven't posted any real updates in a while because nothing monumental has happened. I've been daily driving the car plugging away at the little details and working on the tune with TRM.

Tonight, the latest tune revision arrived and I am again really excited about the motor because it seems like all the little pieces have fallen into place. It took it for a drive and it felt bat-shit fast!

TRM has been working on ironing-out the tune bit by bit. Cold start, acceleration enrichment, part throttle, etc. I've also been revising the VANOS advance/retard curves and incorporated a throttle position input to the mix. 20 degrees of intake advance increases the dynamic compression by over 1/2 point which increases power a lot but can also cause pinging if not used judiciously.

I now have part-throttle and full throttle advance. It's much more better.

I retard the exhaust at part-throttle which seems to make it more responsive but advance it back up at full throttle. The exhaust cam is still an enigma to me.

Wiring is completely cleaned-up and the circuit now resides neatly in the engine bay. The messiest thing is the wiring for my LM-2 which has been priceless. I log throttle position, rpm, A/F and VANOS engagement. It's pretty sweet!

Oh yeah... TRM has an M54 they're trying to figure out what to do with...

[jahnaboi]

My car passed smog 2 weeks ago too! (Only its mandatory here).

[e30s52]

Hey steve, you should let me barrow your exhaust set up so I can pass emissions :)

[Farbin Kaiber]

Nice work.

[whiltebeitel]

Al Gore would be so proud!

[hoveringuy]

Mean and Green

So just for the hell of it I took my car to a WA emissions testing station. Not because I need to (I don't live in an emissions county) but because I was curious how it would do and I may want to move to King County in the future.

WA uses a roller test to simulate 25mph.

My exhaust is clean! I have OBD2 cats.

HC (ppm) CO (%)

Cruise Limit . . . . . 150 . . . . 1
actual . . . . . . . . .49 . . . 0.16

Idle Limit . . . . . . . 220 . . . 1.2
actual . . . . . . . . 154 . . . 0.02

So there you have it OBD1 M54... Mean and Green!

[mcr_driver]

this thread reminds me soo much of pei330's threads....i wish i had the wealth of information you seem to pour out on a post by post basis...

well now i know if i can't sell my e46 i guess i will just take the s/c 330 source a 5/6 speed and find a way to sell myself out to pay you to help with the swap lol...

[hoveringuy]

Hi, I am going to do the same conversion with an M54B30 into an '89 E30 325i sedan and was wondering what engine brackets and mounts you used to get your engine sitting in the right position. Also you mention that you think there might be enough space for the standard E30 brake booster is this right... as that sounds much easier than replacing the unit with a different unit.
Cheers
Leigh

It physically mounts exactly like any other DOHC engine. Same mounts, same transmission options, same oil pan, same exhaust.

With no spacers on the mounting arm I have 1/2" clearance with a 320i booster. The manifold is flexible enough to push up for a total of around 3/4". I'm not sure what the diffence in diameter between the stock booster and 320 booster is anymore.

[leigh7225]

Hi, I am going to do the same conversion with an M54B30 into an '89 E30 325i sedan and was wondering what engine brackets and mounts you used to get your engine sitting in the right position. Also you mention that you think there might be enough space for the standard E30 brake booster is this right... as that sounds much easier than replacing the unit with a different unit.
Cheers
Leigh

[e30s52]

Next time I am up there we are doing a pull steve. I want to see how much faster it is.

[2002maniac]

Hmmm, I'm curious why they ran #6 like that...

to make it equal length?

[daniel]

M54>s52.

[hoveringuy]

pretty rad
the headers are somethin else

Yeah, the euro headers are cool. I have them mounted in the garage like a pair of 5 point dear antlers... I have the #6 runner re-routed to clear the firewall and just got my Oxy-acetylene yesterday to help with the subframe.

I'll order some v-band clamps soon and maybe have them installed in a week or two.

Headers will push me over 220whp and a cam around 230-235.

I'll let anyone that's interested take it for a spin, the M54 is pretty suprising.