24V Swap Build Thread

[dylhaus]

Howdy!

Long time lurker and getting ready to do my 24V swap. I'll be following the S54 swap that classic daily did a little while ago that retains use of the AWD but swapping a S50 3.0 instead. I'll post pictures as I go and which parts I used to make it all work. I aim to start pulling my engine in the first couple weeks of September if the AZ heat isn't too bad.

The car is a 91 ix 5 speed coupe in alpine white II

[Staszek]

Looking forward to seeing another iX with an S54!!

[the_anch]

Get it! Can’t wait for this thread. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[litu]

Cool, this will be good/interesting topic

[dylhaus]

Still waiting on my oil pan to be finished, so I haven't been able to start the tear-down but I'll post up a bit about the parts I'm using for the swap and some areas I'm concerned about.

I am using some of the same parts from the regular 24V swap like the E34 Oil pan (mated to a spare ix pan), and the e34 pickup/dipstick. I also decided to go with the M50 intake/TB off the E34. All were sourced over local BMW fb groups and ebay.

I decided to go with a S50 being sold by a local race shop so I didn't have to deal with converting OBDII back to OBDI, but the engine came with hardly any peripherals, so I found a DME, harness, ac compressor, and 95 m3 power steering pump on ebay. I had to get the compressor mounting plate from a pull-n-save, and I grabbed a few E36 AC hoses that I'll splice with the E30 hoses to get a working AC system. I will also be swapping over to a parallel flow AC condenser.

The swap will coincide with some other upgrades like a replacement steering rack, finally getting the front coilovers welded, and some other front suspension upgrades like M3 CABs.

I'm going with 24lb injectors and using a stage 1 sssquid chip. I also decided to go with a crappy ebay header for m5x/s5x and so far the manifold bolt holes don't line up super well so I'll drill them out a bit to fit. I plan to run open header to the exhaust shop to have the header mated to the existing exhaust system installed by a prior owner.

I'll be using a mishimoto radiator from CATuned with their hose kit and an electric pusher fan. I'm not sure though if the fan is supposed to sit on the condenser or the radiator though since there's not a whole lot of space between the condenser and the radiator. If anyone has some knowledge about running a pusher fan instead of the regular fan please lmk.

I'm using racegerman to get a bunch of the adaptation parts like the harness adapter, ECU swap bracket, and the re-threaded brown coolant temp sensor. The engine came with a 70* tstat, and I have one of the EZ-bleed tstat housings also from race german.

For engine mounts I got a set of stock IX mounts and aluminum sleeves 10mm OD 8mm ID that I'll have welded up so I can use the stock engine position. I'll have to get some M8 bolts from a hw store to mount to the engine. The OEM IX bolts that secure the mounts to the engine are 55mm & 80mm for the short and long end of the mounts.

I will use an M20 flywheel since I need to re-use the stock transmission and starter. I found a lightweight flywheel on ebay that I need to get shaved down 4-6mm to not interfere with the bolts at the rear of the engine, but I'm not entirely sure where exactly I need to shave down - so if anyone knows please lmk.

Big shout out to TCEuropean for all the help and being there to bounce questions off of, and all of the other kind folks that have helped answer questions.

If anyone wants the parts list lmk and I'll send it over.

[dylhaus]

Finally figured out the thread pitch on the engine mount arm bolts (1.25) so I got a few to mock up the mounts without the sleeves welded. I got the stock lengths of the E30 mount bolts 80mm and 55mm, but they're just a little too long, so I'll get 75mm and 50mm and be set.

For others that will do this swap in the future; YOU CAN USE THE STOCK E30 325IX ENGINE MOUNT ARMS SO YOU DON'T ROTATE THE ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION.

You'll need the following in addition to the OEM E30 mount arms:

• Aluminum sleeves to insert and weld to the mount arm bolt holes - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07W5YXX3N...roduct_details
• QTY:4 M8-1.25 x 50mm Grade 8 or above bolts with M8 washers
• QTY:4 M8-1.25 x 75mm Grade 8 or above bolts with M8 washers
• Disregard the above, the M8 mounting hardware is too weak and runs the risk of shearing. DO NOT USE M8 HW
• Instead, you will need to drill (8.5mm) and tap the block using a M10-1.50 tap (you will need both the starting tap that has a taper and a finishing tap
  • The drilling and tapping is fairly easy, but make sure to use a tapping fluid to help with heat
  • If your drill bit starts to chip, swap to a fresh one, you don't want it to seize and snap in the hole
• M10-1.5 Grade 10.9 HW, 5mm shorter than the original hw

[dylhaus]

Picked up a Megan Racing rear strut brace that they advertised as fitting the ix and it fits! It's the same PN as the regular one they offer for E30, so I suspect other rear strut bars/braces might fit as well.

The plans for suspension are to get the Weichers front strut brace, and then I'm going to take a crack at doing the OEM 23mm E36 M3 front sway bar from this thread w/ Ground Control adjustable sway bar end links, and the 19mm rear swaybar kit from turner. Then refresh the rest of the suspension bits/bushings.

When I was installing my wheel studs, I found that my front right inner CV boot had torn, so I'll be replacing all of them while they're off the car during the swap

[moatilliatta]

Mcmaster.com > Amazon. GLWB

[dylhaus]

Just got word from Classic Daily that my pan will be made this week, which is very exciting. Hoping for it to arrive next week so I can get started.

In regards to using the single mass m20 flywheel with the G260 trans on a S50 swap, when shaving it down, is it best to just shave down the area hitting the rear main seal bolts, or should I just take down the whole back side a few mms and re balance?

[dylhaus]

Pan is being shipped this week finally and the other accessories are delayed b/c the powder coat guy got covid. Going to start pulling the M20 this week and drop the engine mounts off to get sleeves welded

[dylhaus]

[dylhaus]

[dylhaus]

Started tear-down last week:

• pulled axles and saw the CV joint looks damaged on the passenger inner. I have a spare that looks the same way, is the chip/valley intended, or are these unusable now?
• Engine mounts with sleeves are welded up and mounted to the engine

[dylhaus]

I have a few updates on the build

• Front passenger inner CV looks find after cleaning off all the grease, that notch is so you can access a little pinch clip. Both of the axles I have look like they are going to be a huge PITA to remove
• started front end tear down last week and was able to get all of the suspension removed and began getting the engine prepped for removal
• Unfortunately found a hole rusted through in the floor somewhere under one of the shields which I'll fix before getting everything back together
• Being in Arizona means that I don't usually have to fight the elements (other than heat) when it comes to working on cars, so this is my first experience working on something that lived in Michigan, Colorado, Indiana, etc and man does it make things hard to remove!

I'll post some pictures tonight after I get home from work

[dylhaus]