318ix

[iXe<30]

Ok, this probably seems stupid to everyone else but i'm curious.

Would it be feasible to pair an m42 with the existing drivetrain of a 5spd ix?

[mkcman17]

not without gobs of money and staggering amounts of fabrication.

[flyboyx]

get it out of your head. without writing a huge dissertation of the difficulties, lets just say it would be very hard to do. certainly not worth any sort of fuel economy gain that might be achieved.

[nrubenstein]

Also, the M20 powered iX is already blindingly slow. Dyno'd seem to suggest that the iX drivetrain costs you an extra 15-20 whp, which seems about right for my butt dyno comparison.

The time and effort involved would be huge, the expense significant, and the final result might not even actually improve economy just because the engine will have to work so much harder.

You would be a lot better off buying a 318is to commute in and driving the iX when the weather is bad.

[nando]

yes, the drivetrain loss on the ix is around 20-25%. an M42 makes maybe 140hp at the crank - you'd end up with something around 100-110whp. it's going to be dog slow, and so underpowered you'lll likely use that extra gas savings just trying to keep the car moving.

the only stock M20 ix dyno I saw put down ~125whp. a normal M20 i car does 140-145. the drivetrain loss is part of why I've decided not to further mod my M20 - breaking 200whp N/A in an ix with an M20 is pretty much impossible.

[iXe<30]

damn, figured..... guess ill have to just deal. thanks guys. well, guess ill have to do the opossite and turbo the m20 xD

[chuckdizzle]

I'd imagine an M42 being less fuel efficient than the M20 (AWD system, added weight, that little motor would be working real hard to get moving) which I don't think can justify the costs and I imagine it'd be a phenomenal amount of money and work to do it.

[The Dark Side of Will]

If you want fuel economy, find an M21 from a E28 524td and swap that into your iX. The M20 driveline hardware should bolt up...

It'll still be slow, of course...

[atmobenzin]

How the fuck is that lot of money? Correct me if I am wrong somewhere:

IX m20 is rear sump? M42 from e36 is rear sump too, isnt it?
The only real problem is the gearbox and driveshaft/central-diff, which doesnt seem to be that big of a deal to me.

Lack of powahh? thats why you tarbo da shit outta dat m42.

And thats have you make e30 better than evo/subaru.



Yeeeeaaah, but ppl who have to ask such questions ain`t gonna do shit anyway.

;)

[nrubenstein]

How the fuck is that lot of money? Correct me if I am wrong somewhere:

IX m20 is rear sump? M42 from e36 is rear sump too, isnt it?
The only real problem is the gearbox and driveshaft/central-diff, which doesnt seem to be that big of a deal to me.

Lack of powahh? thats why you tarbo da shit outta dat m42.

And thats have you make e30 better than evo/subaru.



Yeeeeaaah, but ppl who have to ask such questions ain`t gonna do shit anyway.

;)

The diff is in the oil pan, so you have to modify the iX pan to fit an M42. The gearbox and transfer case will actually bolt up, albeit at the wrong angle.

Is it *that* hard? No. Anything is possible and doable. Is it anything like worth the hassle? No. It'll still be time consuming and expensive unless you have the ability to do all the work and fabrication yourself.

[nando]

Sure you could do it that way, but i dont think the oil pan will be that easy, and you wont be able to have a brake booster. Plus you will still be stuck with a weak front diff.

It would be the same or more as doing an s52 swap, for half the power and a less reliable motor.