Ok so I am most likely buying an 86 325 4 door and also a 90 325i 2 door, both are essentially rust free, the 86 has an amazing(although vinyl)interior and 130k mi. The 90 has crappy paint and crappy cloth interior and a bad bottom end but a newly rebuilt head and trans. My question is which car would be the better one to save, and would it be easier to put the head,etc on the eta or transfer the eta block to the i? Also how much of the interior is swappable from 4 to 2 door? THe 325i has about 200k mi on it if that helps. Also do bumpers/any other body parts swap between 2 and 4 doors? I am an E30 newb so any help is appreciated, thanks!
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That is a tough one. There are pluses and minuses for both builds. I personally would be leaning toward the older lower mileage car because you really only have mechanical issues to contend with. A lot of people like to do a stroker motor which it sounds as if you might be able to do fairly easily. It also depends how much money you are willing to throw at it too. I guess in the end you are the only one that can decide where you will spend your money...hopefully you got both cars for free!The difference between porcupines and BMWs is that porcupines have the pricks on the outside! -
Ya, out of the two, I would lean toward the older car, even though i hate diving boards with a passion.
Are they both auto? 5 speed?
SC*AR
Originally posted by JamesE30Comment
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Fix both: you will need a spare
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I like the later cars with the plastic bumpers better but it does appear from your OP that the older is in better condition. You can put you newly rebuilt head one the 2.7 short block but I believe you will need to change the pistons too. The door panels will not interchange from the coupe to the sedan. The doors on the coupe are longer. The rear seat will interchange but they are a little different. The front seats from the sedan will bolt into the coupe but you will not have access to the back seat because they do not fold forward like the coupe seats do. The bumpers from the 1990 will not fit on the 1986 without major work. If you fix the eighty-six you will be stuck with driving boards. With out seeing both cars I would change the pistons on the e short block, mount the i head to it and fix the ninety. This would give you a 2.7 stroker i motor. Not a big difference but every little bit counts.
If I am wrong on anything please correct me.Last edited by madformx5; 05-21-2009, 03:23 AM.sigpicComment
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Well I still have not purchased either of these cars, I feel like the 86 is the better contender and I am really digging the diving boards on the 4-door, with a little bumper tuck I think its a classic look. So the bumpers won't work b/c of the 2dr-4dr difference? Or is it something else? Don't people swap these all the time? Both cars are 5 speeds, apparently the i has a new or re-built trans, I'll be checking documentation on that. In all seriousness the guy with the i tried to offer a trade for my wrecked E36. He wants some of the front end parts but I am def not trading. How about my M52, will it swap into either of these? Most of what I've been doing research for seems to be OBD I S50 or M50 swaps.
Edit:Im already getting shit from the fiance about thinking about these cars, along with the shit she is giving me about r3ving the 328Comment
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Swap bumpers, and head over to early
(refer to sig for plastics on an early model)
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The M52 will swap. Just convert it to OBD1. That is what alot of people do with the s52. I know the m3 cams will fit in the m50 because I have seen an m50 swapped car with m3 cams. I have been told that the head casting for the m50 to the s50 is the same. the only difference is in the valve train. I am assuming the same is true for the m52. All of the info to do the swap is on r3v. You probably already have most of the stuff you need for the swap in your wrecked e36 except for the e34 525i oil pan. The bumpers fitting have nothing to do with the car being a coupe or sedan only what year the car is. Pre 88 cars will not swap from what I have read without bodywork. You are right your bumpers can be tucked. Just pull the bumpers and the shocks then drill through the shocks and compress them. Afterwards, reassemble everything.
If anyone see any errors in what I have written please correct me. I am still learning this stuff too and I might not remember things correctly.Last edited by madformx5; 05-21-2009, 12:12 PM.sigpicComment
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From what I've been reading, the OBD I swap involves finding a complete wiring harness from an OBD I car. I have everything from my car still. I have looked through the twin cam swap area and I couldnt really find anything on a M52 swap. The swap isnt really a pressing issue I would just like to get one of these cars running for a DDComment
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I forgot to mention a plus of the m52 is that the block is aluminium and the m50 is cast iron.sigpicComment
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I think you are right about the harness plus you would need a computer but I am not sure whether it would be an m50 or s50. The harness and computer would have to come from a 1993-1995 325/525i. With this computer and harness you could still run the vanos. You might be able to us an m50 with a custom tune to make it work if it would not work right out of the box. I have read the s50/52 crank will bolt into an m50/52. I think there is some difference in the rod lengh between the m50/52 though. I just read this the other day. Everything I have told you I got off r3v. I have a black 1990 325is that I am thinking about swaping. I have been looking at the m30, the m50/52 and the s50/52. The m30 seems cheaper but it is a bigger, heavier motor.sigpicComment
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