hidden turbo?

[CorvallisBMW]

I've seen those rear-mount systems before, It's an interesting idea. IIRC Hennessy did a turbo SRT8 Grand Cherokee that developed like 1200awhp, most powerful SUV in the world. I'd be concerned about lag though. With so much piping between the exhaust and the turbo, and just as much piping between the turbo and intake, there is a lot of empty space there that needs to be pressurized before the engine sees any boost. Maybe not as big of a problem on a shorter car like an e30, but on a big SUV that's 20ft long? If you've got 4" piping that's over 20 cubic feet (including bends) that needs to be built up to 10psi or so before the engine sees any benefit, not to mention that standard turbo lag.

[CHIF8008]

like wtf is wrong with these po pos!

i kno! i have a euro plate but im afraid of getting it taken away if i wear it up front/along with my US plate. iv had friends that worked at BMW dealerships and they got there plates consivicated. so i put it in my window-they cant take it there, but man its been freakin rediculous

[e30shmobberr]

it sucks. tinted tails, euro plate, no front plate, turbo, supercharger, exhaust, and ride height are all thing you can get a ticket for in CA

[briansjacobs]

all the more reason to live in Florida

[SK20iPPY PB]

I've seen those rear-mount systems before, It's an interesting idea. IIRC Hennessy did a turbo SRT8 Grand Cherokee that developed like 1200awhp, most powerful SUV in the world. I'd be concerned about lag though. With so much piping between the exhaust and the turbo, and just as much piping between the turbo and intake, there is a lot of empty space there that needs to be pressurized before the engine sees any boost. Maybe not as big of a problem on a shorter car like an e30, but on a big SUV that's 20ft long? If you've got 4" piping that's over 20 cubic feet (including bends) that needs to be built up to 10psi or so before the engine sees any benefit, not to mention that standard turbo lag.

Id be more concerned with the placement just based on location nothing to do with immediate performance. That location is corrosion city even with some sort of shield. Cluttering of pipes, plus corrosion is whack. The lag should be TOO big a problem. I wouldnt think you would be the guy to care if you were even considering this as an option.

If you had real boost numbers like 15 and up I doubt the lag would be that big a deal. Those V8s are pretty boss by themselves.

[LowR3V'in]

Yeah big part of the reason they're not laggy compared
if you did that to a 2L 4cyl is because the 5L+ v8 :)

Power will still be the same rear mount
or up front.
right?

[einstein57]

The vette in the sts video did a sub 10 1/4mile

[Supadave]

you guys just got to hear this thing in person

[Hey_You]

If you have seen the PowerBlock shows (SpikeTV) you would have seen where they installed one of the kits on a Vette. From their point of view, there is almost no boost lag, but then again, we are dealing with an engine that already makes 400hp. If you look on their website all their bolt-on kits are pretty much for v8 engines that already make decent power. No need for an intercooler either with sooo much boost piping. I would still prefer a standard setup though

[S4gunn]

Hi,
Some folks recommended I check out this forum b/c of some crazy E30 engine swaps you guys do here but I wanted to register to post about making modded cars California legal.

Here's one route to consider. California does allow for a LIMITED number of kit car registrations (500). Once your car is registered as a kit car, you will then be smog exempt. A buddy of mine camped out overnight on the 31st to get his Kit Cobra reg'd (the donor was a Ford Mustang 5.0). I also believe this is how folks get CA legal Noble M12s.

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/vr/spcnsreg.htm

While it does say that you cannot use this registration to modify a 68 VW bug as long as it still looks like a VW bug, I wonder if you can claim that the late model 330i that your engine came out of was the actual doner vehicle so making it "look" like an E30 BMW would be a significant change...

It's something to dig into.
Good luck.
-g

[u3b3rg33k]

It will still have an e30 VIN...

CA needs a hobbyist plate. WI has it, and it lets you "tinker".

[Hey_You]

...look into registering in Tuolumne county if you are in CA...other than title transfers, some new vehicles, and some new diesels, no smog needed (as in no bi-annual). Just lookin' out for the r3v family (keep this on the DL)

[mr.vang]

just get a 1975 and older and your good to go.

[Hey_You]

...Getting a 75 or older e30 might be tough...

[Massimo]

We have just as much trouble in Australia. If anything is not stock you can get a ticket, you can get a ticket for putting in a basic aftermarket radio with CD player!!! But this is all at the descretion of the po po.

In my old e21 the muffler fell off and it was loud as way over the legal limit, and I got pull into a defect station, so I was shitting bricks.

To add to it I had a aftermarket tach on the dash because my speedo was stuffed and my stock tach jumps so I had no idea what speed I was doing. Being poor at the time I bought the cheap tach and used the rpm and gear to know how fast I was going. The cop had a look at the car up and down and said I was free to go. But I know people who have got done for stickers on there car!

I find being a euro and pre E36 the cops don't know what they are looking at even if they are enthusiats. Especially with the 318is one because they a very rare here and being a half bread between the e36 and e30 they have not a clue what they are looking for.

On saying all of this you can get your modifications legalised by going to a chartered engineer getting approval from him then going to the department of transport and registering your car with the approval from the engineer.

I have not done this before but just about any thing can be legalised, you can legalise a turbo one by up grading suspension, tyres and wat not so the car can handle the extra power and be safe. Then all you need to do is pass an emissions test. The only issue with that is it cost $2500 and if you fail well that is $2500 down the drain.

When I start my project I will sit down with one of these engineers and go through what I would like to do and what he recommends I do so that the car will be street legal and I can rub it in the poo po's face HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!