91 318IS with m20b25 Swap HELP!!!!

[Fcknslo]

so as the story goes.
Just bought an e30 off someone that had a m20 swap in it. the gentleman told me the only reason why its not starting is due to a bad fuel leak it had. my thinking its cranking and its just not getting enough fuel to start I ended up purchasing it.
So, spend the past two days tearing the whole fuel system out and replacing it. now I know for a fact its getting the right amount of fuel pressure but still when I go to turn her on she cranks and starts for literally a second and dies.
I get all Sherlock Holmes on the bitch and figure that whatever the person did before me definitely did some wire splicing and things but did such a horrible job i'm not sure if they are connected correctly or not. he has wires cut all over the place just dangling, the splices are not soldered just hand tied and I feel that it is so close to starting I'm just not sure where to go now. I'm so lost aggravated, yet determined to get this to work. I put this much into it already I can't stop now.
Does anyone know of a thread that shows a diy swap or anything so I know what the hell this kid was trying to do before me. if not any insight on what you may think it is.
fuel pump, filter, lines, hoses, relay have all been replaced.
checked fpr and it is working.

thank you for reading.

[Fcknslo]

bump. please I really need some info.

[FredK]

Can you take a picture of the wiring at the firewall, right next to the fusebox? It's weird that there were THAT many splices necessary.

In the worst case, you can get a used engine wiring harness from a late model M20B25 (not a 1987) and rewire the engine in a couple hours.

[Fcknslo]

well what i'm saying is that this guy had the fuel pump hot wired, not soldered, not steaked just hand crimped together with nothing covering them right next to the fuel tank. he has two major splices next to what i believe is the ecm. one big green wire is spliced into and another green wire that is spliced that runs under the dash to the driver side connected to two other green cables. If i'm not mistaken the cold start valve has been cut as well. I'll take pics of the monstrosity tonight. thanks for the help fred.
Without this running it is really setting me back big time.
I just never understood why if your going to do a job your going to do it half ass. none of these wires are secure and none of them are even safe

[FredK]

Yeah, if you just take pictures of where you can see the splices, that would be great.

I believe you're dealing with a 1987 M20B25 swapped into the 318is, and that is not that easy of a swap to get running properly (and wired correctly).

More than likely, the green wire next to the ECU requires switched power in order for the car to start. If it is part of a three wire bundle that comes out of engine wiring harness, right next to the big plastic connector that plugs into the ECU, you're dealing with an 87 M20. The three wires should be white, black, and green.

I forgot about the 87, it's not that easy to swap it over to later electronics without screwing around with stuff, if I recall correctly. It's easier to just run around 3 extra wires to the proper places and call it a day. Do your power windows work?

[Fcknslo]

Surprisingly yes they do.
If you can elaborate on that plastic peace that goes to the ecu. he has a thicker green wire spliced and one that is spliced to two other green wires under the driver side.
haha how much to have you come out here and fix this? lol

[jlevie]

While this could be a wiring problem, since the engine fires it could just as easily be something that is upsetting the A/F ratio. Like intake leaks.

[Fcknslo]

and where would these intake leaks be located? I'm sure I would have spotted one if I knew b ut this is my first e30. maybe i'm missing something.

[FredK]

Yeah, if the car is stumbling, then that's a pretty good sign. Huge vacuum leaks could cause a car to start and run, but only for a few engine revolutions.

By cold start valve, do you mean the idle control valve, the pill bottle sized thigamajig with a electrical connector at the base, connected to the throttle body boot?

[Fcknslo]

I'm currently away from car but i'll try and find an engine pic with one and relate

[Fcknslo]

no from my knowledge (which is probably completely off) theres a fuel line that goes to the back of the throttlebody from the fpr to the throttlebody. i heard where that line connects is the cold start valve, it shoots more fuel in it when cold. theres a connector near the front end of the car on one of the hoses. the adapter is a blue color metal piece. some what looks like an 02 sensor deal but is snipped. its just screwed in there. ill see what i can dig up.

[Fcknslo]

its actually strange. the way the wiring is all backwards

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/M20B25.jpg

the fpr is in the front of the engine and mine is in the back side.

see the unit all the way to the top left. the black circle thing.
I have one of those spliced wires going directly to there.
another wire going from who knows where to there
and they are just shoved in there. upon finding out what it was i took off the cap and they just fell out of there. i'm sure maybe thats where my loose connection is?

[Fcknslo]

any one else possibly throw me some assistance?