Head Swap

[chocolame]

I posted earlier about a potentially blown head. As it turns out, one of the head bolts popped and the head OF the bolt was smashed into the head by the cam... Leaving a very large hole. Sad times were upon me but I'm past that now and ready to get this girl rolling again.


Let me start by saying my car is a 1987 325e and an entire "i" engine swap is unfortunately out of the question due to time constraints.


My questions begin here:

If I were to do an "i" head swap, I understand other parts are needed beyond just the head. I've read up on that much. Where I'm getting confused is which head would work with my "e" block. Apparently the 731's and 885's are very similar to the 200's with the exception of valve clearance and bearings to hold the cams. Which head would be best to swap on to my block?

When the head cracked the engine skipped time and the pistons are marked slightly... They don't NEED to be changed necessarily but I'm not opposed to putting new pistons in if its needed. The block has to come out to put a new clutch in anyways...

My second question is: Is it worth it to swap a 731 or 885 on the eta block or just go with the 200 again and put a cam and new springs in it?

Ultimately I want to go FI with a goal of 250-300 in the next year or so... So if I can get that out of the "e" block with another head or just out of an entire "e" setup, that's what I'm going for.

I've found quite a few articles talking about head swaps but none of them are making it clear to me whether I would be better off with a 200, 731 or 885.

Thanks in advance.

[packratbimmer]

200 - back on the road in a flash!

731 - Super fun little torque motor. Hard to find the head, need the manifold and will need a tune. Pretty much need to consider a 1.3 Motronic upgrade though there would be other options.

885 - Will lower compression (unless you swap rods and pistons) a fair amount and you would need all of the 325i parts and the 1.3 Motronic parts.

I would just fix the eta motor, get back to driving, purchase an engine stand and start building your dream engine from a core.

[chocolame]

200 - back on the road in a flash!

731 - Super fun little torque motor. Hard to find the head, need the manifold and will need a tune. Pretty much need to consider a 1.3 Motronic upgrade though there would be other options.

885 - Will lower compression (unless you swap rods and pistons) a fair amount and you would need all of the 325i parts and the 1.3 Motronic parts.

I would just fix the eta motor, get back to driving, purchase an engine stand and start building your dream engine from a core.

That's kind of where I'm standing as well... Thanks for the input. Is there anyone out there that makes cam's for the eta? I'm going to put a few new parts in but I wanted to put a cam in too for giggles. Is there one that I can put in that will swap to an i motor later on? From what I'm reading, cams are universal across the 200 731 and 885?

Thanks

[packratbimmer]

For giggles, I would get a chip for it and have some fun. Summer is here man. You could be back on the road in a week! The eta is transformed with a chip.

[AndrewBird]

An i swap would take about the same amount of time as a head swap. 3-day weekend, 4 at most.

[packratbimmer]

Man - I could change a 200 head in three hours, but I've been doing this for a while - LOL!

[chocolame]

Alright so I went ahead and bought an entire "i" swap. The compression test came out to be:

1- 167
2- 165
3- 175
4- 165
5- 167
6- 162

Are those numbers high? Good or bad?

Thanks

[packratbimmer]

Did you do a head swap or a complete engine swap? Good even numbers - they should get a bit higher after you drive for a while, adjust valves and test while warm. Awesome - that was fast!

[chocolame]

Well I haven't done the swap just yet. Went and saw it run and had a compression test done while it was still in the old car its being pulled from. Glad to hear those numbers are decent!