M20 Repair/Upgrade Suggestions

[eeeealmo]

Hey everyone,
I'm new to the forum so please go easy on me. I've always heard that this was the place to go for all your E30 needs so I'm hoping someone can give me some suggestions. I'll start off by admitting I don't know a lot about cars and a majority of my work is done by a shop I know really well and trust. I simply like driving my E30.

I have a 1988 325iS with about 170k miles on it. I've been putting a lot of work into it to get it restored and now I'm thinking about having some engine work done, although I'm not sure what to do.

I recently did a leak-down test and all of the cylinders were between 10-14% and one was at 22% lost. What I can't decide on is if I should just replace all the seals or do something more drastic like the 2.7L swap from the 325e or maybe even a new motor all together (S52). Again, not knowing very much about cars, are there kits or places I can go to which will handle getting all the parts I need in order to do some sort of swap? I would love to put an S52 in my car but I would have no idea where to get all the necessary parts (or even what I would need).

What do you guys recommend or suggest? I appreciate all the help.

P.S. Here are some pics of my car

[ADEN]

hi this me 320i
ur e30 is sooo cool

[eeeealmo]

[ATTACH]10536[/ATTACH]
hi this me 320i
ur e30 is sooo cool

thanks! :)

[funcrew]

Welcome to R3V! Your car really looks good - makes me want to sink mega bucks into plastic bumpers for my convertible.

re: your question: If you end up doing a swap, this forum is about the best source of info out there. On the other hand, most swaps are either done by guys that are expert mechanics, or turn-key by a few shops that do that kind of work, for big money. Not a simple project, especially if you get away from the M20 family of engines that came in this chassis.

Good luck!

[bwanac]

First off what is done to the car so far?

If you like driving the car, a swap is not necessary IMO. I would think a good rebuild of the current engine would be suitable. If you have a good suspension set-up (or rather to your liking) and a nice fresh m20 I think that would be enough for day to day enjoyment.

Now, if you have money to blow and time to spare, a swap would be all the more unique and fun! And if you are doing a swap, go all out and do the s50. :p

Of course, it may be wiser to go with the rebuilt m20 and invest that swap money into something like driver school or somewhere to get some real education on driving and the like.

Just my current (sleepy) thoughts.

PS. The car looks awesome, wish it was mine!

[Cream]

that car is clean looks just like my car without the rims but I was thinking of getting black with polished lip on red looks clean now i need some rims =D, if its all stock I'd say new shocks and springs, I'm new to e30 too but it made the driving much better stock was just too rocky. Just ordered some sway bars too so that should help with some body roll too. I believe in suspension before power though

[eeeealmo]

First off what is done to the car so far?

If you like driving the car, a swap is not necessary IMO. I would think a good rebuild of the current engine would be suitable. If you have a good suspension set-up (or rather to your liking) and a nice fresh m20 I think that would be enough for day to day enjoyment.

Now, if you have money to blow and time to spare, a swap would be all the more unique and fun! And if you are doing a swap, go all out and do the s50. :p

Of course, it may be wiser to go with the rebuilt m20 and invest that swap money into something like driver school or somewhere to get some real education on driving and the like.

Just my current (sleepy) thoughts.

PS. The car looks awesome, wish it was mine!

So far, a majority of the work has been cosmetic but I had the cylinder head rebuilt, it has bilstean shocks/eibach springs, supersprint exhaust, and those custom e30 wheels (which i got on ebay). I had it repainted as a college graduation present. That, on top of all the other miscellaneous up-keep shit

[Court M3]

rebuild engine, and fresh suspension and that's all that car needs.

[e30cbe]

if ur looking for more grunt then a stroker would be a good option - am looking at doing one myself.
U have a very nice looking car !:up: