Another E30 M30 Swap Thread, this time with an 84 318i

[the imitator]

(picture update on page 3, last post.)

That's awesome! I've been on a 15 day work schedule; My good friend has done me a great deed here! I can't thank him enough for getting the ball rolling for me! I have the next 2 days off and I have a books worth to writing, along with some wrenching to do! The rotors will be measured and turned to be true.

I don't have anything else to type, given my exhaustion from work and excitement for progress.

[the imitator]

Another update to come tomorrow, with the engine pulled.
Heres another set of photos tonight. I now have every weld in reinforcement from garagistic, m30 swap mounts, along with Z3 shifter bushings since I am using Z3 components not e30.

here's some more pictures.



3.73 lsd

At one point, this car was driven through a location with fresh asphalt, that will be taken care of.

[marshallnoise]

Awesome! Got to be sweet having access to a lift and a garage.

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[the imitator]

Awesome! Got to be sweet having access to a lift and a garage.

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I couldn't be more thankful for the extra hands, and shop... Lets not even talk about air tools! The lift makes you feel really safe, and comfortable around objects that can kill you/take off limbs, its sort of a bad illusion; but without a doubt still the safest route to go, working on a car.

Another update tonight to come, Motor and transmission are coming out the bottom, separating the trans from the engine to get my single mass flywheel and what not, That g260/6 is going to my good friend, and I'll be using the g265 I have.

I will keep this disorganized thread here just for references for other folks doing the swap, and possibly make a second one in the "project cars" sub forum, that one will have a final parts list, better organized, etc.

[the imitator]

moar pictarz! moar updatez!

Today we dropped the motor out the bottom, separated the g260 from the m30, and found out that I have dual mass not single, doh!
2 oil pan screws were missing, and I was able to back two out by hand, not to mention the engine mounts had some oddball bolts used going into the block.

Any questions, let us know!

Low rider e30


Not a lot of room to work at the fire wall right there, this ended up not working, we hooked around the intake manifold, and used the front hook mount next to the water pump to drop the motor


Here she is, all chained up like she should be! ...


On the ground


In the air, the shell is indeed.. a shell


Engine stand is brand new, geared unit, 1K capacity

[the imitator]

Morning, another update to come; Here's whats goin on...

Confirming we can use a rear subframe out of a 1999 2.8 Convertible z3, Measurements were spot on. Comparison pictures to come.

not that I've meant to.. but it looks like I'm going poly everywhere, motor to diff, CAB's to RTAB's, going with raised subframe bushings since I'm on ground controls. If this setup is too rough I may try OEM with the drivetrain.

No ABS, I have no issues watching the road, texting and driving or any of that BS. Washinton gets plenty of rain and I love driving in it.

I want A/C for beach trips and other joyful activities.

Me and my good friend will do a side by side video on our , he has H&R's and going with all stock bushings. Ill have Ground controls, and all poly, and my rears are 705s, front to be confirmed. We plan to put daily items in the cars and comparing vibes and sound comparison. Although his is late model, my suspension is from an 89.

Rotors have been turned, need to email Ireland engineering and ask what their specs are.

[kronus]

Abs is nice to have when you need it...

What wheels? The z3 2.8 subframe will swap in, but widens your track substantially.

[the imitator]

By the time you need it, it's usually too late, panic breaking doesnt help that situation either.. cant disagree either way.

I've seen pictures of what you're talking about (I think we may be talking about the same thread), but it was also done in conjuction with the z3 trailing arms as well, correct? The Z3 trailing arms from a 2.8 convertible are around 20mm wider on each side.

I sold the axles, kept the torsen 3.15, and z3 driveshaft, and subframe.

[kronus]

oh, you're not going 5 lug? just using the subframe? it's identical to the e30 one in that case, the arms are wider.

[the imitator]

oh, you're not going 5 lug? just using the subframe? it's identical to the e30 one in that case, the arms are wider.

You got it :) Just an updated part I can use
I'll take pictures later, aside from being newer with only 70K on it, it seems to be more beefy, I'll take pictures just so people can have a reference later, whether it is more integral or not.

[Reckless_Havoc]

This makes me super sad. That was my old car. I sold it before I moved to Arizona. A lot of good parts on it. I recovered those seats myself with $900 worth of leather. I built that megasquirt comp, but it was never tested, aside from uploading software and what not. Make sure you vet it out before plugging it in. Glad they'll be going to another car at least.

Would love to hear what caused the accident.

Hey guys, so I am helping out with this project and stealing some parts off the parts car for my M30 swap too. Did some work on it tonight to prep for taking the motor out.

Front suspension and steering rack removed.



GC suspension and BBK off the car.



Also cleaned up the BBS wheels.



This one got curbed and will need some repair.



Rear rotors removed and getting the rear subframe ready to pull out.



Thats all for tonight. Motor and trans will be out before the weekend, more updates soon!

[the imitator]

Alright, made pretty much the rest of the car a tin can, only thing left are doors and various non salvageable bits.

So heres pictures of the Z3 2.8 rear subframe next to the e30 rear subframe, looks just ever so slightly different, and she fits like a glove.





2.5'' to a flo pro max muffler. This sounded pretty dang nice when used on the parts car.


Z3 driver shaft on right, swap drive shaft on the left, big difference.. z3 I am nearly positive we be too short even If I am position 3 with a g265, but we may find a combo that works.


Thought I scored with a single mass flywheel from the m10 I pulled out, but its a smaller diameter, not 240 like we want.


The 2 piece rotors were turned, they look killer! Now to rebuild the calipers, which are easy peasy on the c5 brakes.

[marshallnoise]

Which m10 did the flywheel come out of?

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[the imitator]

an 84 m10b18 L jet, its going up for sale i think

[marshallnoise]

an 84 m10b18 L jet, its going up for sale i think

I thought that was what it was. Were you expecting something different?

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