What does it take to get an N/A M30 to 300hp?

[euroshark]

I don't know why I'm asking, but why would you want 400hp in an E30? I already know that you would never need 400hp in an E30, but why do you want that much? It's just gonna be a grenade...

[bimmer_adam69]

ya your definitely playing with some sort of fire haha

good luck on your pursuit of 400..just be carefull!

mmm tcd's turbo kit...maybe i should start with mastering a stock m30 first let alone finish the swap haha:p

[Firestorm]

400hp is just the beggining! :)

[ldsbeaker]

I don't know why... BECAUSE.

No, srsly, I need to get my swap done, then I want to see about the TCD S2 kit...
My original goal was 1hp for every 10 pounds, but 300hp just sounds a bit, I don't know.. not enough. I guess we'll see.
(then again, I did drive the new 335i.. and that was MORE than enough.)

[Jean]

500hp or bust! j/k ;)

[Garageaholic]

How much work was it and how difficult to bolt it on?

Depends on the exhaust setup you desire....

But overall, I had to change the injectors which wasn't that bad, the tubing an installing the turbo wasn't too bad. I had to get a new passenger side motor mount bracket fabricated (TCD did that for me free of charge). Mount the AFM with a custom bracket I had made. Drill into the intake manifold for Vacuum lines to the wastegate. Drill for oil line supply and return... what else was there....

Oh yeah, install the chip, the gauge (my preference, you don't NEED a gauge), and tuning it. TCD let me borrow their wideband O2 kit.

[bimmer_adam69]

nice, thats all in my range..i think lol

hey franks got any pics of your setup??

[Garageaholic]

yeah, check out the other threads i started back in january/ february timeframe where I highlighted my turbo setup... alot of pics are there

[Mike325]

Frank, how is the reconstruction going?

[Garageaholic]

It's almost done. I have a couple more coats of paint. i'll start a thread the end of this weekend with pictures from beginning to end....

[Mike325]

It's almost done. I have a couple more coats of paint. i'll start a thread the end of this weekend with pictures from beginning to end....

Oh, good.

[NomadE30]

I don't know why I'm asking, but why would you want 400hp in an E30? I already know that you would never need 400hp in an E30, but why do you want that much? It's just gonna be a grenade...

400hp is not a want it's a need. Seriously why does anyone want more then stock HP? Because we like going fast, we like to say we have XXXhp and then some ricer says they have more, you race and they then discover they need to look at Weight:Power ratio. I think 300hp would be more then enough for me, but i am going to get as much as possible. lol

[euroshark]

I guess I can understand your lust for power, but in the end, a 400hp E30 is going to be a handful and not very enjoyable I think.

The E30 is endowed with a short wheel base, RWD, balanced handling, and light weight, it's a sporty little car, not a dragster. Stuffing a 400hp turbo M30 into it will basically limit what and where the car can be used it seems... Highway would be alright, assuming you could keep it slow enough. Twisty roads, forget it! When that wall of torque hits because of the M30 + turbo, your E30 is gonna be piled right into whatever is on the side of the road. Auto-X won't be very easy either, because you can't really fit huge enough tires under the E30 to harness that kind of power.

Naturally aspirated 335is are a handful because of the torque, so adding a turbocharger to that just seems a little bit silly. If it were me, I'd strip the car down to a comfortable level (maybe keep some sound deadening and carpet) and do a few mods to get the M30 up into the 240 to 250hp range. It will still be drivable, though caution will still be important while exiting corners, and it won't be too fast for itself.

[ldsbeaker]

the more I think about it, the more I think about how long it took me to get "used to" this car. It's an eta, so smooth driving and momentum has been my friend. I think just having the swap (plus a chip) done will keep me happy for a little while at least, then if I still feel like I need more... TCD S2 here I come!

[Jonsku]

Pretty much the thread title...

I was thinking wild cam, piggyback, headers, raised compression, adjustable cam gear, and perhaps a MAF swap.

Anybody think that'd be enough for 300hp at the crank? And if not, what else do you think may be required?

As Jay said in the first post: "S38" - 3.6 litres and 314hp.

M88 (which is basically an M30 with ITB:s and 24v head) produces 286hp.
M30 based race-engines made 260-280hp on the '80:s, Alpina / AC Schnitzer / Hartge - tuned engines make 250-260hp. Getting 300hp out of M30 with sensible money is impossible.

You can get around 250hp out of M30 "easily" but even that costs lot of bucks, everything forward from there costs big bucks.

S50, M88 or S38 is the way to go if you want +300hp N/A.