'89 316i E30 LS1 Swap Build Thread

[Q8y_drifter]

Did you communicate this problem (collector being to long) with Sikky?

I ask because i had the same issue and they sent me 4 sets of headers before i finally gave up and modified a set. Sikky acted surprised and as if i was the only one to ever pitch a fit over fitment or lack there of.

Nope never spoke with them after I placed my order. Wouldn't have helped much as I'm across the pond and shipping them back would be a hassle to say the least.

[E30Whore]

I don't even call the truck motors an LS

Ouch, that cuts deep lol :nice:

[E30LSX]

I run a 5.3 and willing to bet it will out perform yours. I mean that in a friendly, competitive way of course..:)

[E30LSX]

They technically fit. However to fish the driver's side in between the engine and frame was probably the most difficult part of this swap. Passenger side slides in no problem whatsoever. Drivers side I had to

Massage the shock tower support
Remove valve coils, valve cover and plugs
Loosen engine mounts and pull/tilt engine towards passenger side.

They barely squeezed in with a lot of swearing, hammering and twisting.

The collectors will need to be cut/shortened if you actually wanna drive this thing on a road. They are too long and extend right towards the ground.

Did you communicate this problem (collector being to long) with Sikky?

I ask because i had the same issue and they sent me 4 sets of headers before i finally gave up and modified a set. Sikky acted surprised and as if i was the only one to ever pitch a fit over fitment or lack there of.

[Q8y_drifter]

LOL
I would've gone with a 5.3 if it was actually cheaper. I picked up the cutty's 2003 LS1, the 4L65E, full accessories and a 0411 PCM for about $550 total, while a bare bone Gen III 5.3 long block is about $1000 if you're lucky.

[Reyhan335]

[emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]


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[shiboujin]

Brah, cool kids start with an iron truck block and build from there.

[Reyhan335]

Cheap is a relative term. If you penny pinch, you can do the swap for super cheap. Truck motor, fab parts, etc. But a good base LS motor with almost no fuss isn't cheap at all.

I don't even call the truck motors an LS

[shiboujin]

Cheap is a relative term. If you penny pinch, you can do the swap for super cheap. Truck motor, fab parts, etc. But a good base LS motor with almost no fuss isn't cheap at all.

[Reyhan335]

That's part of why I picked up an 85 cutlass about a month back. Picked up a 5.7 LS1 for it and already got most of the swap parts ready to install. It's gonna cost me about 1/10th of the E30 swap lol

E30 ls swap is $$$$$$$
Hate when people say it's a cheap swap

[Q8y_drifter]

E30s are just so tight. It saddens me how little space there is to work with. I can't imagine someone adding a turbo in the bay with a V8 anything. Call me old, but I like to engineer my stuff so it's easy to work on.

That's part of why I picked up an 85 cutlass about a month back. Picked up a 5.7 LS1 for it and already got most of the swap parts ready to install. It's gonna cost me about 1/10th of the E30 swap lol

[shiboujin]

E30s are just so tight. It saddens me how little space there is to work with. I can't imagine someone adding a turbo in the bay with a V8 anything. Call me old, but I like to engineer my stuff so it's easy to work on.

[Q8y_drifter]

So I rebuilt the rack with new seals, bolted it back in, started up the motor and the POS still pisses fluid. So I picked up another Z3 rack and a non-powered Z4 rack. My guess is the top shaft on the Z3 rack is fucked so I'm swapping it out. If that still doesn't fix it I'm going with a manual Z4 rack.

[Q8y_drifter]

They technically fit. However to fish the driver's side in between the engine and frame was probably the most difficult part of this swap. Passenger side slides in no problem whatsoever. Drivers side I had to

Massage the shock tower support
Remove valve coils, valve cover and plugs
Loosen engine mounts and pull/tilt engine towards passenger side.

They barely squeezed in with a lot of swearing, hammering and twisting.

The collectors will need to be cut/shortened if you actually wanna drive this thing on a road. They are too long and extend right towards the ground.

[E30LSX]

How did the headers line up, did they fit or did you have to modify them?