Turboing a 325 e?

[SpeedDemon_e30]

I might be able to get a 5 TD exhuast manifold for dirt cheap. I think it fits on my e but im not sure? Is this ture? If so. What else would i need to finish out my turbo.. dont ask why i want to turbo the E . I just want to. THANK!

[Jordan]

Turboing a eta is stupid. As soon as you start to build boost you hit the rev limiter.

524TD manifold flows like shit, and does not bolt up to a m20 head. It requires many new stud holes to be drilled in it.

Lets see... you "have" a manifold, so you just need "everything else" ($2-3k) for parts.

[Pat W]

there is plenty of info on the site about turboing m20's and what you need...other than that a turbo e would be full of torque but whouldnt rev high enought to make any good power!

[James Crivellone]

lets see, to build a turbo motor correctly


complete head rebuild
o-ring the block
524td crankshaft (you can use the m20b25 bottom end if you want)
new bearings, seals, etc
aftermarket fuel management
custom wiring, different sensors, etc
the actual turbo itself
manifold adapters for the stock m20b25 manifolds, or aftermarket manifolds
custom exhaust all the way back
larger injectors
aftermarket ignition
larger clutch (if you start making tons of power)
crankcase breather
custom piping and molding if you want to be intercooled
perhaps different connecting rods and different pistons depending on what kind of displacement you want to have

and thats just scratching the surface. If you want easy horsepower, build an M50 or drop in an S50.

I've seen and ridden in an e30 turbo car, its far from simple.

that said, the only part that is worth it off a M21 TD engine is the crankshaft itself, the rest is garbage

[SpeedDemon_e30]

James Crivellone thank you for taking the time to type all that up..

[hotghias]

lets see, to build a turbo motor correctly


complete head rebuild
o-ring the block
524td crankshaft (you can use the m20b25 bottom end if you want)
new bearings, seals, etc
aftermarket fuel management
custom wiring, different sensors, etc
the actual turbo itself
manifold adapters for the stock m20b25 manifolds, or aftermarket manifolds
custom exhaust all the way back
larger injectors
aftermarket ignition
larger clutch (if you start making tons of power)
crankcase breather
custom piping and molding if you want to be intercooled
perhaps different connecting rods and different pistons depending on what kind of displacement you want to have

and thats just scratching the surface. If you want easy horsepower, build an M50 or drop in an S50.

I've seen and ridden in an e30 turbo car, its far from simple.

that said, the only part that is worth it off a M21 TD engine is the crankshaft itself, the rest is garbage

Are you afraid that someone will actually turbo an eta someday? I don't claim to know more than you, but i do know that a lot of that is not truly necessary for a simple turbo system. i get the feeling he wants to do this simply and cheaply, not the high dollar 'best' way. and this can still be done without blowing up an engine as long as you don't get greedy with the boost.

complete head rebuild? o-ring the block? new bearings and seals? i'm sure it would help, but if your engine is in good condition to begin with, this isnt that big of a deal. maybe a new head gasket and head bolts.

524td crankshaft? different con-rods/pistons? aftermarket fuel management? custom wiring? different sensors? aftermarket ignition? the crank is just plain not necessary. yes, you need fuel/spark management, but you can pull off low boost with larger injectors and an FMU.

this is what i think he wants/needs to hear:
first, you will need to know how to weld, and have the proper equipment.
you can make your own manifold with some weld-el's, or adapt the td manifold, you can get a small turbo (for an eta, a small turbo is not a big deal- you want it to be small so you can spool early, well befor eyou hit redline) and an intercooler from an eclipse or volvo or saab, or ebay. eclipse BOV, make your own downpipe, have a shop fab up a simple exhaust, make your charge piping with a few mandrel bends from JC whitney, use a FMU and some slightly larger injectors. you'll need some guages, some plumbing for oil, etc. i probably forgot some small stuff, but whatever, you get the picture.

go to www.bimmerjim.com for some ideas. he and diego had very simple setups to begin with. granted, they ran into problems, but you can learn from thier mistakes. there's no reason you can't do this.

[James Crivellone]

lets see, to build a turbo motor correctly


complete head rebuild
o-ring the block
524td crankshaft (you can use the m20b25 bottom end if you want)
new bearings, seals, etc
aftermarket fuel management
custom wiring, different sensors, etc
the actual turbo itself
manifold adapters for the stock m20b25 manifolds, or aftermarket manifolds
custom exhaust all the way back
larger injectors
aftermarket ignition
larger clutch (if you start making tons of power)
crankcase breather
custom piping and molding if you want to be intercooled
perhaps different connecting rods and different pistons depending on what kind of displacement you want to have

and thats just scratching the surface. If you want easy horsepower, build an M50 or drop in an S50.

I've seen and ridden in an e30 turbo car, its far from simple.

that said, the only part that is worth it off a M21 TD engine is the crankshaft itself, the rest is garbage

Are you afraid that someone will actually turbo an eta someday? I don't claim to know more than you, but i do know that a lot of that is not truly necessary for a simple turbo system. i get the feeling he wants to do this simply and cheaply, not the high dollar 'best' way. and this can still be done without blowing up an engine as long as you don't get greedy with the boost.

complete head rebuild? o-ring the block? new bearings and seals? i'm sure it would help, but if your engine is in good condition to begin with, this isnt that big of a deal. maybe a new head gasket and head bolts.

524td crankshaft? different con-rods/pistons? aftermarket fuel management? custom wiring? different sensors? aftermarket ignition? the crank is just plain not necessary. yes, you need fuel/spark management, but you can pull off low boost with larger injectors and an FMU.

this is what i think he wants/needs to hear:
first, you will need to know how to weld, and have the proper equipment.
you can make your own manifold with some weld-el's, or adapt the td manifold, you can get a small turbo (for an eta, a small turbo is not a big deal- you want it to be small so you can spool early, well befor eyou hit redline) and an intercooler from an eclipse or volvo or saab, or ebay. eclipse BOV, make your own downpipe, have a shop fab up a simple exhaust, make your charge piping with a few mandrel bends from JC whitney, use a FMU and some slightly larger injectors. you'll need some guages, some plumbing for oil, etc. i probably forgot some small stuff, but whatever, you get the picture.

go to www.bimmerjim.com for some ideas. he and diego had very simple setups to begin with. granted, they ran into problems, but you can learn from thier mistakes. there's no reason you can't do this.

Of course there are inexpensive ways to do this, however I see a turbo project as an excuse to rebuild the motor and "prepare" it for the boost.

Diego and Matt I know did turbo swaps on low funds, and they did a fantastic job. I beileve that taking it a step further will avoid headaches down the road.

The path that I posted above is the route I am taking, and I am also coming from an ETA. an ETA itself is not designed the rev, the stroke itself does not help its ability to rev to 7K.

at that point you gotta replace the valve springs with duals, replace the cam, otherwise the valves are floating above 5k rpm.

the compression ratio is not bad for turbo, but to be honest that is about all that makes me even consider turboing a stock eta motor.

Also keep in mind that most eta motors are around 160K miles and up, and they have been reving 4800 - 5200 for all 160K of that, you start shoving air down those chambers at a decent PSI and something is going to break, this is why most people do not have great success with installing an I head on an ETA engine, the compression goes to shit, and so does the reliability of the motor.

Diego and matt have also had issues with reliability, which is why it looks like I am throwing money at it, because I honestly am. My goal is a 100% rebuild 2.8L engine, and a fresh turbo, gotta start out clean yah know :)


but to each his own :up:

[hotghias]

without megasquirt or other standalone, he won't be able to rev his eta past stock redline anyway, which is the reason for a small turbo... build boost around 2 grand or earlier.

he would need to keep boost at 6psi or less with only an FMU. i think it could be done reliably.

of course, and no offense intended to speeddemon, the chances of him actually turboing his eta are really really small, judging by how "general" (not extremely well researched) his question is, and since lots of people seem to ask about it and then nobody does it.

shoot, i have an eta, maybe i should do it, if i can incorporate it into my senior thesis for Mech. E. or something.

[James Crivellone]

without megasquirt or other standalone, he won't be able to rev his eta past stock redline anyway, which is the reason for a small turbo... build boost around 2 grand or earlier.

he would need to keep boost at 6psi or less with only an FMU. i think it could be done reliably.

of course, and no offense intended to speeddemon, the chances of him actually turboing his eta are really really small, judging by how "general" (not extremely well researched) his question is, and since lots of people seem to ask about it and then nobody does it.

shoot, i have an eta, maybe i should do it, if i can incorporate it into my senior thesis for Mech. E. or something.

For low boost, it is certainly possible, I plan on running above 9PSI, so in my case I need aftermarket anyway.

for a low boost application, I would not mind seeing what they could do

[Pat W]

so james how are you going to build your 2.8? are u going to use the e bottom end and use the I head and t/b with the I computer......im thinking of doing that but it would probably be cheaper if i bought an I motor and did the TCD kit!

[Ryan Stewart]

Having driven an Eta motor for 4 years I can say that its not a good idea to turbo it. Yes its a reliable engine and you can get a tiny turbo to make power at low RPM but for what you are looking at is spending M50 swap money on M50 swap horsepower. Now that doesnt sound bad but the catch is that is the limit. You cant go higher without risking the motor or having to rebuilt it to better suit higher boost for higher HP.

You could swap in a 325i M20 or M50 and have a much more effective platform to start with. Those motors are not goign for much. You could do a M20B25 swap for a HELL of a lot less than a turbo.

[diegom6]

hey buddy, want some really help even when you are trying to make a turbo in a "e" motor, well, go to www.e30tech.com has a turbocharged section, best forum for turbocharged e30s arround north america....we are like 14-15 members turboeds lol!!!

[James Crivellone]

so james how are you going to build your 2.8? are u going to use the e bottom end and use the I head and t/b with the I computer......im thinking of doing that but it would probably be cheaper if i bought an I motor and did the TCD kit!

I block, 1mm overbore, 85mm 8.5:1 comp pistons, M20B25 Con Rods, M21 Crankshaft
I head, Megasquirt Fuel Management, Mustang 5.0 Injectors.

[SpeedDemon]

Propably right. I will not do it for awhille but i still need the info. And i will be doing it . I probably will not even be going over 6 psi. IF i do want to go over 6 psi i will be putting a differnet engine .. Still thanks for all the info!

[matt325is]

James is right on his first post, he said to do it "correctly" you should do it this way. There are ways around the major stuff, but really, if you want reliability, dont do it cheap, like what i did at first. From the mouth of Mike Swale "Do it right or do it twice." I'm ending up doing it almost twice... I plan on o-ringing my block next summer so i can support a LOT of power, also installing the EDIS system for megasquirt to control igntion.
To o-ring, i need to tear apart my block again, might as well buy new bearings... its like rebilding it over again...

Stock ECU can only support up to around 24lb/hr injectors, and those wiht an FMU will only support up to 9-10psi, until you get detonation. But if you only want low boost, it should be fine.

I would highly suggest you learn how to weld, if you dont already, you will save BIG bucks. I spent 600 to have my first exhaust made, and i spent 100 making my second one doing it myself, and it flows SOO much more...

good luck,

matt