I bought a 325i swapped with eta engine

[VinniE30]

I just found out today that the "325i" that I bought a couple weeks ago has an eta(2.7L) engine swapped in it. The car is an '89 325i and the VIN number confirms this. The person I bought it from made no mention of the swap and I can't get in contact with him for the life of me. I've never driven an e30 before buying it so I didn't notice that it felt different with all the low end torque and the engine bay looked normal with the i intake manifolds. I didn't notice the different looking valve cover when I bought it.

So should I be :) or :(? After doing a little reading it seems like my car could be making about the same or a little more than a 325i.:D How much power do you guys think my car is making? Again this is a 325i with all 325i parts except the engine itself.(cylinder head is from eta)

Also, is there any way to tell if it's from an eta or super eta?

[xwill112x]

its possible to its a super eta, probly not.

btw, an eta makes no where near the power on an i, even if it does have a bunch of torque.

[kronus]

I just found out today that the "325i" that I bought a couple weeks ago has an eta(2.7L) engine swapped in it. The car is an '89 325i and the VIN number confirms this. The person I bought it from made no mention of the swap and I can't get in contact with him for the life of me. I've never driven an e30 before buying it so I didn't notice that it felt different with all the low end torque and the engine bay looked normal with the i intake manifolds. I didn't notice the different looking valve cover when I bought it.

So should I be :) or :(? After doing a little reading it seems like my car could be making about the same or a little more than a 325i.:D How much power do you guys think my car is making? Again this is a 325i with all 325i parts except the engine itself.(cylinder head is from eta)

Also, is there any way to tell if it's from an eta or super eta?

There is a casting number on the side of the head. We need the last three numbers of it.

Also, does it rev to 5K, 6K, or 7K?

You cannot put an eta cylinder head onto an I motor without a lot of work (valves will make sweet, sweet love to the piston tops), and it would be worse (less aggressive cam profile, smaller valves, smaller ports) even if you did.

[VinniE30]

I think you guys are misunderstanding what I said. The whole engine is from an eta, not just the head.

Will, I thought it would make MORE power since what restricts the eta from being as powerful as the i is all the other parts like intake stuff, exhaust stuff, fuel delivery system, etc. which as I said is all i stuff. The only thing eta is the engine. The whole engine was swapped, not just the head.

[kronus]

I think you guys are misunderstanding what I said. The whole engine is from an eta, not just the head.

Will, I thought it would make MORE power since what restricts the eta from being as powerful as the i is all the other parts like intake stuff, exhaust stuff, fuel delivery system, etc. which as I said is all i stuff. The only thing eta is the engine. The whole engine was swapped, not just the head.

If all that kept the eta motor from being as powerful as an i is intake/exhaust, etas would be worth something. As it stands, the motor itself has significantly smaller head porting, smaller valves, and different cam timing. This has the effect of shifting the power band lower down in the RPM range and changing the whole power profile, which results in more peak torque, but significantly less peak horsepower.

[kronus]

Also, super ETA motors typically have the same valve covers as I motors.

[kronus]

Also also, even with a complete I exhaust system, aftermarket headers, and a chip, my ETA barely scraped 100 wheel hp on a dyno.

[ForcedFirebird]

So let me get this straight. You have a 2.7 block with i manifolds and head, or just the manifolds? You realize someone could have stuck the i badge on it. There's a sticker on the driver's fender, it will list what the car is. It will either say "325e, 325es..." or it will say "325i, 325ic, 325ix, 325is....", it's the sticker that says "Vacuum line routing" or something similar.

Does it have the cold start injector? That's a dead give away as far as weather or not it is the early 1.0, if id doesn't have the cold start injector, then look to see if there's a sensor wire coming off the #6 spark plug wire.

Pics would speak a thousand words ;)

IF in fact it is a 2.7 block only swapped in an i car, it will run like the video linked in my signature since I swapped all the i stuff into my es car, and left the 2.7 block only.

[kronus]

^^ it's an '89, they didn't make ETAs in '89 ;)


some more information, for the sake of making this thread more confusing:

Early I motors were imported into the U.S. as early as 1987, the '87 325i and 325is had diving boards, iS spoilers and front airdams, as well as the small pre-facelift taillights. They were sold concurrently with the 325e, 325es, and 325 (base trim 325e). They ran on Motronic 1.1 ECUs with the last three digits being 153. They had the "roundel" valve covers stock, like the eta.

1988 was the facelift intermediate year. (for everything except the convertible, which stayed pre-facelift until 1991, but always had I motors) This is when they got the big taillights, larger rear valences, plastic bumpers, black window trim, and some other random changes. The eta model was completely dropped and replaced by the "325", known here as the "Super ETA". It had an I block and an I-like head with one-off pistons, single valve springs and a 4-journal cam. This motor was available ONLY IN 1988.

After 1988, e30s were only sold with I motors. (also the M42, yes)

[VinniE30]

Also also, even with a complete I exhaust system, aftermarket headers, and a chip, my ETA barely scraped 100 wheel hp on a dyno.

Damn thats more than 25% drivetrain loss. Thats not normal is it?

[VinniE30]

So let me get this straight. You have a 2.7 block with i manifolds and head, or just the manifolds? You realize someone could have stuck the i badge on it.

The car is(originally) definitely an 89 325i. I looked up the VIN number. So the only thing in the car that is not stock is the engine itself. When I say engine I mean the whole thing as in block + head.

[Wh33lhop]

Damn thats about 25% drivetrain loss from the stock specs. Thats not normal is it?

120bhp/100whp = 5/6 => 17% drivetrain loss. That's normal.

[kronus]

Damn thats more than 25% drivetrain loss. Thats not normal is it?

The motor's pretty tired. I'm actively trying to make it explode so I have a legitimate reason to put something better in.

[VinniE30]

oops I was just changing my post but he should be making more than 120 with the chip, i exhaust, and headers.

[kronus]

oops I was just changing my post but he should be making more than 120 with the chip, i exhaust, and headers.

Subtract 1hp per year of existence (23), it'll be about right.