BMW 2002 5 Lug Suspension Quandary: E30 M3 VS. Z3 M

[knuklehead92]

i did a 5 lug swap with my 2002
i ended up doing tii struts with 5 series hub and bbk
e30 rear subframe and diff with e30 m3 rear brakes and hub.

you have s14 that wont make much torque to break the stock 2002 diff. just stay 4 lug your making it more complicated. btw i have 17 inch wheels with 255 tires, the front rails have to be notched to get a full turn radius you also have to cut the front bumper to clear the tire.


trust me stay stock. get ie coilovers and maybe a bbk. thats all you need when your running a s14 or m20.

I plan on going supercharged s54 someday.

btw i went e30m3 because the lower offest. e30 subframe is over all wider by 2-3 inches each side i think. better choice in wheels when trying to hide it under the flare

[Todd Black 88]

I remember this thread hazily. Somewhere in europe, right?

I never had the 245 in a car, but I am preparing to use the 265CR behind an M106. I am somewhat suprised to head that there are bellhousings that make the 265 work with an M20. Was this one of those strange ones off a european diesel car or some such?

There was a removable bell housing for the euro 5 series (528e) that came equipped with the CR gear box, and thats how the 265/5 CR dogleg box can be used behind an m20. Theyre harder to find, but the bell housings are out there.

An M106 swap would be so much fun, especially with the 265CR.

A US spec manual 1982 528e has a g265 in it, so it also has the bellhousing for an m20.

[TobyB]

My fab skills are essentially not existent.

Then I suggest the hub swaps in the

http://www.bmw2002faq.com/topic/152078-5-lug-suspension-quandary-e30-m3-vs-z3-m/

thread, and don't mess with the suspension and subframe. And even leave
the steering box- finding a good used one is still pretty easy. AND it works. Well.

Really. Because while the E30 is 20 years and 2 generations newer, it's really
the same car underneath, functionally, and the swaps you propose are a LOT of work.

t

[RCM3]

Why go 5 lug to begin with? If your end goal is a slightly breathed on s14 putting out 215whp, why make your life exponentially harder and go after e30 m3 or e36 suspension?

There are plenty of BBK options for the 2002 already, as well as suspension options that will make you car handle plenty well.

Let me ask you, have you ever been in an s14 or m20 swapped 2002? Have they been properly set up?

Do you have any idea what you are getting into? I'm not trying to bash on you, but something tells me that you have no idea what you want.

Start with the basics, get into a few 2002s that are set up correctly and you'll realize that you don't need to go the lengths that you are suggesting in your original post. A 2002 was pretty awesome right out of the box. There is a reason that people like them so much.

I have not been in an s14 or m20 powered 2002. I do have an idea of what I want however. I was thinking that it would be better to have disc brakes equipped in the rear of the vehicle. Seeing as some go the e30 route to accomplish this (benefiting also by gaining the ability to run larger differentials when the subframe is used also) I just go to thinking. I have the e30 M3 parts an the MZ3 parts sitting around, could I just use either of those in the rear and then gain further by having larger brakes/ bearings/ and the 5 lug too. The front end dreams can into the picture when I began to think of how I could do the front 5 lug to match, an maybe even use the Z3 rack I have laying around.

So essentially this all stemmed from my wishes to have 4 wheel discs, and also some larger brakes when I upped the power levels in the car.

Maybe I am ahead of myself seeing as I have little to no 2002 experience...

i did a 5 lug swap with my 2002
i ended up doing tii struts with 5 series hub and bbk
e30 rear subframe and diff with e30 m3 rear brakes and hub.

you have s14 that wont make much torque to break the stock 2002 diff. just stay 4 lug your making it more complicated. btw i have 17 inch wheels with 255 tires, the front rails have to be notched to get a full turn radius you also have to cut the front bumper to clear the tire.


trust me stay stock. get ie coilovers and maybe a bbk. thats all you need when your running a s14 or m20.

I plan on going supercharged s54 someday.

btw i went e30m3 because the lower offest. e30 subframe is over all wider by 2-3 inches each side i think. better choice in wheels when trying to hide it under the flare

I will keep this in mind, especially now with all the new information people are throwing at me. I guess I thought these swaps would offer many benefits and not so many negative changes to the overall nature of the car.

A US spec manual 1982 528e has a g265 in it, so it also has the bellhousing for an m20.

Thanks for the info and the correction!

Then I suggest the hub swaps in the

http://www.bmw2002faq.com/topic/152078-5-lug-suspension-quandary-e30-m3-vs-z3-m/

thread, and don't mess with the suspension and subframe. And even leave
the steering box- finding a good used one is still pretty easy. AND it works. Well.

Really. Because while the E30 is 20 years and 2 generations newer, it's really
the same car underneath, functionally, and the swaps you propose are a LOT of work.

t

I know its a lot of work, and if the ends dont justify the amount of work needed maybe I will reconsider. Sounds like this swap might be too extreme for what the car will be used for. Ill have to think so more...