E30 S50 swap

[EtaSport]

WhiteE30: we have bought from vob before, and my car has been serviced there years ago. Havent been there in awhile. Maybe I will ride down sometime this summer.

M50Webber: yea, roadfly just popped into my head. I have looked there, but not a whole lot and I have seen deals on some good stuff.

Okay, now the question everyone wants to know..... What is it like driving an e30 with a m50 in it? Sorry stu, you dont county because your motor is amazingly awesome, and i want to know how a bare-bones m50 makes an e30 run. I obviously dont expect to outrun m3s, but how much more efficient and powerfull is it compared to m20?

[e30Matt]

From what I've heard, a bone-stock 2.5 will keep up with E36 M3s.

[mdistel]

If your near Cleveland OH stop by and I'll let you experience my E30 M50.

Mark

[graphik]

From what I've heard, a bone-stock 2.5 will keep up with E36 M3s.

i dont think its quite that fast. i drove an e30 m3 with an m50b25 in it, wasnt that amazing.

[sidewaysdave]

matt(e30Matt) are getting your M50 from MCI Enterprises?

Dave

[Stu]

My dads old '84 318i with an early 2.5L and close-ratio gearbox ran dead-even with his buddies full-on 2.5 S14 E30 M3's at the track. The M3's couldn't walk away from him, and he couldn't walk from the S14's.

A 3.0L in an E30 will absolutely destroy E36 M3's.

George, those motor weights probably include the flywheel. The M/S50 flywheel stock is around 27 pounds. There is no reason for a US S50 to weigh more than an M50. I think the info you have on the S50 is for the euro, 6-throttle version.

[e36sport]

Stu can you elaborate on that a little more? Was the 2.5 stock? What sort of suspension was that 84 running. I've seen full-on S14s with 285hp...how full on was this?


I'm a newbie and not trying to flame or anything, but I find that a little hard to believe.

[M50Webber]

I do, however, have a few items to lighten up the front end, including an aluminum flywheel (-12 pounds) and lightweight stainless manifolds (-8 pounds).

Stu -

Did you have to custom make the manifolds? The exhaust is the only part of this swap I am not prepared for... Have you got pics, or do you have suggestions for what needs to be done with the downpipe in order to get it to clear the crossmember?

Thanks for any help.

Chris

[Stu]

I do, however, have a few items to lighten up the front end, including an aluminum flywheel (-12 pounds) and lightweight stainless manifolds (-8 pounds).

Stu -

Did you have to custom make the manifolds? The exhaust is the only part of this swap I am not prepared for... Have you got pics, or do you have suggestions for what needs to be done with the downpipe in order to get it to clear the crossmember?

Thanks for any help.

Chris

M50's up until 1995 used cast-iron manifolds that are ugly IMO, always rust, and are heavy. In '96, BMW switched to stainless tubular manifolds on all the 6's. They are 8 pounds lighter than the cast manifolds, plus they look a lot better.

[Stu]

Stu can you elaborate on that a little more? Was the 2.5 stock? What sort of suspension was that 84 running. I've seen full-on S14s with 285hp...how full on was this?


I'm a newbie and not trying to flame or anything, but I find that a little hard to believe.

The old 318 had a non-VANOS M50 with a chip, intake, and custom exhaust. Other than that, it was stock. It was mated to a dogleg gearbox and 3.64 rear end, so the whole package was pretty impressive, especially in 1992, it being the first M50 E30 in the US at the time. It didn't make much peak horsepower, but the complete package made for an impressive car. He ran RD springs, Koni shocks and RD sways.

Jep Johnson was one of the other instructors that he used to hot-lap with at DE's. Jep's E30 M3 had an E3 spec 2.5L (not full-on, pardon my terminology, but well prepared).

yadda

[e36sport]

Oh, yeah I've heard of Jep. Thanks for the details Stu. It sounds like a mean machine.

[WhiteE30]

EtaSport: You should come down and check out the new building. I assume you know about us tearing down the old fuddruckers building and adding on to our additional building. It's nice.
grk325: Who here do you know that's capable of doing the swap. I've talked to a couple of them here. Nobody lined up to offer to do it. I'll ask a couple other people that I didn't before. But just know that it's going to take me a little while to save up for the parts to have it done. Plus, I'm not the most mechanically inclined person in the world. I only work in parts.

[inLine6]

WhiteE30 -

I live in NOVA and will be doing the swap as soon as my car gets out of the bodyshop, hopefully within in the next month or so. I'll find out more friday when I go down there.

I'll be putting a S50 in an E30 M3...

[grk325]

just look for the craziest technician their and your right he may not do it...due to the fact that brain changed the rules and said no side jobs(thats what i heard the last time i was there)..unless he would do it at his home

the other mechanics probably wouldent do it because they are not really capable of
doing it..the s50 is not built for the e30 adn they do not want anything to do with it...the car is old....

some reasons why they wouldent do it

its best for you to ask im not going to give you his name..ask around
its alot of work and for him to do it it would cost you $$$

best bet is pro imports

i just about know every one at vob
you would know carlo porter(newbie to e30 also,only bought it to be like randy sparre) :roll:

[e30Matt]

matt(e30Matt) are getting your M50 from MCI Enterprises?

Dave

No, I was originally going to get one from MC, but my friend Will called dibs on the one motor they had there, and it was a VANOS motor anyway. I'm getting mine from my friend Wes Camping (whakiewes).