I have an E 30.

[Nader393]

Found this:

[Nader393]

Finally got around to tearing into the engine in my car, to see what it actually has. It was advertised to me, and the previous owner(s) as a Metric Mechanics 2.9L engine. But despite upgrading it myself with over a $1K of bolt-on upgrades (IE long tube headers, and Miller MAF and chip), I only got stock horsepower on the chassis dyno. So lets's see...

First, address the pretty engine:


Hmm... stock rockers, and unsure about the cam till I extract and measure it:

[Nader393]

Now I need to go deeper, and see what pistons are in there. Need to detach the headers before pulling the head. Luckily, I have Gerhard wrenches. They are the only thing that will reach around the tubes to undo the nuts.

[Nader393]

Gotta pull the head to measure the cam and the pistons. This is how you lift the head+intake off the block:

[Nader393]

And now, the pistons. Hmm, not quite the right bore and stroke to make 2.9 or higher displacement. Seems myself, and maybe a prior owner or two were sold a bill of goods.

[Nader393]

Okay, maybe not a Metric Mechanic big bore setup. But look at the script! Can anyone here read Japanese characters? And it's not just one piston. Looks like a matching set! I'm hoping that despite my disappointing dyno readings, and stock-sized piston measurements, that these might still be special, maybe rare high-performance pieces from Japan, wouldn't that be great?!

[Secniv]

I hate to break it to you but I think they are Chinese characters.

Love your post btw.. here have a emoji hope it helps [emoji3][emoji106]


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[2mAn]

A+ thread

[Nader393]

Glad you Jabronis are enjoying this.

As I dig into this engine, it reminds me of the other hacks I found in the chassis. Like this little wire harness jem. Why am I not surprised? And I'm not even showing pictures of the dangling extra crank sensor or speed sensor (who knows?) that was zip-tied to a coolant hose. Fortunately, the extra engine, the bench warmer that is now my starting quarterback, came with an intact harness, so I'll use that instead.




Oh, and this. I found a Taiwanese 1/4" drive 13mm socket lodged in the power steering pump's bracket. I am SO NOT SURPRISED to find an undersized cheap tool left behind in the assembly of this car. To right a wrong, if someone buys this car from me, they can expect to find high-quality, beefy American-made Snap-On pieces. Maybe even a curvy Gerhard wrench behind the headers!

[Nader393]

Speaking of cheap tools (and hypocrisy), check out how I lower property values in my fancy neighborhood. Everything is there; Harbor Freight hoist, blue tarp, plywood, dead lawn, rusty 4X4... only things missing are cinder blocks under the car instead of the fancy lift. Anyhoo, neighbors can thank me later when their pleasantly-lower-than-expected property tax bills are due.

The story behind this crappy Harbor Freight hoist is that I bought it to relieve my wife from having to pick up the front end of my race motorcycles when I had to remove the wheel to change tires. She's strong like bull! Wish I had a picture of it. These are some of the bikes.



So for the last ten years, lifting motorcycle front ends was all the only use I've had for the hoist. Until now! Check out how effective the load leveler can be.

[Nader393]

Job is incomplete until this happens: Obligatory man-in-engine-bay shot. Had to obscure my face because I am incredibly handsome for a middle aged guy, and I can't have the general public's girlfriends and wives stalking me... again.

For this picture, just imagine an incredibly handsome, swarthy middle aged guy, with a smirk of m20 extraction satisfaction.

[Nader393]

I continued to dig into the engine I removed from the car. When I pulled the intake manifold off the head, these were the untouched gasket arrangements that greeted me. Check out the inlet restrictors on cylinders #1 and #5. :cockbloc: Like I said before, I'm not really surprised anymore. At this point, it's almost funny.

[e30austin]

FWIW, "idanity", on here, is the previous owner of your engine. "idanity" had a cabrio, that he crashed and was parted out by "robert1700", who sold the engine to Evan (who had the car before Hank). Maybe "idanity" can shed some light on what the setup is/was.

https://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=302633

[2mAn]

Job is incomplete until this happens: Obligatory man-in-engine-bay shot.

For this picture, just imagine an incredibly handsome, swarthy middle aged guy, with a smirk of m20 extraction satisfaction.

I managed to unfilter the face...Ive seen this face before...

[Nader393]

FWIW, "idanity", on here, is the previous owner of your engine. "idanity" had a cabrio, that he crashed and was parted out by "robert1700", who sold the engine to Evan (who had the car before Hank). Maybe "idanity" can shed some light on what the setup is/was.

https://www.r3vlimited.com/board/sho...d.php?t=302633

Thanks for that, Austin! (Am I supposed to shout your name?)

I was in contact with Evan soon after I acquired the car, and he told me he wasn't sure that this was actually a Metric Mechanic engine, that he regretted that he didn't have any documentation to prove it. He unloaded this car to jump on an e30 M3 deal, and had no reason to look back.

But somehow, the myth perpetuated. Someone out there, before the most recent two or three owners, knowingly screwed someone over. I hope he's reading this. Maybe someone will come forward and clarify this hot mess.

Anyway, the intake manifold, besides the obvious polishing job, seems to also be ported, or at least ground out, and has decent updated 4-nozzle injectors. So maybe the manifold and valve covers were the only holdovers from the mythical MM engine.