1992 E34 525i Touring with S52 + 5 spd Swap

[JIMBOkye]

For sale is my BMW 1992 525i Touring with an E36 M3 S52 motor and 5 speed transmission swap. Looking for $5,500 (but negotiable). Located in eastern PA, near Allentown.

This wagon has been my daily driver for about 1.5 years. I bought this car with the motor swap already complete. The car is very high mileage, but does not show it. No rust anywhere, mechanically very sound, the interior is in great shape. The paint is not the best, and there are several dings, dents, and scrapes.


Mods:
-Motor and Trans: the motor and trans are out of a 96 E36 M3. The M/S50 intake was swapped on and it was converted over to OBDI. Motor and trans have 120,000 miles. (swapped 30,000 miles ago)
-Lightweight flywheel
-Coil-overs all around
-Braided SS brake lines all around, Stoptech rotors and pads (this things brakes are awesome)
-Sebring Muffler (car sounds amazing)

The good:
-Winter package, so 3.46 LSD and heated front seats
-Front control arms (top and bottom) replaced
-All steering components replaced or rebuilt in last 2000 miles
-Solid all around, no rust anywhere
-Clutch master and slave along with lines replaced recently
-Tires have plenty of tread, measured 6/32nd's all around
-Interior is surprisingly nice. Carpet and seats are in good shape.
-Working double sunroof!
-Comes with many parts, Bentley manual, extra set of wheels with good tires
-PA inspected until April 2018

The bad:
-Exterior, paint is bad, several dings and dents, some clear coat peel and oxidation (see pictures)
-Brake light out and brake pad warning displayed on the dash, even though both of these are fine. I suspect there is a broken wire on the brake bad wear switch and on one of the brake light returns.
-SRS (safety restraint system) light is on as the steering wheel air bag is not plugged in. The steering wheel was replaced at some point and the new one's air bag plug doesn't match the old one
-LSD is leaking slightly, could use some new seals
-Trans doesn't like to go into 2nd when cold. Once it is warm, no problem. Could use a fluid change.
-Exhaust bangs the bottom of the car when you start on occasion. I replaced all the hangers, this made it a lot better but still happens sometimes, which annoys me...

This car is tons of fun, and is a total sleeper. It handles surprisingly well with little body roll, the steering is very tight now that I have redone it all. Plus it is a station wagon, which is awesome. What other car would allow you to haul 4 friends and 12 cases beer while still being capable of doing burnouts?

This car has been shockingly reliable, and has never not made it home.

If the exterior of this car was in better shape this could easily be a 8k to 10k car (based on other E34 wagons with S52 swaps I've seen). I am selling because I have too many cars and my E30 is enough of a project to keep me continuously occupied....

Please let me know if you have any questions, I'd be happy to discuss and let you take a look. Lots and Lots more pics

I'd appreciate feedback on this post r3v! I have it listed on CL, and several other places...

[JIMBOkye]

Oh, if you are interested my phone number is 610 five nine seven - eight seven seven zero...

[drewyoda]

Saw this on CL this morning. Love it! GLWS

[MR E30 325is]

I see the S50 manifold setup, but did you also install a valve cover from an S50 as well?

The S52 valve cover is a polymer and has the oil fill cap towards the front of the engine.

[Mr. Tasty]

I see the S50 manifold setup, but did you also install a valve cover from an S50 as well?

The S52 valve cover is a polymer and has the oil fill cap towards the front of the engine.

definitely looks like an S50 VC.

[JIMBOkye]

Yes, it's the s50/m50 valve cover

[MR E30 325is]

Always hesitant when someone mentions S52, but the engine appears to be an S50 from the outside. OP, any explanation why the VC was switched as well?

[JIMBOkye]

Honestly no, previous owner did the swap and that move always sort of perplexed me. I have seen others do it though, maybe it has to come when you do the m50/s50 intake.

[MR E30 325is]

Honestly no, previous owner did the swap and that move always sort of perplexed me. I have seen others do it though, maybe it has to come when you do the m50/s50 intake.

I M50 manifolded my S52 back in 2009 and was able to retain the S52 VC.

Thanks for being open about it.

GLWS

[JIMBOkye]

If there are any casting numbers I can snap a pic of or measurements I can take to ease anyone's mind let me know...

[JIMBOkye]

<sale pending>

[E30335i]

There is no issue swapping valve covers as it's the ccv is incorporated in the valve cover while the s52 has the oil separator under the intake. Can do either way. I would buy it without hesitation


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[MR E30 325is]

There is no issue swapping valve covers as it's the ccv is incorporated in the valve cover while the s52 has the oil separator under the intake. Can do either way. I would buy it without hesitation


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sure, never inferred that there was an issue with the actual physical swapping of valve covers.

BMW moved the oil cap towards the front of the engine to avoid the condensation issue that was causing water to dilute the oil in the rear of the engine oil cap setup. I was simply curious as to why someone would 'downgrade' to an older, less beneficial setup. Especially when the S52 already had the updated VC.

From the outside, as it sits, that engine screams S50. Hopefully the buyer does a bit of due diligence to check that it is indeed an S52 as the OP states.

This goes without saying, but S50 =/= S52. I'd be upset if I bought a car thinking it was equipped with an S52, and it turns out to be an S50 after a more thorough investigation.

[e30austin]

Sure, never inferred that there was an issue with the actual physical swapping of valve covers.

BMW moved the oil cap towards the front of the engine to avoid the condensation issue that was causing water to dilute the oil in the rear of the engine oil cap setup. I was simply curious as to why someone would 'downgrade' to an older, less beneficial setup. Especially when the S52 already had the updated VC.

From the outside, as it sits, that engine screams S50. Hopefully the buyer does a bit of due diligence to check that it is indeed an S52 as the OP states.

This goes without saying, but S50 =/= S52. I'd be upset if I bought a car thinking it was equipped with an S52, and it turns out to be an S50 after a more thorough investigation.

They are virtually identical when you run them on OBD1. The power difference between the two on OBD1 is negligible at best. IMHO, it doesn't really matter.

[JIMBOkye]

SOLD - Turns out, and I didn't know this (new owner did), the M/S50 and M/S52 motors have the VIN on the back of the head (or maybe the top of the block). This is not visible on an S52 in an e36, but it is easily visible in an e34, with a small mirror. VIN proved it was a real S52 out of a 96 M3.