M3 Cam installation and should i jump on it?

[Slick Willi]

i can get some m3cams for 100$ should i jump on that deal?

how hard is the install? and how much roughly speaking would a shop charge for this install if i cant do it myself?

[Captain]

Yes its a good deal and my guy did mine for $250 but you probably wont find that price. Maybe like $400 to $500 for the install.

[auto3251]

100dollars! that's cheaper then dirt!

[Slick Willi]

hmmm 500$ is alot i could save up i guess

[Slick Willi]

ttt

oh yea and there is heavy scoring on the exhaust cam journals is that bad?

[hellrot325]

ttt

oh yea and there is heavy scoring on the exhaust cam journals is that bad? Or you could DIY and save some money...

Scoring on cams journals is common, you will also find similar scoring on the ledge caps. The oils is fed from below and the pressue of the valves push the cam into the caps...when i did my HG repair I had heavy scoring. My guess is this is not a problem as the only way people find out is when they remove the cams. You may have a machine shop buff out the high spots but for $100 I would do it. Here is a pic from my cams:

[Slick Willi]

hmmmmm

[Low Level]

How many hours of labor should I expect for M3 cams install?

[T-Rex]

How many hours of labor should I expect for M3 cams install?
10-12 IIRC

[beatniks325]

are these S52 cams or S50's?

[Omniflipatron]

kinda on this topic, which cams would be better, M3 cams or performance ones from a store like Bavarian Autosport?

[PrestoMB]

Jump on those cams!! $100 is cheap as hell. Im looking for S50 cams and the cheapest I found is around $250. Once you get them you can save for labor and take your time. If you change your mind later you can always sell them on here or ebay and I gaurantee you would make a profit.

[robisconfusedd]

are these S52 cams or S50's?
i've heard a lot of debate about which ones are better, what's your opinion on which are better??

[adriver]

Ive been thinkin of this too. What would I have to do after installing them as far as obdI to make sure im running right?

[bmw4wmb]

I just picked up a pair of S50 cams for my pretty much stock M50 motor. When I install them I will also be putting in a chip from Turner Motorsport. They have a chip made exactly for our M50's with S50 cams.

[rawhawk@comcast]

I was told by some in this forum that I could not put S50 m3 cams in my engine M50 in a 92 325i non vanos. What gives does anyone know??
Thanks for your time and trouble.
Rawhawk111

[LuvMy328is]

If you move your intake cam to the exhaust side then pick up an aftermarket intake cam you're good 2 go :) I saw a thread about that somewhere :confused
~Phil

[BMW&PorscheDude]

i can get some m3cams for 100$ should i jump on that deal?

how hard is the install? and how much roughly speaking would a shop charge for this install if i cant do it myself?

No, you shouldn't jump on it...

Let ME jump on it!!! :D

But seriously, you could always buy and hold those cams for installation later. Or just buy then and resell them and make some money. Why is the guy selling them so cheap??? Make sure they're not F-ed up.

Yes, installation will cost you about $500. I'm getting ready for this mod and plan to buy the specialty tools and do a self-install.

Jump on it and good luck!

-Paul

[BMW&PorscheDude]

This is the classic one thing leads to another...

The thing is, when you upgrade your cams, it's more than just a cam install. To get the best benefit, you're gonna want to install an M50 manifold to let your engine breath with the bigger cams. You can get an M50 manifold for about $100, but to get the best install, you're gonna want the Eurosport kit, which is $375.
http://www.eurosporthighperformance.com/intakes.html

Even with the kit, this is not an easy install, so you're gonna hafta pay someone again, probably a few hundred bucks. And once you've spent the money on the cams and the manifold, you're really gonna want to buy the Eurosport OBDII software upgrade matched for this combo, $645
http://www.eurosporthighperformance.com/chips.html

And then when you look at the cost of all these mods, you think, man, I should just go FI... that's about where I am.

Now you know and there you go. Now go to work so you can save up for all these mods!

Good luck!

[bmw4wmb]

Yes, installation will cost you about $500. I'm getting ready for this mod and plan to buy the specialty tools and do a self-install.

-Paul
So when you say $500, are you talking about the price of the tools or the labor?

If tools, which specialty tools are you buying and where from?

I soooo want to do this myself, but after looking at the prices of the "special tools" involved (mainly the cam removal tool itself) I figured I'd have to rent the tools somehow or actually have a shop do it.

That is unless you plan on not using the removal tool, as referenced on the Pelican Parts website.

[TC535i]

My girlfriend (94is) will probably have some S50 cams available soon, ~140k on them IIRC. She's going with a Sunbelt setup.

[BMW&PorscheDude]

So when you say $500, are you talking about the price of the tools or the labor?

If tools, which specialty tools are you buying and where from?

I soooo want to do this myself, but after looking at the prices of the "special tools" involved (mainly the cam removal tool itself) I figured I'd have to rent the tools somehow or actually have a shop do it.

That is unless you plan on not using the removal tool, as referenced on the Pelican Parts website.

About $500 is what you would pay a shopt to do it. Drop off you car and pick it up later, better, stronger faster...

I have not swapped out E36 cams before, but plan to research, read, learn and wrench. I have not gotten gathered all the info yet, but do a search on cam swap DIY and I'm sure you find all kinds of info. Also, invest in a Bently Service Manual and read it. I would definitely get the cam tool, and I'm not sure what other speialty tools are required.

Good luck!

-Paul

[bmw4wmb]

Yeah, that's why I was asking. I've done all of the above (bentley, DIY search) and I have done a lot of research on this topic, that's why I was surprised you said you were going to buy the specialty tools. You'll need the cam holding tool for timing (which is around $150-$200) for sure. But the killer is the cam removal tool. That guy can cost a lot (I've read $1400 in some resources) and thats if you can get it.

Some people have documented a way to remove the cams without this tool, but I haven't decided if I'll follow that or not.

Currently I am trying to find a place that I can rent the removal tool from. It would be much easier to have the shop do it, but I know I'd have more satisfaction if I did it myself. Good luck with your swap too!

[BMW&PorscheDude]

Thanks! You Too!

[blb9t]

I think I saw these on ebay. Are you christina2570? If I wasn't non vanos I woulda been all over it.

[nonphixion]

10-12 IIRC
10-12 hours labor for cams?

[hellrot325]

Yeah, that's why I was asking. I've done all of the above (bentley, DIY search) and I have done a lot of research on this topic, that's why I was surprised you said you were going to buy the specialty tools. You'll need the cam holding tool for timing (which is around $150-$200) for sure. But the killer is the cam removal tool. That guy can cost a lot (I've read $1400 in some resources) and thats if you can get it.

Some people have documented a way to remove the cams without this tool, but I haven't decided if I'll follow that or not.

Currently I am trying to find a place that I can rent the removal tool from. It would be much easier to have the shop do it, but I know I'd have more satisfaction if I did it myself. Good luck with your swap too! Use the Pelican Part cam DIY, no need for a special tool. Works great and is very easy.

[bmw4wmb]

Use the Pelican Part cam DIY, no need for a special tool. Works great and is very easy. Twist my arm why don't you :-) I am definitely leaning towards it.

A local shop quoted me a 6.7 hour job for the cam swap, but they also charge $110 per for labor.

[BMW&PorscheDude]

Use the Pelican Part cam DIY, no need for a special tool. Works great and is very easy.

Cool! Thanks! :buttrock

[94is]

My girlfriend (94is) will probably have some S50 cams available soon, ~140k on them IIRC. She's going with a Sunbelt setup.
They have 129k actually. :stickoutt

I probably won't be doing these for a little bit, and if I did, I'd probably just send them back to Sunbelt, since they give $300 credit for stock cams.