328 manual to auto swap query

[bmw328convert]

Hey everyone,
I know im going backwards here but my sister in law recently bought a E36 325i Auto sedan much to my disgust, there was something not right about the manner they sold the car to her but who can tell a 16yr old girl there wrong when they have there heart set on something.

Anyway its been 3ish months and the engines died it has between 30-45psi across all cylinders. Now it is currently a M52 2.5L auto. Now i have aquired an M52 2.8L manual. Now im obviously going to have to swap out the ecu when i do the engine swap BUT i want to keep it auto. I know unusual hense the question. Will this work with the new computer from the manual 328? Or does the auto gearbox talk to the engine ecu?

Any help will be greatly appreciated. Theres heaps or auto to manual threads but google has not made me feel lucky

Cheers in advance

[flyfishvt]

You need to get your numbers correct. The 325 is a m50 and it's OBDI. If she has a m52 2.5 then her car is a 323 and it's OBDII not a 325

It nay sound like I'm being picky but your solution depends on what car she really has. Tell us the actual year and model.

[bmw328convert]

Yep sorry its a "323" it has an m52b25 in it

[flyfishvt]

Yep sorry its a "323" it has an m52b25 in it

Ok that makes more sense. The M52 2.8 is basically the same as the M52 2.5. All the important stuff is the same

You can swap the engine right in and use the existing engine harness. You can't use an engine harness from a 5 speed car on this project. It wont have the wiring for the tranny computer. There will be a few issues with what you plan to do but nothing super difficult to deal with.

Swap the M52 in and use the existing engine harness. It should use the same sensors and connectors you dead engine has.
Swap the M52 DME in. You'll have to get that DME aligned to your EWS or your M52 will just crank and wont start.
Find a complete exhaust for an M52. The exhaust on that 323 is too restrictive for the M52. You'll choke the life out of that engine.
The 323 engine does not have the same O2 sensors the M52 has. It shouldn't cause any issues but it might. There's plenty of people here who can talk you through any issues that come up because of this.

That should cover most/all of it. If you guys have emissions regulations you should check with someone who can tell you if this swap will be alowed.

[vinnie328]

It looks like he is in Australia, so he may be OBD-I either way.
You need the ECU for the displacement.
Where is the crank sensor located on this M52B25? that should give us an idea of what system you are working with.
Also where is the crank sensor located on this B28 engine.
Not sure what to tell you based on the Trans computer question.
You may have to get keys re aligned to the new 2.8 ECU so that you get the spark and fuel.

FLY beat me too it

[bmw328convert]

Im not 100% on it being obd1 i was under the impression it was obd2. Either way i have a complete but written off 328 that im using for the swap so what im going to do is use the ews from the 2.8 and im going to swap ignition barrel on the 323 to the 328 one so the transponder will be with the right DME, im planning on using the engine harness from the 323 so it will have the wiring provisions for the trans computer but im concerned that it being an manual computer that it wont communicate with the trans computer at all. Worst case scenario is that most WANT to swap to manual from auto so i may be able to find someone with a 328 auto computer that may swap for my manual computer

[flyfishvt]

As far as EWS its very simple. The only thing you need to swap.....from the M52 2.8 engine you need the EWS module, DME, Key chip. You do not need the key or the ignition housing or any other parts. You only need those three items. Doing it that way has several advantages. You won't have to align the EWS and you can retain your existing keys. You're only swapping the chips out of the keys.

As far as the DME being from a Manual tranny car you are correct. However its a pretty simple process to convert it to a DME for an auto tranny car. Anyone with DIS installed and working on a laptop can accomplish this in about 10 minutes. The problem with swapping your DME with someone who has one from a auto tranny car is that you will need to align that DME to your EWS.

My suggestion is this....swap the engine and exhaust and those three EWS items. Then find someone who has DIS installed and working and they need the correct ADS cable to connect to the 20 pin port in the engine bay. The car will run ok since it uses the tranny computer to run the tranny. That's not changing. You'll get a Check Engine light because of the communication issue with the new DME but that will go away when you convert the DME into an Auto Tranny DME.

Sorry but that's the best I got.

[bmw328convert]

So swap the 328 chip into my 323 key. Will i still retain my remoye central locking or may i just have to reprogram that?

Is the DIS something i could learn? I like to try do as much as possible and if its not too much for a cable and the program etc i wouldnt mind having a try.

Will i be able to drive it with the Manual DME it just wont be overaly responsive etc..

Thankyou very much because the best you go has been invaluable

[flyfishvt]

The chip in the key has nothing to do with remote functions. The chip is part of the ignition so any functions your 323 key has will be retained.

I dont think you'll see much effect from the DME being from a manual.

DIS is an excellent program to have. You'll need a laptop that has an old school serial port and an ADS cable. You can download the software for free. It took me most of a weekend to get it installed and working properly. Most of us buy an old DELL 610 or 620 laptop. The cable I bought from a forum member. I'm not sure if he ships international but you can contact him and find out. I highly recommend his cable. It sells over here for $100. Do a search for "Gert's Cable" and you'll end up at his website.

In the mean time you can go to the diagnostic software forum. There are some good threads on getting started with DIS.

[BKKBeemer]

Just be careful when you open up the key to swap the chip.....

Try to retain pressure on the batteries - since I've read somewhere that if the batteries are disconnected for 10 seconds or more the key may need to be realigned with the remote locking module, although its a relatively simple process (depending on key type) to realign it.

[bmw328convert]

Man reading up about the DIS software and i said im only semi computer literate haha. If i install the manual computer will i still be able to drive the car with the auto gearbox while i workout how to setup and understand all the different lettering configurations mean in relation to ports and cables etc..