Need help: e36 M50 swap. Starting issues.

[Soldierofhope]

Hey everyone. Just recently I purchased a 1995 e36 325is. Long story short, the head gasket was blown. I picked up a used M50 from a 1992 325i for a good price, and got to work with the swap. This was a month ago. Since then, I have completed the mechanical rebuild of the car, however upon trying to start it, it just doesn't want to come back to life. Here's some details.


-The 1992 engine came with the 1992 harness and ECU (A red label 402 or 403. Can't quite recall which). Therefore, the 1995 chassis has the correct engine (Non Vanos), the correct DME, and the correct harness.

First question: Do the body electronics of my 1995 mesh with the wiring harness of the 1992? If not, am I able to switch body electronics?

-Once my mechanic and I were done with the rebuild, we attempted to start the car. The car cranks (and sounds like it wants to fire), but doesnt turn over. My vehicle was made in 12/94, and according to my research, means that the vehicle had EWS I. (1/95 and newer being EWS II) After a little research (and reference to my Bentley manual), I see that my version of EWS has a starter immobilization.

Second question: If my 1995 has a starter immobilization feature, how is my starter able to crank the engine? I was under the impression that EWS wont allow the starter to crank the engine at all. Is this the case? Perhaps EWS was once bypassed? Should i pull the relay under the glove box to check? This confuses me.


-Based upon what my mechanic is telling me, the issue at hand may be a lack of fuel delivery. The car has a half tank, the original injectors from the 1992 engine and a new fuel filter. After a few hours of attempting to start the car, you would think the whole garage smelled of fuel, however that wasn't the case. I am thinking fuel pump relay (because I cant fathom that my fuel pump stopped working while the car was sitting in the shop for a month, although I am not ruling this out)

Third question: Should I even worry about EWS if my car is cranking? Should I go ahead and do the bypass under the glove box as suggested, or proceed to check for fuel, spark, and compression?


-When I brought the car in, my windows worked fine. In fact, all of the electronics in the cabin did (minus my OBC, which for some reason doesnt work at all). Upon attempting to start the car the other day, the windows were down and I wanted to put them up. Neither of my switches work inside the car. That's weird, I thought. All other electronics are still functioning normal; doors lock, headlights, etc. What I will say is this however: The windows open and close slightly when the door is open and shut (as they should), and the windows closecompletely ONLY when I turn the key in the lock all the way right.

Fourth question: Is it possible that both of my window switches died at the same exact time even though they have not been touched for a month or is there a relay for the switches that I'm missing? I am thinking a lot of the issues are coming from the relay and fuse box in the engine bay. All new fuses, just to be sure? Any ideas?


-According to my mechanic, the 92 M50 Non-Vanos was not equipped with ACS although my 1995 is, therefore he removed it completely and is planning on placing a resistor in the wiring in its place.


Fifth question: Is this safe? Will this work okay? Just recently, I have become more attune with cars (after doing this swap), so I am not 100% on what should, and shouldn't be done.



All in all, yes I am a "noob", so please bear with me if my terminology isn't perfect. I have worked on this car nearly everyday for the past month and am so close to getting this thing running I can taste it. My mechanic really bent over backward to get this far, and at this point, I am pretty much on my own. (I either pay him $100 an hour for him to get it running within 8 hours, or I pay him $20 an hour as a consultation fee, and I do the work myself). I'd really like to get this thing running myself, and am more inclined to do the $20 an hour option. Any help/advice that anyone can offer is EXTREMELY appreciated. Thank you everyone for reading my dissertation lol

Forgot to add this tidbit: I did the "stomp test" a few times, and the only code I am throwing is a "1". It will flash only once, then long pause, and flash once again. It does this over and over. So is this a "1" code, or a "1111"? Does anyone have a CORRECT list of OBD1 codes for the e36? I have seen a few online however they all have conflicting info.

[Soldierofhope]

Anyone? I need some guidance please.