Found this video when I was looking for swaps
http://youtu.be/xyQtCrN-EsM
I'd love to get those fenders, looks pretty nice that way IMO. Not so sure about the rest of it though.
The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of lowprice is forgotten.
Cars:
1986 BMW 635csi, daily driver werk in progress.
1999 BMW 528i touring, 5 speed. Technically mom's car for now.
1987 BMW 325e automatic, first car, sold.
I'll try not to judge the fenders until I've seen them with a decent set of wheels with a decent offset, but that is definitely too bright a color for this shape, IMO.
Can anything from an E30 swap kit be shared in an E24 swap?
-Leadfoot
I dont think so..Ive been looking for an Mxx/Sxx swap write up for a while but I cant seem to find any. Our cars could deff. benefit from an S52 swap. You get more power + better fuel economy.
Perhaps part of the reason that it hasn't been done is that it results in very little gain given the amount of time and coin that would be invested to make it work.
I've seen M5x/S5x swaps in E28s before, so it can be done. Project threads over on mye28 about that kinda thing.
Alex
Its not my cup of tea but Im sure not gunna hate. Im glad someone finally just did it. Maybe this will come up when people ask that question again.
And I dunno but I feel like that body work may.. work, with the right wheels.
I don't mind the guards, I wouldn't do it myself though.
He did do a nice job making it factory looking with the flares. A nice set of ACS Type-1 wheels would look awesome on that.
I've seen all sorts of engine swaps in E24. From 600hp V8 supercar engines (think Nascar) to the 4.9 M5 V8, M3 engines, S38's, V12's the lot. Here's my comments.
So, if you want the car to be all BMW then I vote for M30 race or M30 turbo. You get to keep your old engine. Any M5 or M3 engine transplant may need thousands of dollars of work prior to getting it in and running and ongoing costs can be huge.
- Any non correct engine, swapped in will cost so so much more.
- V12's - Require 2 ECU's and most aftermarket ECU's only work to 8 cylinders. Will require thousands in tuning. High service costs. May require rebuild.
- M5 4.9 V8. A great build. Strong, fits (seen it), instant 400hp and brilliant mid range acceleration. Out pulls the M3 V8 in 40 to 70 mph tests. Get a good one! High service costs. May require rebuild.
- M3 3.2 litre 6. Brilliant engine. Costs about as much as the M5 V8 and will cost the same for 50hp less. So go the V8. High service costs. May require rebuild.
- LS2 or LS3. A new crate LS3 will cost a bit more but ECU's will pick it up easily and you have an instant 430hp and the torque! Oh the torque!!!! Oh, easy to service. Plenty of parts.
- S38/M88. Go the 3.8 litre engine. It pulls like the 4 litre V8. A brilliant period correct replacement. Maintains the soul of the E24. Costly. Will almost certainly require a rebuild. The S38B36 can be worked to 3.8 litres and will produce up to 375hp in hot street build.
- M30 turbo. 500hp at a reduced cost. Requires ECU and cooling mod's including oil cooler. Still a great period mod and turns the e24 into a super car.
- M30 race engine. Still costly. Can go triple webers or fuel injection. Triple webers feed huge amounts of fuel into the car, look brilliant and sound the biz. Still, a race engine build will cost more than an LS3 transplant.
Or, if you do not care what's under the hood, LS2 or LS3. With the correct exhaust and ECU modding 450hp should be easy. Dress the engine to look like a BMW and off you go.
1977 633 CSi RHD Euro. S38B38 3.9L M5 Transplant. 5 Speed Getrag Dogleg. 3.73 LSD. 417hp, 369lb/ft
1971 3.0CS E3 2dr Alpina Special Coupe Racer, 347hp, 295lb/ft
Id say to keep some money in your pocket its healthy to do a M30 turbo but these engine are old and may need a lot of maintenance before adding any boost and you dont have to swap, cut, weld a lot. For the cool factor and if you dont mind spending a significant amount of money and time then any other engine swap should be a good choice. If you want to keep it decently priced I'd say go with a used LS1/LM4 swap with a stand alone and basic bold ons.
I guess the biggest benefit I can see of swapping in a S52, or M52 is the instant access to a large assortment of currently produced and supported bolt-on power mods. Otherwise, I don't see much point, except maybe it weighs a little less?
'84 Euro 635CSi Polaris/Pacific, for sale (maybe)
Home of the Silver Bimmers: '91 M5, '84 Euro E24, "99 E36, "98 E36, '02 E46 xiT (yes, all silver)
I don't get all that work to have a smaller straight 6 bmw engine, maybe his big six crapped out, and he had an m50, I'm thinking towards the ls because I want DOUBLE hp, (436 would double my euro's 218)
Looking back at this topic 11 years later, would an N54 or N63 swap be a feasible swap alternative if a donor car is used?
I ended up doing the S38B38 swap, predicted in 2008.
1977 633 CSi RHD Euro. S38B38 3.9L M5 Transplant. 5 Speed Getrag Dogleg. 3.73 LSD. 417hp, 369lb/ft
1971 3.0CS E3 2dr Alpina Special Coupe Racer, 347hp, 295lb/ft
Bookmarks