Miller WAR Machine - High compression S50 Build

[JETninja]

I remember seeing some sick cars from Miller over the years....just realized since I moved to the PNW, they are a lot close now! Ha Ha...

Looks good...

[xxwikkixx]

where is the gun, so i can shoot you and take the car jkjk

[Brody @ Miller]

So we had the engine and trans in the car last night and today we went to install the rouge shift kit...

While the transmission was sitting around we replaced all the detents and I think that led to a problem

We found that the shifter was sitting with tension, not slop, under 5th gear. Getting it into reverse was also kind of an art. We thought the ssk was the problem BUT it isn't. So after dropping the tranny and engine in as one, we had to drop the tranny out.

Does it make sense that something was wrong with the detent replacement causing it to sit under 5th with tension and not just slop? The tranny came from a local wrecker and I didnt even think to check the position of the selector shaft when it got dropped off.

Im not too familiar with the problems and causes of these trannys since weve never had a problem.

[99MPower]

pretty tough to screw up the detents... If they were installed incorrectly, you wouldnt be able to put the springs/caps/circlips back in..

Sounds like something was inherently wrong in the trans to me..

[Brody @ Miller]

pretty tough to screw up the detents... If they were installed incorrectly, you wouldnt be able to put the springs/caps/circlips back in..

Sounds like something was inherently wrong in the trans to me..

Yah its just weird. It not leaning to fifth, you can tell spring pressure is keeping it there. One thing though is I cant get the 5th gear detent OUT. Reverse came out easy but 5th is stuck like a B in there... maybe thats got something to do with it?

[99MPower]

Uh.. yeah.. sounds like bushing sleeve got messed up and seized detent... remove, clean up an burrs, install new

[GelbM3Morris]

That is sooooo good lookin'.

[rpm620]

highly interested in the power output of this motor ... i keep thinking about doing this as well.. my car currently puts down 260whp 247wtrq with a P/P head and Schrick cams, and all the other bolts on's

[vjlax18]

highly interested in the power output of this motor ... i keep thinking about doing this as well.. my car currently puts down 260whp 247wtrq with a P/P head and Schrick cams, and all the other bolts on's

There are others that have done it, but they won't post too much online. Special pistons that allow normal vanos movement range help with the mid-range power when using the bigger cams. A little bit of headwork to flow more air, a special damper to allow higher rpm, proper sized headers, and some have even claimed +/-30hp when using the euro ITB setup. I'd be most interested in the ITB setup and/or a modified M50 manifold like what Rebello has done in the past.

I did 265/245 back in 2005 with the Schricks and my Stickley motor, but I really don't know what's done to it internally. That 265/245 was also done with stock exhaust manifolds and stock OBD-I cats.

Hopefully this thread will show what's been done and how to do it to get the big numbers across the full RPM range.

[gk325is]

Best I have seen on a similar set up to this was 275 whp. With the right headers and some tuning 280-290 should be doable.

[hc1001]

Nice build. Wish i had similar resources...

[Brody @ Miller]

Well the daughter has been sick this week so I took a few days off and then there were some parts I had forgotten to order and or decided to order while getting this thing back in the car.

I chopped the impeller off the water pump since I am going with an electric Davies Craig unit. I don't have time to make a nice block off plate so for now, this had to do.



Got the Fidanza fly wheel on,



Followed by the ever trusty clutchmaster FX400 6 puck...



Ready to drop in all as one...



before I started to delete BS lines that don't need to be there...



more in a bit.

To comment a bit in the power goals... im working with a very good engine builder who doesnt just build engines but does the design and manufacturing of the cams and pistons we sell.

When you find an excellent person like this to help, many things are possible. The cams are large but the pistons are built for them. When you are limited to stock pistons your possibilites WILL be limited unfortunately

Unlike other cams that dont play nice with stock pistons forcing your engine to be only top end friendly, this combo is meant to be good for torque and power. With the right install adjustments, I could tweak the power for top end performance just for numbers sake which I plan on doing too.

The cams are degree'd right now to out me right around 300 wheel and 275 torque. We will see how it goes in a couple weeks!!

[BMWMPow3r]

nice build, I'de like to here this thing when its done.

[Brody @ Miller]

Well, some updates...

Car would not turn over properly with ECU plugged in... It ended up being the wrong harmonic balancer! I didn't even notice since the balancer came with the donor S50, but it was using a NON VANOS harmonic balancer. Luckily, TDC is marked at the same spot, the missing teeth are just on the opposite side of the wheel. Switched over the M50 balancer I had left and viola! Started like a champ. Only ran it for a couple seconds since we didn't have the cooling system hooked up yet.

Today, we bled the clutch. If you have ever felt a Clutchmasters fx400, you will know how nice it actually feels. Its super streetable and capable of holding 500 WTQ as we have proven in the past.

Here are some progress pictures...

I love how these nuts are brand new but look like they came from the wild west LOL




Hard to see, but you can make out the black AN fitting where the drain plug used to be. this is a port that I am dumping fresh coolant in to aid in cooling the hotest area of the block.



I will have more pictures of that once I finish machining a union for it.

Also got the Rouge Engineering SSK installed. This piece is top quality and feels great!



And thanks to Eric and Rally Road for the Alcantara shift and E-Brake boots.

[Moron95M3]

info on rear diffuser?

[ErikB34]

damn nice build man!

[Da Infammus 1]

What a sick build. What headers are those?

[vjlax18]

Well, some updates...

Car would not turn over properly with ECU plugged in... It ended up being the wrong harmonic balancer! I didn't even notice since the balancer came with the donor S50, but it was using a NON VANOS harmonic balancer. Luckily, TDC is marked at the same spot, the missing teeth are just on the opposite side of the wheel. Switched over the M50 balancer I had left and viola! Started like a champ. Only ran it for a couple seconds since we didn't have the cooling system hooked up yet.

You're spending a great deal of money on the motor, why not look into the ATI balancer instead of a stock one?

[Urban Misfit]

Awesome build, will be following.

[GTRSv]

oh mai gawsh!!

[B0rJarZz]

aweeeeeeeeeesome!

[Brody @ Miller]

info on rear diffuser?

Haven't built it yet, last thing on the list to finish.

damn nice build man!

Thanks! It has been fun and a lot of work. It's my first E36 (ex e34 guy) and I am really happy the way it has turned out.

What a sick build. What headers are those?

The sweet and cheap Racelands. They are actually extremely decent for the 199 price tag!

You're spending a great deal of money on the motor, why not look into the ATI balancer instead of a stock one?

No need for it. This isn't a track car that will live upstairs. The odd run to redline is not going to hurt an engine.

Awesome build, will be following.

Damn this is clean! I really want to see vids/rear diffuser.

oh mai gawsh!!

aweeeeeeeeeesome!

Thanks guys! I should have the exhaust built by the end of the day and I will post more pictures.

[egebhardt]

Did you ever figure out the 5th gear lean?
Thx.

[sk8rpirate]

im ready for the exhaust clip!

[UltimateAutoM3]

need that exhaust brody!!