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Thread: Project Lit Banana Drift Car E36

  1. #1
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    Project "Lit Banana E36 Drift Car"

    Sup guys, after lurking finally decided I should make a thread for my own car. (all the cool kids are doing it rite)


    Little bit about me, been working on cars for about 6 years ever since my first car (corolla)
    I'm 24 and work in ecommerce for a computer parts store.


    My first BMW build was this '01 325ci that I pretty much converted to look like a M3. It had some nice goodies to it and I eventually got some destroyed HRE's which I rebuilt to look pretty. It was totaled by a drunk driver while parked outside.

    After being pretty heart broken on that car being gone and not wanting to do a new build I bought a lil' famous car. Jeremy Whittles old 1JZ E28
    31 - VueGa09.jpg
    It was pretty dope at first but I had a lot to learn about the engine (wouldn't hit full boost back then)

    I eventually figured it out and the car ran like a champ.

    Anyways onto the E36!

    Bought it as a shell basically with a blown S50.

    Immediately bought a S52 from a friend who had just totaled his car, the engine had 200k so I got a good deal.

    I did a little aftermarket coolant tank since I didn't want any plastic ones blowing up on me.
    It's actually plumbed wrong in this picture but I fixed it after.


    Found my old corolla's ebay OMP style wheel and decided to throw it on, better than the stock 4 spoke.


    Shortly after that I went for E46 control arms, BC Coilovers, and SLR adjustable caster lollipops





    We would go to some drift events down at the Las Vegas Speedway hosted by VegasDrift and a part of the Southwest drift series.
    Here's my buddies 240 we sprayed just before this event. (yeah we both like yellow)



    Cheapo Ebrake handle mod


    Anyways after 3 events my car would misfire after every event. The valve seals on the engine were nonexistent at this point and it burned crazy amounts of oil. So logically do a rebuild right.... naah

    Bought a 1JZ from the guys at BOSO


    Took the crappy twin turbos off since you don't need those in your life


    After much debate I decided to delete ABS on the car, it'll be dual caliper rear eventually anyway.


    Also took the time to remove the dash, dump the heatercore and fix and cleanup the car's body harness


    Ever since I bought it the wipers and turn signals never worked due to a short in the wiring that made the wiring melt. I spent a good amount of time cutting it out.


    Bought a truck since I will need a tow rig when it's done


    Wiring harness came in, Wiring specialties knocked it out of the park even with my special requests


    Rather than use a R154 or W58 like in the E28. Let's keep the BMW ZF trans



    Kept tearing down and cleaning the motor

    Man it was dirty, almost like it did a few matsuri's in Japan.



    Picked up Felony Form from Khalil since he had some spares


    I also went to formulaD while I was in LA, you might know this guy



    Parts began taking over my room


    After much work the motor was starting to look good. Also full billet motor mounts from Freed Engineering


    aaaaand just yesterday we threw that sucker in the car with the transmission and everything.


    We also just started this youtube channel to show our cars and our friends cars. You can watch our first video here


    Thanks, I'll be updating this as the build goes.
    Attached Images Attached Images
    Last edited by Press22; 12-18-2016 at 06:12 PM. Reason: it was lit but it got more lit
    instagram @andyitslit

  2. #2
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    Pix no worky.

    Status: Someone put glitter in my oil. Wait. Why's all my oil outside the engine? What's that knocking?

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by protomor View Post
    Pix no worky.
    damn imgur. I'll fix it.
    instagram @andyitslit

  4. #4
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    This is actually super lit. I feel like this build thread could also be on Stance|Works lol.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by beat328i View Post
    This is actually super lit. I feel like this build thread could also be on Stance|Works lol.
    it may end up there too. I'm not the best at posting on forums. More of a lurker haha
    instagram @andyitslit

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Press22 View Post
    it may end up there too. I'm not the best at posting on forums. More of a lurker haha
    Same lol. I've never been able to stop while working to take pictures documenting my progress.

  7. #7
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    Man, this is a nice build!!

    So, my normal question: Why a 1JZ? As compared against a rods/pistons M52, 2JZ, etc.? I know they sound great and can make really good (probably pretty reliable) power, but I imagine there are some down sides too, right?

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by tptrsn View Post
    Man, this is a nice build!!

    So, my normal question: Why a 1JZ? As compared against a rods/pistons M52, 2JZ, etc.? I know they sound great and can make really good (probably pretty reliable) power, but I imagine there are some down sides too, right?
    The only downside I can think of to a JZ is cooling. They like to run hot, especially 1JZ's, they did some magical fixes on 2J's so they cool slightly better. And since our drift season is in the middle of Las Vegas/Arizona 105 degree summers...

    I don't want to get into a discussion of it being better than M52/S52. I had a S52 in the car before and the NA power was great but the reliability wasn't lol (it did need a rebuild though.)

    Mostly I did it because I wanted to.

    Got my driftmotion manifold welded yesterday to accept the precision 46mm wastegate
    Last edited by Press22; 12-13-2016 at 12:45 PM.
    instagram @andyitslit

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Press22 View Post
    Mostly I did it because I wanted to.
    Man I can relate to that!!

    I really am curious about a detailed comparison though, do you feel like the 1J build is about the same cost as a rods/pistons rebuild M52/S52 when you factor in the swap parts and adapters? The coolness factor is high, so that probably goes a long way toward just wanting to, even if it costs a bit more in the end or whatever.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by tptrsn View Post
    I really am curious about a detailed comparison though, do you feel like the 1J build is about the same cost as a rods/pistons rebuild M52/S52 when you factor in the swap parts and adapters? The coolness factor is high, so that probably goes a long way toward just wanting to, even if it costs a bit more in the end or whatever.
    Nope, doing a rebuild is likely much cheaper. My buddy Kevin actually just did a slight rebuild and went turbo. His cost which I won't disclose without his permission was so high that I figured I could probably do a 1J for near that. But props to him I think he made around 560whp in his highway hunter car. I'm aiming for 400-450 reliably.


    At first I intended to keep costs as low as possible, but I figured I could spend a little more, do some better quality stuff and not have to upgrade it later. Cause as as soon as things thing is driving and I'm somewhat comfortable driving it, it'll get caged and pro-am ready.
    Last edited by Press22; 12-13-2016 at 01:19 PM.
    instagram @andyitslit

  11. #11
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    The thing about the 1jz is you can buy one for 1300 bucks or so, with low mileage. And you don't have to crack it open or do any internal work to make reliable power for years. Just bolt on your choice of turbo/manifold, wire, and go. It's a low cost, even lower hassle way to make power. Plus they sound great. Also, packaging the turbo is a lot easier because the engine isn't slanted like an m50/52.

    Add in the fact that it's hella jdm, and it's really a no-brainer lol.

  12. #12
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    You had me at hella jdm yo! Hahaha...

    So yesterday in my googling and eBaying around to learn something about this stuff, it seemed to me like parts availability over here (USA) is a lot better for 2JZs than it is for 1JZs... If that's true, I was kind of thinking maybe the initial bit of extra expense might come close to evening out after living with one or the other for a while. However, if they are a "don't-crack-it-open" prospect for the most part, then I guess the cheaper one pretty much tends to stay cheaper. It did seem like intake manifolds and turbo manifolds were a bit cheaper for the 1JZ if anything, the higher parts cost I was seeing for the 1JZ was for things like gaskets and bearings and whatnot.

    EDIT: More googling on this 1JZ/2JZ topic today, very interesting stuff. I can't wait to see this build progress. That 1JZ looks so compact in the e36 engine bay, looks quite pleasant to work on... Hoping for many more pics OP!
    Last edited by tptrsn; 12-14-2016 at 12:16 PM.

  13. #13
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    I should have more progress tonight as I intend to work on it. Might be pulled away to help a friend put a 1JZ in his 240sx though hahah.

    Also driftmotion is located in CA and carries most 1JZ/2JZ parts you'll need. Also most other parts are interchangeable between the two. Locating parts hasn't really been an issue for me so don't let that deter you from either engine.
    instagram @andyitslit

  14. #14
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  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by tptrsn View Post
    Thanks for the info! You guys are 1J crazy out there, huh? Lol
    Just a bit!

    Decided to start with bolting the exhaust manifold and turbo today. What a pain.


    I wasn't able to fully tighten the nut on the exhaust housing pictured top right, decided to tackle it another day since my back was aching


    Here's a random image of the ABS delete lines. I'll rig something up to keep the hardlines more away from the steering shaft.



    I had hoped to have enough time to get underneath and begin mocking up measurements for a trans mount, selector rod and measure the necessary driveshaft length but it'll have to wait.
    Last edited by Press22; 12-15-2016 at 01:56 AM.
    instagram @andyitslit

  16. #16
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    Three questions:

    1) Why was bolting on the turbo manifold such a pain?

    2) Are you planning to run an aftermarket adjustable proportioning valve at all now that you've deleted ABS?

    3) Why are you needing to mess with trans mounts, driveshaft, and shifter mechanism parts when you kept the BMW trans? Because the engine mounts and trans adapter push the trans back in the car or something?

  17. #17
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    1. The fitment was very tight, I eventually was hitting the flange with a rubber mallet. Then the nuts on the bottom were tough to get on due to the tubular design of the manifold.

    2. It would be ideal to get a brake bias valve yes! I may end up also deleting the booster. We'll see.

    3. Due to the mounts getting the engine to sit as far back as possible I believe it pushed the trans back about 1.5" Most people just shorten their stock driveshaft (then everyone seems to break CSB's for some reason???) Shorten the shifter carrier and selector rod.
    - I'll be buying a AKG Shifter so won't have to mess with the carrier but still have to do the selector rod.
    instagram @andyitslit

  18. #18
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    What would your reasoning be for deleting the brake booster, does the straight up engine position cause some interference?

    Your answer to number three is pretty amazing to me in terms of how well you guys obviously have this whole 1JZ into bimmer swap deal dialed in. I obviously had no idea that this was such a thing already!

    Speaking of that CSB issue you mentioned, I had an unexplained CSB problem on my E36 with a brand new CSB. I still don't really know why other than I didn't free up the splined slip joint in the center of the driveshaft when I had it apart, and when I put it back together that time I'm pretty sure I had that sucker tightened down to where the splines were truly locked in place.

    I had no idea that the splined area was supposed to slip longitudinally in normal driving, but apparently it is... Maybe that is what took out that CSB on me, because other than that I dunno? Well, it was also a crappy designed Uro one, but that turned out to be exactly the same as the expensive Meyle one. The Febi one turned out to be pretty nice and a much better design. It has put up with some good abuse from me so far.

  19. #19
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    There's a good group on Facebook for 1JZ and 2JZ Powered BMWs. They're mostly E36's and E46's. Everyone on there seems to have an issue with CSB's breaking so they go to a solid one piece driveshaft which I don't really want to do.

    Nah my thought for removing the booster is actually just to get more consistent brake feel. But also when left foot braking in a drift it won't suck vacuum and make the brakes feel... well... unpredictable. This is more obvious in turbo cars.
    I probably should have put the manifold on before I put the motor in but I'll just have to wrestle it in there.
    instagram @andyitslit

  20. #20
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    In for feedback on the Collins adapter

  21. #21
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    Quote Originally Posted by Press22 View Post
    But also when left foot braking in a drift it won't suck vacuum and make the brakes feel... well... unpredictable
    Why you hitting vac while LFB son? That's pussy driving right there. Limiter all DAY.

    Status: Someone put glitter in my oil. Wait. Why's all my oil outside the engine? What's that knocking?

  22. #22
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    Quote Originally Posted by Press22 View Post
    There's a good group on Facebook for 1JZ and 2JZ Powered BMWs. They're mostly E36's and E46's. Everyone on there seems to have an issue with CSB's breaking so they go to a solid one piece driveshaft which I don't really want to do.
    Couldn't you use an e36 auto driveshaft? I'm pretty sure the front section is shorter for them. Idk exactly how much.

  23. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by protomor View Post
    Why you hitting vac while LFB son? That's pussy driving right there. Limiter all DAY.


    I'm not even totally sure what that meant, but it cracked me up!!

    So are you just making a funny, or are you saying that when you're full throttle making no vacuum that the brakes are consistent because they are basically non-power-assisted brakes at that point?

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Originally Posted by beat328i View Post
    Couldn't you use an e36 auto driveshaft? I'm pretty sure the front section is shorter for them. Idk exactly how much.
    I think I have one sitting if a measurement from it would be helpful.

  24. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by tptrsn View Post


    I'm not even totally sure what that meant, but it cracked me up!!

    So are you just making a funny, or are you saying that when you're full throttle making no vacuum that the brakes are consistent because they are basically non-power-assisted brakes at that point?
    Unless you lift for a long time and a do a dead lift off the pedal, you shouldn't regain vac assist. But yea, I'm being funny.

    Status: Someone put glitter in my oil. Wait. Why's all my oil outside the engine? What's that knocking?

  25. #25
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    So what do the brakes operate like when there is no vacuum assist? Do they work normally like unassisted brakes, or sort of messed up like power steering when there is no power assist?

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