S50B32 into an E36 323i

[ProjectsNMotion]

As a portion of my overall project, I'll be swapping an S50B32 and Getrag 420g into my '96 323i. I already have the engine and transmission, I'm in the process of documenting the wiring for the project, which I've been recording in this document. I'll update this thread as I make progress or hit any roadblocks.

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Cheers

[ProjectsNMotion]

The wiring harness that came with the engine had a few issues. The connector was cut off of two wires. It took me some time to figure out what those wires were supposed to go to, but they turned out to be for the clutch pressure switch, which, along with the gear recognition switch, are hideously under documented by BMW. Not that big of a deal to overcome though, as the clutch pressure switch simply connects with spade connectors. The wiring harness, like the engine it came with, was pulled from a RHD car. I'll be putting the engine into a LHD E36. To get it to fit, I would have to extend the DME portion of the harness, at a minimum. The harness also has a lot of brittle sheathing and insulation on the wiring. Being so close to the engine and going through so many heat cycles hardens the rubber and plastic, making them very inflexible. The good news is that BMW still sells a LHD wiring harness for this engine, brand new, part number 12511406121. A new wiring harness would address all of the real or potential issues with the existing wiring harness. The downsides are the cost, of course, and the fact that it will apparently take 4 to 6 weeks for BMW in Germany to sent me the requested wiring harness. The downsides are significant, but I purchased such a harness earlier this week. I have a lot of waiting to do, but there's plenty of other work that I can jump into with this project, so I certainly won't be idle while I wait for wiring harness.

Cheers

[ProjectsNMotion]

The wiring harness that came with the engine has a few issues. The first, which is rather obvious, is that the engine and wiring harness came from a RHD car, and I'm swapping the engine into a LHD car. It's my understanding that the DME portion of the harness would have to be extended. That's not too difficult, but it's far from ideal to extend so many wires. The second issue is that one of the connectors was cut off. This appears to be the connector for the clutch pressure switch, which should actually just be a pair of spade connectors. Other than that, all of the connectors seem intact. The third issue is that some of the sheathing seems quite brittle after so many years of heat cycles. The harness would still probably function just fine, but I'd prefer not to take any chances. As it turns out, LHD wiring harnesses for the S50B32, part number 12511406121, are still available from BMW, brand new. So I ordered one. It'll take four to six weeks to get to me, and it wasn't cheap, but it's a great step in the right direction.

Cheers.