540i powertrainswal

[Simon528i]

Hola compas , i am putting a new (used) 90k engine in my 540i as to keep long story short mine was bad and also my trans is in failsafe mode. I am picking up the engine this sunday and gonna change the plugs ,oil gaskets and anything else and get it cleaned up really well now this is where im torn my car is an automatic with the 3.16 gears im asuming as it has sport pack, if i were to convert it to a manual what all would i need and is there any areas of trouble i would run into. Also doing all work myself along with my pops. I would really like a manual but i know the auto will be easier to install , but at the same time theres not auto trannys for a good price around me the manuals are significantly cheaper

[edjack]

It's a significant project to install a manual in an auto-equipped car. Much has been written about this. Do your homework.

Besides the mechanical issues, you will need to reprogram the engine computer for the swap.

Do you have a ready supply of the Getrag 420G in your area?

[Simon528i]

Ahhh yea ive read up on them before but now that im actually gonna be doing it i thought id refresh my brain and i will probably keep looking for an auto then as im trying to drive the car asap

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Also does anyone know how to reprogram the dash to show correct miles or am i out of luck on that one

[edjack]

Why is the reading incorrect?

You'll need an advanced software tool, or farm it out: http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=934284

[Simon528i]

My odo has 146k and the engine im buying only has 90k is there a way to get ky odo right or when i plug up the harness it will adjust automatically?

[edjack]

No. The odo reading is stored in two other modules.

That's falsifying the odo reading if you change it to the engine mileage. Just keep note of the engine mileage in your maintenance log.

[Simon528i]

Oh okok is there anything i should do while i have the engine and trans out?

[Cereal]

Rear main seal
Rear coolant passage cover
motor mounts
trans mounts
PS lines
etc

The more you replace the better since so easy to get to. I did a motor swap on my 99 and took a lot of time to powerwash the subframe and engine bay. Got everything nice and clean and replace as many gaskets as possible and you'll have a nice clean engine bay for years to come.

[geargrinder]

All Ed says is correct. It's a ton of extra work to convert if you're wanting to get it back on road fast. And yeah, mileage is car mileage not engine mileage.

[Simon528i]

Yea im gonna put all new hoses and planned on powerwashing the bay but didnt think about the motor mounts and trans mounts

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I will be taking a video of the whole install process and uploading to yt if yall are interested

[edjack]

Good idea to place plastic bags over all the connectors, exposed and mated. This will prevent water intrusion and later electrical problems.

[Simon528i]

Hello all again small update got the block and transmission out and already havebthe new engine and trans inside my pops shop but while my car was outside someone stol my cats just cut them right off I already have two magna flow mufflers in my trunk ready to go since my cats are cut off i migjt as well go straight pipe to the mufflers but i keep seeing ppl say i will lose backpressure and lose some low end torque. I really dont wanna shell out the money for new cats given my situation what would y'all recommend??

[geargrinder]

You shouldn't lose power with cat delete. 'Hogged out' cats can cause poor flow, but loads of guys do straight-pipe cat deletes on these without issue. The cats do contribute to noise control though so a cat-less set of magnaflows sounds raspier and rougher than a catted set for sure... I'm not a huge fan of the cat-less deal myself but in a tight money situation where you don't need them for regulatory (I'd be screwed up here without cats...) I can understand it.

[Simon528i]

http://imgur.com/a/Wk94R

[JimLev]

Your sig says '99 540 which should have am M62tu (vanos) engine.
Your engine pic in the link above is a non vanos engine.
I have a good set of pre-CAT's for a tu engine if you need them, PM me.

[geargrinder]

"and that's how I found out I bought the wrong motor"...

[geargrinder]

OK...

In this post, OP says his car is a '98 w/ ASC...

https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...6#post28522896

That makes more sense and "all should be OK"...

[Simon528i]

I think i put the wrong year on my sig cause my 540 is a 98 ill check the production date today

[geargrinder]

Easiest telltales - does your old motor have:
- a long metal elbow throttle body like that engine & a normal air cooled (not water cooled) alternator like that engine.

[Simon528i]

Yea engines look identical throttle body and alternator the same i just chk my 540 prod date is 03/98

[Simon528i]

Todays work , sorry for the slow progress i work on my 540 when i get off of work as i work a M-Sat 9-7 i dont have much time http://imgur.com/a/KOYNr

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Taking the weekend off as its me and the mrs anniversary and shes kinda mad at me for not having it ready as she really wanted to go for a drive in it but hopefully ol 540 will be done soone enough im ready to drive!!

[Simon528i]

http://imgur.com/a/6YJpy
Todays update, getting the air intake gaskets on sat then a new battery amd shes ready to get put in

[Simon528i]

Quick question im droppin in this weekend will the transmission need to be programmed to work with the new engine or should it be plug and play????

[geargrinder]

As long as you're not changing any computers, NO.

CUZ the engine \ transmission computers are totally separate.

HOWEVER, you should get a diag computer / device hooked up to the car and clear codes from both the engine and transmission computers before you fire it back up again. In BMW lingo these are called DME and EGS.

[Simon528i]

Yea thats what i was thinking just wanted to double check , hoping for smooth weekend but i just know something is gonna happen . I also changed out the rear main seal , got new motor and trams mounts to 🤧 Hopefully shell be running by mid next week HOPEFULLY lol