X-brace vs OBD1 skid plate

[Twistytee]

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Anyone here swap out an early vert skid plate for the later style x-brace? I like the additional protection of the plate and it also has the passenger side motor mount heat shield attached, but changing the oil with it in-place is a total mess. In order to get the front end high enough to access the drain bolt, the oil drains back onto the skid plate and collects along the tranny brace. As soon as I lower it down there's oil all over the garage floor. Are the early car nut serts and the later x-brace holes compatible? Thinking about swapping to the later style brace.

[myblackcar]

Yes. The mounting holes are identical for both vert skid plate and x-brace.

[Twistytee]

Mine is an early build with two brackets welded to the gearbox cross bar and added tranny rubber isolators at this location.

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/show...diagId=24_0637

since the x brace takes the place of the gearbox cross bar, it looks like the later builds simply did away with the additional tranny mounts and just use the single cross bar at the tail shaft? I don't think there was any difference in transmissions between the early build and later cars, but not sure I should eliminate the additional tranny mounts at the bell housing?

[66 6]

Weird, I've never seen that early mounting set up.

I've have both x braces and belly pans on some of my cars. Never tried to change the oil with a belly but you could always increase the oil to provide better draining. I sell most of the bellys to people who are lowering the car. Just estimate the time and effort of a cracked oil pan and $75 for a belly is money well spent.

[Twistytee]

Thanks Greg. Since I'm not changing oil with a lot of frequency, I can always remove the belly pan/skid plate when I do an oil change. But I'm not lowered beyond the OE sport suspension and the later style X brace looks like a better design - both to reduce convertible chasis flex and to give better access to the oil pan. I'd also prefer to avoid striping out the nutserts by repeated removal of the belly pan.

When I did the last change I left the drain open while working around the garage. After buttoning everything up I realized a good quart or more of used oil drained back along the pan and pooled at that tranny cross bar. I ended-up having to take off the pan anyways in order to clean it all up.

[bdiefAZ]

I upgraded an early 325 convertible from plate brace to X brace. The build date on the car is 9/93 and the install included removing the front mounting points/crossbar for the transmission. The x brace is noticeably stiffer in comparison to the plate. There were 2 outserts that needed to be installed on this car.

X brace it and don't look back.

[WELSCH325i]

I bought an X-brace for my early vert as well, but had to send it back. The x-brace does not fit early automatics, because the transmission crossmember is in the way. We're lucky enough to have the tranny from an e34 5 series, so it needs that beefy crossmember. If you swap your car to a manual (like what I'm doing right now), it will then fit.

It sucks, I know.

[Twistytee]

I'm pretty sure both the e34 and e36 automatics are the same GM 4L30-E units. I don't think there's any difference in the weight or durability of the transmissions between the two platforms or between the early and later e36 cars. That front cross bar can be removed and the x-brace installed in its place so long as the front transmission mounts are not needed. It would seem based on the other comments here that this is the case. That could also confirm why BMW stopped using the cross bar with the front mounts as of the 9/94 production date.

[WELSCH325i]

Damn! I had the x-brace in my hands too. I have to order it again anyway since I'm finally getting my manual.

I had the car up with the skid plate off, but when I saw that tranny cross brace, it scared me off.