E21 350 sbc swap

[Thecatmilton]

Side note:

What the fuck is this?



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Use the E21 ETM (Electrical Troubleshooting Manual). A previous owner messed with the wiring in my 1983 320i and I had several issues. I used the manual and basically followed the wires in question until I found the issues.

ETM Link
http://bmwtech.info/BMW%203%20(E21)/..._1981-1983.pdf

Also, that new engine setup looks cool. I am going to do some turbo stuff in the future. I picked up a BAE / Century manifold that puts the turbo near the back of the block. My goal is to have the turbo stuff and the air conditioning setup coexist. I'm not about to throw away all of the work I put towards making the air conditioning functional.

[diesel1245]

Legit. Yeah T3 all the way man I'm not one for laggy boosted motors as a NA guy. T3/T4 hybrid makes insane power but has lag IMO true T3 on a 2L is perfect in my book.
Nice build man so when is the date the project of marrying the motor into the chassis and run it?

I’ll be pulling the small block on Friday and picking up the new engine early next week. Since it was the original engine that was in the car, it should be a straight forward install. Finger crossed.


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[diesel1245]

Use the E21 ETM (Electrical Troubleshooting Manual). A previous owner messed with the wiring in my 1983 320i and I had several issues. I used the manual and basically followed the wires in question until I found the issues.

ETM Link
http://bmwtech.info/BMW%203%20(E21)/..._1981-1983.pdf

Also, that new engine setup looks cool. I am going to do some turbo stuff in the future. I picked up a BAE / Century manifold that puts the turbo near the back of the block. My goal is to have the turbo stuff and the air conditioning setup coexist. I'm not about to throw away all of the work I put towards making the air conditioning functional.

I’m triggered af wondering what those switches do, if anything. Not about to put a battery in it yet.

Funny you should mention century turbos. This car was an original century car used for demos.


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[diesel1245]

I hate wiring. Looks like the red switch connects directly to where the factory dog light relay should be. The other two seem to be spliced into the harness under the dash with a separate wire going into the engine bay passenger side.
Anyone know what that large connector is?





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[cgifool]

I believe it's C60 in the ETM document, the ignition switch connector..

[cgifool]

Looking further..

The purple wire goes to fuse 15: Horn, Windshield Wiper & Washer, and fuse 12: Brake lights, Glove Box Light, Radio.
The green wire goes to fuse 3: fuel pump and fuse 14: backup lights, instrument cluster, as well as ignition coil (unfused)
No idea about the blue wires.

So I'm thinking, left switch maybe headlights... middle switch for ignition, and right switch for brake lights, wipers etc.

[diesel1245]

Looking further..

The purple wire goes to fuse 15: Horn, Windshield Wiper & Washer, and fuse 12: Brake lights, Glove Box Light, Radio.
The green wire goes to fuse 3: fuel pump and fuse 14: backup lights, instrument cluster, as well as ignition coil (unfused)
No idea about the blue wires.

So I'm thinking, left switch maybe headlights... middle switch for ignition, and right switch for brake lights, wipers etc.

Thanks for the info.
Looks like someone tried to go full racecar.
Think it would be north getting a harness kit? At least then I’ll have better fuses and new wiring.


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[mossyoaks]

I'd try and sort out the 'original wiring' since you're going back stock AND since 95% of it should still be in place.
Starting over with another harness or kit would be way more difficult. Easier to just eliminate the non-BMW wiring.

[Erik Dlux]

Hilarious when people get so emotional and controlling about motor swaps. Makes me want to build one of these cars with a big block motor and some 22 inch wheels.

I for one was excited to watch you put the motor in. Good luck with the new one though

[diesel1245]

Hilarious when people get so emotional and controlling about motor swaps. Makes me want to build one of these cars with a big block motor and some 22 inch wheels.

I for one was excited to watch you put the motor in. Good luck with the new one though

I was looking forward to it too. But given the Chevy needed a complete rebuild, I’ll use the original engine and build up the V8 at some point for something else.


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[diesel1245]

I'd try and sort out the 'original wiring' since you're going back stock AND since 95% of it should still be in place.
Starting over with another harness or kit would be way more difficult. Easier to just eliminate the non-BMW wiring.

That’s probably what I’ll end up doing. It’s probably never going to be a straight up race car anyway.
If I ever do go that route and end up caging it, then I’ll probably put in new wiring.
Something about those old fuse blocks makes me nervous.


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[diesel1245]

Picked up the engine Thursday morning.
Need help identifying the turbo that’s on it now.


I also got a megasquirt 1 with it. Anybody know how long those will hold a map without being powered?


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