Should I...Mod?

[bmchuckleyou]

Hey guys,

Just looking for some opinions here.

So, we've had the 528i Touring for several years now. Reliability has been so-so, but that has been down to my failure to do preventative maintenance more than anything else.

Things that have caused us headaches are:

- Spark Plugs
- Coils
- Battery
- Window Regulators
- Fuel Pump
- Pulley exploding and shredding a belt
- Exploding coolant tank

Most things have been just annoying, rather than serious issues.

We've been toying with the idea of getting an X5 4.6, but the more I think about it, the more the reliability (or lack thereof) and fuel consumption of the 4.6 become a concern.

I've been thinking that for a relatively small sum of money (and my blood, sweat and tears) I could bring the 528iT back to pristine condition. However, I don't think I would be satisfied knowing it still has a lack of HP.

Now, I don't need a huge increase in the amount of HP, but just a little something that will help the car along its way a little more briskly.

Being that our 528iT has the m52 engine, I've been thinking of incorporating some of the mods that the e36 328 owners have been using for a while. i.e:

- s52 Cams
- M50 Intake manifold
- Raceland headers
- Kassel performance tune for the above
- U/D Pulley

These mods seem to get around 210-220 RWHP for the 328 guys, though with a possible slight torque loss down low.

So...should I do it?

[edjack]

Lotta work and $ for not much HP increase. How many miles on the VANOS seals?

[dannyzabolotny]

One thing you have to remember is that none of the E36’s got the M52tu, whereas yours is an M52tu. That means your car has drive by wire, dual Vanos, and a few other things. That’ll complicate stuff like swapping the manifold and cams, so do some more research first.

[BimmerBreaker]

Install an M54B30 intake manifold by using an M52TU to M54 throttle body adapter, some exhaust headers and a proper tune and you'll have a pretty fun little car. Tunes for that aren't too hard to find either as tons of E46 guys do those upgrades. Would be faster than any stock US-spec E39 I6 wagon setup like that and just a hair slower than what a stock 530i wagon would be doing. Not sure exactly what diff you've got in there too but those are always a great upgrade. The poor man's supercharger. Pair a diff with the intake mod (and exhaust if you can swing it... headers make a big difference on these engines) and you'll have a lot of fun.

Oh and don't get an X5 4.6is... ask me how I know

[bmchuckleyou]

Thanks for the replies guys.

Just to clarify, I DO have an M52, as opposed to an M52TU, car is a Euro spec 97 528iT.

Vanos seals will of course be done when(if?) cams go in.

With regard to the cost - Auto M52's typically dyno around 175 hp compared to the modded 210-220 HP, so you're looking at possibly 30-40 WHP for around $1000 - 1500. That seems like a good enough deal to me if I'm keeping the car - no?

[dannyzabolotny]

Ah, fair point then. I forgot that the rest of the world got the tourings earlier than the US did... we only got them in 1999+. In that case, mod away! Now if you were in the US I'd suggest swapping in an S52, as that's an easy way to get to 230hp in stock form before any mods, but I realize that the rest of the world didn't get the US-spec S50/S52, so you'll have to get a little more creative

I would almost say if you're going to all that effort you should do a 5-speed swap, it would make your car a whole lot more fun on a daily basis.

[bmchuckleyou]

I would almost say if you're going to all that effort you should do a 5-speed swap, it would make your car a whole lot more fun on a daily basis.

Fair point. Unfortunately, the Touring is mainly the mum-mobile, so the 5 speed auto will have to stay...

At least I have the 540 when it's time to really let some horses run!

[BimmerBreaker]

M52 then, ok... I got this

Headers
S52 cams
M50 manifold with BBTB and 3.5" MAF with ASC delete if applicable
Ducted CAI

That'd be a nice setup too. Should cost less than $1k when all is said and done. Tunes ready off the shelf for all those mods too