Hi all first post here. I bought a 323i for my 17yo son to drive, he neglected the maintenance against my warnings, and was also caught abusing it (imagine that lol). When I took it from him as punishment i realized he had quicky destroyed it. Soo in short this is my car now lol, id love to have a project/toy and id rather use this car because its paid for but not worth much as far as selling so im calling it a "free" platform to start with. Among other issues the subframe mounts are destroyed, not just cracked but he literally ripped it out and was still abusing it. I know this has been covered numerous times but I'm looking for advice for a track only application and wondering if that changes anything? Would i be better off caging this car and running dom tubing from the cage down to the sub frame? My second question has also been covered a million times but not under track only situation. Cheapest/easiest route to 350+ hp. Since idc about interior/emissions/street ability i would like to hear ideas/opinions about swaps vs modding current engine to male the best power for the money. Also should I have posted this in e46 forums? My experience on forums is limited to searching and reading lol
What is your goal with the car?
I realize the car is "free" but you are going to spend an obscene amount getting this car in race shape compared to buying a built e46 m3 track day car.
Fender flares, brakes, engine swap, cage, suspension, wheels, seats, etc, etc. Going to be 20 grand before you even add the finishing touches.
Sorry but I know all too well.
Now you could budget swap a roll bar, fix the rear subframe, upgrade pads and tires, and maybe m54 swap for a budget DE car but you are still in for 6 grand or more...
Olemiss540 thank you for your time, sorry I can't provide a clearer idea of my goals. I guess my goal is to make this particular car usable for something fun even if its a slow/costly process. Could be drift/auto-x/bracket drag ect. I would just hate to scrap or part it out. It was my son's first car and tho he lost it as punishment the day may come when I'm willing to give it back as a track only car so we can attend events together. I was already doing a similar "free" or "salvage" drag racing build for myself with a retired work truck from my landscaping company. I guess I like to start with what I have already and find its potential for fun lol. I've been looking into m52/m54 specs and trying to retain/learn bmw stuff. I believe it's the 2.8 I was considering. Im also trying to teach myself to weld/fabricate on these "junk" projects. So I was even tossing around the idea of a carbed sbc swap in the bmw. I know nobody can give me real answers on such a vague question im just here to hear peoples ideas so I can take it all in before I put together a plan.
Holy wall of text. Is that really necessary? I track multiple E46’s but you can kiss my *ss if you think I’m reading that.
🤣 sorry im new to forums and I talk alot lol. Much sorter version. Im looking for ideas on building a car to do fun stuff with. a car that will be trailered to tracks/events be it drifting drag autox track day ect.
Just LS swap it if you want to learn fabrication. Can do an iron block build and later turbo it if you want. The wiring is dead simple, buy a custom length driveshaft and a junkyard 5.3L. Have fun!
Thanks Olemiss540! This sounds like a good direction to go in, the only reason I said sbc carbbed instead of ls was wiring. When you say dead simple what route are you suggesting? Stand alone like holly efi or something?
Nope. Can wire in the GM cam with something like 8 wire inputs. Built my own wiring harness with a basic fundamental skill of soldering.
LT1swap.com is MAGICAL in explaining everything and DIY guides all free of charge. The trick is keeping BMW modules/ECUs working for things like ABS.
All of this takes a dedication to thorough use of google but the work itself is simple aside from fabricating the mounts, AC, cruise, etc IMO.
Last edited by olemiss540; 12-19-2020 at 05:26 PM.
That is awesome! Thank you again for reading my long winded questions and offering advice. What transmission did you use?
T56. There is a new tremec transmission that looks like the ticket tho.
Awesome thanks, im gonna look into it more but now I have a direction to start.
had a typo in the LT1swap.com name above. Fixed. Good luck!
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