The Dunklenator (Poor Man's Z8 Project)

[rf900rkw]

I don't have direct proof, but I would expect the output shafts to be different diameters, making swapping difficult at best. Also, while removing the output flange only requires a large puller, installation takes a special tool. A tool much like the one that draws the axles back into the rear hubs. If you try to beat the flange back on, you will shift the output shaft forward, using the 5th gear synchro assembly as a stop.

[BimmerBreaker]

I'll leave it alone then - I don't have that tool. I'm sure I can fit the shift linkage over the giubo, it'll just be very tight. Maybe I should see if an E60 CSB fits in the Z3 chassis - maybe running a Z3 diff flange on a shortened E60 driveshaft is a better idea then E60 flange on Z3 shaft...

[BimmerBreaker]

So as was suggested by many I am doing all the wiring in a totally reversible way. This will take a little longer to do as I need to source certain harness plugs and whatnot but I e-mailed the place I ordered the DME pins from and they said if I sent them pictures of the harnesses I need they can let me know what they are as well as what pins are suitable. So I am going to the shop shortly to get that info and hopefully be able to acquire what I need to finish it up. Otherwise, I think I will just need to go to some more junkyards. The yard I went to didn't have anything older than an E46 and it was E36 era plugs that I needed. These cars were never common in junkyards, but not even any E36's? Come on...



Found some spare DME's and some other connectors I needed though. I thought the spare DME's would be good to have. But they aren't, apparently. Haha. I don't know anything about tuning. So I may just sell them? Keep as spares for now? I'm not sure. But I have them. And some spare Valvetronic DME's. And yet another IVM... most importantly, I found a crankshaft position sensor and some of the harness plugs I needed



Crankshaft position sensor installed (don't have any idea why it was missing before...)

And then the person who bought the M52TU showed up to pick it up... in a Prius! I was not expecting it to fit but he assured me he hauls engines with it all the time and gets almost 40mpg doing it. And sure enough, it fit - with intake manifold and a complete transmission





Crazy...

Once he left I worked on removing the auto transmission stuff as my linkage had arrived





Sadly the shifter carrier I bought didn't fit the transmission, it was a bit of a stretch anyways to be honest. The OE part for this trans isn't that much so I will just order that and modify an existing selector rod to work



Then with the M52TU gone the engine crane was available so after looking at the transmission linkage, I could unbolt the transmission and remove the engine





It won't be the "Dunklenator" for very much longer... I think it will end up Daytona Violet. Not completely certain yet though
But the engine is out now

And this is all the stuff I clearanced so far, more to come though. You can also see where the framerail is marked for alternator clearance



Ah yes, once again an empty engine bay



My very thick gauge wire for the PWM fan stuff showed up as well



I used a calculator to determine what gauge thickness I needed, then bought one size up from the smallest it said was suitable. Figured a little extra wire thickness can never hurt... and this is definitely thicker than the OE stuff

Also random but my sister blew the motor on her Subaru wagon a little bit ago so when she asked me recommendations for a replacement I of course recommended a Z3 as well as some other BMW's. After some discussion she was pretty set on an E46 wagon but after she test drove my Z3, then drove a family member's convertible later that same night, she was pretty set on a Z... so I helped her negotiate a deal for this Topaz Blue 2001 2.5i 5 speed this morning



Anyways... off to the shop now, going to open this engine harness box and hopefully install it on the engine (if it's all there and intact this time!) and then take some good pictures of those harness plugs and pins I need to send to that electrical connector company

[328 Power 04]

https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/sho...diagId=12_1255

All the part numbers for being able to build your own connectors are here, is that what you were asking for?

[BimmerBreaker]

Yeah, but I bought the AMP versions - dirt cheap compared to OE. Same connector but not in a BMW bag... I did have to buy 104 though. The other connectors I am looking for are also AMP parts, but actual harness plugs not pins

I also needed some pins for the IVM X06011 13, 14 and 15 which are a weird size, but I did find those as well by manually searching through an AMP connector catalogue

[BimmerBreaker]

All of the engine harness is now plugged in except A/C compressor, alternator and somewhat oddly, one intake cam position sensor
The temp sensor at the water pump was also wrong for the harness. I ended up finding the part # for the sensor I needed and it was the same as an M52 coolant sensor in the head. I had a spare one of those laying around so I swapped it on and that plugged in fine





I am having these issues because it is an E60 engine, but an X5 harness. I will do some research on the intake cam position sensors because it just seems... Weird
The X5 diagram said 4 of the cam sensors with no wire lead. My engine has 2 without leads and 2 with leads, which is what the E60 diagram indicates. Which makes sense since its an E60 engine



However - on one side of the engine - both sensors plug in to the X5 harness (one with lead and one without). On the other side only one is wrong. Even though the X5 diagram says all 4 are the same type... If I swap them to work Ill end up with 3 cam sensors without leads and only one with a lead. Im worried they are outputting different signals or something. I dont know. Its just kind of a red flag to me - I am going to need to research that some more



Another parts car N62 X5 is seeming like a better and better proposition

[BimmerBreaker]

Finding these harnesses is a pain!
From the person helping me... "There is only limited information available on some of these parts because they are considered to be restricted production (for the auto makers and authorized subcontractors)."

However, we have found quite a few!

[rf900rkw]

Hmmm, I wonder what the GVW rating of a Prius battery box is.....

[BimmerBreaker]

Hmmm, I wonder what the GVW rating of a Prius battery box is.....

I don't know but it made it to it's destination 2 hours away! Haha

Plus it had a quality FCP Euro cardboard box there to help distribute the weight

[BimmerBreaker]

Added some pictures to the last update about the CPS sensor stuff

Also decided I was wasting too much time on this DME pin stuff. I'm going to do it with only crimps later, but I am going to use my spare DME box from my parts car and splice and solder wires as needed to get it together and running in the meantime, but I can still do that without cutting into the car-side stuff at all. Basically the DME box will be a self-contained unit, receiving power through the distribution block from the positive battery terminal located right nearby

I've also been worrying about airflow/heat management a bit so I decided to add an extra fan



The stock configuration has the fan on the bottom functioning as the exhaust. I will likely reverse this flow to have the bottom one act as a pusher and the upper one as the exhaust. That seems to make more sense for me, as heat rises. This fan will also likely be hardwired to a switched power source, so it will remain on any time the car or engine is on. I need to double check the lower fan wiring to see how it triggers



Nothing has been wired in for good yet, but I have finalized locations for everything so next time I am back there (maybe later tonight) I will start putting things together...



The IVM will be mounted on the outside, in this location. I only need 3-4 fuses in there so will either trim this down or source one of these with less fuses out of a different BMW

Next... I am not really sure actually. I mean next thing is to finish this wiring completely. But then, well, I guess back to the junkyard to find that "female" CPS I need. At that point the electronics side should be done in theory, at least the critical electronics needed to get it to run (things like reverse light sensors I will add later)

I could focus on fuel - I still have to convert to the M54 fuel system and custom supply line
Or shifter stuff... I still haven't ordered the correct shifter carrier arm... maybe I should just order that tonight so I have it when I need it...
I have more general clearancing to do as well, before I get to the framerail stuff. I started on some of that but have a bit more to do
I think realistically it's time to start notching the front subframe as well. I have the reinforcement kit in now, so I should be able to get it all knocked out by my fabricator. I think I'll work on that tomorrow as well

...so, lots to do!

edit: I went back to the shop to get all the wiring changes knocked out...



Fuse panel was installed to check wire lengths as I went ahead and spliced away



Wired it in, using the car's stock constant 12v as the constant 12v power source



And with the IVM and distribution block...



It doesn't look like much right now, but aside from two wires from the DME to IVM and the grounds, the major wiring is done at this point. Man, that IVM really threw me for a loop... everything seemed so simple up until that. I think I figured it out but of course, only time will tell

edit again: oh and I need the pedal wires... of course! Knew I was forgetting something!

[BladeRunner919]

Loving this thread! Good to see so much daily progress.

[cyberman]

I will likely reverse this flow to have the bottom one act as a pusher and the upper one as the exhaust.

Ram air duct? But seriously, cooling is a huge factor in the reliability of electronics.

I'm impressed, you have a brave heart.

[BimmerBreaker]

Loving this thread! Good to see so much daily progress.

Thanks!

Ram air duct? But seriously, cooling is a huge factor in the reliability of electronics.

I'm impressed, you have a brave heart.

Yeah, when it's 110+ out I don't want to be worrying about the electronics... I want to be worrying about my cooling system!

Not a lot of exciting stuff to photograph the past couple days but I did figure out what that "mystery" red wire was - the one I have set on a separate circuit. It is mislabeled in the pinout - it requires 60a on the E53 so I may simply remove the separate fuse setup I have and run a 60a flat fuse on the distribution block for it


Then another run to a different junkyard looking for the other connectors I wanted. I didn't find anything at all there so went to the other local yard and grabbed the CPS off the 745i I had previously scavenged the crankshaft sensor off of. Helped my sister on her new Z3 a bit in the afternoon but took the time to swap on the CPS before I went home for the day




Now the engine harness is fully plugged in except the alternator. The wiring is almost done, although I do also need to run the main power cable between starter, alternator and main positive supply. I will find how that is routed and see how I can emulate that for the Z3




I also need a power supply cable to the fuse box (the stock Z3 engine harness runs a power supply cable across the engine compartment). I have an idea to integrate this all really neatly by using the distribution block. I am starting to think I should just buy a cheap Z3 engine harness...




In any case the wiring isn't too far from being wrapped up, so I am going to focus next on the fuel system stuff. I haven't even checked my M54 parts car fuel lines yet but I do have a hunch they are destroyed from being dragged up my trailer. I will take a close look tomorrow to see if they are usable but if not I may be bending a second fuel line, not a huge deal. And I know it doesn't matter but I think I found the routing for the fuel pressure regulator vacuum line - it seems to go through the electrical box









I also need to figure the cooling system routing out - but that isn't urgent. Although upon initial inspection it seems pretty close to the Z3 M54 setup. The N62 has one outlet at the back to the heater core, and there seems to be an "inlet" on the water pump, though it is capped on this motor

[BimmerBreaker]

Just got word from the guy working on my cluster that yes he can set the tach to read correctly with the V8 signal. Pretty excited about that!

[BimmerBreaker]

Went camping this past weekend and when I got back some of my electrical stuff was in...



First thing I did was clean my shop a bit, especially my workbench



And then spent the rest of the day afternoon working on the fuel system stuff. M52TU fuel system



After - M54, before the engine supply line is in place



M52TU vs M54 setup (M52TU setup is missing the fuel supply line to the filter, M54 is missing the fuel filter to engine line)



Last things to do for the fuel system before it's done:
- Upgrade fuel pump
- Custom bend engine fuel supply line
- New fuel filter (the lines were ok but the filter was damaged when I dragged that parts car onto my trailer)
...and that should be it for fuel!

Wiring is almost done as well. I will finish the wiring as soon as I can, then get the engine in and hopefully attempt a first start soon!

[kolosy]

got a couple dead bodies in the trunk there? :P

[z3forlife]

Ah. Minimalist camping. I’ve just about got packing the Z worked out.

[ProductUser]

I've seen a Z8 at a Starbucks in Mesa (Power and Southern) many years ago. It's a very pretty and expensive Z variant. The owner was kind enough to talk about his Z8 for a few minutes before he had to leave.

[PbFut]

Last things to do for the fuel system before it's done:
- Upgrade fuel pump
- Custom bend engine fuel supply line
- New fuel filter (the lines were ok but the filter was damaged when I dragged that parts car onto my trailer)
...and that should be it for fuel!

Wiring is almost done as well. I will finish the wiring as soon as I can, then get the engine in and hopefully attempt a first start soon!

FYI I used the 99 OEM pump in FrankenCoupe for 10 yrs until this last engine build. The OEM pump was able to support 420RWHP without any issue.
I am now at 470 and leaned out at the very top end with the oem M pump..
Aeromotive has a 90 GPH unit that will fit with no mods to the OEM basket. Get the offset style so you have room for the fuel gauge card.

[Remotion]

None of the pictures work. Interesting project othervise but working photos would add a lot.

[PbFut]

None of the pictures work. Interesting project othervise but working photos would add a lot.

They are displaying for me.

[BimmerBreaker]

got a couple dead bodies in the trunk there? :P

All the camping spots were full so we had to make room for ourselves somehow

Ah. Minimalist camping. I’ve just about got packing the Z worked out.

Pretty far from minimalist... I should have taken pictures of this tent. My girlfriend is still pretty new to camping so we are trying to find a tent that's comfortable for the both of us and our dog (it's a little tight in the backpacking tent I've used for years) and the one we tried this time was HUGE. One of those "cabin" tents - could fit, yeesh I don't know - 8-9 people comfortably? I have mentioned I want to get a smaller tent to use when it's just us, in the Z... that sounds like a fun drive!

I've seen a Z8 at a Starbucks in Mesa (Power and Southern) many years ago. It's a very pretty and expensive Z variant. The owner was kind enough to talk about his Z8 for a few minutes before he had to leave.

Drool! I think I've only seen one in person I can recount... it was Topaz Blue, had Alpina wheels but appeared to be a Z8 not an Alpina roadster. I saw it around Malibu Beach so the context was absolutely perfect. I had driven out to the area for bimmerfest and we were both going the same way for about 20 miles along PCH. It was gooorgeous. I was speeding along quite happily until catching up to him - then I just had to slow down and stare. Got stopped at a couple lights and shouted some niceties at him and exchanged some light conversation. It had so much road presence. It was much larger than I expected, but not too large. It was also even prettier in person. It uses the same techniques as the E39 for sculpting the bodyline to appear muscular, but it's at the same time more delicate, the hips - reminiscent of the Z3 facelift hips, but better - meatier. I could keep going on and on. The Z8 really is my dream car... there isn't any other car I would own for that kind of money.

FYI I used the 99 OEM pump in FrankenCoupe for 10 yrs until this last engine build. The OEM pump was able to support 420RWHP without any issue.
I am now at 470 and leaned out at the very top end with the oem M pump..
Aeromotive has a 90 GPH unit that will fit with no mods to the OEM basket. Get the offset style so you have room for the fuel gauge card.

Good to know! Currently it has the stock pump from the 2.5, shared with the 1.9-3.0 variants, S52 is different (S54 obviously is different too) but with your experience I think I will try a good S52 fuel pump I have on hand first. At least for testing purposes.

None of the pictures work. Interesting project othervise but working photos would add a lot.

Maybe try my website directly? https://www.ascfabrics.com/z3 I am not sure. I have heard of some others having issues viewing the images on iOS platforms, but I am all Windows here so can't test it myself to figure out why it would be doing that. Not sure where else to host the images... I am just hotlinking them off my website, that is likely part of the issue

I spent yesterday playing with my new toys - notably my loom tape, some of my new pins with my new crimping tool and my new plugs. Yes this does mean that all the stuff I was eager to just splice into place, I am now re-doing and running wires with crimped ends like an OE harness. There are still some splices - 5 by my count - due to not all the pins/harnesses being available. I will try to source these last missing pins down the road, so I can run everything as full wire lengths. I don't like splicing. I really have no justification for this - I haven't had issues with any splices I've done in the past, I just prefer to run full wire lengths when possible

This was at the beginning... I would test fit it, see where a harness needed to be, then wrap...



Test fit again, wrap some more...



And in the end I ended up with something about like this. It is now established as a plug in harness except the grounds (I ordered the ring terminals for those last night). Not bad for a first attempt imo - it's a pretty tight wrap, with no exposed wires along the covered length.



I also trimmed the distribution block down to only the fuses I need and installed a rivnut (love those things) into the DME box to allow me to mount it. Worked perfectly. I had a little trick planned but forgot to try to use it - basically wrap the rivnut in the cut off finger of a glove, then when it is riv-nutted in place it should also be weatherproof. I will try this for the final iteration. I am trying to be careful to avoid water ingress, especially since I have cables passing from inside to outside of DME box. DME box won't be "weathertight" anyways due to the extra fan, but I want to make it safe to be driven through inclement weather. As the "exposed" fan is an exhaust I am hoping it won't be too much of an issue. The main concern is where the wires pass through the DME box - so I will either have a grommet or have RTV/silicone applied around them at these points



The wiring is very close to being done at this point, kind of weird to realize that though. It's felt until now like every time I crossed one hurdle with the wiring it only revealed more, bigger hurdles. But now I think it's all finally figured out, heck the "adapter harness" is finished - just needs a few ring terminals. I was even able to fit the DME, Valvetronic DME and IVM in the DME box like I wanted to. It's pretty tight - I don't think that extra fan is optional - but it fits...


Oh my de-pinning tools I bought also don't work for the round pins I need to de-pin. Sooo I bought my first ever Genuine BMW tool! $60 for a freaking depinning tool but hey, sometimes you gotta pay to play...

I also drew out my own wiring diagram from scratch, to show the routing of all the wires on the harness I made yesterday, as well as the DME and IVM harnesses I've modified. So if I need to trace anything in the future, I can easily do so. I will even probably spend some time today learning how to plot it out neatly on Adobe Illustrator, so I can do things like change the color of individual wires and have a clean electronic version of it to save with my other notes. No pictures, there are some things I have to keep secret That diagram took countless hours of research and figuring out to be able to put together. Not that I expect many to be eager to follow suit given the need to notch my framerail... but hey

Today I will work on the engine fuel supply line. Once the fuel supply line is finished then the only thing left for me to do before a test start is finish the wiring! And "finishing the wiring" really only means swapping 2-3 pins into different harnesses and finalizing the positive cable routing. Just waiting on my depinning tool from FCP and terminals I ordered to be able to do that... So I am very close to a potential test start. I've decided I am not going to mount the engine for a test start except to bolt the transmission in. I've seen quite a few videos now of engines being tested just sitting on the ground and they jump around a little but then are calm at idle. So I will just bolt it in at the trans and give it a test when the time comes. For now just going to keep putting one foot in front of the other!

[BimmerBreaker]

Spent a good amount of time today converting my wiring diagram into an illustrator file

Then went to the shop and realized I hate that adapter harness I made. It is going to be redone. I also found this really sweet BMW "auxillary fuse holder" after I came home which holds exactly the 4 fuses I need, part #61 13 1 382 196
It was used on an E30 so its sort of period correct too

Fuel line... I need to figure out still. Forgot my mask so didnt go to the store lol. What a weird time to live in

[BimmerBreaker]

Engine fuel supply line is done (temporarily... Looks ugly as heck but itll work for now)
Engine positive cable is routed - looks like itll have enough length to go where I want it to as it is but wont know for sure until engine is installed again
DME should be shipping to me shortly as well!

The round pins I thought I found an AMP replacement for... I did! So far Ive nailed it on all the pins. Realized I am one pin away from being able to run all wires as complete lengths with 0 splicing. So I am on the hunt for those pins today!
Im also double checking some more wiring diagrams today, notably the EWS and the starter signal
Have some customer work at the shop but should be super quick and easy (knock on wood)

[ProductUser]

Do you have a the symbolic electric guitar riffs and drums playing in the background during your build(similar to what's heard on Motortrend tv)?