M42T 2.1 Build Thread

[Retoropak]

I measured some stuff yesterday and looks like i will have enough clearance up front with -2 degrees camber. I measured rear camber and currently is around -1.5 but i might need to add 0.5 degree to be safe.

I also test fitted e28 front sway bar and it looks like it will be a perfect fit. I might go with an aftermarket thicker bar tho.


I need to get some camber/toe adjusters from Ireland Engineering and make the rear end adjustable. I will need to also get the new shock mounting point welded into the stock e28 trailing arms. Shocks mounting points will have to move 1.5-2” in to clear the tires.


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[Retoropak]

I pulled one side rear fender and will start working on the other side.

Helmut by w grync,

I cut the inner fender and pulled until it started to dent the outer then i backed up a bit. I welded piece of sheet metal to the inner to fill the gap. I will prime with epoxy and seam sea the shit out of it.


I got my new Mig setup its the everlast i-mig200e. I have only experience with some crappy 60 amp mig and inverter tig machine. So far i am impressed with that new mig.

Helmut by w grync,



I migged the front lollipop mounts together. And will weld them to the frame rails later this week.

Helmut by w grync

Helmut by w grync,

I had to notch the rear frame rail to clear the triling arm.

Helmut by w grync



Trailing arms with the new shock mounts tacked in.

Helmut by w grync,

Helmut by w grync,

[3doghouse]

Very cool! Looking forward to seeing the results of that rear fender stretch.

[Retoropak]

Oh my i have neglected this thread a bit.

Here are some updates:

I ditched the idea of running 17" contours. The car looked pretty bad on 17s.
I got some style 7s 15x7et20 from 5 series that i repainted and they fit fairly nice
I painted the subframes and got the e30 swaybars setup for front and back.
I also modified zf320 to sit straight, I chopped the bellhousing and welded it back at correct angle to be bale to mount the m42 straight.
I also modified m42 oil pan for the vert mount setup.


E21 donk
Untitled by w grync, on Flickr


Much better with the 15s
Helmut by w grync,
Helmut by w grync


Front sway bar setup.

Suspensions by w grync, on Flickr


Rear swaybar and e36 diff cover with diff mounts welded in.

Helmut by w grync, on Flickr

Front subframe

Suspensions by w grync, on Flickr


Front suspension bits
Suspensions by w grync, on Flickr
Helmut by w grync, on Flickr


Engine bay paint prep

Helmut by w grync, on Flickr




Oil Pan

Helmut by w grync, on Flickr


And the m42 and transmission

Helmut by w grync



Chop chop

Chop chop by w grync, on Flickr
Chop chop by w grync, on Flickr


This is the tube that slid over the TO bearing tube and has OD that fits the engine mains. It is used to center the transmission

Gearbox by w grync, on Flickr



Transmission bellhousing and block bolted together

Gearbox by w grync, on Flickr



And welded together.

Gearbox by w grync, on Flickr



And some goodies.

MAxxEcu Race for all my engine management needs

Helmut by w grync, on Flickr

[autox320]

That's one way to right-side the ship. What are you after to gain more clearance for the turbo etc?

No megasquirt pro?


I like it. Especially the custom pan and trans. I've not welded much with my spool gun but man that is some serious cast welding there for the trans. Cutting jig is awesome also, exactly what would of happened here.

[Retoropak]

That's one way to right-side the ship. What are you after to gain more clearance for the turbo etc?

No megasquirt pro?


I like it. Especially the custom pan and trans. I've not welded much with my spool gun but man that is some serious cast welding there for the trans. Cutting jig is awesome also, exactly what would of happened here.

Yes i need more room for a turbo manifold.

I like tunner studio for MS tuning but decided on maxx because i got awesome deal and have some experience tuning it. It is one of the most capable ecu’s out there for reasonable money imho. I like the interface and customer service and tech support is awesome.

Yeah jig was pretty accurate. A key was to use short blades/discs. New 4.5” discs flex too much and would go out of track. Flat table also helped a lot.
That bellhousing was maybe 3/16” were i cut it. It took roughly 140 amps to get it welded.


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[autox320]

Yes i need more room for a turbo manifold.

I like tunner studio for MS tuning but decided on maxx because i got awesome deal and have some experience tuning it. It is one of the most capable ecu’s out there for reasonable money imho. I like the interface and customer service and tech support is awesome.

Yeah jig was pretty accurate. A key was to use short blades/discs. New 4.5” discs flex too much and would go out of track. Flat table also helped a lot.
That bellhousing was maybe 3/16” were i cut it. It took roughly 140 amps to get it welded.


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Awesome stuff man. I really like how simple you solved to put upright. Honestly never thought of just cut and weld the bellhousing. Can't wait to see it going.

[Damon in STL]

Very cool build....reminds me of my build I'm resurrecting's! See the link at the bottom.

I had my M42 running ethanol on MS II 3.57 and bought a Microsquirt a while back that I had planned on installing. I now finally have time to give the car (which has been sitting for a number of years) some attention. One of my thoughts has been to swap in a DCT instead of the current ZF and run both engine and trans with the Maxxecu. I have a bit of experience tuning with Megatune. How hard is it to switch over to the Maxxecu system? I'm thinking if I understand the concepts it would be somewhat straight forward.

[Retoropak]

Very cool build....reminds me of my build I'm resurrecting's! See the link at the bottom.

I had my M42 running ethanol on MS II 3.57 and bought a Microsquirt a while back that I had planned on installing. I now finally have time to give the car (which has been sitting for a number of years) some attention. One of my thoughts has been to swap in a DCT instead of the current ZF and run both engine and trans with the Maxxecu. I have a bit of experience tuning with Megatune. How hard is it to switch over to the Maxxecu system? I'm thinking if I understand the concepts it would be somewhat straight forward.

Maxx is fairly easy. Tunning is the same no matter what ECU you're using. At the end of the day its all about spark timing and AFR's. I like that maxx's software is well structured and makes the tunnig fairly quick and efficient. Can bus, DBW boost by gear etc. is also very easy with maxx

DCT wise i thing you wopuld have a hard time fitting this box in the stock tunnel. My buddy just swapped his volvo with GS6-53 and this box is fat. I dont think it would fit in the e21 without major tunnel surgery.









And now a bit of a project update.

I finished the transmission setup. I bolted everything together and it looks like i screwed up the oil pan by about 0.5" I will have to chop it and re-weld it.

I could not find anywhere a reasonably priced e36m3 driveshaft so I ordered a new/reman driveshaft from FCP (lifetime warranty in case something will twist).

I also decided to swap e36 steering column for a bit modern stalks and cruise control stalk.

E21 by w grync, on Flickr

I started pondering the idea of ditching the brake booster setup and going with dual master pedals from wilwood or tilton. Ideally I would go with floor mounted 3 pedal setup. The hanging gas pedal from tilton wont clear the column and i kind of want to have all three pedals configured same way.


I am also getting rid of the stock fusebox for a more modern unit from Littlefuse

https://www.littelfuse.com/media?res...VGFOmBYKuVoJHA


I did a bit of an engine bay paint prep, but will wait till i finish engine mounts, intercoller setup and radiator mounts before I paint it.

E21 by w grync, on Flickr

[cgifool]

I like that ashtray replacement!

[Retoropak]

Progress was fairly slow last couple of months. I had some issues with my back and overall lack of motivation.

I had to redo the whole front subframe due to the oil pan clearance issues. I could not fit decent size sump with stock e36 configuration. Since the motor is mounted to the frame rails i could chop the middle section of the subframe and redo the steering rack mount to get additional clearance for the sump.
Don't mind crappy welds, once I hit it with some pretty epoxy paint it wont look that bad anymore.



Engine mounts

Untitled by w grync


New oil pan setup


E21 by w grync






I also welded brackets for the lower radiator mounts. Mounts are stock e36 ones. There is enough room for 3" intercooler in front of the radiator.



- - - Updated - - -

Its just a piece of 1/4" plexi with some wrinkle paint. I mounted usb/ charger port, cigarette lighter socket and volt meter there

I like that ashtray replacement!

[Retoropak]

I forgot to add that I picked up a new daily last month. I brought it back to Chicago from Knoxville. It was quite a trip. It had some worn summer tires at the time and we end up driving thru some blizzard conditions with some black ice in Indiana. We made it tho. I am still impressed how those tires combined with traction control could go thru this without too much trouble.

E21 by w grync


It is 2018 f32 440i with sport package and track package. That b58/zf 8spd combo is amazing. I already put catless downpipe and did the stock muffler mod and it sounds great. I will get it tuned sometime this year. This thing is quite fast in stock form tho.

[autox320]

Progress was fairly slow last couple of months. I had some issues with my back and overall lack of motivation.
I had to redo the whole front subframe due to the oil pan clearance issues. I could not fit decent size sump with stock e36 configuration. Since the motor is mounted to the frame rails i could chop the middle section of the subframe and redo the steering rack mount to get additional clearance for the sump.

Nice I completely feel you on redoing something like this for custom fitment. Not the only one with some down months.

I'll say this here, wait till see what I've been up to and why. Luckily motivation returned right when I need it most. Redo is an understatement. Trying not to pound too much brew but they've been going down really easy past couple weeks. Another season is upon us, get back to work bro

[Retoropak]

I whipped that new subframe in one evening. It was a matter of jigging steering rack. The control arm position is set by the subframe locating pins and did not change. It was not bad at all.

I just renewed registration for this car and said its a last time. If it wont leave garage this year I'll scrap the whole thing. So here is my motivation.

I am starting some wiring today and tbh i dont even know where to start. I think I will do a front harness first for the lights, turn signals, e-fan, fogs and horn. Then I will try to sort out the harness going to the cabin. ECU will have totally separate harness. The link between chassis wiring and engine wiring will be done with some deutsch connectors.

I will need +12v switched for ECU, +12v for injectors,+12v for ignition, +12V for boost solenoid and one or two grounds. i guess 6pin connector should do the trick.

Here is the wiring mess after removing bunch of not needed stuff.

Helmut by w grync


New fusebox

Helmut by w grync,


I forgot to post the picture of the rear inner fenders after i epoxied it and applied brushable seamsealer.

Helmut by w grync

Helmut by w grync,

[Retoropak]

Since the engine sits upright the stock m42 manifold (e30) or ugly e36 one won't work anymore. Miata folks are adapting honda intakes with pretty good results. After some research I decided to get a Honda b series manifold and try to fuse it with m42 intake flange. Spacing is the same +/- 2-3 mm so it should line up fairly well.

It will get bosh DBW throttle body either in 68mm or ill go size up to 82mm if it fits.
Its a pro series so I expect some pro results . Sadly It will sit upside down so that beautiful logo wont be visible.


Intake by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]
Intake by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]

[Retoropak]

After test fitting honda b-series manifold i came to the conclusion that it would work but in slanted application. Port spacing was spot on but it would sit too low and interfere with booster/master cylinder.
I tried another one this time from volvo white block. I chopped one cylinder but again it would sit a bit too low.

Volvo manifold by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]
Volvo manifold by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]
Volvo manifold by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]


I ditched the idea of adapting other manifolds and bought some parts to make a custom one.
I got the plenum, runners, velocity stacks and injector bungs from Ross Machine. Flange is coming from DanSt performance in UK. Stay tuned. After the manifold is done the build should progress fairly quick.

[Retoropak]

I figured its time for some custom manifold. I got some trumpets, plenum and a bit of a runner pipe. Flange is also on its way.

Random by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]

In the meantime I started wrapping up some other bits.
I welded shock mounts for the trailing arms. I started working on oil pickup and also threaded some holes for the windage tray. That cheapo oil pan came with windage tray mounts without any threads. Also internal oil pickup passage has a burr that obstructed 40-50% of the opening.

Random by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]

Random by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]

[autox320]

Did we already discuss booster delete? I've one of Lee's kits from Massive on the shelf. Basically a offset firewall bracket. Allows to bolt the factory MC directly without the booster. It's offset to put the connecting rod hole higher on the pedal. This gives near stock pedal feel giving you extra leverage ratio to simulate having a booster. While I've not tried it myself I'm told it's as good as can get without a booster. Don't use a chase bay single cylinder, keep the factory MC. You could make your own bracket and make a linkage rod. I can get a pic of the contents of my kit if you'd like.

massive booster delete.jpg
booster delete 2.jpg

[Retoropak]

I’ll try to fit stock or maybe e90 booster and if this wont work I’ll most likely put some tilton dual masters.

Lee@massive brake wrote somewhere that boosterless setups are not that great with floating calipers.

[Retoropak]

I mocked up a plenum to see if stock booster will fit and the verdict is that there is no chance that the stock or e90 or any booster will fit. I am going boosterless. I will try wilwood floor mounts first (gotta love amazon prime for their return policy) and if it wont work ill go with swing mounts.

Helmut by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]


I also finished transmission mount yesterday and started fitting passenger side fuel tank.
I wont use drivers side tank for now. Later I might drop a fuel cell and get rid of stock tanks but we will see.
Helmut by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]
Helmut by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]

Helmut by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/186931632@N07/]

[Yahweh]

Subscribed from the other side of Indiana. This looks like the insanity I would get into. Its not perfect till everything is custom, questioning was the price was worth the cost every other step of the way. I love it.

[Retoropak]

Subscribed from the other side of Indiana. This looks like the insanity I would get into. Its not perfect till everything is custom, questioning was the price was worth the cost every other step of the way. I love it.

I had couple of days were is thought to ditch the whole thing before its too late. Well ….its too late now.
There wont be anything stock left drivetrain and suspension wise and barely anything stock electrical when i finish.

It is one of these projects that nothing fits and once i figure out one thing 5 other problems pop out.

[Yahweh]

Its never too late. HAHA! There is a deep creek out back of the shop we always joke about rolling frustrations into.


If interested here's been my build and challenges, if it helps keep motivation for yours., Rebuilding the pedal box, Reinforcing strut towers, sorting 5 lug. sorting. Change 1 thing, change a million - ENTROPY

Some days I consider an E90 Rear suspension.

[autox320]

Its never too late. HAHA! There is a deep creek out back of the shop we always joke about rolling frustrations into.

Ummm holy shit innuendo; this post quote will be used for future reference. I'll explain later

[Retoropak]

I ordered nuke fuel rail and will 3d print some dummy injectors to fixture rail and injector bungs. There is too much flex in the orings to use real injectors for jigging rail position.

I also got willwood floor mounted pedal set. I should get everything by Saturday and will start some test fitting.