M62TUB44 Cooling System

[E30m62boy]

Hi guys,

I am currently swapping an M62TUB44 into my E30. I have exhausted all information I can find online regarding the routing of the piping from the water cooled alternator and expansion tank.

The lump is out of an automatic, so naturally it has a heat exchanger. To bypass this would I cap off the rear alternator connection? Surely this would cause a dead end and an overheated alternator?

The next thing is the remote expansion tank. There are only two outlets on the rear of the engine, for the heater matrix. I’ve heard one pipe goes on the water pump, does the other go to the radiator?

Any help will be appreciated, I am trying to get my head around it so any help will be appreciated!

[hakentt]

Demand on the alternator won't be so great because E30 doesn't have the same amount of electronics as E39 has, so capping off the rear connection won't cause the alternator to overheat.

[Henn28]

My experience is having swapped the 4.6 into my 4.4 E53 X5. I found the alternator capped on the 4.4 that I took out, so I capped it (new cap) on the 4.6 when it went in. Frankly, this is a mystery to me in that why make a water cooled alternator that doesn’t have an outlet for the water!? I guess I could have just stopped that sentence at “why make a water cooled alternator….”

at any rate, the motor and alternator are running strong with 7k on them now so it would seem that no outlet is required. I believe later versions of the trans cooler had a line in for water coming out of the back of the alternator to help the trans fluid heat up more quickly. Mine is a 2002 build and my trans cooler has no port on it for coolant. Frankly,I’m worried that my 4.6 is going to overheat my 4.4 ZF tranny and torque converter and am thinking of swapping in a CSF universal cooler and in-line thermostat on some custom AN lines to keep the fluid cool.

Regarding the rear coolant outlets you mention, are you referring to the two outlets on the rear coolant manifold that spans the back of the motor/heads?

[Henn28]

Check out RealOEM here: RealOEM.com - Online BMW Parts Catalog

The two hoses to/from the rear manifold are clearly shown, with the short one running from the rear manifold to the heater valves and the other running back up to the front of the car, along the frame rail to the Aux water pump.

The longer one has a metal length included in it and I can tell you from experience needs to be run correctly. Otherwise, the rubber parts will burn through on the manifold, or wear through on the steering column, with predicable results in the grocery store parking lot.

[HollinPitcher]

I'm doing the same engine in my E34 530i sedan, 1995 model year. I'm using a CSF E39 m5 radiator, do you think that would be a good idea? Also, can you please post pictures of the build and the pipe routing you did so I can get a general idea? big thanks.

[Henn28]

I'm doing the same engine in my E34 530i sedan, 1995 model year. I'm using a CSF E39 m5 radiator, do you think that would be a good idea? Also, can you please post pictures of the build and the pipe routing you did so I can get a general idea? big thanks.

I’m looking at that very same radiator for my E53, as I think it should drop in and give much greater cooling margin. my (auto) tranny cooler adds some complexity though since the M5 CSF radiator doesn’t have the small port on the bottom left for the hose to run across the engine bay to the tranny cooler. Would love your thoughts on the radiator when you get it. PM me if you need me to try to recall any details of my swap. I did take a lot of pictures, and still had to revisit some hose routing after a self induced failure due to mis-routing one. Happy to take more pics or FaceTime with the hood up if you get stuck.