Ahmedsinc

Hi guys, will be collecting an '01 530i wagon as the new family taxi at the end of this week. Need to know if it's possible to individually disable airbags through GT1 or if I'm going to have to take it into a shop. Unless I can figure out a way to securely mount Wee Mans seat in the middle. Not sure the car was specced with Isofix either Ta very much

If it's anything like my 325i it was as simple as splicing two wires together, or running two wires to the clutch switch. Which I should do but still haven't gotten around to it. Dinosaur technology can still be cool! Pics of the swap or it didn't happen

Cold chisel & 3lb mallet deal with those problems rather nicely Does make me wonder why so many people insist on overtorquing wheel nuts when that is the outcome............. Aplolgies to OP for thread hijacking

What I'm hoping for is guidance on whether to run with the M50 intake ( given I'll be changing the exhaust cam on the B30 for the B25NV intake item) and having the whole install dyno tuned to suit the increased fuel requirements over the standard M50B25NV factory tune; or if I'm better off sticking with the M54B30 intake. My gut feeling tells me that the tuner will take into account the intake characteristics and make adjustments accordingly to provide best performance balanced against a linear as possible power and torque curve, therefore making manifold choices mostly a theoretical exercise. Granted, if I were merely swapping the intake and expecting an output increase without enlisting a pro to retune the ECU to suit it would be an expensive waste of time. This is not a backyard butcher shop project though. I have sighted proof that the project yields 240 rwhp & 300ft/lb torque. Not earth shattering numbers, but more than enough for a DD that might see a trackday once if it's lucky. Should probably pay my advisor another visit and mull it over with him too

Well I'll be buggered. I shouldn't be surprised that some sunlight deprived german came up with an idea like that, but I am still impressed! Could be looking at doing that in the medium term, will be coming straight to you if it happens

Holy crap. That's the first time I've ever heard of a Stahlwille cracking! Bad luck man, hope you're billing the boss for the replacement

Bought my old one a new friend. '01 530i estate, grandad spec but in really tidy condition. Soon to gain a few M bits I have left over from the parts car. Happy Daddy

Mmmmm, glossy!

Hahahahaha, awesome! Nice price on the 2 post too!

Nice looking car but pretty optimistic pricing given the ks travelled. There's another m-sport 540i with similar ks for 3k cheaper. Given the amount of money that would need to be spent on preventative maintenance I know which one I'd be considering. I kinda like the wheels though. Not very well suited to the E39 but I think they'd look ok on a Z

Yes. Subtle but pleasing

Just proves that if you hear hoofbeats, sometimes you aren't looking for horses. Nice work dude!

Have got a near complete M50B25NV in the shed. PM for details

Will be deleting Vanos and running a silver label DME from an NV B25, remapped for the different fuelling rates. The build (if I can get away with calling it that) consists of an M54B30, B25NV intake cam on B30 exhaust side, B30 cam dialled to full advance and locked, Vanos delete and DME remap, plus a couple other tweaks on the cam sensor plate. The engine I'm basing my build on has been run in a race car for multiple seasons with great reliablity, but as I mentioned earlier I won't be driving around constantly in the upper rev ranges, hence my musings on whether using the M50 intake would be counterproductive. So far everything Ive heard supports a roughly 30 hp gain over stock, which I'm certainly not complaining about, but as my main goal for going down the 3 litre route is torque, torque and more torque. Or at least more torque that my current donk produces. Which isn't very much at all There is a small possibility of going down the FI route in the future, which could open up the need for the NV intake, but for the meantime my budget dictates that I stay the NA course. But for the interim, I think the jump from 150 rwhp to 200-odd, manual trans and a 3.46 LSD ought to keep me entertained

Yup, seems the cam of choice is an M50B25NV intake cam used on the exhaust side of the M52. Off the top of my head provides 9.7mm (?) lift and 240 deg duration. Following the advice of a member on here who knows a great deal more about this cam change than I do I'm following his advice and using said cam on my M54B30 build. What I'm wondering, is will using the M50 NV intake manifold have a similar detrimental effect on low to midrange torque on the B30? Or will the hotter cam profile serve as a counter to the torque loss? The engines he has built are for competition use, so naturally they're spending most of their time above 3.5k rpm. I'm going to be using the B30 I have downstairs as a replacement for the M50B25 so I'm looking for a torque curve more appropriate to a road engine. As it isn't viable to convert the E36 to drive by wire am I better off to fabricate an adaptor plate for the B30 intake manifold or run with the B25NV unit? The build is a rather ingenious one, and I'm looking forward to the results once it's been tuned on the dyno. However, I'd appreciate the input, even if it is only based on theory

Just as an aside, Ron - are you aware of any research / threads / real world experience on fitting an M52 intake to a dirty old M50B25? All the research I've done corroborates your input on the intake swap, but I haven't yet seen anything about an M52 -> M50 swap. Is part of the difference in the cam profiles or is there a bit more black magic to it?

Any desire to get rid of the Pioneer HU? Need one to replace the unit in wifeys car

Can anyone recommend an independent BMW workshop in tauranga? Have got my eye on an E46 wagon down there but wouldn't mind a qualified opinion before I commit. Also, does Ray do PPIs? There's a second wagon in Auckland I'd like a report on too

Haven't looked too hard for them locally, but could be keen if anyone wants to go for a group purchase. Pretty hard to get the e36 a decent height off the ground otherwise

Good to know. I used redline when I swapped the LS pumpkin into the 3.15 for the manual swap. Can hear the plates binding while cornering at medium - low speeds. Have seen Castrol LSD oils available at Repco (!) of late, is the stuff available thru BMW labelled as SAF-XJ or just 75w-140? Am wanting the SAF-XO if it's available anywhere. Apologies to OP for thread jack

Towbar is hardly a make or break selling point but it does save me the hassle of finding one to put on the car. Leather seats are a bonus, but again, not essential. Plus the other advantage with buying an E36 wagon is that it gives me my ideal platform for the 10 year project Depending on how I go with patching up the Pusser tomorrow I'll pop over to Puke & have a look at one for sale there. Who knows, all my problems might be solved as early as Sunday afternoon

And counting...............!

Have been keeping an eye on this one for a while If you could take a look that would be sweet, where in Crumblechurch would be a good place to have a PPI done? There's a couple other 328i wagons in the upper nth isl, but lack leather and towbar is rather attractive!

Being sarcastic?? For my tastes the way you have the car presented currently is exactly what I want to own in 5 years time Do what satisfies yourself and screw the keyboard critics!

Was thinking the same thing myself. Does the issue lie in the N series being the first vvt 4 cylinders? Or is something more sinister at play here? Is any BMW post 2001 safe to buy??