Herbmiester

Also 300hp is not 360-380 HP as Ron mentioned.

Cams are not cheap, regrinding the originals is not recommended and schrick cams are pretty expensive. fitting them is not for everyone and while I dont doubt the engine made 300hp I wonder what else was done, headers I assume and a retune of the ECU all that could easily cost 3k or more. The fact is that if the M54 was easily tunable for noticable HP everyone would do it. It's not like an N54 where picking up big HP and torque is child's play.

That will take a lot of money to achieve, if you are trying to get there naturally aspirated. Intake, exhaust, cams, valve springs and perhaps new pistons. The head may need work as well. Not what I would call easily tuneable. Also as mentioned you will have to do something about the oil pump to stop it failing. To me thats an engine out job. Probably cheaper to bolt on a supercharger.

I would have thought 15-16k was top dollar for a 325i but maybe you pay more for a Wagon.

To be fair the M54 does not offer great potential anyway and if you want to buzz it at high RPM regularly you better pay some attention to the oil pump.

Tell us more.................

Sorry sold.

Saw that episode.

Back in the 80's my Torana had a 450ish (Calculated via weight and 1/4 mile time) small block and being NA rather than turbo the torque didn't really hit until 3000 rpm so unlike modern turbo motors you had time to prepare (sort of). Anyway Bogon Wagon stories aside you do get used to having a lot of power and I became adept at not wrapping it around power poles. Ironically at the time the car actually handled quite well, RTS suspension and some expensive Goodyear tyres helped. Pissed of a colleague who had an Alfa GTV and could never get me out of his rear vision mirrors on the Napier Taupo Rd, (Until the straights )

Some info on what diff to use. A Wavetrack, or M Factory LSD will be good value for money but you could also use a plate style LSD if you want really positive lockup. Large bolted Diffs are the ones you want.

There are quite a few baggy e36s around for sure but for that reason tidy ones stick out like dogs balls. I have seen a few slammed E30s in the last few months and they just scream flat peak, no idea numpties.

KYB dont do front gas shocks for the E46 from memory but there gas shocks are reasonable, that said I would go Koni. I have had the STRT shocks on my E36 and they matched the factory M sport springs nicely.

James I can understand your desire here but having looked at doing something similar with an E36 I think its a waste of your hard earned cash. Keep your gar in tip top shape then trade up to 330i, having owned one I can tell you its a sweet engine. If you have a HP want after that then 335i is the ticket.

Looks like a nice intercooler.

I say do it build a 600hp engine and then give the middle finger to the Trolls. I know it can be done but as mentioned you will have to beef up the driveline. If you have an early 335i you should have the large diff and that will probably be ok as long as you dont hammer it off the line. That said getting off the line will be tricky, at around 400hp I am already struggling to hook up. I dont know how strong the manual boxes are but the auto will likely reach its torque limit pretty quicly. Nispro in Australia were working on beefed up internals for the ZF box and the have experience here doing similar work on the bigger ZF box that sits behind the excellent Aussie Barra Turbo engine. N54s run warm so look at better options for the radiator and oil cooler/s. New rear sub frame mounts would also be wortwhile.

No I meant E36, clasic good looks especially the coupe, doors interior etc can all be fixed reasonably easily. For a track day car you could get an M3 for the price of some e30 325i's.

E30 prices are getting ridiculous, just buy an E36 and enjoy the fact that its a better car for less money.

Mmmmm pretty.

Rears are easy fronts a bit more effort just do it yourself.

Hilarious thread so far. If you want that HP then an early n54 will have a forged crank and forged rods and hyperutectic pistons. I would add forged pistons and perhaps look at how the head is attached, gaskets, studs etc. In the US the tuning market is far more evolved than it is here and depending on the builder and the engine the HP advertised is possible. However getting 600 hp from a 3l engine will require massive amonts of boost and the engine will likely never be bullet proof. Factory supercars dont operate at this level and while I have no doubt it can be done its going to be a highly strung engine. You will of course need new turbos and loads of other parts and your driveline will become a weakpoint. That said get on a US forum find the guys who have done it and up the limit on your credit card.

I went onto the NZKW site and couldn't find any N54 specific parts, your probably better off sourcing a made to fit intercooler from one of the bigger US outfits. I would look at a decent intercooler and charge pipe first; at that level your all set for MHD stage 1+. At some stage you may wish to address the PCV with either an RB turbo valve and/or a catch can

The N54 is very tuneable.

I consult in the domestic freight market and as part of that we deconsolidate international freight shipments; I can tell you this, if its fragile then it needs to be packaged correctly. Int Air Freight will consolidate as they see fit "I want it airfreighted on its own not in combined freight" All freight is combined, that's how it works. Being prepared to pay is all well and good but that will end up as a negotiated rate on an air container which will likely cost you up many thousands of dollars. I suggest you get the person who has it now to make a strong box for it then start getting prices from established carriers DHL etc based on the weight and cubic of the packaged product. If 20 off years in freight has taught me anything it's that packaging is king.

I would say being a manual its a 20k car or close to it. The Kms are highish as many of the jap import 335is arrive here with 50 to 70 k on the clock. I would say that with the M3 suspesion upgrades and MHD tune your 335i is probably as quick as an m3, and the huge torque difference will be noticeable. It is not of course an M car and that for many is the important bit, but for push on driving on NZ roads I am not convinced you will be getting a noticeably better car, however if track days are your thing the M3 will likely have advantages. It wont overheat the oil and the brakes are better plus it has an lsd, but that will probably cost you an extra 20 to 30k.

Getting the old bushing out can be a bit of a chore but drill out the rubber surrounds first and then use a hack saw to cut the shell from the inside then you can just hahammer them out.