E36 Advice and help needed

[JBimmer 0]

Car : M325i Automatic E36 Coupe. (1994)

Full mtech kit/interior, Mtech suspension with H&R lowering springs, M3 Rep mags.

Car was assembled in Japan, so has the JATCO automatic transmission.

Symptoms before the engine blew; Slight grinding noise when idling, then a loud crunch/chainsaw noise and the engine seized in my driveway after a week of no use)

Basically I'm posting this for some advice and where to go from here.

Last year my M50b25 decided it was time to give up, and seized, I'm not too sure what caused it but when I pulled the head off the cams had grind marks on them, oil was clean but the viscous fan has also bent foward into the radiator (shearing off a couple of blades and the fan shroud, no visible damage where it hit the radiator apart from the shroud).

The engine is basically shot, and I'm in need of another M50b25 but I'm not sure where to start looking for one that hasnt done a ton of K's and been thrashed to death. Also if its even viable to just swap another motor in, whilst this is being done I'd like the Aircon removed also (its broken and I never use it anyway, used to own a 300zx so used to things never working).

Also another issue with the car before the engine blew up is that the front camber is 1degree off, making it pull to the left when braking hard, went for an alignment and with/without the lowering springs it has the same problem, the alignment guy said it couldn't be fixed but wasnt sure what was causing it.

The car has done 183,000k's, and I'm quite keen to fix it, but as I come from a Nissan/jap car background I have no idea:

A) who the "best value" workshop would be

where to source a reliable motor from (I dont want to blow up another)

and C) Is the car worth fixing, idealy I want to add coil overs to it when this work is being done and then get a cert on top of that, as I love how it currently handles but it could still be a bit stiffer..

Some advice on what to do would be really appreciated, I had a mechanic who used to work on my old E32 735i (which I loved) but he wont touch a vanos motor. Any ball park figures on price for what I want also would be a major help as I've been saving for a month and got recently promoted at my work!

I'm not fussed on resale value also, as I really like this car, its in the color I want (black) and I'm not sure I want to buy into another E36 except as a potential donor car.

[JBimmer 0]

Also I would be happy to post pictures of the car/engine if anyone needs them when I get home from work.

[*Glenn* 854]

Age & Mileage = uneconomical to repair unless you can do it all your self. It also has the Jatco which would also give you problems for the very same reasons. 18 year old car with high mileage....your call though... I'd cut my loses and move on

[JBimmer 0]

Age & Mileage = uneconomical to repair unless you can do it all your self. It also has the Jatco which would also give you problems for the very same reasons. 18 year old car with high mileage....your call though... I'd cut my loses and move on

Thanks heaps for the fast reply Glenn, I've seen you on here alot and really respect your opinion, I have access to an engine hoist etc but no way near confident enough to swap a motor over or even be sure of what to look for when buying one.

Basically should I just sell it and start looking for another? What kind of price should I list it for, they're usually 5k working so I guess 1500 would be pretty reasonable considering its got new tyres and springs etc.

Its a real shame, I always have terrible luck with cars, get them inspected before buying and something always goes wrong a month later hahaha! Would you personally think the repairs/replacement motor would go over 3-3.5k? I know the motors are usually 1200ish in "good" condition.

Edited May 31, 2012 by JBimmer