E36 325i power

[dirty36 0]

I'm just wondering what you guys have done to make more power in your m50 engines? I really want to go done the turbo road but finding a manifold seems close to impossible, so have you guys made any decent power upgrades while keeping it n/a?

[_ethrty-Andy_ 2132]

checking if the Vanos is still operating is the first step, and rebuilding if necessary.

from there, can open up the exhausut a bit, leave the intake side well alone apart from putting a fresh air filter into the STOCK airbox,

make sure the oxygen sensors are working correctly and within spec.

after all that, book it in to be remapped, note this will involve a drive to auckland, there just isnt anyone experienced with remapping BMWs in wellington.

hope this helps.

can also look into stroking it and/or cam swaps etc but gets into the big $$ at that point

[Allanw 1071]

Is it already manual?

[BM WORLD 1283]

m52b28 engine swap .

otherwise cams , headers , remap etc

manual ?

diff ratio swap?

smaller lighter 15" alloys

[Ahmedsinc 414]

For similar money as the M52 you can go to the M54B30. Does require a bit more time / $ / planning but the results are worth the effort. Just need an aftermarket ecu capable of supporting dual vanos & DISA and youre away laughing

[dirty36 0]

Yeah it is already manual. Can't you just put the m54 crank and pistons/cam in a 325?

[Olaf 3318]

the M54 as a package is also lighter than the M50.

[Ahmedsinc 414]

Yeah it is already manual. Can't you just put the m54 crank and pistons/cam in a 325?

B30 crank, need M52B28 rods & pistons to maintain a good compression ratio. B30 pistons drop the CR to high 8s, B25 pistons will go crashing into the valves. All three engines have different relative deck & wrist pin heights. B30 cam will fit the M50 head but you need to carry the tray & bearings & lifters across - the face of the cam also requires some machining to suit the M50 type vanos unit. You will still need either a full retune of the stock DME or an aftermarket solution - merely raising the pressure in the fuel rail still leads to lean running at anything above 70% throttle. Unfortunately there's no easy hack to get good power from the M50s, but plenty of options if you're not afraid of a little hard work and thinking

[wrs 120]

And if you've got lot's of spare cash you can do this:

http://bimmersport.co.nz/topic/53887-e36-325i-coupe-project/

Goes great - not in turbo teritory but ok for NA...

Looks like a stock 325i under the hood but goes almost like a M3 - nice.

[dirty36 0]

B30 crank, need M52B28 rods & pistons to maintain a good compression ratio. B30 pistons drop the CR to high 8s, B25 pistons will go crashing into the valves. All three engines have different relative deck & wrist pin heights. B30 cam will fit the M50 head but you need to carry the tray & bearings & lifters across - the face of the cam also requires some machining to suit the M50 type vanos unit. You will still need either a full retune of the stock DME or an aftermarket solution - merely raising the pressure in the fuel rail still leads to lean running at anything above 70% throttle. Unfortunately there's no easy hack to get good power from the M50s, but plenty of options if you're not afraid of a little hard work and thinking

[dirty36 0]

B30 crank and camshaft with B28 pistons and rods with a tune should be an interesting upgrade. Would the power be around 220-230whp?

[Ahmedsinc 414]

B30 crank and camshaft with B28 pistons and rods with a tune should be an interesting upgrade. Would the power be around 220-230whp?

Yup, can be done. Remapping / aftermarket ecu really is essential, the stock MAF & fuel maps run horribly lean at WoT. One of the race series guys here did this with his M52, another adapted an M54, another chap in HB did the M50 stroker thang, I'm sure if you asked nicely enough they'd give you a breakdown of parts & costs. Can go for Schricks and push the output higher but the curve sits too far right for my liking as a streeter. Having said that, the M50 is a stout little engine, turbocharging does give some pretty good results, especially if you can DIY things like ECU, manifolds & exhaust. An Eaton M90 would go quite well too, the SC14 kits being sold on trademe are pretty sketchy, however. Or you could go all out and ram an LS into it. Or an M72B54.

Really it comes down to what sort of figures / curves you're wanting vs how many moneys are in your wallet.