BMW E30 M52B28 Build

[llewelynlambert7]

Hey Guys,

I have been on the forum for a few years now, reading threads and learning from many of the members here. Over the past 3 months I have been busy on a project of my own and decided to do a write up of everything I have done. The project for discussion is my 1988 BMW e30 318i which I’ve converted to 328i with a M52B28 engine from my E36. I will be doing this over a number of post due to the restriction to the number of pictures I can attach.

Some background, I removed the multivalve engine from my e36 after dropping a valve. This was the motor I planned to rebuild and install in an e30 body, which I needed to find.

1. Building the Engine

Before disassembly:
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Once the head was removed I found the following damage:

One valve dropped in Cylinder #5:
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Valve damaged cylinder head and tore a hole through the piston, as well as caused slight damage to the cylinder wall.
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Then sent the head, block and crank to Engineering for checking and repairs, fortunately the head could be repaired.

Received the parts back from Engineering. The block was rebored 20 thou to 84.5mm and cylinders honed.
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While I had the opportunity, I thought I would increase my compression slightly to get a bit more power. Since I had to buy new pistons anyway, I did some research and decided to purchase M50B25tu pistons instead of M52B28 pistons to increase my compression. Standard M52B28 pistons have a Piston compression height of 31.82mm. M50B25tu pistons have a piston compression height of 32.55mm. From the table below the specs of the pistons can be seen, the piston shape can also be seen which shows similar/same location of valve pockets.

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After deciding which piston to use I performed a compression ratio calculation to determine what the approximate compression ratio would be:

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Giving an approximate compression ratio of 11.1. Safe enough for standard 95 fuel.

Back to the build, I then installed the main bearings, coating them in assembly lube, fitted crank and checked the bearing clearances using Plastigauge. I also put together a QCP (Quality Control Plan) listing all the tolerances which need to be checked as well as my actuals for the build.



Once the crank bearings were final torqued I checked the axial run out of the crank using a dial gauge as seen below:

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Before fitting the pistons, I checked the piston ring gap on all the rings using a feeler gauge which were in spec. Thereafter I installed the rings on pistons, lubed pistons and cylinders with oil, installed pistons, also checked big end bearing clearances and torqued bolts as per QCP. Installed pistons seen below:

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I then tack welded the nut on the oil pump due to the common issue of the nut coming loose over time.

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I then installed timing chain, timing cover and m50 525i sump. I replaced all gaskets and seals throughout the build.

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The cylinder head before installation:

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The head installed and torqued using new head bolts.

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Completed valve train, new valve stem seals were installed at engineering. Also started installing accessories.

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[Nikhil]

Nice bud that's awesome! M5X engines are like Lego so many interchangeable oem upgrades.

 

[llewelynlambert7]

Nice bud that's awesome! M5X engines are like Lego so many interchangeable oem upgrades.

Thanks Nikhil, That's very true, enjoyed building it.

 

[NBN]

Nice work!

 

[llewelynlambert7]

I also rebuilt the Vanos with new seals and installed.

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Engine built and newly painted valve cover installed:

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Below is a picture of the QCP (Quality Control Plan) I made and followed for the build. From the ring gap actual measurements, my measurements are slightly above the allowable tolerance. However, the Hastings manual allows for between 0.25mm and 0.5mm for the compression rings, so I would say the measured ring gap for the compression rings are acceptable.

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My next challenge was to find a shell to put the engine into, I wanted something clean, without rust with minimal body work required as I do not do any panel beating myself, very hard to find. So I decided to change my approach, rather consider something that is running, which is neat, strip and sell the parts I don’t need to get some money back. This approach probably works out to the same cost as building from scratch if not cheaper. So the hunt began, after viewing many e30’s, I found the following for the project:

A 1988 BMW 318i manual, in good condition, and no visible rust, the car wasn’t running when I bought it, previous owner said it had a coil issue, but upon viewing I could hear a problem with the starter Bendix.



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The first thing that was required was to get the engine started to ensure I am confident in selling a running motor. A new starter and fuel pump later and she was running. Next was to remove m40B18 engine, gearbox, wiring and ECU, and sell it as I would no longer require it:

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Upon removing the engine, battery and cleaning the engine bay, I found some bad news, rust. Fortunately, it was only at the battery tray and did not spread much further.

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At this stage I knew the best thing to do was put the conversion on hold and get the rusted battery tray replaced and engine bay re-sprayed whilst the engine was out. After discussing with the panelbeater, we agreed it would be nice to do something different and do a semi-shaved engine bay. The pics below are from the panelbeater during his progress:

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Since the crossmember looked a bit out of place, while the vehicle was at the panelbeater, he got it sandblasted and resprayed it like new. I purchased new control arms, as well as new suspension bushes before re-fitting.

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Nice work!

Thanks NBN :ty:

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Once the engine bay was done I could continue with the build, I then moved onto the brake booster. My intent was to use original e36 engine mount arms and e34 535i rubber engine mounts. With this arrangement the intake manifold would clash with the brake booster therefore a smaller brake booster is required. Most people opt for the Golf 1 brake booster, but I wanted to keep everything BMW and improve where possible, so I opted to utilize an e90 brake booster. The e90 brake booster is a direct bolt on. Only the Hydraulic brake lines need modification to connect as they have different size connections.

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The next thing to do whilst the engine was out was the steering rack. The original steering rack in the car was a non-power steering rack and I wanted power steering. Instead of finding e30 power steering rack, I opted to find and install an e46 power steering rack as an upgrade. I installed this as a direct bolt on with new e46 inner tie-rods and e36 outer tie-rods. You also require spacers (or washers) between the top of the rack and the top subframe tab. I got custom 14mm thick spacers made and installed the E46 Steering Rack. I also had to modify the steering column linkage, I did this by measuring and cutting both E30 and E46 columns and welding them together as the attachment spines are different. Picture of the final column linkage can be seen below:



Before installing the engine I decided to install a new clutch kit and slave cylinder as well:

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When installing the engine I had fitted the standard exhaust manifolds, however I ran into a problem:

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The outlet clashes with the steering column, and would not be easy to modify so I decided I will get custom branches built together with the Stainless Steel Free flow Exhaust System. I then removed the manifolds, installed the engine on the new 535i mounts and new e30 gearbox mounts.

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I then decided to start with the wiring:

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I had opted to retain the original ECU, however I knew I would run into EWS issues so instead of changing the complete lockset I ordered a chipped ECU online with EWS delete, as well as a tune for my setup, I installed the ECU in the stock E30 ECU location. I also retained the diagnostic connector for diagnostics later on if required.

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Below is a picture of the engine bay wiring complete:

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I decided to then take the car for exhaust as I did not want to do a first start without an exhaust manifold, especially after the engine rebuild, as I would not be able to hear if there are any irregularities with the engine. So, loaded the car on the trailer, and off we went. Below is a pic of the completed branches:

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I then topped up all fluids, started the car, made sure everything was running smooth, and bled the cooling system, listening for any irregularities. All was fine, however exhaust branch had a leak, so had to take the car back to the exhaust shop. Once I brought the car back home, I decided to complete the suspension part of the build. I had previously ordered a complete set of new rear suspension bushes and links online, and then stripped and replaced all bushes. I also replaced the 318i diff with a e30 325is Limited Slip diff, 3.64 ratio and sent the sideshafts in to replace the CV boots. I then re-installed everything and replaced the springs with new 35mm lowered springs as well as new shocks and shock mounts.

I then built a mount to mount the air filter:

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As you can see, the brake fluid reservoir clashes with the air intake boot, to resolve this I had ordered a reservoir from a BMW 2002 and new grommets to fit it. It is also a direct fit on the e90 master cylinder. I also ordered a new fuse box cover from BMW.

I also installed a Sound system consisting of a Pioneer Multimedia Bluetooth Head Unit, Alpine Spit system in front (installed the tweeters in the doors behind mirrors), rear Alpine Mids, Alpine subwoofer and PowerBass 4 channel amp.

At this stage the car is running well, there is a slight leak in the existing radiator which I will replace. My initial plan was to do a photo shoot of the car as a summary of the build, however due to the Lock Down this is delayed. Once I am able to do the photo shoot I will update this thread. Hope you found this thread interesting.

 

[raks16]

Nice build. Like how you kept to bmw parts.

 

[individj]

mmmm thanks for this...very calming and satisfying ...good work.

 

[TurboLlew]

Epic build and an epic read!!

 

[Nikhil]

Wow nice details bud. Love builds like this

 

[gavsadler]

Great build and thanks for the detailed write up and pics of everything. Lookin great so far. You’ve got skills.

Keep up the good work. Subscribed.

 

[UpNcOmiNg!]

What an absolutely epic build and read!
You are a talent Sir! Well damn done, that is such a clean swap, that is goals!

Look forward to more content and thanks for posting! Be sure to post a video or two when you have a chance, well a link to vids of your car at least.

 

[Mamboza]

Awesome work. Can't wait for pics after lockdown..Now I want to go get my e28 from storage.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

 

[v1p3r]

I enjoyed reading this. Great build. Good luck with the rest of it. Looking forward to more pics

 

[Nürburgring'R_ZA]

Can we swap our car lives for a minute? Wow. This is excellent. Total inspiration.

 

[Shaheenem]

Awesome buddy!

Great write up. Really enjoyed it.

 

[Benji]

This is awesome, subscribed

 

[zabbo]

Very nice work here!!

 

[Gordvisr]

great looking car, good choice in replacement engine, good work so far.

 

[yashsb]

Awesome Build. Well done!

 

[llewelynlambert7]

Thanks so much to everyone for all the positive messages. Much appreciated.

Will definitely upload more pics after the photo shoot, and will also take a video as requested.

Thanks guys