bmwe21.net forums

Great working space!

I bought a sump fom a bmw x5 becouse I thought I would have much more room for the front axle.
I fitted it to the engine, putted the engine in the spot where i thought it should be.
I even cutted more sheat metal away under the windscreen, but the engine was still to low.


I looked for possibilities to modify the x5 sump, but that is allmost impossible becouse the oil pump needs big modification too.
So i went back to the 740i sump.

the pivot ball of the control arm is in the right positon in this picture.
but there is no room at all for the steering rack.
so i had to modify the 740i sump.

this is how much smaller it has become:

then i modified the steel cover of the sump.

Now there was enough space, so i started with the subframe. I cutted the bushes for the pivot balls out of the e36 subframe. then a lot of mesuring, and tacked them into the right place.


then I hang the steering rack in the right spot.


and made some brackets for the steering rack.

after that i strengthen it.



I am pretty proud of how it turned out.
It is lighter than a e36 subframe and i think it is a lot stonger.

Yeah man that looks great! i'm very impressed! if you have some measurements for the e36 arm ball joint locations on the subframe I would be very interested to see them. Keep up the fantastic work and keep posting updates please. Misky

the control arm ball joints are closer to the centre than they are on e36. (because e21 is much smaller)
i just holded the wheel in the centre of the wheel arch, and kept the rear of the control arms straight. Then i welded it in place. and copied it to the other side.
for the steering rack i did about the same, measured the distance to the control arm and the hight, and welded it into place.

do you need the measurements to make the same on your car?

Great work, Adje!!!

I would appreciate it if you could give me those measurements matey. I would like to know the distance between the joints and the distance from the ball joints to the anti roll bar attachment points on the chassis leg ( at the very front ) once again bro love the fabrication! could you show us a little more on how you mounted the rear lollipop bushes for the e36 arms?

Great progress and wonderfull ideas! The M60 is such a great motor, I would love to build a V8 E21 once

ok, i will take some measurements soon.
I havent fixed the lollypops yet. i'm waiting for the uniballs to arrive that i ordered.
of course i will post some pics when i'm finished!

from the ball joint to the most rear sway bar bolt is 365mm
distance between left and right ball joint is about 620mm

this evening i was able to mount the control arm, complete with hub and wheel.
i discovered i had the position a little wrong. the ball joint should have been more to the rear.
the rear of the control arm should be parallel with the chassis, but it is about 2cm to far to the center of the car.

at the moment i'm not sure what im going to do about it. or i'll leave it this way..

awesome thanks for the measurements!

any more updates buddy? you've gone a bit quiet recently? please dont keep us waiting

well, it has been on a slow pace recently.
i have been figuring out how to move on with the front suspension.
so i noticed that the ball joints for the control arms were to far to the rear, so i cutted my subframe and tacked it again.

then i tried to test fit it again with a e46 control arm.

This is for the rear of the control arm:



now i could see where tings were going to be approximately.
so i modified a set of e36 control arms, i also did this on my previous drift cars (e30 and e36) to gain more steering lock for more drift angle

i also welded the steering knuckles and took out ackerman.


But when i putted it under the car i seemed to get a lot less steering angle than i have on my e36, with exactly the same uprights. sorry, i didnt make pictures.
i still haven't figured out why there is so much difference with about the same setup.
in the mean time i tacked up a second set of uprights with even shorter knuckles and half of the standard ackerman. i still have to put it on the car and check how this works out.

very cool! what did you use to weld the knuckles? did you use a mig welder or stick welder? i do like the subframe you made, what are your sump to cross member clearances like?

I do allmost all my welding with mig. For some small parts or sheat metal i use tig.
In a few weeks i will be fitting the engine and start on te engine mounts.
Pics will follow of course