Nigels E21 M50 (now S50B30) project

tommi_e21 · Post by **tommi_e21** » Sat Nov 07, 2009 5:51 pm

that enigne is upside down, wont fit like that

340i · Post by **340i** » Mon Nov 09, 2009 2:08 am

damn, thats a sweet esky! im very jelous if you paid $100 for that seat too.

i think you need to do two seperate build threads, so this one doesnt get too dominated by the ford..

Silver Surfer · Post by **Silver Surfer** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 1:37 am

Dude, I love your car! Great wheels too!

nige21 · Post by **nige21** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 1:22 pm

austin25uk wrote:that enigne is upside down, wont fit like that

I thought that was a funny looking rocker cover

thanks for the comments guys, 340i i was very lucky to grab a lot of those parts when Jason Brights V8supercar team closed down last year. Full rear cromoly watts link with adjustable roll centre for 80bucks, alloy seat mounts $5ea, 2.25 coilover springs $40 etc... I left with a very light wallet!

M50 has been progressing, found a non vanos e34 engine with 63.000km! Picked that up yesterday with loom, 328 tubular exh manifolds, alternator etc. Engine should be going in (and out) tomorrow to mark the sump and then start cutting it up for clearance!

tommi_e21 · Post by **tommi_e21** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 1:26 pm

i keep hunting round for a non vanos 2.5 engine but can seem to find one anywhere! driving me nuts! not that i can really afford one at the momment with getting it ready for an MOT

nige21 · Post by **nige21** » Sat Nov 14, 2009 2:45 pm

Got some more done on this. Engine is in, im quite happy with clearances to the booster etc. I used new e30 m20 rubber mounts which were at least 10mm taller than my 27yr old ones.

battery tray out

Old e21 m20 rubber mount, and new e30 m20 rubber

The sump clears the steering rack by about 15mm even with the cover and damper in place. Might trim some more clearance just in case.

The sump is now marked up, will pull the engine out tomorrow and start work on the exh manifold and check to see if the oil pickup pipe can be shortened at all.

tommi_e21 · Post by **tommi_e21** » Sat Nov 14, 2009 3:36 pm

jesus christ that sump is low!

out of interest what are the down points of actually making the sump a lot smaller by cutting a section of the bottom

less oil so overheats? (requires better cooling i guess)
less oil pressure? (wouldnt think so because pump is same?)

what your thoughts? there must be a reason for making sumps so big

--ALPINA-- · Post by **--ALPINA--** » Sat Nov 14, 2009 4:44 pm

shit that sump is low isnt it? ground scraper.

J

nige21 · Post by **nige21** » Sat Nov 28, 2009 7:19 am

--ALPINA-- wrote:shit that sump is low isnt it? ground scraper.

Thats not even a joke, when i pushed it down the slope out of the garage, the sump was dragging along the ground, yikes!

I started on the two more challenging jobs. Routing the exh manifold turned out to be easier than expected, just ran it as close to the block as i could. The sump however is a little more tricky, i cant weld aluminium so had to send this off to be done. Should have it back in a few days. Going to add a wing on one side, right next to the pickup. Leaving some of the wall there with slots and holes machined into it to act as a baffle also.

Pickup is die cast ally so cant really be welded, most likely going to sleeve it and braze. Should have the sump back in a few days.

nige21 · Post by **nige21** » Sat Nov 28, 2009 7:35 am

austin25uk wrote:jesus christ that sump is low!

out of interest what are the down points of actually making the sump a lot smaller by cutting a section of the bottom

less oil so overheats? (requires better cooling i guess)
less oil pressure? (wouldnt think so because pump is same?)

what your thoughts? there must be a reason for making sumps so big

Pickup needs to be fully submerged at all times. Oil pressure is not related to capacity, however if you are pulling high rpm through a long left hander, and the pickup is dry you would essentially have zero oil pressure and would kill the motor!

My local circuit (Sandown) is anti clockwise, so lots of lefts! The new sump with wings on both sides, should have similar capacity to standard m50, and more than any m20. Also the wing on the RHS has a baffle too so hopefully it will be up for some track duty, if im brave enough.

tommi_e21 · Post by **tommi_e21** » Sat Nov 28, 2009 12:03 pm

work looks fantastic so far! keep up the great pics

E21meister · Post by **E21meister** » Sat Nov 28, 2009 12:29 pm

mk1300 wrote:

Detailing the engine bay while the engine's out? What a tart. Welcome to the the Engine Bay Tart Club!

MRE21 · Post by **MRE21** » Sat Nov 28, 2009 12:35 pm

Good pics and nice work! My engine bay could do with a bit of a tart up!

340i · Post by **340i** » Sun Nov 29, 2009 12:19 am

haha thatd make me a tart then too, ive got no wires, hoses, lines and brackets left in my engine bay

liking this build thead and how the car is progressing; keep up the good work!

bmw pat · Post by **bmw pat** » Sun Dec 06, 2009 8:14 pm

Good day.

I am doing the same engine conversion on my e21, only it is a m52 engine. From your pictures it seems like you are using the m20 engine mounts (the alu brackets). I tried this too, but it resulted in several problems. The sump is way too low (as you found out) The intake boot (where the air mass meter hook up) will hit the shock tower, and the engine sits at a wrong angle in the engine compartment.

The engine should be more "tilted" over to right side of the car. That means that the left engine mount should be higher and the right engine mount should be lower. The engine will then sit at the right angle. I am making custom engine mounts for my engine now, and I do not need to cut anything off my sump. My sump is at the same height as it was with my m20 engine.

Hope you understand my english