A question for the pro's on an m50 swap into an e39

[Boone.Msi]

Please excuse my noobish question, i have done minimal research but was wondering if it was possible to swap a m50 into an e39 for turbo purposes.

Say i was to build a 500-700hp beast, i heard this would be far too expensive and complicated on an m52 due to vanos.

What i am planning(crazy i know) is to find a low milage m50 (havent decided wether it be 2.5 or 2.8) and to slowly build it over the next 3-4 years, then when the right e39 comes along (salvaged or high miilage) i will then drop it in.

emission wise is not a concern right now. And if i were to do this build would dropping this engine be the same (cost and complication wise)or harder if i dropped it in an e46?

please dont flame me, im only considering this and i know my lack of knowlege on FI right now. This is not going to be a solo project and will involve a private shop and students at a tech school.

thanks for any insight or knowlege on this

[Denton]

For starters, the M50 is OBD-1, so good luck getting it to work in the E39.

People have turboed and supercharged M52/S52 engines with fine results. An M52 E36 owner under "Card Counter" on Bimmerforums has over 600 RWHP on his turbo.

No sense in trying to stick with an M50.

[bmwalfa]

just stick n/a and find a nice e39 m5, in the end its probally cheaper, and you'd see a higher return on it if you sell it

[Boone.Msi]

25,000+? i was thinking engine and parts wise 7k-14k. plus a big part in this is the purchase of parts over time. in no way can i afford 25k upfront, nor do i want to put down a loan for that much.

criticism is welcome, so give me all your thoughts:D

[winfred]

id build it with the single vanos m52 motor, if you absolutely don't want vanos (i have no idea why) get some non vanos cams and the chains/sprockets/guides that run between the two cams and the aluminum plate from the front of the head on a m50 and make the m52 non vanos, if that'd float your boat, all of that stuff will bolt right in and you get the 1/2" longer stroke of the m52 motor, but id keep the vanos, all it's comprised of is a solenoid and a piston hooked to the pressure side of the oil filter housing, once you reach a certain rpm the computer trips the solenoid and the oil pressure expands the piston which acts on a spiral cut gear and advances the intake cam, if you are going for major power you are probably going to run a stand alone computer system, many of them have rpm triggers which would get the job done

[Kalevera]

My understanding of it is that it is entirely illegal to stick an OBDI motor into an OBDII car.

I'm not sure what government agency would enforce it, or how.

[winfred]

"500-700" hp is in sort of a gray area also so whats your point :D


My understanding of it is that it is entirely illegal to stick an OBDI motor into an OBDII car.

I'm not sure what government agency would enforce it, or how.

[92E34]

My understanding of it is that it is entirely illegal to stick an OBDI motor into an OBDII car.

I'm not sure what government agency would enforce it, or how.


Its either EPA or MVD. Course it also matters on who does the emission testing. Or if your area does emission testing. Like where I live in Arizona. Outside of Phoenix, they don't do emission testing. So you can put a OBDI engine in an OBD2 Chassis.

They enforce it by confisgating the car and getting you with a 10000 dollar fine.

[Boone.Msi]

id build it with the single vanos m52 motor, if you absolutely don't want vanos (i have no idea why) get some non vanos cams and the chains/sprockets/guides that run between the two cams and the aluminum plate from the front of the head on a m50 and make the m52 non vanos, if that'd float your boat, all of that stuff will bolt right in and you get the 1/2" longer stroke of the m52 motor, but id keep the vanos, all it's comprised of is a solenoid and a piston hooked to the pressure side of the oil filter housing, once you reach a certain rpm the computer trips the solenoid and the oil pressure expands the piston which acts on a spiral cut gear and advances the intake cam, if you are going for major power you are probably going to run a stand alone computer system, many of them have rpm triggers which would get the job done

thanks for that winfred, really helpful


Its either EPA or MVD. Course it also matters on who does the emission testing. Or if your area does emission testing. Like where I live in Arizona. Outside of Phoenix, they don't do emission testing. So you can put a OBDI engine in an OBD2 Chassis.

They enforce it by confisgating the car and getting you with a 10000 dollar fine

So who enforces this, emission guys? if i did stay in geogia after this project is done (highly unlikely) the emssion guys down here only hook it up to a computer, they dont do visual checks and the average inspecter is 19.

There are devices out there that trick emission testers so without a visual it should check out right?

but really tho, unless the guy is knowledgable on bmw engines how would he know the difference from the m50/m52/m54 especially when it has custom manifolds?

[winfred]

here in loserana if you have a obdII vehicle they need to plug it in to give you a inspection sticker, if you have any check engine codes or they can't plug in you don't get a sticker, and thusly are not road legal (unless you run a dealer plate like i do and don't need anything but insurance and the paperwork for the plate :D )


thanks for that winfred, really helpful



So who enforces this, emission guys? if i did stay in geogia after this project is done (highly unlikely) the emssion guys down here only hook it up to a computer, they dont do visual checks and the average inspecter is 19.

There are devices out there that trick emission testers so without a visual it should check out right?

but really tho, unless the guy is knowledgable on bmw engines how would he know the difference from the m50/m52/m54 especially when it has custom manifolds?

[///M-Power 3\\\]

An obd1 swap isn't that hard, many people do it to their e36's, due to better tuneabilty and performance. I would imagine that since the electronics in the E39 are a bit more complex you might have a challenge but i think it's totally feasible. I would keep your M52 block thats in it and use the whole top end from a 93-95 3 series, manifold, harness, head, ecu and all... Slap it back together with a thick cometic gasket and ARP studs and coat that bitch with lots of copper spray. Get a cheap egay manifold from ss autochrome, run a j-pipe up with a t4 flange, find a nice big turbo, get a set of 42lb+ ford injectors and an FMU, and a nice big intercooler. Run straight 3" Pipe to the rear and you have a easy 500HP for a few grand. Oh and make sure to upgrade the fuel pump :0

[winfred]

the head is the same, just get a m50 plastic intake and install it with the obdII harness, that's a cheeper swap then over paying for the shrick intake and it flows almost the same, for real power go to a stand alone fuel system like a mega squirt or one of the pricey systems


I would keep your M52 block thats in it and use the whole top end from a 93-95 3 series, manifold, harness, head, ecu and all..

[Boone.Msi]

Ive been doin alot of research lately, more specifically the e46. Doing a turbo on the m54 or m52tu is way out of the question, very few people have done it so custom kits start at 10 grand.

Today i started looking into using the m52 since thats what the e39's use (up to 2001?) it would definantly be possible to get 500whp out of the m52, more expensive and complicated tuning wise than the m50.

I think im going to plan on going the e46 route and keep my 530 as a daily driver.

Right now im trying to find info on how the m52tu/mt54 is mounted to the chasis of the e46, how much diferent it is to the m52, and if there is any fab. work, how complex that will be.

As i keep searching il let everyone know what i find, i dont know about you guys but the more stuff i learn the more anxious i get:D

Im also putting together a parts list for the turbo, so later next week il let everyone know what parts im gonna be lookin at getting.