Finished the 535i 5-spd swap . . .

[gale]

Well, almost finished. Still have some loose ends to complete but took it for a test drive last night. All is well. The 3.64 diff seems about right. Shifts are smooth. Not sure what shift lever we used but it looks very similar to the e36 M3 proportions & has the older style metal ball. I was able to snag a bunch of parts at the U-pull-it last summer.

We used a 15 lb 633 CSi single mass flywheel & rev's readily but comparing it to the 19 lb e28 single mass flywheel I used in my 7, I can see why the factory went to the dual mass. The drivetrain harmonics are obvious if I pull a sloppy shift.

The bulk of the major components went in easily & got most of that done over the 3 day MLK weekend. The pedal swap went fast but it took 3 evenings to sort out the clutch master cylinder that kept coming apart when bleeding by retracting the pedal too far. I had to do some custom machining to make it bullet proof & works fine now. DO NOT buy Febi master cylinders, get the FTE instead, much better quality.

http://www.bimmer.info/forum/showpost.php?p=287892&postcount=1

[AngryPopTart]

Are the rear ends in the manual cars different then in the automatic cars?

[gale]

Are the rear ends in the manual cars different then in the automatic cars?

All 535i 5-spd's came with a 3.46 diff.
Auto 535's had the 3.91 for 89-90
Auto 535's from 91-93 had a 4.27

All e32 735i manuals had a 3.64 (US)
I'm not sure what other models used the 3.64

Then there are differences with the input & axle flange sizes, which are interchangable. I had to swap the input flange on the 3.64 to the smaller one (thanks Rigmaster). Not sure why the donor driveshaft was the smaller size. It came from a factory orignal 535im, 3/90 build date.

Vines has alot more info on models vs. diff ratio:

http://www.vinesauto.com/techinfo.htm

I was going to put the 3.64 in my 7, it presently has a 3.91 which is a bit short for a stick. I have a 3.73 for it that I'll put in once I do the e23 turbo install.

[M20Turbo]

Hey Don...... good job! I'm sure your son thinks you are the best dad ever :)
Not many dads would spend that much quality time under a car with there son. Gerald was hinting around about the suspension was next on the list???

[gale]

Gerald was hinting around about the suspension was next on the list???

Yeah, I scored an M5 rear swaybar on ebay for cheap & it came yesterday. We'll have to order the front one. The car came with a box of brand new Lemforder control arms & tie rods in the trunk. He desparately needs tires & is saving his pennies for some 17" wheels. It will be a sweet ride when we get done with it. Then we'll have to see about sending him to driving school.

Thanks for all your help & encouragement. We enjoyed your visits to my "immaculately clean & organized" shop.

[E34N]

Congrats on the install.. and in 4 days at that.

I'm about to get into this soon.. once the weather permits. I'm certainly going to hit you up if I have any question. Lucky for me, the donor car I'm getting is same year/model.

[M20Turbo]

Then we'll have to see about sending him to driving school.

Thanks for all your help & encouragement. We enjoyed your visits to my "immaculately clean & organized" shop.

Driving school is always a good idea no matter what age you are :D Gerald drove my car, and he did very well shifting. We did how ever stay in the neighborhood.

As for your "immaculately clean & organized" shop? If YOU know where everything is, thats all that matters.......:) You should share some of those pic's you took, maybe the board will be inspired by your shop.

[AngryPopTart]

So are manuals desirable? We have one laying around at the shop cause I had to pull a 2.5 for my auto car. All the clutch stuff is still sitting in the parts car. Sellable?

[Dave M]

So are manuals desirable? We have one laying around at the shop cause I had to pull a 2.5 for my auto car. All the clutch stuff is still sitting in the parts car. Sellable?

Yes and Yes :)

[BigKriss]

By "shop", do you mean Don's garage? If so, post them up please :)


Driving school is always a good idea no matter what age you are :D Gerald drove my car, and he did very well shifting. We did how ever stay in the neighborhood.

As for your "immaculately clean & organized" shop? If YOU know where everything is, thats all that matters.......:) You should share some of those pic's you took, maybe the board will be inspired by your shop.

[Dirty6]

I have some questions about doing the same swap. I am looking to pick up a 1990 535I and I would like to know if the parts that I have will work. 265 5 speed transmission from a 1985 635 CSI Drive shaft from the same car. I know that the transmission will work but what about the drive shaft and what type of problems will I come accross. can someone please help me

[gale]

The 265 will work fine. You'll have to do some custom cutting & splicing to make the shift bracket work. Same thing with the driveshaft. You could do a Frankenstein and cut & splice the front of the 635i driveshaft to the front half 535i driveshaft. A local driveshaft shop should easily be able to handle that & balance it for you.

A friend of mine successfully put a 265 trans in his e32 735iL and it worked out just fine.

[E34N]

I will be doing this swap real soon. I actually have a 1990 535i donor car. (and mines the same year..) I'm assuming I can just swap everything over no problems, right? (yes I will be replacing certain things with new parts)

Anything in particular I should get that I'm not aware of (other than below)?

Transmission
shifter/linkage
driveshaft
clutch cylinders
pedal assembly
diff

EDIT: for example... the O2 sensor is different on a auto, right? I remember reading something about the crossmember too. Any electrical parts.. harnesses?

[gale]

... the O2 sensor is different on a auto, right? I remember reading something about the crossmember too. Any electrical parts.. harnesses?

O2 sensor is the same for all e34 big sixes. Get the manual trams crossmember. The donor pedal cluster should have a clutch cruise control cancel switch. Your auto will have the wires/connector for that, just follow the brakelight switch wires back up the harness and you'll find the white 2-prong connector taped up nearby. For peace of mind you could get the manual DME but it wasn't necessary for our 89 535i swap.

Get the manual catalytic converter support bracket. Get the manual shift console panel & boot.

You won't need any wire harness stuff. Simply remove the starter relay & put a jumper into the slots for contacts 30 & 87 (numbers are labeled on the bottom of the relay). Jumper pin 33 of the trans computer connector to ground to get rid of the "trans program" message (pin numbers are labeled on the TCU).

Either get the manual instrument cluster or simply remove the bulb from the gear position indicator in the dash, otherwise it will display just an "S" (the Ultimate Sport Mode!) instead of "ED" "S3" etc.

Don't forget to put a pilot bearing in the end of the crank & put a new plastic pivot ball on the throw-out fork. Maybe replace the crank rear main seal while you have the trans off.

That's about it. There aren't too many surprises. Use new clutch hydraulics. The factory metal line at the end of the master cyl. is a pain to get to. It's much easier just to buy an aftermarket VW metal brake line approx. 12 to 16" long & bend it into an "L" and fish it in thru the engine side of the firewall and connect it to the master before bolting the cyl. in place. If your auto doesn't have a spare nipple on the brake fluid reservoir, get the clutch reservoir from the donor.

[M20Turbo]

That's about it. There aren't too many surprises. Use new clutch hydraulics. The factory metal line at the end of the master cyl. is a pain to get to. It's much easier just to buy an aftermarket VW metal brake line approx. 12 to 16" long & bend it into an "L" and fish it in thru the engine side of the firewall and connect it to the master before bolting the cyl. in place. If your auto doesn't have a spare nipple on the brake fluid reservoir, get the clutch reservoir from the donor.

Many thanks for your help Don. This is a two person job, one in the car and the other under the car to fish and bend the the metal line into place. I could of never done this job without your guidance and extra pair of hands. With the help we were done in hour and a half, including bleeding the system, by myself I was at it for over 7 hours. Everyone should be so fortunate to have a Don near by...:)