[timstar]

Howdy all,

So I am looking for some advice from the e90 brains trust.
I have a 2005, 325i with 150,000kms on the clock. I've done a few minor mods to it like M3 front seats, M Sport wheels, carplay, wireless charger where ashtray was... nothing crazy.

For the last week I've been looking into buying an N52B30 engine and doing a transplant into mine to try and get that 190kw sweetness from a 330i.
Then this morning I decided, bugger it, I should just buy a 335i and be done with it. But then I got a call back from one of the BMW experts in my area who I had contacted about getting the DME/CAS sorted out after the engine swap. The chap was very knowledgeable and shared some good insights but also said he could put a 3.0 N52N, gearbox and DME in, married up to my CAS so I wouldn't have to change keys and have mismatched VINs.. and apply an X5 tune to the DME to take it up to 210kw... drive in, drive out.

So now I am trying to decide.. do I spend $10k on engine swap and get 210kw in my 325i (non m-sport), motor would have 72,000km on it.
Hopefully sell my engine and gearbox for $3k so $7k out of pocket.

OR

Buy a 225kw 335i with 90-110km on it for $15-17k, sell my 325i for 7-9k... 6-8k out of pocket.

If anyone has some wisdom or other things I should be keeping in mind I'd greatly appreciate it.

Thanks in advance!
Tim.

[mapleleaf1773]

You never know what problems could arise from swapping in another engine, transmission and dme into your 325. Always hidden items and headaches.

IMO, sell the 325 buy another vehicle that you would like to have.

[fgpalmer71]

335i makes more sense unles your attached to your 325i more then your money.

[IllSic_Design]

why pay more to have a less powerful motor. Buy a 335i

[timstar]

Thanks heaps for the input, I think you're all on the right track.

The other thing that occurred to me is if I drop all this money to put a 210kw motor into my 325i, when it comes time to sell down the track... it's just gonna make it a pain to explain why it should be worth more than a stock one, why the engine number has changed etc etc...

I think 335i is the way to go.

Any thoughts on reliability issues with the N54?

[IllSic_Design]

Originally Posted by timstar

Any thoughts on reliability issues with the N54?

Common N54 issues; HPFP($450), injectors($1600+), turbos($1500), coils, plugs, motor mounts.

The N54 engine is reliable(I'm at 228k miles with 450+ hp), but it's just parts around it that aren't so much.

[jzx_andy]

For the purposes of this post, I've assumed you've already done all the usual maintenance on your existing N52.

I would suggest you go out and drive a 335i and see if you like the turbo power delivery (particularly a tuned one, as they have a very peaky midrange). Since you like to mod cars, I think you'll end up closer to $15k out of pocket on a 335i once you're done with purchase cost, some maintenance items and the usual bolt on mods that most end up doing to 335i's.

~$7k is a lot of money to end up with a B30 swapped 325i that's a touch quicker than a 330i in a straight line, but lacking the larger brakes that a 330i and 335i come with straight out of the box. Ideally, you'd also want to factor in some extra cash on the usual N52 maintenance items, before you throw a B30 in your car (gaskets, water pump etc).

I'd honestly look into supercharging the B25 if you have $7-$10k to burn on an N52 powered car and don't really want to change cars. From what I know, the autos can handle it. If you have a manual you'd probably want to factor in a clutch upgrade. At least going down this path will result in a build that sounds sick and is somewhat unique, while getting the sort of power bump you're after. Just be prepared to put up with clowns asking you "why didn't you just buy a 335i?"

[IllSic_Design]

Yeah I mean if there's nothing wrong with your car/engine then I would probably rather just supercharge the N52, unless you have plenty of play money for the 335i.

[timstar]

Originally Posted by IllSic_Design

Yeah I mean if there's nothing wrong with your car/engine then I would probably rather just supercharge the N52, unless you have plenty of play money for the 335i.

I did think about supercharging the N52 for a while but lost motivation when thinking about getting it engineered, brake upgrades, etc etc...
My thinking with the B30 swap was that since the motor came from 125i, which I believe has the same brakes as 325i, then I could try to avoid engineering.
However, as rightfully pointed out above, it would be irresponsible to put 210kw into a car that isn't equipped with the proper brakes.

I wouldn't say I have alot of play money for a 335i, but I do have plenty of experience working on cars and can do most maintenance myself so will only have to shell out for parts. Also, at this stage I'm not planning on modding it, but that's exactly what I said when I went from e46 318i to the e90 325i so who knows

I found one thats got 100k kms on it, has had the water pump done already and full service history.. assuming everything else looks in tact, what should be the immediate work on it?
Oil change/filter
Coolant flush
Oil filter housing gasket
Vanos solonoid clean?

[IllSic_Design]

Originally Posted by timstar

I did think about supercharging the N52 for a while but lost motivation when thinking about getting it engineered, brake upgrades, etc etc...
My thinking with the B30 swap was that since the motor came from 125i, which I believe has the same brakes as 325i, then I could try to avoid engineering.
However, as rightfully pointed out above, it would be irresponsible to put 210kw into a car that isn't equipped with the proper brakes.

I wouldn't say I have alot of play money for a 335i, but I do have plenty of experience working on cars and can do most maintenance myself so will only have to shell out for parts. Also, at this stage I'm not planning on modding it, but that's exactly what I said when I went from e46 318i to the e90 325i so who knows

I found one thats got 100k kms on it, has had the water pump done already and full service history.. assuming everything else looks in tact, what should be the immediate work on it?
Oil change/filter
Coolant flush
Oil filter housing gasket
Vanos solonoid clean?

Oh you are in Aus? They have all those tests/cert that you have to pass when modifying something right? Yeah that's a pain, I'd just buy a car with a more powerful engine then if that's what you want, then it will already have the upgraded brakes, etc.

On the 335i just normal maintenance really and wait for something to take a crap on you. Def an oil/filter change, always do that when I get a used car. I would also probably make sure to change out the mickey mouse coolant hose flange on the head under/beside the oil filter housing and also that hose on top of the radiator. Then I'd just worry about any leaking gaskets such as OFHG, valve cover, oil pan. Maybe new plugs and/or coils might be needed at that mileage if not done before.

[Socket]

Originally Posted by IllSic_Design

Oh you are in Aus? They have all those tests/cert that you have to pass when modifying something right? Yeah that's a pain, I'd just buy a car with a more powerful engine then if that's what you want, then it will already have the upgraded brakes, etc.

On the 335i just normal maintenance really and wait for something to take a crap on you. Def an oil/filter change, always do that when I get a used car. I would also probably make sure to change out the mickey mouse coolant hose flange on the head under/beside the oil filter housing and also that hose on top of the radiator. Then I'd just worry about any leaking gaskets such as OFHG, valve cover, oil pan. Maybe new plugs and/or coils might be needed at that mileage if not done before.

Agree with the comments above. Engine swaps commonly have post op issues that you wont have with just buying a 335i. They are great cars if you keep up the maintenance on them... +1 buying the 335i

[ADEe92]

Yep - having done a few swaps on early BMWs, I'd never bother with one that you can just buy from factory.

That said, I'm about to start a full restoration on an early e30 coupe that is just a rolling shell at the moment so maybe I'm a glutton for punishment - going to pull the M30 from my sedan and revert it back to stock to sell then transplant the whole driveline into the coupe following a full respray and interior retrim

Aiming for a 333i tribute.

[Socket]

Originally Posted by ADEe92

Yep - having done a few swaps on early BMWs, I'd never bother with one that you can just buy from factory.

That said, I'm about to start a full restoration on an early e30 coupe that is just a rolling shell at the moment so maybe I'm a glutton for punishment - going to pull the M30 from my sedan and revert it back to stock to sell then transplant the whole driveline into the coupe following a full respray and interior retrim

Aiming for a 333i tribute.

Oh sounds like you are pretty good on the tools. If that's the case then go for it Got any pics of your current projects??

[ADEe92]

I'll post some pics in my 320d thread when I pick up the car. It's at my Dad's place at the moment as I'm a bit pressed for shed space. The coupe is Sahara Beige (an old 2002 colour) so I'm thinking of going for a colour change.

My current e30 sedan is cirrusblau, which I've always liked so I am thinking of getting the coupe painted the same colour. On the sedan I redid the whole driveline, suspension and brakes on it. Went from a 2.0L auto to an 3.5L manual. It's a sleeper so it looks stock asides from the ride height & obviously the exhaust note



There was a Sahara Beige e30 with fresh paint on stance works that I didn't mind for the grandpa factor (photo below), so the other option would be to just respray it the stock colour, add coco mats and maybe a saddle brown interior for the ultimate sleeper.



(apologies to the OP for the thread hijack)

[Socket]

Beautiful