When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Hey Guys, I'm new to this forum and hoping to not only help others interested in doing this swap but also get a little help understanding this engine and its wiring and performance possibilities.
As it turns out, posting pics on this forum isn't as hard as I first thought so this thread will hopefully become a whole lot more interesting than just a bunch of words on a screen.
What I'm working with is my own 2003 BMW X5 4.6is. I spun a bearing and decided it was time to upgrade the motor as appose to rebuild so i bought a 2007 Chevy Express Van 3500 and pulled the motor and transmission. Since the Gen 4 6.0L is a narrower V8 than the 4.6L that came out of the X5, it actually fits better. The 4L80 transmission is 9" shorter than the factory ZF transmission which also makes fitting into the transmission tunnel better. We're using the factory BMW radiator, and electric fan, transmission cooler, coolant reservoir, and power steering reservoir so the front end will fit without issue with plenty of room for the mechanical fan if we need it.
I had to upgrade my intake from the truck intake to an LS3 intake from a 2010 Camaro so that my cabin filter box would clear but that was minor. After lowering the throttle body, one of the pulleys was interfering with the intake piping so we fab'd up a 5/8" steel plate with washers and relocated the pulley to underneath the alternator. ICT Billet has the same bracket for cheap but we had plate so we just cut it out and made it fit.
The factory exhaust manifold wasn't going to clear the passenger side firewall so I picked up a set of Hooker short tube headers which will work well.
For now it will be rear wheel drive till we figure out how to make it all wheel drive.
Pics will definitely help and possibly bring out more questions but for now, we're working through the wiring. My buddy shortened all of the wires coming from the engine to the fuse boxes and ECUs so we now have them tucked into the compartment just ahead of the front windshield on the passenger side but what we're trying to work through currently is the Body Control Module. IF anyone has a link to or a picture of the wiring diagram for the BCM, that would be SUPER helpful in determining what wires we need to keep and what wires aren't essential.
Also, we're wanting to convert the hydro boost to standard power steering only so if anyone has some helpful knowledge on how we can make that happen, that would be greatly appreciated.
Any other constructive criticism is always welcome. Thanks
We used the factory transmission mount modified slightly to bolt up to the new transmission and the motor mounts we fab'd up from DOM pipe.
We hooked the factory steering column, gas peddle, fuel pump, gauge cluster etc. to power and aren't showing any codes which is good but we want to have everything working properly before rerouting everything inside the vehicle.
Hey Guys, I'm new to this forum and hoping to not only help others interested in doing this swap but also get a little help understanding this engine and its wiring and performance possibilities.
As it turns out, posting pics on this forum isn't as hard as I first thought so this thread will hopefully become a whole lot more interesting than just a bunch of words on a screen.
What I'm working with is my own 2003 BMW X5 4.6is. I spun a bearing and decided it was time to upgrade the motor as appose to rebuild so i bought a 2007 Chevy Express Van 3500 and pulled the motor and transmission. Since the Gen 4 6.0L is a narrower V8 than the 4.6L that came out of the X5, it actually fits better. The 4L80 transmission is 9" shorter than the factory ZF transmission which also makes fitting into the transmission tunnel better. We're using the factory BMW radiator, and electric fan, transmission cooler, coolant reservoir, and power steering reservoir so the front end will fit without issue with plenty of room for the mechanical fan if we need it.
I had to upgrade my intake from the truck intake to an LS3 intake from a 2010 Camaro so that my cabin filter box would clear but that was minor. After lowering the throttle body, one of the pulleys was interfering with the intake piping so we fab'd up a 5/8" steel plate with washers and relocated the pulley to underneath the alternator. ICT Billet has the same bracket for cheap but we had plate so we just cut it out and made it fit.
The factory exhaust manifold wasn't going to clear the passenger side firewall so I picked up a set of Hooker short tube headers which will work well.
For now it will be rear wheel drive till we figure out how to make it all wheel drive.
Pics will definitely help and possibly bring out more questions but for now, we're working through the wiring. My buddy shortened all of the wires coming from the engine to the fuse boxes and ECUs so we now have them tucked into the compartment just ahead of the front windshield on the passenger side but what we're trying to work through currently is the Body Control Module. IF anyone has a link to or a picture of the wiring diagram for the BCM, that would be SUPER helpful in determining what wires we need to keep and what wires aren't essential.
Also, we're wanting to convert the hydro boost to standard power steering only so if anyone has some helpful knowledge on how we can make that happen, that would be greatly appreciated.
Any other constructive criticism is always welcome. Thanks
We used the factory transmission mount modified slightly to bolt up to the new transmission and the motor mounts we fab'd up from DOM pipe.
We hooked the factory steering column, gas peddle, fuel pump, gauge cluster etc. to power and aren't showing any codes which is good but we want to have everything working properly before rerouting everything inside the vehicle.
Hello man this is a dope idea .... I have been collecting ls swap parts for about a year and have been looking at a platform that is different.... Did you finish the swap ?
06-07-2020, 10:31 AM
Gen 4 LY6 swap into E53 BMW X5 - 
