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BMW M3 E36 LS1 swap

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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:36 PM
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Default BMW M3 E36 LS1 swap

Here is my swap in pictures

Picked up a 1998 BMW M3 114K Miles, clean car, zero issues.

Engine is a 2002 LS1 out of a Camaro with a matching T56.

Engine Mods:

TSP 200cc Terminator Heads 60cc Chambers
Patrick G 226/226 115LSA EPS Cam
Ford 36lb Injectors
New Ls7 Lifters, trays
LS2 Timing chain
Chromoly Pushrods 7.325

New Age Hotrods mount kit and headers.
ACT HDSS Clutch
New Slave, remote bleed line
Custom BRAAP clutch line
Walbro 255 Fuel Pump
Corvette FPR
MGW Shifter

Car before Surgery








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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:38 PM
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Engine Arrival, 40K miles on it.



Got some fittings for Fuel and Power Steering line, along with hoses.

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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:39 PM
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Ready to come out!



Finally!



All empty.




Had to fit all this crap back in the garage. No space lol!

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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:39 PM
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Got my heads back from the machine shop so I started working on the motor.

Took it all apart to prep for head and cam swap.




40K Miles and look how much carbon build up there is. I decided to clean it. What a pain in the ***.



One piston clean.



All pistons clean.

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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:40 PM
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Motor and Transmission Mounts.

New Age Hotrods pieces are NICE!



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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:41 PM
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Extended ABS lines. Wow what a time consuming stupid job. Not 100% happy with couple of them, might redo them later, but they should work for now. Just need to wrap them in a couple places to keep them from rubbing.

I ended up redoing them later.

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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:41 PM
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Finally got the motor installed. Still waiting for the headers and driveshaft, but at least I can get the rest of the stuff done. I am very happy with the new age hotrods mounting kit. Everything lines up great, good clearances all around.


New ACT clutch and new chromoly flywheel being installed.






Ready to go in!, yes the motor mount bracket is in the wrong position! It was fixed before proceeding




New Age Hotrods motor mounts.


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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:42 PM
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Got headers finally They look pretty nice! Should have them on the car this weekend.



Driveshaft arrived today

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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:42 PM
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Had to redo fuel routing since the new age hotrods headers are in the way for factory fuel filter location, had to move it to the tunnel. Ended up welding on AN fittings to factory fuel lines and using AN adapters. Came out not bad. Not my favorite location, but it will do.

Got the driveshaft installed as well.



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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:43 PM
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Got the engine out again, took the transmission apart. Doesn't look too bad, but i am no expert

You can tell where the leak is, right by the magnets.







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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:43 PM
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Finished wiring harness.



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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:44 PM
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First Engine Start

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmmDnRHqxjE
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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:44 PM
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Took it for it's maiden voyage. Too damn loud with open headers. Brakes still soft, must have air in ABS module, will need to bleed again. Clutch feels good, car needs a tune bad. Overall not bad! Only issue, i have a small coolant leak around the overflow bottle somewhere. Should take it to the tuner later in the week and get an exhaust made as well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIXyCdvHOSs

Last edited by Kaane; Oct 7, 2011 at 03:57 PM.
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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:45 PM
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Fixed my brake lights, stupid switch popped out of the housing.

Got the MGW shifter installed. It fits perfect and can adjusted so it's offset forward or side to side. Puts the stick dead center in the original hole. Very happy with the quality of it and the spring mechanism.




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Old Oct 7, 2011 | 03:46 PM
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Finished the engine bay for the most part, still waiting on couple sensor plugs.

Here are some pics, tuesday car is going to get exhaust done and also new cold air intake, current intake setup is only for testing purposes. Also a pic of finished shifter. Just need a longer shift boot.









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Old Oct 8, 2011 | 08:48 AM
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Where did you source the ls and t56 from and how much did it run you? I'm looking to do a swap myself and am trying to get an idea of the current prices.
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Old Oct 8, 2011 | 09:23 AM
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That is a very clean install. You made it look like the LS came in it from the factory! How do those motor mounts feel from the inside of the car?
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Old Oct 8, 2011 | 11:43 AM
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Wow, a very impressive build!
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Old Oct 8, 2011 | 01:44 PM
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I paid $3900 for my engine + transmission. Found a junk yard on car-part.com
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Old Oct 8, 2011 | 01:46 PM
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I have not driven the car far yet, I have an appointment with my exhaust builder on tuesday, once I get it tuned and exhaust done, I'll let you know how the mounts feel.
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