heinemann

I got curious so I did a little research. It looks like the kit you have a has a compact master cylinder with a vertical mounting flange bolt holes separation of 2.25" and a 1.12" stroke. From the pictures anyway.

Wilwood offers a tandem vertical flange mount master cylinder (same 2.25" bolt holes separation) with 1.10" stroke, which is a negligible difference. 

I agree the booster takes up a ridiculous amount of engine bay space. I'm wondering why the kit doesn't come with a tandem master cylinder to separate the front brakes from the rear brakes? Can the firewall mount be used with a flange mount tandem master cylinder from wilwood or any other manufacturer? 

Guess I'm trying to say, I wouldn't be comfortable running a single circuit master cylinder on any car - steet or race. Doesn't seem like it would be too difficult to run a tandem instead.

I have a specialist components typhoon 2 ecu for sale. I ran my s54 swapped 2002 with it before converting it back to drive-by-wire. Of course, it would have to be wired and mapped for the m20 engine. It's an option if you're interested. Looking forward to updates.

The powder coat on those bars is garbage anyway. You can literally scrape them with your fingernail, might as well paint them now. 

I'm digging the ITBs from your later post. What do you plan on using for engine management since you are eliminating the air meter? Alpha-n, or speed density? 

@02traditionI messaged you about the wiper arm. As for smokey burnouts. I'm currently waiting on a new computer from specialist components. Going to switch back to drive by wire and sell the drive by cable setup. Shouldn't be too much longer till I have it installed and tuned.

Hi David,

This build thread is the most comprehensive documentation of the project.

The biggest challenges are dealing with the length of the s54. I wanted it to sit farther back into the car rather than hanging out over the front crossmember. Most swap the m20 by taking out the front bulk head and rad support and hood support, which I was not willing to do. Thus is what will force you to rebuild the firewall and trans tunnel, which creates problems with the gas pedal clearance.  Selling the s54 and getting an s62 might be a better option. 

Many issues I created for myself because I was unwilling to give up having a heater. It really depends how much you want to cut up your car. 

If you are going to proceed,  go drive-by-wire. Getting the itbs to open like a regular car with smooth accusation has been a huge challenge. 

If you use the s54 air box, plan on going manual brakes and rebuilding the entire braking system.

The 5 lug conversion is absolutely not worth the trouble. Just gusset the front spindles and call it good.

The drag link for the crossover steering will Get into the oil pan if sticking with manual steering,  so plan on clearencing it. 

The rear: couple options would be to swap in an e30 rear.  You will need to either change body pick up points, which puts you into the rockers or change the mounts on the subframe. both options are a pain.

A complete rear swap from I think garagtastic or 02Haus,  I forgot who makes it is another option.  It's a cool piece of kit,  but imho not worth what they are asking. In fact, I think their price is absurd considering I can by two entire long arm suspension systems for my jeep for what they are asking for their rear setup. I'd spend my money elsewhere. Lastly,  an e30 rear does change the track width,  which can cause problems depending on wheel choice. 

The drive shift you can get by measuring the diff flange to guibo length,  going to realoem and getting the specks from cars of similar size. Think I used one from a z3. RealOem list the lengths of the driveshafts in mm for all bmws. Just lop off the carrier bearing mounts from the trans tunnel and weld them in where the newer driveshaft requires. Also, the drive shift should be a few mm shorter than the measured length between guibo and diff flange to allow for slip in the system due to driveline flex.

The transmission from the e46 M3 is big and not rebuildable. Options are to go with a 5 speed from an e36 or have an adapter made for a tremec.

Many of my choices where due to budget,  so that created challenges that probably could have been solved by throwing money at it. 

Fuel system: I baffled the gas tank and used an e30 suction unit,  but using a fuel cell below the trunk floor would allow for more muffler options. 

Lots of trial and error is going to be normal. Waiting on parts is a huge time suck, so plan for that. Also,  don't expect help from any professional bmw,  2002, or aftermarket supplier.  In my experience,  they will not answer your questions about how they accomplish things like 5 lug swaps,  hood struts,  etc.

Think that's all for now. If you have other questions let me know, and post them here so others can follow. 

Thanks for checking out the thread.

Sorry for typos, sent from my phone. 

Hi Spampi51,

The dash is pretty good. Obvious;y, I would have liked to get a new dash, but at $1500, the price was too high. The problem I have run in to is what you choose to finish the dash with. I tried plasti dip, which was a disaster. Other options are bed liner and undercoating material, but they don't have the same texture as an original dash. It has held up; however, I do plan on getting is covered in leather eventually. Many of the choices I made were because of budget and not necessarily because they were the ideal way to go.

I didn't know the blend valve could be opened up. Mine is stuck. I may have to see if its full of gunk too. I dig the match porting of the carb to the intake plenum. Nice work.

@ Roundeie

My car is a 1600 non-sunroof model and it has the cardboard piece. I too am wondering if I should use it or bypass it and go directly to the rear window channel as the clips for the board are like 7 bucks a piece. Also, let us know how the Weldwood works out. The can says you do NOT need to use any clamping, and that if you let it tack up for at least 20 minutes it bonds on ... contact. I really don't feel like buying 180 binder clips.

As for the sound deadener (sp) I am using eastwood's xmat seems to be nice product for less money than dynamat. Adhesive toward the metal. I am using their non bitumin foam sound deadener for the floor and bulkheads.

Nice work. Interior looks sharp.

Hi Alhelm,

My blog post labeled "updates", which I posted a few hours ago, does show the camber adjusters welded in. They are the positive lock style, not the cam style. I am still deciding if I should install the toe adjusters because the outside trailing arm pickup is very close to the subframe pickup point.

K

It should be about 350 horsepower. I stock trim the S54 is rated at 333 hp. The ECM I am running does not require cats so they have been eliminated, plus the free flowing intake and exhaust should help.  The car is going to be slightly heavier than a stock tii, mainly because I am adding things like sound deadening, backseats and creature comforts. Although it has a short wheelbase, my idea is that it will be more of a GT. My jeep beats me up enough. I want this thing to eat highway.

Hi Tnan,

The dustless blasting does remove rust. It is pretty gentle on solid metal, but if there is pitting, it will push through the thinned metal. The guy who did my car is very conscientious of the pressure, angle and duration of spray and how it affects the metal. I just told him that as soon as the paint was removed to stop and move to another section. This is definitely one time where the expression, "Anything that's worth doing, is worth overdoing," does not apply. 

The car was then treated with a fast etch type product to prevent flash rust and neutralize any rust. It is basically the same as zinc phosphoric etch. The caveat is that it has to be neutralized itself. I used vinegar and water, and then epoxy primed the car immediately after.

The undercoating I did under the car on a creeper after washing off grease and grime and a scuff up with a red Scotch brite pad. What a mess! Like a described, I used the magnet paints chassis saver, which is not rubberized like the 3m, but it is a rust encapsulator, unlike the 3M. I then top-coated that with some good chassis matte paint. I eventually added 3m rubber coating to the wheel wells on top of the magnet paint encapsulated wheel wells. And, finally, I used Eastwood's internal frame coating / rust encapsulator to treat the rockers, rear subframe mounts, front subframe mounts, rear subframe, front subframe, and all the pillars front to back. The stuff is one product that is worth every penny. Just be sure to clear the hose and nozzle with lacquer thinner after each use.

I wish I would have had a rotisserie, but another expense that can be put towards finishing the car. I have seen people make one from wood which actually works. I saw one here on the forum, but you'll have to look around.

Hope that helps. Good luck with our 02!

Kaleb

Nice project. I like the x braces you built under the front seat mounts. Are you going to connect the differential to the rear subframe, or keep it only attached to the supports you built? I couldn't see from the pictures if the front of the diff is also fixed to the frame work you built. I know on jeeps and solid axle cars they use links to prevent the pinion from rotating up under torque. Looking forward to more updates.

On the 4th picture down there are some channeled subframe connectors between the rear bulkhead and the trunk floor. This is the first car I've seen with them. Are they only on the later cars? I've never seen the bracket thing in the same area either. Does anyone re-pop these? They might be a good addition to stiffen up the rear section on older cars.

Chris, 

The mounting points were adjusted to keep the geometry square. the pictures are of the earliest iteration. I built the rear subframe on a platform with the geometry plotted out. the trailing arms also have positive lock camber caster adjusters. however,  if I had to so it again, I'd probably just move the body mounts or refabricate the mounting points on the 318ti rear subframe..  it would have been much easier. I still may do that. the objective was to keep the diff in the same plane and distance as the 2002 diff and keep the wheels centered in the wheel wells exactly.

K

Hi mlytle,

You may be right. I only added the cross brace since they are used on e30 M3's.

I am using e30 axles. The trailing arms are from and e36 compact, which uses an e30 rear end. A common swap for the e36 ti guys is to put a medium case diff, and they go with e30 axles. I have an e30, so when I replaced the axles, I tested them in this setup to make sure everything works and it does.

That rotisserie is ingenious. Nice work.

My tank had been sitting empty for a few years, so all the fuel had evaporated. I used brake cleaner and then soapy water to remove any residue before cutting and welding.

255 L/1 hr x 1hr/60 min = 4.25 LPM. As for the psi, I am using the stock e46 M3 fuel filter and fuel pressure regulator. The e46 M3 pressure regulator is 3.5 Bar, which is 50.76 psi. It is a return system. I installed an aftermarket fuel pump to drive the s54 engine. I know the stock E30 318 pump does not flow enough to run a 325is engine, because I initially installed the entire suction unit and pump into my E30 325is to track down a hard starting issue. The car would sputter when hard on the throttle. It will be adequate for a 4 cylinder, but not a 6 cylinder. You want a pump that has more flow, rather than not enough.

What I am trying to figure out is the variable pump controller that has been used in BMW since the early 80's. It doesn't make sense to run the pump full bore all the time. Aeromotive makes one that is an option, but way overpriced. Long winded but hope it helps. 

I am really leaning toward covering the dash high quality vinyl, such as marine vinyl that can take some UV abuse. Maybe add a nice french seem to boot. I do agree with you about the cracks, hope it holds up well.  Wish somebody repopped these for reasonable price. 

Actually, I already did the swap. It's not complete but all the major systems are in, well almost. Now, I am fixing some body issues, seam welding and have to complete wiring in the Typhoon ECU from Specialist Components, which is definitely not plug and play. I didn't start a blog because this has actually been a project for about four years, but my time is limited so progress is slow. I plan on fixing some of the firewall issues that I was not happy with and then doing exhaust. Still on the fence about aluminized or stainless, since I don't have a tig welder. The little things are what take forever.