Posted by Troy Rudolph on April 25, 2003 at 08:29:48 from 141.202.248.11
In Reply to: 3.5L conversion posted by Tito on April 24, 2003 at 20:34:39:
The best of them IMHO is the '89-'93 535/635/735 engine. Lots of torque, 209bhp.
It will bolt in to the car. The motor mounts will work just fine. If you're anal retentive you can make some flat steel plates to take care of the one missing bolt hole. I think Karl K. ignored the problem and autocrosses his car w/o trouble.
You can put the whole thing in - Motronics and all. Or, you can use the existing L-Jet injection and intake instead. It's up to you. The latter approach is easier.
What needs to be changed? You need to use the E12 flywheel; most of the donors are automatics and even if they have a m/t flywheel, the E12 flywheel is lighter. You also need the E12 oil filter housing, oil pan, and dipstick tube. You !MUST! plug one hole in the block where the oil filter housing bolts on. Either Karl K or I can tell you which one.
Sayther Auto has a nice 1990 535i engine in stock. They're located in Austin.
Go for it. Also, check the 3.5L conversion FAQ article in the "technical FAQ" section.