ADVICE ON MY E30 318i

[BmwFreaks]

my dad gave me his bmw 318i e30 to me couple of years ago. And i would really love for anyone to Advice me on getting the car to go faster. its really stressfull when i roam around sunway area to find someone that able to help me further. and they would recommend turbo or a supercharger. 1st - Why supercharger or Turbo?2nd - how to maintain it?3rd - is there anyway to boost the speed without this 2 thing?I really appreciate any help that i could get

 

[fabianyee]

Come join us for TT tonight at Aman Suria at about 10pm...

 

[EEEE30]

my dad gave me his bmw 318i e30 to me couple of years ago. And i would really love for anyone to Advice me on getting the car to go faster. its really stressfull when i roam around sunway area to find someone that able to help me further. and they would recommend turbo or a supercharger.

1st - Why supercharger or Turbo?
2nd - how to maintain it?
3rd - is there anyway to boost the speed without this 2 thing?

I really appreciate any help that i could get

Yes there are plenty of ways to get more power without superchanrging it

1.Best bang for bux is to do a motor swap (BMW engines that is, not japs)
m5xb3x

2. You can stroke the existing motor
3. Change exhaust system, computer chip upgrade

pls post some pics of your car man

 

[BmwFreaks]

hey man thanks for your reply. yeah i will surely do. i just joined in the bmwgroup.im new hahaha.

-well i did change my exhaust system. about the chip upgrade, he said i would have to change to a computerize one which would cost me big bucks.

-Motor swap would cost me crazy buckss$$ dont u think. i heard all in say 20k easily.that is just the engine swapping part.not to mention body inspection., tuning, stablize the car blabla.

-I would love to hear more about ur second opinion. " stroke the existing motor" how do we do that? and what does it do?

 

[BmwFreaks]

to fabianyee.
you know i would love to join you guys. but im currently studying in Australia right now. hahahha, but hey. it would really helped if you just briefly explain to me about the gathering? what do u guys do?

 

[fabianyee]

We meet and tok nonsense... Anything from car to err... anything under the sun.. If someone's car have some new thing, we go see see and pretend to know something.. hahaha.. If someone's car have some X-files problem, someone will go see, have a ride round to block to try to diagnose the problems.

As for your E30 318i, if the has been properly maintained, it'll run fine. But don't expect it to be real fast. The M40 8-valve SOHC engine is not built to be a fast straight-line warrior. But it does have decent handling. It can give the faster BMWs a run for their money going up Genting...

And for othe mods, we can talk day and night when we all meet in person.. Join us for our next E30 meet-up..

 

[chili e30]

for m40 b18 engine u can't expect it to go real fast,if u can travel in highway with 170kph-180kph that will be a very good engine.try to lighter up your ride by changing electric fan,use 15 inch lighter rim it will help you.you can also try chiped it & change 2.0 injector.

 

[virtualmystic]

Honestly how fast do you really want the car to go? 200 kph? There aren't many roads (including the NSE) in Malaysia where you can get your car up to 200+ kph AND maintain it for more than a few minutes. Personally I enjoy the handling of the E30 and the "feedback" it provides the driver. Not many cars in this price range are as alive as the E30 (maybe the Merc 190E). If money is an issue, a more satisfactory "upgrade" would be to renew all your bushing and inspecting the engine/drivetrain for leaking seals and changing them. Would go a long way to preserving the drivability of your precious (and increasingly rare) E30.

 

[BmwFreaks]

thanks for your comment virtualmystic. yes your right. actually im not into speed as said 200kph? im really into the torque, the power that the car can give when u perform in the road.it is really stressing when the car takes hours to get to 100kmh. ahahah its crazy. that aint fun

 

[fabianyee]

thanks for your comment virtualmystic. yes your right. actually im not into speed as said 200kph? im really into the torque, the power that the car can give when u perform in the road.it is really stressing when the car takes hours to get to 100kmh. ahahah its crazy. that aint fun

Looks like your engine isn't in good health to start with...

 

[virtualmystic]

No problems. Always glad to talk to a fellow BMW (especially E30) owner. Fabian maybe right in that your engine might have lost some compression and therefore power. You can take it in for a compression test which should not cost you anything. IN fact I am thinking of getting a compression gauge myself. Does anyone know where i can get a good one?
When is the next TT session?

 

[mizhan]

thanks for your comment virtualmystic. yes your right. actually im not into speed as said 200kph? im really into the torque, the power that the car can give when u perform in the road.it is really stressing when the car takes hours to get to 100kmh. ahahah its crazy. that aint fun

a healthy M20B25 ought to keep you happy. i cannot overemphasize HEALTHY. the one i had, provided ample torque for twisty bits and overtaking, and i exceed 200kmh each morning otw to work.

 

[virtualmystic]

Now now Mizhan, we should not encourage speeding. Especially in someone who might not familiar with rear wheel driven cars. And I think the maximum upgrade allowed by JPJ (if it's to be done legally) is 20% of the original. That means the the young man can drop in a M20b20 into his current drive. be that as it may he might need some help with his 4 potter.

 

[mizhan]

okay.. okay... make sure the road is flat & straight enuff, your tyres new & balanced, plus your shocks & brakes are optimum. then plant your right foot into the firewall!

legal engine swap is when JPJ endorses your replacement engine number & cubic capacity onto the registration card in place of the original. everything else isn't important

 

[virtualmystic]

But isn;t the limit 20% of the current capacity? I am seriously thinking of putting in a M20b25 engine into my manual E30. have you heard of anyone upgrading legally form a 2L to a 2.5? Someone here is selling the M20B25 and manual gearbox.

 

[fabianyee]

But isn;t the limit 20% of the current capacity? I am seriously thinking of putting in a M20b25 engine into my manual E30. have you heard of anyone upgrading legally form a 2L to a 2.5? Someone here is selling the M20B25 and manual gearbox.

Can be done legally.. A few of the E36 318i upgraded to 325i or even 328i are legally endorsed... A few more steps required from JPJ but it's legal...

 

[virtualmystic]

Great. Now to find the engine and gearbox. I would also have to upgrade the brakes and exhaust system too. Does anyone here have personal experience with an engine upgrade? Would love to have a chat. Drinks on me.

 

[mizhan]

Great. Now to find the engine and gearbox. I would also have to upgrade the brakes and exhaust system too. Does anyone here have personal experience with an engine upgrade? Would love to have a chat. Drinks on me.

upgrade from what to what?

 

[virtualmystic]

My manual E30 has a M20B20 engine. I wish to either A) overhaul the engine and get a new gearbox or B) buy a M20B25 engine overhaul it and put it in place of my M20B20.

 

[EEEE30]

hey man thanks for your reply. yeah i will surely do. i just joined in the bmwgroup.im new hahaha.

-well i did change my exhaust system. about the chip upgrade, he said i would have to change to a computerize one which would cost me big bucks.

-Motor swap would cost me crazy buckss$$ dont u think. i heard all in say 20k easily.that is just the engine swapping part.not to mention body inspection., tuning, stablize the car blabla.

-I would love to hear more about ur second opinion. " stroke the existing motor" how do we do that? and what does it do?

"Stroking a motor is simply changing the length of the stroke. If you make it longer the displacement increases and bigger inches usually equals more HP. If you have two motors that are equal except for bore and stroke, the one with the longer stroke will make more torque than the short stroke motor. The short stroke motor however will rev quicker because the slugs have less distance to travel. "

That basically explains what stroking means. But the main thing is that you have to be gentle with stroked motors and some people concern about reliability of the motor.

Reading you other posts, I figured you have a 318. If I were you, I would do the m20b25 swap into your e30 and be happy with it. m40 and m20 are worlds apart when it comes to performance.