Supercharged E36 318is project with added Gto content.
Discussion
Thought I'd share my project I'm currently working on. I've owned my 318is for close to 5 years now and decided it needed a complete overhaul.
Shes been modified over the past few years but she really needed taking apart and sorting out from the ground up, so I parked her outside my garage and got to work, stripping her of pretty much everything except the dashboard and fuse box. And well since then for the past year I've been collecting parts and refurbishing existing ones, I'm at the stage now that i pretty much have all the parts and my bedroom is now full of wheels and body panels it just all needs fitting. I'm going for comfy trackcar sort of feel, removing lots of stuff thats generally not needed on a track but leaving in some creature comforts.
Ive removed all the rust I could find, cutting out and welding in new panels with my diy mig and fairly awful welding skills but it came out okay, Ive also cut out the rear wheel well and reinforced with a steel crossbar as I'm planning on running a rear spoiler bolted directly to the rear of the chassis. Ive cut out then folded in and welded up the rear wheel arches too to allow a few more inches of clearance for the wheels, I'll be running over fenders to allow for the wider track. The front arches have been cut out too and vented at the bottom. I've just finished coating everything with Por 15 so looks good under there now.
The plans for the engine is a custom Supercharger setup, I have sourced an m45 Eaton charger from an old clk. Then I've got a load of boost piping and an intercooler. Ill be using the original maf and ECU and also venting to atmosphere, then using the 6 cyl injectors and fuel pump. Im not looking for big power just a sorted little setup hopefully around 240hp using a few other mods I already have.
I've stripped down the engine to replace gaskets, given it a clean out and generally prepare it to be boosted. New timing chain etc.. I'm a noob in this respect but just making sure I don't damage anything. These engines are brilliant, it was at 155k, spent the last 4 years constantly at the redline and it still shows very little signs of wear from what I can tell. I've stripped back the engine bay of any brackets that don't need to be there and have removed the abs, brake servo, powersteering, a/c, washer bottle and charcoal canister for weight, simplicity and for room to place the supercharger.
Other than that I'll be using my hsd monopros, replacing all the suspension components, the rear is already polybushed and I'll retain my welded diff as I love the predictability the car has with it. Also fitting my halo race seats and a safety devices rear cage. Lots of other little things to do too, short shifter, flat floor front to back, fibreglass boot and bonnet etc.
Still ages from having it finished but it keeps me occupied while not being able to drive. I've just bought a Mitsubishi GTO as a second project, its a auto n/a but its just awesome, its massive and needs some TLC but will be a nice change from the raw e36.
Anyway sorry for the massive post thanks for reading. I'll try and slowly update it. Don't have many pics on my tablet so I'll try and sort them soon too.
Shes been modified over the past few years but she really needed taking apart and sorting out from the ground up, so I parked her outside my garage and got to work, stripping her of pretty much everything except the dashboard and fuse box. And well since then for the past year I've been collecting parts and refurbishing existing ones, I'm at the stage now that i pretty much have all the parts and my bedroom is now full of wheels and body panels it just all needs fitting. I'm going for comfy trackcar sort of feel, removing lots of stuff thats generally not needed on a track but leaving in some creature comforts.
Ive removed all the rust I could find, cutting out and welding in new panels with my diy mig and fairly awful welding skills but it came out okay, Ive also cut out the rear wheel well and reinforced with a steel crossbar as I'm planning on running a rear spoiler bolted directly to the rear of the chassis. Ive cut out then folded in and welded up the rear wheel arches too to allow a few more inches of clearance for the wheels, I'll be running over fenders to allow for the wider track. The front arches have been cut out too and vented at the bottom. I've just finished coating everything with Por 15 so looks good under there now.
The plans for the engine is a custom Supercharger setup, I have sourced an m45 Eaton charger from an old clk. Then I've got a load of boost piping and an intercooler. Ill be using the original maf and ECU and also venting to atmosphere, then using the 6 cyl injectors and fuel pump. Im not looking for big power just a sorted little setup hopefully around 240hp using a few other mods I already have.
I've stripped down the engine to replace gaskets, given it a clean out and generally prepare it to be boosted. New timing chain etc.. I'm a noob in this respect but just making sure I don't damage anything. These engines are brilliant, it was at 155k, spent the last 4 years constantly at the redline and it still shows very little signs of wear from what I can tell. I've stripped back the engine bay of any brackets that don't need to be there and have removed the abs, brake servo, powersteering, a/c, washer bottle and charcoal canister for weight, simplicity and for room to place the supercharger.
Other than that I'll be using my hsd monopros, replacing all the suspension components, the rear is already polybushed and I'll retain my welded diff as I love the predictability the car has with it. Also fitting my halo race seats and a safety devices rear cage. Lots of other little things to do too, short shifter, flat floor front to back, fibreglass boot and bonnet etc.
Still ages from having it finished but it keeps me occupied while not being able to drive. I've just bought a Mitsubishi GTO as a second project, its a auto n/a but its just awesome, its massive and needs some TLC but will be a nice change from the raw e36.
Anyway sorry for the massive post thanks for reading. I'll try and slowly update it. Don't have many pics on my tablet so I'll try and sort them soon too.
Edited by jmflare on Friday 20th November 15:27
Thanks, I used elephant and was only £500 a year at the age of 21 with all mods declared and 4 ncb pretty cheap 
Got some more photos, just shows some progress up to now,
The supercharger with custom pleneum
Wheels with arches
Test fit with the wheels before she was disassembled
Roof ignition panel, because jet fighter
Next is to get the subframes off to the platers, and get the engine bay painted in the nice bright orange paint that's just arrived
Really want to get started on the Gto but no time or money for it at the moment, people seem to put them down but I really think it's a brilliant car and am chuffed I finally own one, so much technology for a 23 year old car!
Got some more photos, just shows some progress up to now,
The supercharger with custom pleneum
Wheels with arches
Test fit with the wheels before she was disassembled
Roof ignition panel, because jet fighter
Next is to get the subframes off to the platers, and get the engine bay painted in the nice bright orange paint that's just arrived
Really want to get started on the Gto but no time or money for it at the moment, people seem to put them down but I really think it's a brilliant car and am chuffed I finally own one, so much technology for a 23 year old car!
Or888t said:
Another quick question!
With the large power increase you're expecting; what are your plans for the exhaust? Custom?
Or some kind of m3 swop, i'm guessing the floor plan will be the same?
My limited knowlage is just thinking about the much higher air flow levels...
It already had a decat and ss cat-back so I'll be removing the rear box and running a dual shogun out of the center of the rear, it'll be loud With the large power increase you're expecting; what are your plans for the exhaust? Custom?
Or some kind of m3 swop, i'm guessing the floor plan will be the same?
My limited knowlage is just thinking about the much higher air flow levels...
oh and I've wrapped the manifold... Just bidding on a m42 inlet manifold and rocket cover on eBay, it'll allow me a lot more room to place the charger also they have better flow from what I have read. A quick question to anyone reading who knows their boost, I was thinking about using 2 inch boost pipe to increase throttle response, I just though I need to reduce the volume of the inlet tract in between throttle body and s/c so that it pressurises quicker when I apply some throttle, that's right or am I missing something out?
Few pictures below show the finished welded rear end, no wheel well so I've room for the rear diffuser ??
Oh and the Gto is still sat on the drive looking sad, really want to make a start on it!
Edited by jmflare on Friday 27th November 18:53
Not much progress due to the weather, and the fact my awning blew over and dented a door, luckily the one that's being replaced due to rust, tempted to get some alloy or fibreglass ones...
Fibreglass vented bonnet arrived the other day so I need to get that prepped and painted, also sourced a m42 inlet manifold and rocker cover which is needed to give me the room to position the supercharger, plus they flow better, win win
The gto is as usual sat on the drive looking unloved. Sadly I'm currently out of a job so money's tight (if anyone knows of a engineering or mechanics job going in the northwest let me know
)
Fibreglass vented bonnet arrived the other day so I need to get that prepped and painted, also sourced a m42 inlet manifold and rocker cover which is needed to give me the room to position the supercharger, plus they flow better, win win
The gto is as usual sat on the drive looking unloved. Sadly I'm currently out of a job so money's tight (if anyone knows of a engineering or mechanics job going in the northwest let me know
)
OllieJT said:
Looks like its going to be a good looking car when youve done, big fan of the wheels and wing. That colour looks the nuts too. Im just baffled by why youd do all this?! Im all for being different but theres a reason no one charges these engines. You said 240bhp is what you want, what ecu do you plan on using? These cars were 140bhp standard, will a mercedes kompressor really add 140bhp? Do you even know what your starting with power wise? Be interesting to see dyno printouts of before and after. Im assuming your gonna have to forge the engine too... Alot of effort when a 328 lump bolts in for the same power.
Quite a few people have achieved 220+ with just a Dasc supercharger kit. I'm hoping with my bbtb, 24lb injectors and a standalone ecu plus running an intercooler too I could reach over 250 running just 12-14psi, therefore no need for forging, although I I needed too m42 blocks are already forged so no big deal. The second question is more a personal thing, I've had a few e36s the one previously being a mint 323 coupe in the same colour as this, it was nice and smooth but for some reason I prefer the revvy 4 pot more especially a charged one. Plus it's lighter and more in keeping with the theme of the car.
Thanks though, I'll get some printouts up when it's built and gets tuned, the guru of these engine is on here somewhere I think so I need to contact him for some help on that.
Thought i'd update this, the BMW is slowly plodding along, got the cage painted up the rear trimmed with black carpet, suspension built back up, custom brake circuit made and the chassis is basically finished now just need to get the Cylinder head sent off to be vapour blasted then skimmed. Then i'll be ready to build the engine up, been doing lots of research and i am now pushing for 300hp as i plan to get the supercharger ported so i can run it at a much higher rpm, i'll then get myself a custom pulley made so i can run the supercharger at peak efficiency vs engine speed. I'll be combining this with a Meth kit so i can bring intake temps down to a reasonable level.
I've been spending quite a bit of time on the GTO lately too, fitted some Tein S springs for a nice drop but not too harsh of a ride, also fabbed up some mounts for my new sparco bucket seats as the original Recaros had seen better days :/ Engine wise I've stripped the head to replace the sticky hydraulic lifters and also the stem seals as it blows a bit of blue smoke at idle. Halfway through this job i decided to stop fannying about and get the Manual transmission swap started so i've spent the last few days removing the engine and sourcing parts for the swap, I've also decided to convert the car from AWD to RWD. This just involves welding the central diff and removing the front driveshafts but should create quite a unique GTO. The latter pic is before i started all this work but just after i fitted the refurbed wheels.
I'll try and keep this updated more, i wrote this at 3am so please forgive any grammar mistakes
I've been spending quite a bit of time on the GTO lately too, fitted some Tein S springs for a nice drop but not too harsh of a ride, also fabbed up some mounts for my new sparco bucket seats as the original Recaros had seen better days :/ Engine wise I've stripped the head to replace the sticky hydraulic lifters and also the stem seals as it blows a bit of blue smoke at idle. Halfway through this job i decided to stop fannying about and get the Manual transmission swap started so i've spent the last few days removing the engine and sourcing parts for the swap, I've also decided to convert the car from AWD to RWD. This just involves welding the central diff and removing the front driveshafts but should create quite a unique GTO. The latter pic is before i started all this work but just after i fitted the refurbed wheels.
I'll try and keep this updated more, i wrote this at 3am so please forgive any grammar mistakes
It'll be a push but it has been done before on an Mx5 i think. I have lots of supporting mods, M42 inlet, Piper reground camshafts, Intercooler (not just straight from blower to pleneum like the DASC and GKD kits), 60lbs injectors fed from a bosch 044 fuel pump, Link G4 standalone Ecu, Aem Meth injection kit and custom pulleys.
A standard M45 on a bare bones GKD kit running a ebay RRFPR cant get above 200hp so i dont see why 270-300hp at the fly isnt achiveable with all my supporting mods plus the porting of the M45 so i can run hopefully around 14Psi without ridiculous engine temps.
To be honest i'd be happy with anything over 250
A standard M45 on a bare bones GKD kit running a ebay RRFPR cant get above 200hp so i dont see why 270-300hp at the fly isnt achiveable with all my supporting mods plus the porting of the M45 so i can run hopefully around 14Psi without ridiculous engine temps.
To be honest i'd be happy with anything over 250
BricktopST205 said:
With all the mods is there any weight saving going for a supercharged 4 pot over the tried and tested 6 pot?
yes quite a fair bit, i'm hoping for under 1150kg. Even when supercharged my 4 pot should weigh quite a bit less than if it had a 6 pot but put out quite a bit more power. I worked out the weights differences at one point but don't have the figures to hand. The main thing is I'm much more interested in building this 4 pot up than just slinging a 6 pot in, i have a e36 328 lump sat on my driveway at the moment if anyone wants one? Richyvrlimited said:
An MX5 with an M45 blower will max out at around 210 - 220bhp, you can't get close to 300 with an M45. You'd you'd struggle to hit 300 on an MX5 with an MP62 too.
It can and has been done before, ported m45 tuned correctly with the right supporting mods. Like i said before i'd be happy with anything over 250 at the fly which i think is possible. Well the BMW hasn't really evolved since my last post really, shes been sat there while i've been doing my GTO. I really need to get started again but struggling with funds to do them both :/ So on to the GTO...
This is her before i really started, having been sat on my drive for 7 months while i've been doing the bmw, figuring i really needed a daily for when i got my licence back i decided to get her sorted.
I took the entire interior out, the car has clearly been in a flood at somepoint a long time ago, dried silt everywhere but no typical flood car symptons, condensation, damp smell etc.. I cleaned her up getting rid of all the silt and also checked all the wiring for corrosion but it all seemed good luckily. Got a new carpet for her and she started to look quite smart. Replaced any damaged trim pieces and fitted a nice Pioneer headunit too...
Next up were some buckets because I'm young and my back is in good shape atm so why not... Sparco' finest entry level Sprints, insanely comfortable and supportive for the price. Welded myself up some frames and got them in, perfect fit for me at 6ft2 but my 5ftnothing gf cant see over the dash
Next up i removed the struts to fit some Tein S-tech springs and well this is where it all started with this car... While i had it apart i though about how much i wanted a manual so thought why not and proceeded to remove the engine to get the gearbox replaced. This is when i also decided that the AWD had to go and that RWD was the way forward. So i needed lots of parts cue this thing being dumped on my mums drive, she was estatic...
A 1992 Twin turbo that had seen better days, got down to stripping it of its limbs, engine out gearbox and any other twin turbo bits off then the engine lobbed in the boot. All very 3.14Key... I would also learn later on that due to rear outer hub splines being smaller on the N/A that i would also need the entire rear subframe assembly that weighs approx. 3 million tons. Sadly once i had canniblised it i had no room to store it so it was scrapped :/
I took the box apart and welded the central diff, also removing the front shafts too. This locks the torque split to 50/50 and theres no resistance at the front so 100% of the power goes through the t-case to the rear
At this point i was slight over just fitting new springs which was the original job so thought that it'd be rude not to twin turbo her too...
So i started fitting the turbos i sourced ff a club member(the doners were a bit buggerred, more shaft play than a bangkok brothel), quite a few mods are need to get stuff to fit, engine mounts are all different, turbo oil feeds need take off adapters, i planned to use the TT oil pan but that didnt fit the TT block so i had to weld some tabs to the N/a pan for the turbo drains. I also replaned the Stem seals, hydralic lifters, timing belt and some other stuff while it was all out...
Once that was all done i threw the engine back in and started connecting everything back up, i also replaced the engine wiring harness too as the TT is slightly different to the N/a, another thing salvaged from the doner...
I also ordered a flash ecu from America at this point, allowing me to directly edit the fuel/timing tables rather than faf around with fuel controllers and maf translators, the flash ecus are TT ones so would technically run the car straight out the box. It also has other features such as Launch control, Flat shifting etc..
Skipping aheadabout 3 months, im current waiting on parts to arrive. I've upgraded the fuel pump and hotwired it. New oil cooler and custom lines. Lots of interior work. Made myself a custom intercooler fogger. Straight 3 inch turboback exhaust ready to be welded up and fitted. Methanol injection on order and lots more that i cant remember. Lots of gauges in the post too. The only downside to this are i have my uni exams next week and will be itching to get down to the garage when i should be revising... :/
I'm aiming for 380hp+ out of the stock 9b turbos which is quite a challenge considering stock they were 'supposed' to be 276hp but i do have the 10:1 n/a block on my side.
I've missed quite a bit out but starting to write this at 5am was bad idea. I'll fill in the blanks tomorrow if anyone is interested
Thanks Jonni
This is her before i really started, having been sat on my drive for 7 months while i've been doing the bmw, figuring i really needed a daily for when i got my licence back i decided to get her sorted.
I took the entire interior out, the car has clearly been in a flood at somepoint a long time ago, dried silt everywhere but no typical flood car symptons, condensation, damp smell etc.. I cleaned her up getting rid of all the silt and also checked all the wiring for corrosion but it all seemed good luckily. Got a new carpet for her and she started to look quite smart. Replaced any damaged trim pieces and fitted a nice Pioneer headunit too...
Next up were some buckets because I'm young and my back is in good shape atm so why not... Sparco' finest entry level Sprints, insanely comfortable and supportive for the price. Welded myself up some frames and got them in, perfect fit for me at 6ft2 but my 5ftnothing gf cant see over the dash
Next up i removed the struts to fit some Tein S-tech springs and well this is where it all started with this car... While i had it apart i though about how much i wanted a manual so thought why not and proceeded to remove the engine to get the gearbox replaced. This is when i also decided that the AWD had to go and that RWD was the way forward. So i needed lots of parts cue this thing being dumped on my mums drive, she was estatic...
A 1992 Twin turbo that had seen better days, got down to stripping it of its limbs, engine out gearbox and any other twin turbo bits off then the engine lobbed in the boot. All very 3.14Key... I would also learn later on that due to rear outer hub splines being smaller on the N/A that i would also need the entire rear subframe assembly that weighs approx. 3 million tons. Sadly once i had canniblised it i had no room to store it so it was scrapped :/
I took the box apart and welded the central diff, also removing the front shafts too. This locks the torque split to 50/50 and theres no resistance at the front so 100% of the power goes through the t-case to the rear
At this point i was slight over just fitting new springs which was the original job so thought that it'd be rude not to twin turbo her too...
So i started fitting the turbos i sourced ff a club member(the doners were a bit buggerred, more shaft play than a bangkok brothel), quite a few mods are need to get stuff to fit, engine mounts are all different, turbo oil feeds need take off adapters, i planned to use the TT oil pan but that didnt fit the TT block so i had to weld some tabs to the N/a pan for the turbo drains. I also replaned the Stem seals, hydralic lifters, timing belt and some other stuff while it was all out...
Once that was all done i threw the engine back in and started connecting everything back up, i also replaced the engine wiring harness too as the TT is slightly different to the N/a, another thing salvaged from the doner...
I also ordered a flash ecu from America at this point, allowing me to directly edit the fuel/timing tables rather than faf around with fuel controllers and maf translators, the flash ecus are TT ones so would technically run the car straight out the box. It also has other features such as Launch control, Flat shifting etc..
Skipping aheadabout 3 months, im current waiting on parts to arrive. I've upgraded the fuel pump and hotwired it. New oil cooler and custom lines. Lots of interior work. Made myself a custom intercooler fogger. Straight 3 inch turboback exhaust ready to be welded up and fitted. Methanol injection on order and lots more that i cant remember. Lots of gauges in the post too. The only downside to this are i have my uni exams next week and will be itching to get down to the garage when i should be revising... :/
I'm aiming for 380hp+ out of the stock 9b turbos which is quite a challenge considering stock they were 'supposed' to be 276hp but i do have the 10:1 n/a block on my side.
I've missed quite a bit out but starting to write this at 5am was bad idea. I'll fill in the blanks tomorrow if anyone is interested
Thanks Jonni
Thanks, yes it should be quite a handful
A few modifications i forgot to mention:
- Welded up rear differential, heard the original viscous LSDs were a bit limp.
- 560cc Evo injectors on order, cleaned and flow matched.
- A set of Nankang NS2Rs semi slicks, have heard nothing but good things about these, gone for the 180 tread
- I removed the rear steer system while i was swapping subframes as i'm not a fan, lost quite a bit of weight, new custom rear toe arms.
- Braided fuel line inbetween fuel rail with pressure take off for fuel pressure gauge also one on the oil cooler to gauge oil pressure.
- AEM wideband kit with output hooked up to the ecu so i can log AFRs. Also seprate Map sensor hooked up to ecu to log boost even if the ecu isn't currently able to tune directly from it.
- My favorite modification a KITT light at the front that turns me into Micheal Knight... Looks awesome (if a little cheesy). Weird i got more excited seeing that working than seeing the engine back in...
Any other GTO people on here? People seem to have this idea that they are really hard to work on and unreliable but that couldn't be further from the truth. In all honesty i'd say its an easier car to work on than the E36 and that is already a well laid out and logical car to work on.
The next real issue once it's tuned and running is the transfer case and rear output shaft in the gearbox... Standard torque split is 50/50 and standard torque is around 310ish so in a crude way that means the TC and output shaft is normally used to 150ft/lbs. So i've doubled the torque on the TC and output, no biggy it's been done before so hopefully should be okay. Now throw into the mix the increase to 500ish ft/lbs i plan, The welded rear diff effectively doubling the grip at the rear and the sticky 255 track tyres and i have the perfect storm in terms of exploding the tranfer case :/
I plan to remedy this with a hardened output shaft and also welding up an outer cage for the TC to give it more resistance to forcing itself apart... The rear diff and subframe etc. should hopefully be okay, it's a seriously beefy setup back there as standard...
One day i hope to rotate the engine 90* and use a gearbox from a shogun or something but for now this has to do.
Jonni
A few modifications i forgot to mention:
- Welded up rear differential, heard the original viscous LSDs were a bit limp.
- 560cc Evo injectors on order, cleaned and flow matched.
- A set of Nankang NS2Rs semi slicks, have heard nothing but good things about these, gone for the 180 tread
- I removed the rear steer system while i was swapping subframes as i'm not a fan, lost quite a bit of weight, new custom rear toe arms.
- Braided fuel line inbetween fuel rail with pressure take off for fuel pressure gauge also one on the oil cooler to gauge oil pressure.
- AEM wideband kit with output hooked up to the ecu so i can log AFRs. Also seprate Map sensor hooked up to ecu to log boost even if the ecu isn't currently able to tune directly from it.
- My favorite modification a KITT light at the front that turns me into Micheal Knight... Looks awesome (if a little cheesy). Weird i got more excited seeing that working than seeing the engine back in...
Any other GTO people on here? People seem to have this idea that they are really hard to work on and unreliable but that couldn't be further from the truth. In all honesty i'd say its an easier car to work on than the E36 and that is already a well laid out and logical car to work on.
The next real issue once it's tuned and running is the transfer case and rear output shaft in the gearbox... Standard torque split is 50/50 and standard torque is around 310ish so in a crude way that means the TC and output shaft is normally used to 150ft/lbs. So i've doubled the torque on the TC and output, no biggy it's been done before so hopefully should be okay. Now throw into the mix the increase to 500ish ft/lbs i plan, The welded rear diff effectively doubling the grip at the rear and the sticky 255 track tyres and i have the perfect storm in terms of exploding the tranfer case :/
I plan to remedy this with a hardened output shaft and also welding up an outer cage for the TC to give it more resistance to forcing itself apart... The rear diff and subframe etc. should hopefully be okay, it's a seriously beefy setup back there as standard...
One day i hope to rotate the engine 90* and use a gearbox from a shogun or something but for now this has to do.
Jonni
Edited by jmflare on Wednesday 28th December 17:47
Edited by jmflare on Wednesday 28th December 18:05
I'm assuming the constant scrubbing would have an effect. I ran a welded differential on the E36 for a year driving it every day though and tyre wear wasn't too bad.
That being said i have decided i will actually be running cheaper NS2s 255/40 on the rear and the NS2Rs track tyres on the front in 235/45.
That being said i have decided i will actually be running cheaper NS2s 255/40 on the rear and the NS2Rs track tyres on the front in 235/45.
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