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-   -   M50 or M50TU for my 1995 318ti?????? (http://www.318ti.org/forum/showthread.php?t=29120)

individual 01-04-2010 01:00 AM

M50 or M50TU for my 1995 318ti??????
 
Hi,
i am farely new to this so bare with me, and pla correct me if im wrong at any point.

So i have a 1995 318ti Individual with the M40 engine in which has now been garaged ready for the swap, my problem is that i am not 100% which one i should put in,
now i believe the M50B25 (the 2.5L Version of the M50) was released is 1992 with a vanos upgrade in mid 93 (M50TU) only to be replaced in 1995 by the M52 in 1995

i am pretty convinced i want the M50 for the swap because of all this obd 1 to obd 1 and EWS business, but the question is do i get one with the Vanos or not, (from which i can tell only alters mid range slightly!) and if so what extra if anything will be needed, and weather the extra hassle is worth it

and also i am about to purchase a donor car, when i have found the answer to the above and other than the engine, gearbox and wiring was wondering what else is recommended to be changed?????

thnx

Xenocide 01-04-2010 01:46 AM

yes you want an m50, either will work, personally i like the non vanos.

Lots needs to be swapped, there is info all in the swap section.

cooljess76 01-04-2010 02:04 AM

VANOS is a good thing. It advances the timing at higher RPMs to squeeze out a little more power and lengthen the power band. While it's a little tricky to adjust and it's sometimes known to rattle when the parts get old and worn, a properly running VANOS engine will give you more bang for your buck. Non-VANOS engines are good for one reason, forced induction. If you plan on later installing a supercharger or turbo, you might look into getting a non-vanos motor. However, you should keep in mind that if you do decide to install a FI setup later down the road, you're likely going to want rebuild the engine and replace all of the worn internal parts anyway. I recommend looking for a VANOS equipped M50 simply because you're likely to find one in better condition with less mileage than a non-vanos one.

chrisbec 01-04-2010 03:22 AM

+1 for VANOS (M50tu). The VANOS engine produces torque sooner and for an overall longer duration. I think overall HP rating is about the same which makes things a little misleading. The VANOS is a good thing and BMW is still using it in their modern engines.
There are lots of claims out there that the M50 (non VANOS) is a stronger motor since it does have forged connecting rods and dual valve springs. People claim that the block casting is thicker too and can therefore be bored out to ~86mm (in case you wanted to make a 3.0L motor out of it with the addition of a S50 internals). The camshafts have a different grind than the M50tu.

Xenocide 01-04-2010 03:27 AM

keep in mind every vanos engine you will find has a useless vanos, you will have to buy a rebuild kit. I would reccomend besian systems

cooljess76 01-04-2010 05:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xenocide (Post 256454)
keep in mind every vanos engine you will find has a useless vanos...

Is that so? I wonder why all of the swapped Ti's here in SoCal haven't had any issues with VANOS. I know the rebuild is recommended, but that's usually when they start chattering after about 150k miles. I think the Dr. VANOS kit costs about $250-300 and then you're good for another 150k or more. I could be wrong here, if so this is all new news to me:cool:

I hear all this talk about OBDI and non-vanos being better, but personally I would rather have a newer designed, lower mileage engine.

I know the OP has a '95 and is OBDI, so an OBDI engine is his best option. However on a completely off topic note, most tuners will tell you that OBDII cars are much easier to tune and have more tuning options/capability than OBDI cars:wink: The only tuning benefit of OBDI cars is the ability for a DIYer to swap a pre-programed chip into the ECU. Personally, I'd rather have my car tuned on a dyno with software that was designed exclusively for my engine and it's current configuration instead of relying on a pre-programed generic chip.

Xenocide 01-04-2010 05:10 AM

No jess, they only start to rattle at 150k. The seals go at 30k. I PROMISE you.

I went and saw everything Raj does at beisan systems, how he came up with the fix and all the new stuff he is working on. His seal kit is only $30 and makes a world of difference, he also offer an anti rattle kit that is another $30. $60 for a rebuilt vanos unit is a damn good deal.

BMW_Hatchback 01-04-2010 05:46 AM

at our house we've found non vanos to be more raw, but you can't go wrong with either. I would go for a lower mileage one if I had the chance at a good deal.

cooljess76 01-04-2010 06:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xenocide (Post 256472)
No jess, they only start to rattle at 150k. The seals go at 30k. I PROMISE you.

I went and saw everything Raj does at beisan systems, how he came up with the fix and all the new stuff he is working on. His seal kit is only $30 and makes a world of difference, he also offer an anti rattle kit that is another $30. $60 for a rebuilt vanos unit is a damn good deal.

I'm pretty sure I met Raj at Bimmerfest last year. If it's the same guy, he had a booth set up and was showing me the seal kit and anti rattle bushings that he designed. However, the VANOS rebuild as he demonstrated was really easy and takes less than half an hour aside from the actual time it takes to remove/reinstall the VANOS and set the timing. Besides the timing tools, the only thing necessary was some nylon covers to place over the ends of your vise to prevent marring the aluminum Vanos housing. What I was getting at was that bad(flat/hardened) seals don't necessarly render the VANOS useless. BMW engineered it for a reason and they continue to use it because it works well.

BMW_Hatchback 01-04-2010 07:54 AM

we should start a vanos vs non vanos thread.

:popcorn

individual 01-04-2010 11:11 AM

Thnx for the reply's think im gonna settle on the M50TU lump with a few extra installs when it is in, i was wondering weather anyone could tell me what i actually need to swap on the conversion and what modifications need to made if any, would be good if someone has got pics and info of their previous attempts at this thnx

tiFreak 01-05-2010 02:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BMW_Hatchback (Post 256508)
we should start a vanos vs non vanos thread.

:popcorn

we don't have the popcorn smiley :icon_poke

chrisbec 01-05-2010 03:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by individual (Post 256519)
Thnx for the reply's think im gonna settle on the M50TU lump with a few extra installs when it is in, i was wondering weather anyone could tell me what i actually need to swap on the conversion and what modifications need to made if any, would be good if someone has got pics and info of their previous attempts at this thnx

Get J!M's swap manual, it is good and it contains all of the information that you are looking for. This will be the most convenient way for you to get all of the information that you need to do the swap. If you don't want to do that just become very familiar with this forum because all of the information that you need is in here somewhere, but you will need to do a lot of searching to piece all together.

I just finished swapping the M42 in my 95ti for an M50tu and I would suggest buying a 93-95 325i/is or M3 to get all of the parts that you need to do the engine swap. It will be cheaper (trust me, I didn't buy a donor car but now that I'm done I wish that I did). The 95 OBD 1 cars are the easiest cars to do an engine swap on since they are literally plug and play.

BMW_Hatchback 01-05-2010 05:57 AM

1+ get a donor


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