3,5l in e36?

[reyhan]

ok people, question goes: Which donor car is best to use for replaceing a 2,0l engine in e36 320i with 3,5l engine, is it 535i or 735i, which parts fits best, anyone done this before? Lot's of questions, plz help

[Torque]

I've always dreamed of it too, but honestly it's gonna be far too much work to be worth it. It's gonna require custom mounts, a transmission and everything else ... if you're gonna do that sort of work, you'd be better off swapping in a Chevy LS1 motor.

As for easy swaps: look into a m52 from a e36 328 or a s50/s52 from a m3 ... both will bolt right up to the transmission you have and as the chassis came with the engine, you wont have to fabricate custom mounts or anything.

[reyhan]

I was thinking of 2,8l too but 3,5l is something worth trying, plus 535i can easily be found for less than 1000-1500 eur

[Torque]

Originally Posted by reyhan

I was thinking of 2,8l too but 3,5l is something worth trying, plus 535i can easily be found for less than 1000-1500 eur

Very true, I'm just afraid how much money and work it's going to take to get the car back on the road...wheareas the 2.8 swap you can pretty much complete in a weekend.