friend of mine is buying a 93 325is

[rxfx101]

already has the m3 styling and he is gonna have like 4k left over after he buys the car so we want the m3 engine. either that or i am gonna chip it and maybe an exhaust.. for the exhaust what do you suggest? also some p&p work will be done to IM and head and hoping to find bored out TB and MAF possibly a silicone intake hose (preff 3" diam) anything to squeeze more horses outta this thing. i have worked on tuning e34's before and e30's and i can tell ya it is pretty difficult to get more than 250hp outta the e34 w/o diggin deep into the engine. what would it take to convert it to m3 spec? can i use the m3 rear diff? would the m3 tranny bolt right in place of the existing (i am guessin its a 6-speed..so that means more fun!!). any BTDT?? TIA

[bitcore]

If you can get the M engine swap, Do it.
There's a lot of parts on the M that arn't on the regular E36's... bushings, drivelines, engine components, interior components, exterior body styling, etc etc etc. I'm not sure what you mean by M spec...
Yes, I think you can use the M LSD diff's in a regular ol E36 without any major drivetrain components. (like a new driveshaft) (I THINK... Not entirely positive) Make sure to get a good ratio or your shifting might be all weird + other complications. (EX: city traffic)

Transmission mounts are all kinda different, so I've heard... shouldn't be too big of a job since it's been done a lot before. (you may need to upgrade engine\transmission mounts anways to handle the extra power)

I hear lots of talk about remus exhausts for E36's on this board, lots of people like the noise it makes, others don't. There are some more good brands that I forget and I'm sure other people will mention.

It's pritty difficult to get much more power out of almost any recent BMW engine without really digging deep into it, BMW's come fairly well tuned already as I'm sure you know. Kinda good, and kinda sucky if you know what I mean