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S54 Swap

25K views 188 replies 23 participants last post by  JayMac 
#1 ·
I am planning on swapping in an S54 and moving towards total track set up for my son and I . Over the weekend I located the engine, harness and ecu so we are on our way to getting this done. We are also going to put in a 3.91 in the ass so this thing should be lightning quick. I did stumble across another s54 that the owner said he would sell for $3000. Don't have any details but if you are interested you can contact me and i can give you his contact info. Hope to have all the parts in about a month and then go from there. Should be a fun project.
 
#60 ·
+1 to Horn on the oil.

I think the reason the went to 10w 60 is simply warranty work eats into the profits. Do research on oil shear and your head starts to spin. I run the Amsoil simply because it is good and the east coast distribution center is located in Richmond, Va so I can pick up what I need. I like Red Line also but it is hard to find. Advance Auto actually carried it for about 2 months but got rid of it. Hard for anyone to buy it when Mobil One was sitting next to it at half the price. Bimmerworld said they run 15/50 in there cars. Most of the zinc and phosphorus was pulled out of the modern oils because it supposedly wreck havoc on the cats. I read somewhere that the cats had to last for a certain amount of miles but can't recall where As for the black oil goo residue, there were actually some small chunks on the strainer. I will see if I can get you a shot. I am going to play around with some WD40 on one side and some SeaFoam on the other to see what eats through the crud. Was also toying with some good old fashioned Coca Cola. Old school.
The engine was out of a 2001 will 114,000 miles. That is the info but I can't verify. I am going to have the reflash done at Bimmerworld.

I want to order the Rogue cover for the dif and will probably do that Tuesday so i can get it here for the weekend. I snoozed on one on ebay and could have picked it up for $400. Oh well, it will make a swell Christmas present for my wife.
 
#75 ·
I read somewhere that the cats had to last for a certain amount of miles but can't recall where
Fed statute requires 7 year or 70K mile warranty on the CAT(s) and the emission control computer if the car has a dedicated computer. The rest of the emissions system is only covered for the duration of the basic warranty.
 
#71 ·
This is a modified version of my own mantra: "It's only illegal if you get caught"

My vote is straight pipes. I don't think you need post cat O2 for the engine to run properly. And it will sound great.

Which part of VA are you located? I lived in Lynchburg (ugh) for two years after my college days in Blacksburg (Go Hokies!).

My folks still run their winery on the Northern Neck.
 
#76 ·
I knew it was something like that.
I live in West Point. My son is out at Tech majoring in beer and minoring in procrastination!

Car is not going to be street legal but the noise for the track is a concern, We went down to the new track in the ATL and they damn near stuck a probe up your arse as well to make sure it wasn't too loud. I HATE FUN POLICE!

Picked up the Rogue cover but coming from the other side of the states so it won't be here 'til next weekend. Strangely enough the Euros are coming from.....Europe:beerchug:
 
#80 ·
I used to live about an hour north of West Point. How do you deal with the paper smell? Everytime I went through there it made my nose bleed. I guess you get used to it...

VT, located in Blacksburg, VA, is a Drinking College with a Football Problem! Go Hokies! Class of 2008 here. Drinking coffee out of my VT mug, too. Miss that school. Keep up the good work! Maybe next summer I'll come visit the area.
 
#77 ·
Well a little bump in the road. I found and paid for a Rogue diff cover only to be informed last night that it has long since been sold. So cash back but no cover. The good news is that it pissed me off enough to see about doing this myself. Math check, diff cover and shipping $500 plus. That's if you get a good deal.
And you have no idea how well it really works regardless of what they claim.
So electric gear pump $160, small cooler $50 (ebay) Hoses and fittings less than $150. Over all savings @$200. Plus more parts laying around the house driving the wife nuts. Hell you have the cover tapped already.


Answers sitting right in front of me. No wonder I did not see it. DUH!
 
#79 · (Edited)
So electric gear pump $160, small cooler $50 (ebay) Hoses and fittings less than $150. Over all savings @$200. Plus more parts laying around the house driving the wife nuts. Hell you have the cover tapped already. Answers sitting right in front of me. No wonder I did not see it. DUH!
Yeah, I was going to suggest that you just make your own diff cooler. Sorry about the Rogue seller flaking out, though. Don't really know why people do that... In any regard, they probably do work fairly well, since BMW essentially used the same design on all ///M cars beginning with the E46 onward. I doubt they would've gone through the trouble of making that part if their engineers didn't see a significant drop in temp. Your home-brewed setup should be even better.
 
#84 ·
Okay slow weekend 'cause my wife is home and I have adult supervision. Waiting on the headers and going to attack to oil temp gauge issue. Since the car will only be on the track from here on oil real gauges would be nice. I looked at different methods of getting a mechanical gauge hookup up and liked the Truner set up that goes in the pan. Part of the fun of any project is seeing what you can come up with yourself. Had the gauge for @$40. Picked up the block off plate from the dealer for $15.


Here is the issue. You need to get this probe to the oil so we are drilling through the cover. I thought tapping it but you have no way to secure the probe. Normally it would be in some sort of block and the flare seals like a AN fitting.


So digging through my pile of stare crap I found an adapter that allows you to use the probe on a larger threaded opening. This is what I need.


So drill the cover just large enough to allow the threads on the blue piece to fit through the hole. Secure it from the back with the adapter using it like a lock nut and you get this.




One issue left. The thickness of the cover is slightly large enough to prevent you from getting a full seal on the sensor. Very close but off by just a touch. So you have to bring the bottom of the adapter(red) to the threads(blue). You sand down the back side of the cover or the top side of the adapter and you get a tight seal. When finally installed you use a little rtv on the flanges and good to go. Turner piece is $80 plus shipping. Save about $60 and have the satisfaction of doing something myself......and probably displaces less oil the the original sensor. Testing the gauge prior to installation will give you an idea of how accurate your gauge is. You know what temp water boils at so have at it. Gauge checked out fine.


As for the diff, no issues on the cover, one guy did not know it had been gone. So I saw a kit on ebay and then thought why can't I do this. The threads on your diff cover are M22X1.5. I thought where am I going to find that crap? No worries, it is the exact same pitch as most oil coolers so you have tones of choices for what to run for lines. I will run 6 or 8 an.


Now that that issue is settled I will try to swap the dif next weekend. I can always cap the fittings if I don't have the rest of the plumbing. It should be fun to see what the dif feels like with the current engine. Scheduling the bearings for three weeks from today. S54 power for Christmas!:thumbup:
 
#86 ·
Are you asking if I know? No I do not. But if we do a search of those that have done the swap we should find some info. I know that Bimmerworld sells a pipe that ties the two exhausts together so I am going to assume that they will fit. You have both exhausts there in front of you. If you have a square you can take some measurements and check. I have to believe it fits. What do you plan if it won't?
 
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