So heres my parts list.
Rear crank seal
Pilot bearing
540i/6 crossmember
Throw out bearing
Master cylinder resivoir
Input shaft seal
Clutch tool
Slave cylinder
Pedals from donor car along with master cylinder
New front-rear shocks
Drilled-Slotted brake rotors with ceramic pads
Water pump
Valve cover gaskets
Driveshaft lengthened 152mm
E39 Flywheel and clutch
Center shift cover panel
Shift knob
Tool for E39 manual flywheel bolts
E39 shift linkage
Elbow grease
Muffler bearings
Halogen fluid for headlights (Xenon fluid is too exspensive)
And random nuts and bolts

You can see the E39 crossmember is very similar too the E34 manual crossmember. It could work with some slight modifications but I much more prefer the original crossmember and no you cant use your old auto crossmember, as the picture shows its much too short.

The E39 shift arm is almost the same as a E34 525 shift arm as you can see in the picture.
The E39 540i/6 and E34 525i shift arm can work on the E34 540i but is 2 1/2 inches longer so youd have to shorten it for it to work as I did. (picture of fancy shortening work later)

The selector rod from the E39 will also work on the e34 but like the shift arm it too needs to be shortened if you cant bear the thought of just buying a new one like me.

 

Now is the funpart.

 

Me and Mr.Porsche Man with a 944 on right working on getting the useless parts off the car.

 

Off it comes. If anyone wants some good used auto tranny parts lemme know.

 

Now if your gonna use a used low miles E39 self adjusting clutch like I did, be prepared!!!!
These clutches from the factory are adjusted all the way back and it releases the first time its engaged. So if you take it off after its been installed on the flywheel it will adjust all the way forward meaning you'll need either a special $1200 tool to or some serious Hungarian engineering and 3 guys to reset it. It took us about a good half hour to reset it.
Also if you use the E39 flywheel your gonna also need the special $75 dollar tool (shown in picture) to work with the flywheel bolts.

 

So once the flywheel is off theres a couple things you'll have too take care of. Like the always hard at work morale support:rofl:
Changing the rear crank seal is an absolute must!!!!
Also the coolant outlets from the old intercooler (shown in picture) will need to be plugged or just take a longer piece of hose and connect the 2.

 

So now your ready to put up the flywheel and clutch. Also before you try putting on the tranny you'll have to take out the old E39 crank sensor (shown in picture) as it will catch on the flywheel.

 

There she is in her rightful place.:thumbup:

 

So more coming soon on the electrical part and pedals.

 

Awesome project. The color is just fantastic. Looks like you really prepared ahead time for the swap. Btw how many mile does the motor have on it, now that the transmission is out of the way?

 

Yah Ive been planning this one for a while. The engine has 160k on it right now. Its a Nikasil engine and it had me worried, but I checked the compression and its 125psi on all cylinders so its a winner!! Also yah, I love that Alpine White!!!

 

yeah buddy, that's the ticket. Any other upgrades you planning on doing or just the tranny swap. Some M-pars wouldn't hurt. It would offset the alpine white just right. Unfortunately I have the worst color in the world. It really doesn't matter, what wheels I put on it. lol
Anywayz good luck

 

As far as the exterior goes I think Im just gonna clean it up really good and repaint the hood and fix the front bumper. I really like Grandpa look, very deceiving to the unsuspecting Ricer. But I do have a E60 short shifter. Maybe when I get real rich I M-tech it out.

 

So the pedals were an absolute pain the butt!! Taking the dash apart is real easy but you hit a snag really quick. To remove the pedal assembly you have to remove the steering column. Now doing that wouldnt be so bad but some wingnut at BMW thought itd be a great idea to put a bolt with no head so you cant take out the steering unless you buy the special socket! So! About an hour later and with the help of an air grinder, I cut a slot into the bolt and just backed it out with a flat screwdriver. Once thats done putting in the other pedals is quite simple. A quick word of wisdom. Hooking up the lines to the master cylinder first before shoving it through the floor is a really good idea!! Otherwise youll spend the next 3 hours trying to do something really painful aggravating, like trying to develop a second joint in your wrist.

 

There is a very good reason that bolt on the column doesn't have a head. The head breaks off at a very exact sheering force which coincides with a specific torque value. This is done so there is absolutely no way to under or over tighten it. The column is supposed to collapse out of the way in a collision. If you tighten the bolt to much it will not do so, if you tighten it too little, it may do so without the collision

Onto the wiring!!! This is pretty simple. You'll want to pull the #6 pin brown wire from the blue 6pin plug and put it in the place of the #10 pin silver wire from the black 12 pin plug. If Im right this shuts off the trans failure code. Next up is the 8 pin plug. From here you take the GREEN/RED wire and splice it together with the BROWN/BLACK wire and you can now start your car as the computer thinks the car is in park. Now for the reverse lights. From the same 8 pin plug your going to splice together the wires from your reverse switch on the tranny to the GREEN/BLACK wire and the BLUE/YELLOW wire and you now have reverse lights and the passenger mirror should also tilt. I have not had time to mess with the cruise control yet but as of now the car is done. Im just trying to find the time to upload everything that Ive done to the car, I did most of the swap this last saturday and spent another 15 hours on the car yesterday. So coming up next is the clutch lines and random repairs on the car.:thumbup:

In regards to the cruise control. I don't think there is an easy way to make this work, the cluster is telling the cc module the car is in park, and the module says ok, well it doesn't make sense to use me in park. Last time I looked at the wiring, I didn't think it was a simple power or ground wire telling the cruise this, but its been a long time so I may be wrong.

I didn't notice, were you able to source the DME from a manual car?

 

Onto the wiring!!! This is pretty simple. You'll want to pull the #6 pin brown wire from the blue 6pin plug and put it in the place of the #10 pin silver wire from the black 12 pin plug. If Im right this shuts off the trans failure code. Next up is the 8 pin plug. From here you take the GREEN/RED wire and splice it together with the BROWN/BLACK wire and you can now start your car as the computer thinks the car is in park. Now for the reverse lights. From the same 8 pin plug your going to splice together the wires from your reverse switch on the tranny to the GREEN/BLACK wire and the BLUE/YELLOW wire and you now have reverse lights and the passenger mirror should also tilt. I have not had time to mess with the cruise control yet but as of now the car is done. Im just trying to find the time to upload everything that Ive done to the car, I did most of the swap this last saturday and spent another 15 hours on the car yesterday. So coming up next is the clutch lines and random repairs on the car.:thumbup:

 

I almost forgot my Dads fancy shortening job on the shift arm!!! Works like a charm and is super solid!

 

As far as cruise control, did you get the switch for the pedal? I know on some cars, including mine, the plug for it is above the pedals now, waiting to be plugged in. I read somewhere that is what is needed for the cruise to work, and the car to think it is in Neutral not park.

 

No I didnt bother looking for a manual DME as its not needed cause my car is obdI and if it was obdII my brother could reprogram all 7 modules in the car as he did on his car. Also I just drove the car and it runs FANTASTIC!!! Not as torquey as my brothers E39 540i wagon also converted to 6 speed but still its pretty quick. As for the cruise control. Yah I got the clutch switch but I couldnt find a loose cable anywhere. Its prolly just hiding somewhere. I saw a guy that converted a 740il said you just needed the clutch switch to shutoff the cruise control when you pushed clutch in so the revs wouldnt start racing.:dunno: I need to try it and see if it even works. If not I can get the whole wiring diagram from my friend in Sacramento that runs a very high-end BMW shop and just track down what needs splicing where.

 

No I didnt bother looking for a manual DME as its not needed cause my car is obdI and if it was obdII my brother could reprogram all 7 modules in the car as he did on his car. Also I just drove the car and it runs FANTASTIC!!! Not as torquey as my brothers E39 540i wagon also converted to 6 speed but still its pretty quick. As for the cruise control. Yah I got the clutch switch but I couldnt find a loose cable anywhere. Its prolly just hiding somewhere. I saw a guy that converted a 740il said you just needed the clutch switch to shutoff the cruise control when you pushed clutch in so the revs wouldnt start racing.:dunno: I need to try it and see if it even works. If not I can get the whole wiring diagram from my friend in Sacramento that runs a very high-end BMW shop and just track down what needs splicing where.

This is what the clutch switch is for, and the wiring IS already there. The cruise won't even activate if it thinks the car is in Park though. It MIGHT work if you hack it to think the car is in neutral, but then I think something else like traction control or something breaks. I don't remember all the details.

 

Mine is tied up in tape on the ire wall next to the steering column, it was covered in tape and i could not see it at first.

 

RESPECT.



Comments.

1)I've ran both an auto and a MT tune on my 6 speed. The auto tune is fine but the MT tune actually is better.
They hold back some timing for the automatics to hold the torque curve back a little to protect the weaker auto trans.
Also when you shift or let off it allows the revs to hang a little ive noticed.. Has other Weird little characteristics.

2) i also swapped my column when mine stripped.. When MT to auto column.. Ya screw that one stupid bolt! I cut it with a sawsall replaced it with an extra normal bolt as i had a donor car. (2 of anything) now all bolts are the same.

3) great work, carry on sir.

 

RESPECT.

Comments.

1)I've ran both an auto and a MT tune on my 6 speed. The auto tune is fine but the MT tune actually is better.
They hold back some timing for the automatics to hold the torque curve back a little to protect the weaker auto trans.
Also when you shift or let off it allows the revs to hang a little ive noticed.. Has other Weird little characteristics.

Dead on correct, as stated previously in another thread. It actually gets pretty annoying pretty fast if you ask me. A manual tune with a bit of a timing bump is worlds better drivability wise.

 

The clutch wire won't make your cruise control work if its not working now. The only thing that wire does is send a "shut off" signal when the clutch is pressed, just like what happens when the brake is pressed. The reason the cruise doesn't work is because you have made the car think it is in park (so it will start). Cruise just wont work when the car is in park.

As far as the chip any tune should be fine, but you will need a manual chip. The differences are more than what a tune provides. I have binary dumps of both chips, and there are quite a few differences outside the "tuning bit". The tuners only mess with the timing map, and sometimes the fuel map. These things have nothing to do with the functions that are in place on an automatic car which are making things strange. There is a guy on Bimmerforums DUDMD who burns chips for m60b40s who can give you a manual chip with a tune on it that I hear is pretty good. If your car has EWS2 and hence a 484 DME you will need to re-align the EWS if a new chip is installed. Your other option is to get a 404 DME and cut wire 66 (I think it is 66) which will disable the EWS. Of course the chip you install will depend on which DME you are running. I just bought the whole DME from a manual car for like $75, and it happened to come with a tune on it. If you go that route you will still need to know which DME you have.

 

Ok. So Ill see if I can find the wiring for the neutral position. Ive heard alot of people say good stuff about the EAT chip but I was also wondering whats the best dependable chip thats only $200 or less. My brother says Ive got the 404 DME.

 

So I havnt got to check it out on my car yet, but! There is supposed to be a relay behind the kickpanel that I would just need to bridge and my cruise control should work. Ill let you guys know how it goes. Oh and Im looking to buy a cheap shift boot with the plastic ring if anybody has one. The boot dosnt need to be in good shape I mainly just need the plastic. Ive also got parts for sale right now leftover from the swap. Ive got used front pads and rotors that are pretty much brandnew. The rotors are just lightly rusted from sitting on the car for 2 months. I wont be needing them as Ive upgraded to drilled and slotted rotors on front and rear. These new rotors with ceramic pads stops the car like nothing! Also Im still planning on posting the rest of the swap pictures, just hang tight Im trying to find some spare time to mess with all my pictures.

 

So, update on the cruise control!! I found the blasted starter immobilizer relay up inside the chassis behind the kickpanel, bridged terminals 2 with 6 and cut the the Green/Red wire that I previously spliced together under the shift console and VOILA!!!!! I now have cruise control. Also I found the clutch switch cable. It wasnt hanging like everyone thought it might, it was actually plugged into a socket which Im guessing bridged the circuit so the cruise control would work without the clutch pedal. Sorry but I didnt get any pictures of the relay or the clutch wire. I said it before but Im still going to put up the rest of the pictures. The car is running fantastic and has already been Sleepering many unsuspecting ricers and mustangs. :supdude:

 

O yeah, 540i/6 is far beyond what most expect.
It will hurt the feeling of most who underestimate it.

I knew id be quick but i never really thought in real world conditions it would actually be this fast!.. My first real victim was kind of a bluff..
He let me drive his s/c svt cobra vert.. (In the pic)
I used it to go get a BMW part, guy at the store who has an e34 540/6 M sport says it is about as fast as our cars.. I did not really believe it. But i told the owner of the cobra to prove it..

Believe it or not, 0-100mph on street tires is about equal. After 100mph right after hitting 4th gear he will walk.
Just luanch on him youve won... Thats when i went.. WOA, and realized what this car can do.
Been going Mod Crazy since! I wanna see it reach full potential!

 

So I drained the Non-Lifetime fluid out of the tranny and filled it with the proper lubricant along with about 8ounces of super awesome slicky stuff.:thumbup:

 

Here is possibly the hardest part of the whole swap. I cant really give much advice on whats the easiest way to put the pipes in but hopefully the pictures will be of use to whoever does this next. I wasnt able to find the clutch lines anywhere so I just used normal brake lines put on clutch pipe adapter thingies that I found at the local parts store and also had them make me a rubber line. Now to get the pipe on the master cylinder to clear the wheel housing you'll need to take a crowbar and a good hammer and pound the metal in front of the cylinder. I doubt you can see it the bigfoot quailty picture but the metal is now dented in about 2inches total in front of the cylinder.

 

So now that the swap is done you can move on to other things like the waterpump, crankshaft seal and valve cover gaskets. While everything is apart its a really smart idea to go ahead and scrub the whole front of the engine off. You can see I had oil leaking everywhere. The oil filter housing was also leaking like crazy. The sealer I used on the waterpump is a non-silicone sealer that turns into a hard rubber, you wont find any silicone sealer anywhere that works near as good as this stuff. Now is also a good time to change your belts as everything is real easy to reach. Valvecover gaskets were a pain to change but a little Right-Stuff holds them onto the covers real well so you dont have to worry about them slipping off and getting pinched.

 

Now that my Baby is all done Im trying to make it look as Grandpa-ish as I can. Ive got a cane in the rear window to complete the sleeper look and Im half tempted to get a sticker that says :my grandkids are cuter than yours!: Says the 22yearold single guy. :rofl: Seriously not even the cops will look at me. The only guy thats looked at my car was also driving a e34 from the opposite direction, when we passes eachother we both went, Whoa! Its so freakin hilarious how nobody takes my car seriously until I blow past em. Im absolutely hooked on my my e34 that Ive wanted for about 6years now.