N52B30 Engine rebuild and head porting

[WrathOTM]

Well I can speak on the 3SIM and you do feel the torque flatline for at 3k rpm until 3.3k or so as the manifold switches to short ram mode(I think). I plan on swiping an N54 mani from the junkyard in the near future and getting it set up with a tune in the more distant future.
All that said I do prefer the 3SIM manifold. However in any case you can upgrade to the 330i tune without the DISAs being installed. You get a code from it on a BMW specific reader but not a check engine light. This could benefit you without having to spend on an aftermarket tune.

[4JawChuck]

Codes are telling me it's lean all over the curve, excess airflow and lean banks 1+2.

I planned for this, you don't remove a 1/3 valve obstruction for the first 0.050" of lift on one valve and expect its going to be able to adapt.

Figure a complete dyno tune is the only way to go to get the best result, not a big fan of emailing tunes around and sitting in the car with a laptop hoping for the next best guess download to try out and be disappointed.

Problem is finding someone capable in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada...not holding my breath.

BTW does anyone know of a right angle O2 defouler that fits these BMW rear O2 sensors, the cheapo Dorman version are too short and only catch the first thread and any longer and it won't fit/impossible to install with the headers mounted.

Going to pull the secondary cats too, the new sound with the primary cats gone with header is perfect with the stock muffler/resonators and I want more.

Update: Found out after driving the first day most of my factory options don't work, backup sensors, bluetooth, tilt side mirror, stereo only plays through 2 speakers, can't connect to any phone etc. Looks like it lost the VO when someone opened the hood in the winter which triggered the alarm (latch mechanism was on the front clip in the basement. By the time I was ready to work on the chassis it was too late, dead as a door nail and a crawl through the back seat to pop the trunk. Battery was new so it charged up fine but now some modules must have lost their VO or some other computer BS.

Shops here are telling me only BMW can upload to certain modules to reset the VO and I don't have the time to learn german/insta or risk further bricking the machine so it's going back to the Borg Hive for reprogramming.

At this point I'm ready to throw on a series of Mikuni flatslides and a cable throttle and aftermarket self learning fuel injection system plus aftermarket stereo to offload the undesirable portion of the computer control system, anyone who has used one of those Holley Terminator systems etc. know it's mostly plug and play...DME can run the water pump and fans.

[Spence90]

You might be able to restore factory coding if you have the protool app I used it to restore factory code on a footwell module last week. Friends car had trouble after a loose connection on his battery so window wipers were opening oppposite sides and all sorts of weird stuff. But protool app fixed it within minutes

[4JawChuck]

Thanks for that advice, I'm going to give it a try!

[Spence90]

Originally Posted by 4JawChuck

Thanks for that advice, I'm going to give it a try!

It some how uses your VIN number and knows what coding your car left the factory with. Absolute wizardry to me that I don't understand but it's so easy to work the app

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by 4JawChuck

Not positive the area under the torque curve results from the 3 stage intake mod are worth the result, just my opinion from seeing dyno graphs.

Right now it’s missing pump shot at throttle tip in, the head porting significantly changed how it responds to valve opening during throttle changes.

Had some more time to drive it under pressure and I can say it may be more than 30hp gain especially above 5K. It loses traction at gear changes where it never used to before even with the tune lean on pump shot.

It's worth 10-20whp in some areas, it's really worth it unless you want maximum peak power, then it's the N54.

[4JawChuck]

Results till now, had an issue with the Bluetooth not connecting , passenger mirror not tilting down in reverse which after all the work... I was too tired to go down those rabbit holes of electronics so I took the car to BMW for them to take a look.

They found the Telematics (TCU) is faulty (not communicating) but the mirror was just a damaged reverse switch connector which they replaced for free!, had them recharge the AC at the same time and they replaced a damaged O-ring from one of the new hoses (which I obviously damaged on install) also for free! Blown away by how good the service was, even sent me videos of the components needing replacement with part numbers, very impressed with Birchwood BMW service department. Likely will send that module out for repair, every other option looks expensive.

Vehicle runs almost perfectly now after 10 days runtime, removal of the second O2 sensor defoulers and fixing a loose hose clamp on the mass air sensor connection (excess air code). Except for the low growl from the exhaust, quicker throttle response and impressive rush to 7000 rpm you would almost think it's stock the way it drives.

If I had to characterize how the porting/headers affected the engine I would say it hugely improved the tip in throttle response and low to mid range torque, where the engine before almost had a linear HP curve it now has more of a bell curve shape to 7200 rpm where before it ended at 6800 and felt flat revving it out.

Without tooting too many horns and without a proper tune I would estimate 20hp across the midrange increasing to maybe +40-50 up top, feels latemodel Mustang 5.0 quick up top now and much livelier to drive with blip downshifts feeling motorcycle like and quick to spin up. Hard to describe but let's just say the car breaking traction in second at 4500 rpm is something it never did before and wants to run away at the tire with wheelspin (without posi of course)...a ton more fun to drive and the single mass stock weight flywheel feels great combined with the stiffer shifter bushings fixed all the stock issues of flex and rubbery driveline feel.

Thinking I would like to try the 3sim and 330i tune with catless mid pipe and see how it likes those mods.

Pretty impressed with how normally it runs, mileage is better driving around the city (maybe +2mpgUS) but exactly the same on the highway which always was 27/28 us/mpg. Still no lights on the dash, engine did some weird run patterns as I drove the car for the first week, obviously self adjusting as it just kept getting better and better each time I drove it. In one instance the idle would go up 50 rpm and down 50 rpm at stop lights as the computer did some adjustment, watched it live on the scanner as I drove it...gotta love a self adjusting engine control.

Total rough cost (including shop times) was 6500$ cdn with at least 1500$ of that shipping costs.

[4JawChuck]

Couple of final pics.

[WrathOTM]

Very nice, good job! Again you can put that tune on it without the 3SIM, might be worth doing it first and then see how you feel about the mani too.

[4JawChuck]

Now that the primary issues with the car are resolved I will need to immerse myself in mastering the computer/electronics portion of this car and outfit myself with the proper programs and hardware to interface, seems to be necessary to be able to afford to keep the vehicle on the road inexpensively.

Once I get setup with the hardware to connect and laptop to dedicate I'll play around more. Are any of the purchased versions of INPA/ISTA etc. an all in one solution with English subtitles so I don't have to learn another language to use it? Having to figure out German while hoping you didn't misinterpret some translation is not my idea of a fun day in the garage.

I need to spend more time reading and looking to see if the hardware I have could be used, for example i have an old laptop running XP that was last used to program Megasquirt modules...pretty old.

Things I want to accomplish is eliminating the battery cable and wire harness crossover, all those plastic support pieces were broken in some way when I got the car and I moved the engine control harness to the fire wall with just a couple of zipties, with a proper aluminum bracket I could move all those cables there which cleans up the engine compartment and gets rid of cheap plastic...need to find a supplier for the waffle pattern aluminum sheet to fix/replace/create heat shields so it looks factory.

Mostly what I wanted to do was save this car, I had wrecked my Challenger RT when I found this car and really loved how it handled, this is a Quebec car and had some corrosion issues on the underside which turned off all the typical BMW buyers. Mostly it's cosmetic with some of the AL trays eaten through and every fastener that was simply zinc plated pretty rusty so it looks terrible on cursory inspection. I've tackled the major areas like the axle housing and suspension with rust converter to stop existing rust...looks great underneath all black from the conversion solution so I want to finish the job with new fasteners in SS if possible. The AL underbody "cakepans" are great sacrifical anodes and just need to be replaced, a couple of them are like Swiss cheese in areas.

For example I didn't take pictures but all those steel brackets that had the various harnesses are gone replaced with simple 3/4" X1/8" wide strip aluminum and a series of holes for a zip tie...some have tabs to index as well. So much easier to get your hands into areas now and even see down along the engine. The only one I kept was the secondary O2 sensor bracket under the trans because it fits well, is well designed and out of the way.

Next I want to find an S65 engine and rebuild it, seems to be a demand for these due to similar issues with bearings and bore refinishing. If you addressed the bearing failure issue early you could bulletproof all these engines, I think the key is addressing the tight mains bearings clearance from BMW with aftermarket silver/trimetal bearings and a crank polish to take off 0.0005". I did that to this engine and oil pressure did not change, I added 0.00075 additional clearance but I did switch to Moly 5w40 oil after.

[golfer23rm]

you can download the Standard Tools from bimmergeeks
bimmergeeks.net/downloads


once that is all installed, you need to change the port from usb to com 1 and latency to 1 - i think. check the guides to be sure.

if the cable doesn't pick up on inpa, i would suggest downloading the ftp drivers - CDM20824 and CDM21216. i did both, i don't know which one worked. they available from the ftp website.

i did the drivers and standard tools install and com settings on a windows 8 laptop before connecting to the car and all worked well.

the most recent DATEN V69 files from:
https://mega.nz/folder/p8ogBDbB#PxqHv9rSuQ7g7sCM7GwWtQ
mega only allows you to download 3gigs before a 5-6hr wait to complete the rest. so start in early and let the pc run the day, or if you can do it over the weekend or while you're working.

with CODING TOOL:
Follow this video
How To Update Datens And Import Them To Winkfp & NCS Expert !!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxVVkPL59As
Make sure you click: UPDATE SP-DATEN and then UPDATE WINKFP.

i'd suggest, if you can, look at one of the bimmergeeks cables - usually most up to date for the firmware.
if go for a cheaper cable, then see if it connects to the engine module, i used one and it worked to update the engine tune from 125i to 130i spec with bimmerlabs.

if you have an auto, then you cannot update the gearbox with the cheaper cables unless you update the cable, i locked the gearbox trying to load the 130i gearbox tune and managed to get it working after i updated the cable.
https://www.1addicts.com/forums/show....php?t=2037462

[4JawChuck]

Thank you so much for the detailed how to, much appreciated you saved me a lot of time searching.

It’s a six speed so no worries about trans programming issues.

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by 4JawChuck

Results till now, had an issue with the Bluetooth not connecting , passenger mirror not tilting down in reverse which after all the work... I was too tired to go down those rabbit holes of electronics so I took the car to BMW for them to take a look.

They found the Telematics (TCU) is faulty (not communicating) but the mirror was just a damaged reverse switch connector which they replaced for free!, had them recharge the AC at the same time and they replaced a damaged O-ring from one of the new hoses (which I obviously damaged on install) also for free! Blown away by how good the service was, even sent me videos of the components needing replacement with part numbers, very impressed with Birchwood BMW service department. Likely will send that module out for repair, every other option looks expensive.

Vehicle runs almost perfectly now after 10 days runtime, removal of the second O2 sensor defoulers and fixing a loose hose clamp on the mass air sensor connection (excess air code). Except for the low growl from the exhaust, quicker throttle response and impressive rush to 7000 rpm you would almost think it's stock the way it drives.

If I had to characterize how the porting/headers affected the engine I would say it hugely improved the tip in throttle response and low to mid range torque, where the engine before almost had a linear HP curve it now has more of a bell curve shape to 7200 rpm where before it ended at 6800 and felt flat revving it out.

Without tooting too many horns and without a proper tune I would estimate 20hp across the midrange increasing to maybe +40-50 up top, feels latemodel Mustang 5.0 quick up top now and much livelier to drive with blip downshifts feeling motorcycle like and quick to spin up. Hard to describe but let's just say the car breaking traction in second at 4500 rpm is something it never did before and wants to run away at the tire with wheelspin (without posi of course)...a ton more fun to drive and the single mass stock weight flywheel feels great combined with the stiffer shifter bushings fixed all the stock issues of flex and rubbery driveline feel.

Thinking I would like to try the 3sim and 330i tune with catless mid pipe and see how it likes those mods.

Pretty impressed with how normally it runs, mileage is better driving around the city (maybe +2mpgUS) but exactly the same on the highway which always was 27/28 us/mpg. Still no lights on the dash, engine did some weird run patterns as I drove the car for the first week, obviously self adjusting as it just kept getting better and better each time I drove it. In one instance the idle would go up 50 rpm and down 50 rpm at stop lights as the computer did some adjustment, watched it live on the scanner as I drove it...gotta love a self adjusting engine control.

Total rough cost (including shop times) was 6500$ cdn with at least 1500$ of that shipping costs.

You really should do a dyno on this thin - Dynojet preferred for ease of comparison to other cars. Then add MILVS and a proper tune. 250whp would be amazing in a 1er.

[4JawChuck]

I did some HP estimates using 0-60 times and 40-70mph times before and after and all show around 265 HP, about what it feels like from the drivers seat too.

I regret not going all in on the head porting though, the exhaust has a lot of potential same with the piston top especially since one of the available replacement pistons is a 12.5:1 euro spec piston from the 265 HP version available there.

Really what's needed is a slipper piston that uses the N54/55 rod and crank to build displacement and get the forged parts inside to use the airflow and turn some rpm.

For example the exhaust port could easily support a 1/8" bore cut and serious blend at the hump below the valve, I intentionally went easy on the porting because I wasn't sure the computer could adapt and/or the valvetronic would not work properly etc. Now I know that issue is unfounded and it's still just an engine.

The squish is all wrong which a custom piston could resolve, so much potential. Looking for another guinea pig low mileage example locally that I can do another rebuild now that I have the tools. Need to lockring the open deck to the head though which you might be able to do with the stock head gasket, you could do a step cut of 0.007" on the head and deck to interlock the two instead of a ring to fit within the stock engines deck cut limits.

I feel that with the porting, stroke increase from a N54/55 engine crank along with a custom forged slipper piston at 12.5:1 compression you could have a nice 7500 rpm engine putting out 350HP.

All just dreams at this point and with turbos and electrics these days seems quaint to think it would all be worth it.

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by 4JawChuck

I did some HP estimates using 0-60 times and 40-70mph times before and after and all show around 265 HP, about what it feels like from the drivers seat too.

I regret not going all in on the head porting though, the exhaust has a lot of potential same with the piston top especially since one of the available replacement pistons is a 12.5:1 euro spec piston from the 265 HP version available there.

Really what's needed is a slipper piston that uses the N54/55 rod and crank to build displacement and get the forged parts inside to use the airflow and turn some rpm.

For example the exhaust port could easily support a 1/8" bore cut and serious blend at the hump below the valve, I intentionally went easy on the porting because I wasn't sure the computer could adapt and/or the valvetronic would not work properly etc. Now I know that issue is unfounded and it's still just an engine.

The squish is all wrong which a custom piston could resolve, so much potential. Looking for another guinea pig low mileage example locally that I can do another rebuild now that I have the tools. Need to lockring the open deck to the head though which you might be able to do with the stock head gasket, you could do a step cut of 0.007" on the head and deck to interlock the two instead of a ring to fit within the stock engines deck cut limits.

I feel that with the porting, stroke increase from a N54/55 engine crank along with a custom forged slipper piston at 12.5:1 compression you could have a nice 7500 rpm engine putting out 350HP.

All just dreams at this point and with turbos and electrics these days seems quaint to think it would all be worth it.

You'll need a good intake manifold, maybe a cam to really support that extra flow. I'd love to see it

[MAMSport]

Just found this thread. Quite an amazing process with lots of detail. Did you paint the transmission housing to match the engine block? Any regrets for not installing a 3S IM before installing the engine? When I converted mine, it took about 4 hours (box-to-box) although I had to do it a second time as I realized I didn't tighten bolts for one of the sensors. I had intended to swap the sensors from my engine to the new intake, but I couldn't easily remove mine. I already untorqued the donor bolts. Oops.

Also looks like you added some red paint to the 'BMW' text on front of the block (or maybe it was the head)?

[4JawChuck]

I considered the 3 sim manifold upgrade as something I might do in the future…mainly wanted this rebuild to be successful before doing other mods.

However looking at dyno sheets of the 3 sim mod I’m not sure the area under the torque curve is higher except at high rpm so I’m not sure it’s worth it.

The head porting really woke up the engine especially after 5k, pulls to 7200 rpm hard now where it used to soften around 6200 or so…still not sure the manifold upgrade is worth the trouble.

The valve cover was painted red crinkle after painting with flat black plastic paint to prep the surface for it, stainless Allen head capscrews were the finishing touch.

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by 4JawChuck

I considered the 3 sim manifold upgrade as something I might do in the future…mainly wanted this rebuild to be successful before doing other mods.

However looking at dyno sheets of the 3 sim mod I’m not sure the area under the torque curve is higher except at high rpm so I’m not sure it’s worth it.

The head porting really woke up the engine especially after 5k, pulls to 7200 rpm hard now where it used to soften around 6200 or so…still not sure the manifold upgrade is worth the trouble.

The valve cover was painted red crinkle after painting with flat black plastic paint to prep the surface for it, stainless Allen head capscrews were the finishing touch.

It makes more power everywhere than the stock manifold - the gains at the low end are 10-20wtq - up top it's an additional 10-15whp.

[4JawChuck]

I’m probably there already for HP increase at the very least.

Without doing an area under the curve analysis I’m not positive the sags in the torque curve with the 3 sim manifold are worth it.

Besides it’s my work vehicle that I drive to work everyday, snow or shine.

What I would really like to do is get another head and really port the exhaust like I wanted too, at the time I wasn’t sure the ECU could handle more flow and not idle weird if I went further. I now know that worry was unwarranted and I could have gone for the gusto…lots more to get in the exhaust port that’s easy to remove.

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by 4JawChuck

I’m probably there already for HP increase at the very least.

Without doing an area under the curve analysis I’m not positive the sags in the torque curve with the 3 sim manifold are worth it.

Besides it’s my work vehicle that I drive to work everyday, snow or shine.

What I would really like to do is get another head and really port the exhaust like I wanted too, at the time I wasn’t sure the ECU could handle more flow and not idle weird if I went further. I now know that worry was unwarranted and I could have gone for the gusto…lots more to get in the exhaust port that’s easy to remove.

You don't feel any of that - I've done the tuned single manifold, and tuned on 3 stage and it's night and day in every way. See my old thread and dyno here:
https://www.e90post.com/forums/attac...1&d=1545507375

While the single manifold is very linear - the 3 stage does add more "meat" to the powerband and when tuned has peak power in the same range (6400-6700RPM)

Did I mention there is already an increase of torque as much as 25lb-ft. Seriously, there is no downside unless you want to supercharge (N54 manifold is better)

[4JawChuck]

Maybe one day when I retire and this becomes a hobby car.

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by 4JawChuck

Maybe one day when I retire and this becomes a hobby car.

I would tell you to consider it - it's a $200 manifold and 2-3hrs of work or less at your skill level. The OEM tune "255hp" tune is free from Bimmerlabs, though there is always more power with a real tune.

https://bimmerlabs.com/changelog