Hey,
I recently purchased an '88 BMW 535i for $400 dollars. The previous owner told me that the Auto Tranny is blown. It will go into reverse and neutral, obviously, however when I try to put in drive, it fails to move. So I'm assuming he wasn't shooting me a line of BS...Anyway, I'm assuming the top end will need to be rebuilt eventually as well. (The car has 180k miles.) I recently saw in the local ads that someone was selling an M62 4.4L V8 engine w/ a Getrag 420G 6 Speed Manual tranny w/ approx 85k miles. I was wondering if it would be possible to swap the engine, and what all fabrications would have to be made in order for it to be to adaptable?
Thanks for the information!
535i to M62 & Getrag 420G
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PDX_EUG_503
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- Joined: Sep 16, 2009
Re: 535i to M62 & Getrag 420G
As Well as the Manual Transmission! (Will the I have to have a custom driveshaft built for the 420G tranny to adapt to the E28?) Sorry, I'm still pretty green when it comes to BMW's.PDX_EUG_503 wrote:Hey,
I recently purchased an '88 BMW 535i for $400 dollars. The previous owner told me that the Auto Tranny is blown. It will go into reverse and neutral, obviously, however when I try to put in drive, it fails to move. So I'm assuming he wasn't shooting me a line of BS...anyway, I'm assuming the top end will need to be rebuilt eventually as well. (The car has 180k miles.) I recently saw in the local ads that someone was selling an M62 4.4L V8 engine w/ a Getrag 420G 6 Speed Manual tranny w/ approx 85k miles. I was wondering if it would be possible to swap the engine, and what all fabrications would have to be made in order for it to be to adaptable?
Thanks for the information!
Cheers!
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mooseheadm5
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- Location: Charlottesville, VA
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Re: 535i to M62 & Getrag 420G
If the motor was reasonably taken care of, it should last 350k without major incident. The 1st gear clutches are gone - cost me $1675 to have mine rebuilt by a ZF shop. Runs perfectly now, 30k and 2 years later. That may be the most cost-effective solution considering what you have ($$$) in the car versus the time and effort in what you're considering doing with the M62/420G, unless you want to convert it over to 5sp. There are plenty of 260/5's floating around to do that with for under $400 plus pedals.PDX_EUG_503 wrote:Hey,
It will go into reverse and neutral, obviously, however when I try to put in drive, it fails to move. So I'm assuming he wasn't shooting me a line of BS...anyway, I'm assuming the top end will need to be rebuilt eventually as well. (The car has 180k miles.)
Thanks for the information!
As mentioned, it is a bad A-clutch that is preventing your car from having functioning forward gears. I just went through the trans in my e24 to rebuild the A-clutch and it's working great for less than $300. I realize that you probably don't want the car to be automatic, but that's probably the easiest solution. If you can't rebuild the A-clutch, you probably can't swap in a v8. The next route would be to swap in a 5spd, which has been well documented. As for the V8 swap, it's been done by those with an high level of fab ability and understanding of automotive electronics. It's not for the faint of heart and is by no means the best swap to cut your teeth on when it comes to custom installs. It's one of those situations where "if you have to ask..."
Very true. Rebuilding an A clutch pack is probably easier than doing a clutch job, just more intimidating. And a lot less than $300 if that's all you do.Big Bronze Rim wrote:As mentioned, it is a bad A-clutch that is preventing your car from having functioning forward gears. I just went through the trans in my e24 to rebuild the A-clutch and it's working great for less than $300. I realize that you probably don't want the car to be automatic, but that's probably the easiest solution. If you can't rebuild the A-clutch, you probably can't swap in a v8.
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PDX_EUG_503
- Posts: 15
- Joined: Sep 16, 2009
Hey guys,
Thanks for all the info. Your definitely right, I'm really not embarrassed to say that swapping the engine to an M62 is out of my capabilities at the time. I cant fabricate at all, and I'm currently a broke college student haha. My next question is...would you guys suggest rebuilding the top end. I am planning to swap the transmission for a Getrag 265. Like I said it has a 180k miles on it, and it seems like one of the cylinders isn't firing when its idling. Last year, I had a range rover classic, and that was nothing but a headache. By the time all was said and done, it would have been far more cost effective to just have rebuilt the top end. I'm hoping to keep my E28 as a daily driver for (hopefully) about 10 years...I know the bottom ends are bulletproof on the M30 engines. I spoke to a mechanic and he said that rebuilding the top ends is sometimes a little drastic of a move. However, I would like to eventually put a supercharger on the car...so I don't wanna start modifying the engine, if 3 of the cylinders have 110psi lol...any suggestions? Sorry for how long this is. Thanks for your information; this is a great forum. I'm stoked to be here haha.
Thanks for all the info. Your definitely right, I'm really not embarrassed to say that swapping the engine to an M62 is out of my capabilities at the time. I cant fabricate at all, and I'm currently a broke college student haha. My next question is...would you guys suggest rebuilding the top end. I am planning to swap the transmission for a Getrag 265. Like I said it has a 180k miles on it, and it seems like one of the cylinders isn't firing when its idling. Last year, I had a range rover classic, and that was nothing but a headache. By the time all was said and done, it would have been far more cost effective to just have rebuilt the top end. I'm hoping to keep my E28 as a daily driver for (hopefully) about 10 years...I know the bottom ends are bulletproof on the M30 engines. I spoke to a mechanic and he said that rebuilding the top ends is sometimes a little drastic of a move. However, I would like to eventually put a supercharger on the car...so I don't wanna start modifying the engine, if 3 of the cylinders have 110psi lol...any suggestions? Sorry for how long this is. Thanks for your information; this is a great forum. I'm stoked to be here haha.
You'll go broke if you attack every niggling issue on an E28 like every niggling issue on a Range Rover. At that mileage, a rebuild should not be in order.
You can have a shop run a compression/leakdown test if you're really concerned about the motor. It will probably cost you an hour of their labor. It wouldn't hurt to put new plugs (non platinum) in at the same time since they have to pull them anyway. Also, a new cap and rotor.
You can have a shop run a compression/leakdown test if you're really concerned about the motor. It will probably cost you an hour of their labor. It wouldn't hurt to put new plugs (non platinum) in at the same time since they have to pull them anyway. Also, a new cap and rotor.
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PDX_EUG_503
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- Joined: Sep 16, 2009
Yeah, that is definitely where I plan to start...thanks for all the info!wkohler wrote:You'll go broke if you attack every niggling issue on an E28 like every niggling issue on a Range Rover. At that mileage, a rebuild should not be in order.
You can have a shop run a compression/leakdown test if you're really concerned about the motor. It will probably cost you an hour of their labor. It wouldn't hurt to put new plugs (non platinum) in at the same time since they have to pull them anyway. Also, a new cap and rotor.