MyE28.com

Most of you know I picked up an E34 ///M5 back in November.

Here's the deal;
It has a few warts cosmetically;
the worst being serious rust on the bottom of all four doors,
as well as a few mechanical warts, the two majors being;
3rd gear synchros are out, and the SLS and power steering hoses up front
leak a quart of $18.00 Pentosin CHF 7.1 about every 4 days of DD.
I have to admit he car runs like and makes me often.

I daily drove the car from the beginning and parked the 86 535i 5 speed that had been faithful up to this purchase.
After a month of DD'ing it, I've decided that the extra expenses related to purchasing 93 octane fuel vs. 87 octane
and the reduced MPG, from 22 + to 14 +/-, isn't something I want to endure on a regular basis.
The go pedal is fantastic, but the mileage I drive every day adds up pretty quickly and the anticipated maintenance expenses
related specifically to the S38 powerplant are also something I don't want to have to encounter very often.
I find the E34 to be a great car, my wife daily drives an E34 Touring,
but it's just not interesting enough to set aside for occasional recreational usage.

Those things combined with the fact that I love our E12,
and it is relegated along with our E28 ///M5 to the occasional recreational jaunt,
I thought it'd be nice to get a bit more oomph out of its go pedal when it does hit the road.
I've been communicating with Eddie in TO about his swap
and have gotten some very good information about what I can expect to encounter.

Another choice would be to sell the car outright,
but I got it at a price that is about what the motor alone would cost if bought separately.
So I'm thinking, "don't shoot the gift horse in the head". (I know... )


Thanks in advance for any and all comments.

Oh yeah, "Don't forget to Vote".

. For advice to put the engine in the E 12, you cant get a better mentor than Eddie Ribiero . So is that "swap it"?

I love the idea of a 3.5 liter twin-cam motor in an E12.













I also know how much work it would be to meet my standards; I believe your are just as high.
I'll be following this one and should be available to lend a hand once in a while if you do it.

I like the idea of an s38 e12.

I was first to vote but got busy at work. In that rough shape you would be hard pressed to come out ahead financially any way you go. But the cool factor of a swap beats the other options. Imagine the shock on the guy's face...

I agree with swapping into the E12. You would get rid of the rear suspension problems and the rust. However don't lose sight of the fact you will still be on the hook for S38 maintenance. I don't think you get better use out of any other combination though. Just think about the E12/S38 on RTT!

DO IT!

djazz wrote:I was first to vote but got busy at work. In that rough shape you would be hard pressed to come out ahead financially any way you go. But the cool factor of a swap beats the other options. Imagine the shock on the guy's face...

Back in 2k, I bought a lachsilber 535is for 600$ When the laundry list got to mebbe 3k$ in parts to cherry out, the 535is became a parts car. A darn fine one too. I sold parts I couldnt use. After 10 yrs, I scrapped its much picked over remains for 200$. It took awhile, but I prolly made money on the car and got the parts to fix up the Grape and B6II

You're thinking about doing a 300HP E12 and not doing it yet? If you're up for the job, and it's not a small one I wouldn't think, do it.

I would just add, don't get in over your head, you don't want to take two good drivers and come up with one half completed project that doesn't run.

Do the swap, Eddie's car is awesome.

The E12 has some cosmetic warts as well that are well documented here on the forum.
My E28 ///M5 will never be a Concours car, neither will the E12, but they will always be very drivable.
The E34 ///M5 has a new clutch, PP, and TO bearing in front of that bad tranny.
The E12 has a bad clutch and possibly flywheel under its G265 bellhousing.
Here's the plan, combo gets pulled from the E34, motor and bellhousing gets pulled from the E12.
Swap bellhousing onto S38 and stab back into the E12.

If/when the swap is completed the drivetrain will see somewhere between 3K to 5K miles per year.
OTOH as a DD, left in the E34, it would see close to 30K miles per year.

Eddie has been very open and helpful in sharing the fitment, form, and function issues he encountered and his choice of fixes.
You like those 4 F's? Thought I was back in school for a minute there.
My main emphasis will be on function, though things will be cleaned up along the way.

A somewhat minor consideration, what to do about trunk badging?

1st 5er wrote:A somewhat minor consideration, what to do about trunk badging?

SLEEPER! You gotta keep it badged just like it is.

You can giggle like a prepubescent girl at all the open mouths you leave behind.

1st 5er wrote:
A somewhat minor consideration, what to do about trunk badging?

Much like Eric's ///M7, I think the ///M on the trunk would be appropriate in this case. Stick a 310HP Msport engine in it and I wouldn't call it a poser.

Mike W. wrote:

1st 5er wrote:
A somewhat minor consideration, what to do about trunk badging?

Much like Eric's ///M7, I think the ///M on the trunk would be appropriate in this case. Stick a Dinan chipped 310HP Msport engine in it and I wouldn't call it a poser.

FTFY, all except the HP numbers.
It'll take someone with more intelligence/experience to do that.

For much less money, you could delete/fix the SLS and have an M5 you wouldn't mind driving through hail. Keep the maintenance up and you can steal the engine when you're finally bored with it.

Black E34 doors are $.25 for 12 and an SLS delete cannot be that difficult switching to standard $.10/quart ATF.

While I think E34 ///M5s are just a way to be bored at higher speeds, if I had one, I wouldn't rip it apart. Lots of people are doing that since the cars are worth about $4.37. Park it until you're ready to deal with the issues and just drive the 535.

Of course, I'm way in the minority here and am not going to play "12 Angry Men" to change your mind, so there.

The repair co$t are not a factor in this equation.
Daily driver expen$e$ and future S38 maintenance co$t due to mileage are.
If it were an E34 535i auto or 5 speed, I'd daily drive it.

My E12 isn't afraid of hail and has the scars to prove it.
Once this if complete, if a very nice E12 example pops up,
then who knows, maybe a re-swap will be done.

I'm not opposed to swapping my E28 ///M5 drivetrain into a rust-free non-///M E28 example.

Mike W. wrote:I would just add, don't get in over your head, you don't want to take two good drivers and come up with one half completed project that doesn't run.

This is one thing I do not want, for sure.
Doing my homework now, this thread is actually part of it.
The PM I sent you over on Firstfives was too.

I did not vote to swap, but if you do I'd be interested in the shell.

mooseheadm5 wrote:I did not vote to swap, but if you do I'd be interested in the shell.

I'll keep that in mind.
Not sure what'll be left, and I'm pretty sure it'll be close to a non-roller.

Swap it.

I Swap it!

1st 5er wrote:

mooseheadm5 wrote:I did not vote to swap, but if you do I'd be interested in the shell.

I'll keep that in mind.
Not sure what'll be left, and I'm pretty sure it'll be close to a non-roller.

Works for me. It'll have some things that will work on my wagon. Might be easier because of the distance to just buy that stuff.

Sell it outright. Price? I've always wanted an E34 M5...

mooseheadm5 wrote:

1st 5er wrote:

mooseheadm5 wrote:I did not vote to swap, but if you do I'd be interested in the shell.

I'll keep that in mind.
Not sure what'll be left, and I'm pretty sure it'll be close to a non-roller.

Works for me. It'll have some things that will work on my wagon. Might be easier because of the distance to just buy that stuff.

I'll post a FS thread when I get everything off/out of it that I need/want.

If my wife's Touring drops it's load prior to the swap, if it happens,
then her car will be the donee as it's rust free and would make an interesting ///M addition to the stable.
It get daily driven about 15 miles per day as opposed to 80 +/-.

austin8753 wrote:Sell it outright. Price? I've always wanted an E34 M5...

Pm'ed.

I would put a good 265 behind it and stuff it all in the Touring !!! Bad-ass...

johnnye23 wrote: I would put a good 265 behind it and stuff it all in the Touring !!! Bad-ass...

"I know you're right", that's what she said.
But... she didn't press it because she wants another black on black vs. the current black on tan.

johnnye23 wrote: I would put a good 265 behind it and stuff it all in the Touring !!! Bad-ass...

^^^This^^^

¡!¡!¡!

tsmall07 wrote:

johnnye23 wrote: I would put a good 265 behind it and stuff it all in the Touring !!! Bad-ass...

^^^This^^^
Sherman,
you know that the touring is the right thing to do! ALL tourings need an S38. The transmission is fixable. The mileage is your fault! I get 18-22. Throw a hitch on the touring and haul a BBQ to Tex-Fests! Incorporate your parts cars as a business and use the M-touring as a company car! Buy Jaqueline the B/B touring she wants. Maybe a 540!
Jim

johnnye23 wrote: I would put a good 265 behind it and stuff it all in the Touring !!! Bad-ass...

Without a doubt, I say do this.