Quick & sloppy engine swap

I’ve been kicking around a few ideas for the engine I wanted in this car. Currently she has a well-worn Euro B34. I’ve upgraded it with a single-mass flywheel, Motronic 1.3, and 4-hole disk injectors. Nice motor, but it needs a rebuild. So in the meantime, I figured my spare US-spec B32 could go in there. It was more or less a free motor; I bought it as a package deal with a transmission I wanted. I wasn’t expecting much but when I opened it up, the motor was spotless inside! Somebody had really taken care of it. Per my usual M.O., I immediately listed it on CL to see if anyone else wanted it. I renewed that listing several times without getting a single nibble. Was I surprised? Not really. It was worth a shot regardless!

It’s been a long-standing tradition of mine to savor the tartness when Chance tosses lemons my way (She’s a minx, that one). All my other plans had gone by the wayside due to various problems. So I’ll swap it into my car while I rebuild the Euro B34 properly.

Nobody really likes the low-compression B32. It’s [almost] the least powerful M30 motor. It doesn’t really make much power, the early Motronic isn’t easily tuned, the exhaust is choked, etc.. Despite all that…the price is right.

Updates to follow. Here’s some pics:

Not much happened during the last week of August except for some parts orders. The rear main seal I had was far thinner than the old one. I learned that there should have been a spacer installed under the seal. That’s a new one on me, but I ordered that part. The last thing you want leaking is the rear main seal!

September is here already…it kinda snuck up on me. Officially, the summer is over…Labor Day weekend here in the good old US of A. What did y’all do over the weekend? I did a little labor on the car, of course! Check it out below.

I installed all the gaskets with a thin coating of Permatex #2 non-hardening sealant on aftermarket Reinz paper gaskets, and just the tiniest dabs of Permatex Ultra Gray RTV on the timing case covers. I’ll add a little more on the rear seal casting to keep the pan from leaking (FYI – don’t use any type of sealant on the head gasket). It seems to work very nicely. I’m told that Hylomar Blue is another good choice for sealing paper gaskets if they’re removed relatively frequently. It’s also supposed to permit metal to metal sealing. I’ll get a little to try out next time.

I’ll be posting leak-down results to see if all this work was worth the time & money. Wish me luck!

This project has been placed on the back burner for a little while to devote some time to the new-to-me M3.

Sadly, the M3 has gone. I’ve just finished digesting what’s left of that car…but it’s too cold for an engine swap. This is the time for buying new inventory!