51plate 2.5 engine swap with a 2.5 6 cylinder bmw engine ?

[knighty1981]

hi (I'm new!)

I bought a 51plate lwb 90ps 350 single wheeler transit about a year back (for work) was running great... (once I changed the egr valve that is!)

spent quit a bit of time/money on it....

waxol'd and undersealed it all, boarded out with inch ply (floor, wheel arches, bulkhead and walls) then had it fiberglassed so it's waterproof (easy to clean too) then new clutch too....

and now.... the engine is on it's way out.... (just over 100k on it) and I'm pretty miffed to say the least.... have done plenty of engine sways on the mk5 transits, could do one with my eye's closed now... so I'm totally happy about doing a mk6 one (extra electrics, but I'm good with them).... the problem is all the engines I can find are so bloody expensive...

there's tonnes of back pressure, and it's using almost a gallon of oil a week...


seeing the prices of a 2nd hand engine.... I thought about sticking an old di in it.... might be easier... but a bit depressing...


I used to have a 325tds bmw, and I LOVED that engine... I used to do trips from Newcastle to London and back (flat out) all the time and I used to just laugh at me and take it all in it's stride....

so I'm thinking of swapping one into my mk6 transit...

it's a pretty long engine... but apart from that they're pretty simple engines... it has a small ecu but that shouldn't be a problem, off the top of my head they're 143bhp and 275lb/foot of torq ?

anyone have any ideas / input to help me along the way ?


I'll buy a bmw mot failure as a donor car so I'll have plenty of parts etc... custom exhaust etc.. is a given

[madmark]

keep me posted i would like to see this done!

[GBBiker]

I don't think the straight six will fit without modifying the bulkhead

[Luke]

is it a strait 6 if it is you might have to sit it back which wont be a problem but measure where the gear stick ends up and if theres an easy way to move it forward

sounds a great swap and i'd be very interested to see it done

[GBBiker]

All of the 3 series have inline bank engines

[knighty1981]

was a bit tired last night when I posted and missed a few bits of info out...

the bmw I had... I sold to a friend... so I'll get him to come over one day and I'll have a good look / measure it all up...

aslo... I run all my other vans on veg oil (done properly, twin tank conversion, heaters etc...)

but.... transits are (apparently) no good on veg oil, and it'll kill the engine/pump pretty quick...

but those old bmw (indirect injection) engines love the stuff... can just shove it in the tank

I'll have a think / measure up and see what I can come up with

[madmark_50484]

was a bit tired last night when I posted and missed a few bits of info out...

the bmw I had... I sold to a friend... so I'll get him to come over one day and I'll have a good look / measure it all up...

aslo... I run all my other vans on veg oil (done properly, twin tank conversion, heaters etc...)

but.... transits are (apparently) no good on veg oil, and it'll kill the engine/pump pretty quick...

but those old bmw (indirect injection) engines love the stuff... can just shove it in the tank

I'll have a think / measure up and see what I can come up with

I wouldnt say transits dislike veg I used to run my old one (mk5 nana engine) sometimes 100% no fancy heaters on anything just put it straight in.

Good luck on your project look forward to see the outcome.

[knighty1981]

I ran my mk5 on veg too.... apparently it's just the mk6 that doesen't like it

(still mix a bit in, but not much)

[knighty1981]

well my mate I sold my bmw to dropped by the other day so I had a good look at the engine....

and was pretty confident I could fit it into the transit without too much fuss.....


but then I have another look at the transit and I'm getting a bit worried... it would fit right into a mk5 but the mk6 is a lot tighter.... or maybe it just looks tighter....


think I'll need to get the BMW engine out and side by side with a mk6 engine to see what the size difference really is...


on the up side... dropping the fan off the front of the engine and swapping to a could of electric fans should make a big difference...

[Luke]

have a flick through this thread i fitted a cossy YB into a mk6 it'll give you some idea of the space available as theres a few shots of the engine bay and the engine going in - as you can see it will be tight with 2 more clys i think you'll need to mod the bulkhead

viewtopic.php?f=27&t=26031

[knighty1981]

thanks

thats a really nice job you did there....


but I'm pretty sure it would be a dog trying to fit the straight six in there....


helf tempted to get rid of this van and get a mk5 instead !

[Luke]

whats the measurement from the front of the engine to the gearstick

[knighty1981]

bit of an update...

I've been looking around for a decent donor car... there's quite a few around.... the ones I'm looking at 1995'ish are just about the right age now where the body starts to rot and the prices plummet etc...

but... regarding the post higher up....

would an auto box work ok ?

without really thinking about it... I'd have thought the box would have been designed for the weight of the BMW so gear changes etc.. would be messed up by being fitted to the heavier transit....

tho I guess towing something with the BMW would be just the same....

an auto box definitely would make things easier...

[AndyG]

Auto box will be fine
Some BMWs are quite heavy

Try and get a 4 speed/overdrive one and not a 3 speed
Also check how complex the electronics are, if any, on your choice

Will make a conversion

[Chaz&Saz]

Any progress on this? We have a 325tds and had it for years fantastic engine, i think it would suit a transit well. Land Rover used it in the 2.5DSE Rangies. so can pull weight.