Chewievette

I just started researching this motor last sunday so I cant imagine I'd be of much help. and from what I'm hearing this will be the most advanced engine I've ever worked on! I mean I've done work on turbines and large recips but this thing takes complex to a whole new level! I'd love to get my hands on the shop manual like you have, where did you get it and how much did it cost? So far I've been on a best guess basis and with an engine this complex, that's probably not a good thing. I was looking at transmissions today and trying to find something suitable, the one that strikes me as best right now is the T56 but I read that a lot of people dont like the shift feel and a couple of other gripes about it. But I do think it needs a six speed, I mean if your doing V12 that just screams european sports car and there just isn't any else for a sports car than a six speed. I'll probably end up with the T56 also, at least for starters. I'm sure we can dig up a flywheel that will work, its just trying to find the right one... Like I've been saying all along though, I cant know for sure until I get some parts to look at! If this deal works out, I'll be getting a 1989 750il engine. Unfortunately it needs a rebuild so I'm trying to find a rebuild kit. My local BMW guys aren't being too friendly about it, so I need to find another source. Do you know where I can find one? My next stop is my friend at the local rod shop, maybe BMW would be more willing to sell to a business?

I doubt this would fit correctly but I figured it couldn't be too bad of an idea. It should help solve the weight ratio when dropping in other motors. especially big motors. What do you think? I'm not too familiar with the Z's enough to know. But just thought I'd throw out the idea. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33727&item=7941087678&rd=1

What transmission are you using? Are you going with the stock BMW unit? I'm starting to gather parts for my own V12 swap and I havn't a clue what to use for a trans! I can make an adapter plate or bellhousing if I have to. I'd love to hear any recommendations you have. Thanks. edit: Just curious, but have you had the pan off to take a look in there?

You were saying?? I knew I saw this somewhere. GMC has been there AND done that. From what I remember it was a miserable failure. I also remember someone doing two 350 chevys on a common block, making a V16 but that was a one off type of thing.

You need to find a Shop service manual. I'm looking for one myself for my '79. Good luck!! I have only seen one and it was quite expensive at a swap meet. I heard that theres a place online that you can get one from, but I havn't found it yet. You might try asking the local dealerships, they might still have one you can look at.

Thanks for the help and encouragement guys, I'm sure going to need it! Thanks for the pics Tim! I think I can use some of that. Edit1: This is the new V12 but I assume the pan is similar... http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v11/chewievette/Cars/123-3.jpg DOH!! I just noticed that the new v12 is rear sump... this pan might bolt up to the older engine ...hmmm. Probably just wishful thinking. and I just like this pic: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v11/chewievette/Cars/album_pic.jpg Edit2: Wow, this is getting expensive already!! I just found out the shipping is costing more than the motor itself! I think its funny, but oh well. I just want it here!! Not that I can work on it... but it feels good to think I'm getting something done!

I've been doing some more research and thinking and I'm basically sold on the idea of doing this swap! I need to sneak a peak at a first gen to compare crossmembers, but from the pics that Glenn sent me (Thanks!) It looks that the 2nd gen's crossmember is almost entirely behind where the first gen cross member is! Which is rather encouraging. but as I said before I wont know for sure until I get both the car and engine in the same place! If anyone has the motor out of their 1st gen, I could use a couple of measurements, please PM me. I guess I'm going to bite the bullet and pick up the V12.

When I was searching last night I read that an option might be turning the oil pan around, but I hadn't read anything else about it. well I just found this picture of the bottom of the block and from what I can tell it looks like it was designed to do that. What do you think? http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v11/chewievette/Cars/bmwpan.jpg

I contacted dot and we are in the process of trading PMs, I also contacted 240zoom who is doing the BMW V12 S30 swap. I'm not saying that fitment wont be a problem but it seems that everyone is worried about the oilpan, so I wanted to point out how I want to get around that. To be sure I'd have to have both the car and the motor in the same place at the same time. If I do decide to go with the v12, I'm going all out. I'm not going to worry about the cost, it'll either cost four times more all at once or cost the same four times longer. I'm going to take my time and do it right, giving up is not an option.

I've been flipping through my repair manual and looking at the pictures to see what kind of clearance I'd have and I noticed that the ZX has a crossmember that's set twards the rear of the car and that the steering rack is behind the crossmember. I'm not familiar with the early Zs but I seem to recall this being a huge sticking point of this swap. It looks to me like the crossmember is directly in the middle of the engine, and if I'm not mistaken this is where it is on the BMW as well. assuming that my straight six and the v12 are approximately the same length then I will have minimal fit issues, correct? Does anyone have a picture of the early z's underside that shows where the front crossmember is?

Well, I'm still not entirely sold on the idea of keeping the straight six. I just had yet another option come into the picture (thread in the other engines forum), and all these choices are becoming quite confusing! I guess I've got some thinking to do.

Well, I've been thinking again... I recently stumbled upon a rather good deal for a BMW 5.0L V12 out of a 1992 850i Problem is that I have to buy very soon or it'll be gone. I need to know how big of a hole will I be digging for myself if I buy this motor? I realize that Parts are expensive, to say the least, and I'll have to resort to fabricating everything. My other option is to buy the sbc I was originally planning on and drop that in. Both are about the same price(initial cost) so that's not a problem. I guess what I'm asking is, is it worth it? I'm building this car as my weekend beater/show car, so power isn't really a deciding factor. I really want the V12 simply for the WOW factor at the shows, but a good reliable V8 is always a good thing. I did some searching on the site and saw a few people doing this swap but no one had it running yet. and nothing very recent (most BMW V12 threads came up as dead links, old server?) I know that I'm the one thats going to be making this decision, but I'd just like to get some input before I dive in head first. All input is welcome. Thanks. Btw: My car is a 1979 280ZX.

Dude, that's sweet! ...almost too much for words. Btw: Hows the oil pan issue coming along? I recently stumbled upon a screemin deal for a BMW 850i engine but I'll start my own thread and not hijack yours.

I'm trying to learn as much as I can about my ZX and potential performance before I start working on it this spring. But I'd like to know how I can get the most torque out of the L28. I originally planned to swap the motor for a sbc but The more I think about it the more I want to build up this straight six. I've been looking at all the performance stuff I can find but trying to connect the dots and knowing little to about these motors is, shall we say... difficult. I'm going to make a show car out of it so for one it has to look great and for two it has to get me to the shows!(and the occasional drag) The one thing that I found so far that I absolutely LOVE are the triple weber carb setups but since I have a 1979 280ZX, it has fuel injection! So I started looking for Triple TBI setups and found one(link below), well acctually a few I talked to a few people about this particular setup and all said the same thing, since the injector is so far away from the cylinder, power will be non existant below 3K-3.5Krpm! with a Huge kick in the seat when you reach 4K. I like the huge kick part, but I'd rather have it at say...1,000rpm. So I did some looking and found a guy building a custom manifold that retains the stock location of the injectors but keeps the triple TBI. How much do you think making and using a similar manifold will bring the torque down? I also looked at the Motorsport big bore stroker kit and I like the idea of it, however after doing some reading I dont think the 15% increase will be worth the $2,000! So are there any other options? I also read that most people bore the cyls out to 89mm but the MSA metal head gaskets have a bore of 91mm. Is it even possible to go that big with an L28? Does anyone make pistons that big? As for the cams, I know there are literally a boat load of cams you can get for this engine but I havn't a clue how to know which I need for my setup. Can you guys give or point me in the direction of some tips for picking cams? I'm also curious about turbo setups. I've gotten to know the basics and most everyone that's making decent power with this engine has a turbo so, I'd really like to know how much help I can expect from some boost. I know I'm forgetting some crutial component right now ...if you know what it is, let me know. Please forgive me if I beating a long dead horse here, but every single thread I've read people are focusing on peak hp and totally ignoring the torque and horsepower curves ...1,200hp isn't going to do you any good if you cant use it! Thanks. Triple TBI: http://www.racetep.com/ztripdcoe.html

sorry for taking soo long to reply, I was having a problem with posting. Its not my ZXR, but I found the pic through a quick google search. I could really use a good pic of the side of the car, kindof like a planview. I'd like to play around with some ideas that I've got. Thanks for your interest.

But it's not hairy! sorry couldn't resist... so what's your definition of shaving the intake? you mean porting it?

I got really bored today and started playing with a ZXR pic in paint shop and here's what I ended up with. I'm still trying to gloss it up since I think it looks a like flat black. but since this is my first recolor, I dont know how yet! Well, let me know what you think. Thanks. If the pic doesnt work, try the link... http://photobucket.com/albums/v11/chewievette/Cars/My%20280ZX/?action=view&current=280zxr2.jpg

You Might get it to fit. but without acctually test fitting it, You cant really tell. But in a word, Yes you can get it to fit. It just depends on how much time, effort, sawing, and fiberglassing you want to do. I work on a couple of different plane around the shop here, they include: Cessna 310 Beech 18 Beech E50 Beech Bonanza and a couple others...

I've been thinking about adding those to the list for my ZX build, I also would like to know if they'd fit. I think they'd look Great on a Z! And in case your wondering, those center caps Are removable, so your not stuck with the Cobra! Btw: Where can I find five bolt adapters?

I havn't picked the theme for my car yet, because I just picked it up last week and I'm still trying to assess the damage (to my wallet more than anything). but the leading contender right now is, The ZXR through My Eyes. Like I said, I'm still working on it...

Gee, that's about what I was going to say! I'd like to add that after you get all your measurements and test fitting done, make one last template out of wood (or something that wont move out of the way of the shifter when you test it). That way you'll know exactly how the aluminum one will 'feel' when your shifting, and you'll know for sure that it is correct. Afterall, it might get expensive to have multiples cut.

That looks Awesome!! I've always loved that color! I even considered it for my Dodge Intrepid for a while(then sanity kicked back in). I think it'll look killer! I agree that the rear around the tail lights should be painted black like some of the '69-70 Mustangs, I cant tell if you did or not. Also if your installing a grill I'd say paint that black too. I've just started thinking about colors for my car, its still a looooooooooooong ways off but its fun to dream right?

The exhaust gasket is bad on my 280zx and I'm curious about swapping it out. I see in the repair manual that the intake and exhaust gasket are the same piece. I'd like to know how to replace it. I need to know if its possible to just inbolt the manifolds and pull them away from the head enough to swap the gaskets? It seems like there's a lot involved in removing the intake manifold so I'd like to avoid it if possible. Any tips or hints are greatly appreciated! Thanks.

Well, I suppose I dont have to drive it in... I'll be tearing down the car during the spring semester and doing the rust removal/panel replacement. So when break comes up it'll already be apart with the motor out.

I'm curious about the rough time frame for swapping the straight 6 for a sbc? I mean from drive into the garage to drive out. I'm asking because I'm attending college right now and I only get a month or so off of school between semesters and I'd like to get as many of the parts as I can together before I do the swap, then do a marathon install all at once. I'm going to wait till the break between spring and summer classes so I can do it during good weather. and have the car ready for the summer cruise ins. Waiting will also allow me to do prep work(rust removal) on the car this spring, before I do the swap. Do you think it'd be possible to do the swap in the 3-4weeks I get between semesters? Thanks in advance.