E36 Sport Touring -

1) Ditch the restrictor from the airbox, it'll give a small improvement. 2) Fit an M50 intake manifold, that plus a rechip can give 230+ bhp. 3) I bought a '95 328i touring and really had a bit of luck, half price NEW AC Schnitzer / Bilstein suspension on ebay (normally 800 quid). It lowers the car but not too much. Spring rates are ideal. 4) Only think I want now is a stiffer rear anti-roll bar as she understeers too much. Stock bar is 15mm, //M-Tech package sport bar is 18 (you may have this). I'll fit a 20mm bar from an //M3 Evo.

I'd not bother with the the strut brace for normal driving.

Worn bushings.

One other thing, I THINK these have a 2.93:1 differential. That's perfect for the motorway but way too tall to be any fun. A 3.15 LSD from a 325i Coupe would liven it up nicely.

Mine is a winter car and lives on snow tyres. Perfect for that, my E30 was always a bit "interesting" on ice even with snows on.

That's interesting. I didn't know about that one.

Any idea why the improvement over the M52 item?

Agreed.

A real possibility, although my 1999 E36 323i sport touring has 141k miles on it and still feels as tight as a new one.

JB

Me neither - what does it look like? :) How would I ditch it?

Thanks, any idea where to get a re-chip from? I think I have the M52 engine?

OK thanks, I'll scrap that idea.

Excuse the ignorance, how would I know if these were worn?

One other thing, the stays/struts(?) that hold open the hatch have gone so it's really heavy, I take it these are easy to replace myself? Any suggestions where to get the parts?

Thanks again,

Jon

The 325i with the M50 has a sportier intake system than the M52. The

323 is also a 2.5 but it has been de-tuned so bolting back the sports stuff will help performance (in terms of peak figures). I doubt very much if you'll get 230hp out of the 323 though without a lot more mods. Maybe you might be able to get that out of a 328 if you really tried.

New shocks will probbaly help but I'd recommend eibach springs to totally transform the car. Probably just new bushes etc would help though.

The M52 was hamstrung to meet german insurance groupings. The M50 manifold flows 50% more air!! The manifold alone is worth about

15-20bhp.

Remove the airbox. In the "dirty" half there's a oval tube the air comes in by. Just pull it out after releasing the tab that holds it. It'll sound a little better and go a little better. It's a 1 or 2% thing, not dramatic.

I also drill a few holes in the bottom of the airbox. That way if I ever have to drive in flood water anything I ingest will drain away rather than get to the engine!

You'd wander all over the road or hear nasty noises.

I'll bet euro car parts have them.

Do you find the clutch heavy in yours? I ran an e36 318iS for nine years and I'm sure it was lighter than this. It's almost as heavy as my Alpina B10's clutch!

How hard would changing the manifold be if I was able to find one? Excuse my lack of under the bonet knowlege :)

Many thanks indeed John.

JB

Guess that should have been M50 manifold!

JB

I know of a guy with dyno proven 244bhp from a 328i with a rechip, M50 manifold and slightly improved exhaust.

I think a lightweight flywheel would make a difference to the car too, it's not exactly rev happy.

Would you mind just checking this to see if I'm on the right track?

cheers!

I must admit, it is quite heavy, most noticable in this london traffic :(

Can't wait to get to norfolk again for some clear b roads...

Correct :-)

There's a guy who supplies one pre-modified for about 300 quid. There are no major changes, just a few hose fittings and plugs in different places. The interface with the head is the same. A lot of folk do a big bore thottle body at the same time.

Thanks John, I'll get my drill out... :-)