Liam821's e46 324i k24/dct/turbo build

[Obioban]

Apple iPhone 14 ProMax! I'm using a piece of software called Scaniverse, it's pretty great.

Here is a scan of a temporary k24 I have, checkout the nice inspection window! It's accurate down to about a mm, which is fine for making motor mounts and such.


Here is an idea of what a scan looks like

It's funny how the iPhones have LIDAR, and it gets used for... almost nothing.

[liam821]

What 3D scanner are you using?

Apple iPhone 14 ProMax! I'm using a piece of software called Scaniverse, it's pretty great.

Here is a scan of a temporary k24 I have, checkout the nice inspection window! It's accurate down to about a mm, which is fine for making motor mounts and such.


Here is an idea of what a scan looks like

[Cronenberged]

What 3D scanner are you using?

[liam821]

Got 10mm spacers in the mail and 10mm longer M10 12.9 grade bolts (M10x40)


They'll go on the transmission mount like this. If I had a slant 6 bell housing (135i/e92/f80m3) dct I probably wouldn't need to do this, but the s65 bell housing is really wide


Mount installed with the spacers


Finally bolts right up!


The engine is just about right where it needs to be. There is a 1 degree up angle towards the back of the transmission. So I'm either going to have to raise the motor a few mm or lower the back of the transmission a few mm. I'm probably going to lower the transmission just a tiny bit as I'd like to keep the engine as low as possible.


All the room for a big turbo setup! I was eyeballing turbo placement with an EFR7064 turbine housing off my race car.


The engine is as far back as I can get it. Almost all behind the steering rack


Just squeezes in under the factory hvac cawl. I'll probably end up using a low-profile valve cover anyway since getting the valve cover on and off is tight with the stock one.


The dct does not stick below the frame rails, thankfully


It's a massive transmission






I've done a 3d scan of the engine bay and will start designing motor mounts in Fusion360. I'll post some pictures of how that goes.

[jpy1980]

Oooo exciting build series!

At least with pushing the engine forward 10mms you can access the engine oil fill cap without taking off the cabin filter housing. Win win! =)

[liam821]

Got the new e89/e92 non-m DCT transmission mount in the mail today! Here is the side-by-side with the e9Xm3 style mount. The smaller one is the e89/e92 non-m one. If you're wondering, yes, both mounts fit either transmission. All four transmission versions are essentially the same except for gear ratio and bell-housing combinations. They all feature the same input spline, filters, and oil pan. There are two V8 bell housings (e9Xm3 short-ratios and the F10m5 long-ratios) and two slant/6 bell housings (135/335/z4 short ratios and F80m3/m4 which was a long ratio). My gearbox is an e92m3 short-ratio because it had the best support from the DME I'll be using (MaxxECU) and has the short ratios. She's thick three c's here big.





SeemsLegitGarage trans crossmount with e89 non-m mount


aannnnddddd it just doesn't fit... the transmission is back as far as it goes and is hitting the transmission tunnel. You can see the bolt holes just don't line up.


Lifetime fill lolz


What I think I'm going to do is put a 10mm spacer on the back of the transmission mount to push the engine and trans forward 10mm. I'd rather have the engine as far back as possible, but moving it 10mm still puts the engine in a good place, will allow me to use a stock Honda valve cover, and the transmission fits. It puts the front of the engine about 21" from the rear firewall.

[liam821]

I first thought I was going to do a full dry sump system, but after talking with Robert at Tractuff I'm going to do a wet sump external oil pump solution. Basically, I'll chop the front off the stock oil pan (where the OEM oil pump lives) and move the oil pickup to the back - I'll make the back wider so I can keep ~5 quarts of oil.





Robert@Tractuff's e46m3 with a k-swap.

Nice lack of fold through!

Yes! Thanks! I wanted a non-folding rear since the chassis is much stiffer and almost on pair with an e46m3.

Just joining the thread, can't wait to see the progress!

Same! The replacement transmission mounts should come in the mail tomorrow. I'll start working on building engine mounts this week.

[b-thumper]

Just joining the thread, can't wait to see the progress!

[Obioban]

Nice lack of fold through!

[liam821]

Man that engine looks tiny in there. Cabin air filter housing makes the S54 look like a 4 cylinder... and the K look like a 2 cylinder.

Front mid-engine! haha

And yeah, it looks tiny in there, especially with the cabin air filter housing.

Spent more time pulling out the rest of the interior and cleaning...

Found their food stores...thankfully they kept that area clean, it just had food and vacuumed right up


Everything else has been removed now


I'm happy to report that the smell has mostly left with the interior. I'm gonna do some more cleaning this weekend and see what's what. Worst comes to worst, I'll send this shell to the big crusher in the sky and pick up another one.

[Obioban]

Man that engine looks tiny in there. Cabin air filter housing makes the S54 look like a 4 cylinder... and the K look like a 2 cylinder.

[liam821]

First attempt, using the factory Honda K oil pan, hard nope. The engine sorta fits in there it has to sit on top of the steering rack, just doesn't work very well.


Pulled off the factory oil pump and oil pan...


Ahhh this is better. Fits very nicely now!




It's almost front mid-engine now!






Just over the steering rack about 10mm on the passenger side


Plenty of room for the stock e46 steering shaft


Stock HVAC air intake top fits nicely too






All the space for a nice turbo setup!


You might be thinking, but Liam, how is it going to work without an oil pump? I have a dry sump setup already for the K, but I might go with a wet sump but an external oil pump. I'm not sure what I want to do yet. Doing a full dry sump system is a massive pita having to deal with a large external oil reservoir and dozens of oil lines all over the place.


I've already done a quick 3D scan of the driver's side area so I can start working on a motor mount design, just used Kiri Engine on my iPhone - works great! Not going to put too much effort into this until I finalize the engine placement, waiting on the transmission mount first.

[liam821]

More work done today

Before cleaning


After cleaning! Simple green, pressure washer, and a lot of scrubbing


Let's get these two together!


Adamat adapter fits perfectly


Completely bolt-on process, everything fits perfectly


I got the engine on my engine lift but had family stuff so I wasn't able to get it into the car yet.

I also found out I'm missing the rear DCT transmission mount which I ordered today. Fingers crossed that the SLG dct transmission mount just bolts up and puts the engine in the right place.

[liam821]

Good to see you back on it!

Any concern the mice were eating the insulation on the wires above where they were sleeping?

That is an excellent question. If there is any damage, I'll just replace the harness - I have a spare. Not worth trying to fix, I really don't want "electrical" issues later in life.

[Obioban]

Good to see you back on it!

Any concern the mice were eating the insulation on the wires above where they were sleeping?