S54T build: Alpine White on Cinnamon wagon with ZHP body and M3 drivetrain retrofit

[Redshift]

Is there interest here for a build thread about this car? I was building it for my wife and it got a little out of hand.

[Calb]

Let’s go!

[Redshift]

Hello everyone! You may know me from the ‘Gram as @bmwwagonguy, and/or from my previous builds such as the M5T that sold on BaT for a record price, or the Ferrari Red M3T that is currently getting a stroked S54 installed, but this thread is about a car I began building for my lovely spouse last year and am still working on.

In late 2022, I was searching for a natural brown E46 interior for my daughter’s Orient Blue wagon. I found one, but it was unfortunately nearly across the country in Utah. We made a deal on the interior bits, but shipping was the problem. The owner then told me he was willing to sell the whole project, unfinished, because he needed to move on to something else. The owner before him started a ZHP swap with a minty low-mileage donor only to get frustrated and quit. He sent me some photos:







Now here’s the interesting part. He fully intended to complete the project, and had just recently spent over $12k on brand new parts to do so, but I guess just got frustrated and wanted out. The car came with all of these parts, many of which were already installed on the 115k mile M54B30/ZHP engine, and the rest were jammed inside the chassis when it arrived. Besides a complete (and I mean *complete*) engine refresh, these parts also included a brand new Ground Control coilover suspension with camber plates, brand new genuine BMW Mtech2 bumpers and side skirts (complete with all genuine trims, grilles, clips, fog lamps, etc) and various other bits. Goldmine, especially for the price I paid.

We made a deal for the whole car instead of just the interior, and he got it loaded on to a trailer and sent my way:



And a few days later, it was here:



Time to unpack the fully-loaded interior and see just what was included in my amazing deal:














That’s a LOT of stuff. All genuine parts. First things first, let’s explore and see what’s what. First thing I noticed was that the first guy who started the project cut the muffler off and put some awful (and awfully long) straight pipes on it. Sounded and looked awful. Luckily I had a donor and was able to swap in a proper stock exhaust.



Afger getting a quote for paint from my favorite local high-end shop, and having it be lower than expected, I decided to go for the bumper and side skirt paint right away, so I dropped those parts off for them to get started.






Meanwhile, it was time to get started on finishing what he started. Headliner goes over to upholstery shop for conversion to M-sport, and chassis breakdown and inspection.









Luckily the subframe was in excellent shape, but we’ll reinforce it anyway. More on this later. Next, let’s inspect the RTAB pockets for any issues:




All good! Ditch the exhaust, put on a nice stock system with brand new tips from BMW, and she’s already looking better:



My buddy Paul Martin from Fixels (find him on FB) does amazing DME and cluster work so he sorted out the mileage discrepancy on the cluster and fixed the mileage:



Before I get too far into what I had to do to complete this project, here’s a list of everything done before I bought the car:

Engine:
BMW 5W30 Oil Change Kit - Liqui Moly 11427512300KT4
BMW DISA Valve - Rein 11617544805
BMW Oil Pressure Switch - Rein 12618611273
BMW Timing Cover Plug - Reinz 11361433513
BMW VANOS Unit Screw Plug - Genuine BMW 11361438338
VANOS Overhaul
Wiring Harness Engine Ignition 12517518044
Air Inlet Assembly 13717501988
Filler Cap - 16117222391
Air Inlet Assembly Buffer - 07147267586
Air Inlet Assembly Rivet - 51471919209
Inlet Duct - 13717509118
Tube - 13541438761
Filler Cap - 11127509328
Dipstick - 11431436293
BMW Engine and Transmission Mount Kit - 22116779970KT1
BMW Comprehensive Maintenance Kit - E46TUNEKIT2
BMW Ignition Coil Kit (Set of 6) - Bosch 00044X6
BMW Accessory Drive Belt Kit - 11287636379KT
BMW M54 Timing Chain Kit - 11311432176KT1
BMW Crankcase Gasket Set - Elring 11111432478
BMW Engine Oil Filter Housing Gasket Kit - 11421719855KT
BMW Intake Manifold Gasket Set - Elring 11611436631
BMW 120 Amp Alternator - Bosch AL0703N
BMW Starter Motor - Bosch 12412354693
BMW Camshaft Position Sensor - VNE 12147539165
BMW Camshaft Position Sensor - VNE 12147518628
BMW Oil Level Sensor - Hella 12617508003
BMW Crankshaft Position Sensor - VDO 12141709616
BMW Ignition Knock Sensor - VDO 13627568422
BMW Intake Boot - Rein 13541438759
BMW Throttle Body Gasket - Elring 13547504729

Emissions:
BMW Air Pump Rubber Mount - URO Parts 11727559515
BMW Oxygen Sensor - Bosch 15109
Pre-Cat Oxygen Sensor - Bosch
BMW Secondary Air Injection Pump - Pierburg 11727553056
BMW Secondary Air Injection Control Valve - Pierburg 11727553063
BMW Secondary Air Pump Hose - Rein 11727555680
BMW Air Pump Bracket - Genuine BMW 11721715273
BMW Bracket - Genuine BMW 11721714230
BMW Air Pump Rubber Mount - URO Parts 11727559515
BMW Secondary Air Valve Vacuum Line - Rein 11727574490
BMW Vacuum Hose - Genuine BMW 11657803732
BMW Vacuum Control Valve - Genuine BMW 11747810831
BMW Air Injection Check Valve - Pierburg 11611312737
BMW Cold Climate PCV Breather System Kit - OE Supplier 11617533400KT3
BMW Mass Air Flow Sensor O-Ring - Genuine 13541438760
BMW Mass Air Flow Sensor

Cooling:
BMW Comprehensive Cooling System Hose Kit (E46) - 11531436408KIT
BMW Plastic Water Pump Pulley - Meyle 11511436590
BMW Cooling System Overhaul Kit With Water Pump - E46COOLKIT

Brakes:
Rear Brake Rotors - Zimmermann 34216864044KTR3
Rear Brake Pads - Akebono
BMW Brake Kit - Zimmermann/Akebono 330BK4
Brake Master Cylinder - Centric 13034106
BMW Brake Booster - ATE 34336779682
BMW Clutch Hydraulic Hose - Genuine BMW 35006857512
BMW Caliper Bracket Bolt - Genuine BMW 34116772428
BMW Caliper Bracket Bolt - Genuine BMW 34203414763 Drivetrain /
BMW Brake Master Cylinder - ATE 34336785666 (failed and replaced with Centric Part)
BMW Brake Reservoir - Genuine BMW 34326750798

Steering:
Power Steering Reservoir Clamp Genuine BMW 32411092940
BMW Power Steering Pressure Hose - Genuine BMW
BMW Powering Steering Reservoir - Genuine BMW
BMW Power Steering Return Hose - Genuine BMW
BMW Power Steering Suction Hose - Genuine BMW
BMW Power Steering Pressure Hose - Genuine BMW
BMW Plastic Power Steering Pump Pulley - Febi 32421740858
BMW Steering Coupling Assembly - Genuine BMW 32301094703

Transmission / Drivetrain
URO Brass Clutch Fork Pivot Pin - 21511223328
Clutch Spring Clip - 21517570284
Clutch Hose from Reservoir to Master Cylinder - 21521163714
Clutch Slave Cylinder - 21526766279
Genine BMW Shifter Rubber Boot - 25117522149
UUC DSSR - E46 330i (6 Speed)
Turner Motorsport Shifter ZHP Weighted
UUC EVO3 Competition Short Shift Kit E46 330i 6 Speed
Shift Rod Joint - URO 25117580281
Shifter Arm Bracket - Genuine BMW 41128246251
Backup Switch - Genuine BMW 23147524811
BMW Drive Shaft Flex Joint (Giubo) - Corteco 26117511454
Valeo Single Mass Clutch Kit - 330i 6 Speed
BMW Manual Transmission Drain/Fill Plug - Genuine BMW 23117531356

Exhaust:
BMW Exhaust Manifold Gasket - Victor Reinz 11621732969
BMW Porsche Volvo Exhaust Nut - OE Supplier 18301737774
BMW Exhaust Pipe to Manifold Gasket - Elring 18107502346

Suspension:
Ground Control Coilovers
Ground Control Camber Plates
Ground Control RSM
BMW Sway Bar Link - Genuine BMW

Interior: (all parts below brand new still in box)
BMW Black Short Console - Genuine BMW 51168234154
BMW Ash Tray Rear - Genuine BMW 51168225988
BMW Cup Holder Black - Genuine BMW 51168217953
BMW Console Coin Tray - Genuine BMW 51168217957
BMW Console Bracket - Genuine BMW 51168235570
Dynavin E46 HVAC Relocation Bracket with 2 USBs
2022 ***** Quad Core Car Radio with IPS Display/GPS, Compatible with BMW 3 Series 1999-2004(E46), Built-in Apple CarPlay, Support Android Auto-9 Inch-GA9450B

Exterior / Body:
M-tech Bumper Cover (Front) - 51-12-7-893-489
M-tech Bumper Cover - Euro(Rear) - 51-11-7-893-328
M-tech Rocker Molding - 51-71-2-693-225
M-tech Rocker Molding - 51-71-2-693-226Molding - 51-11-8-195-289
Molding - 51-11-8-195-290
Center Molding - 51-11-8-195-304
Cap - 51-11-7-893-378
Lamp Cover - 51-11-7-893-067
Lamp Cover - 51-11-7-893-068
Lower Grille - 51-11-7-893-331
Lower Grille Adapter - 51-11-7-893-324
Bumper Cover Support - 51-11-7-895-415
Bumper Cover Support - 51-11-7-895-416
Bumper Cover Bracket - 51-11-8-191-149
Outer Molding - 51-12-7-893-319
Center Molding - 51-12-8-212-589
Cover, Lower Part Center M - 51-12-7-891-916
Water Deflector - 51-12-7-895-234
Fog Lamp Assembly - 63-17-7-894-017
Fog Lamp Assembly - 63-17-7-894-018
Liner Extension - 51-71-8-265-467
Liner Extension - 51-71-8-265-468
Tow Eye Cap - 51-12-7-893-314
Outer Molding - 51-12-7-893-320
Tail Lamp Assembly - 63-21-6-900-473
Tail Lamp Assembly - 63-21-6-900-474
E46 Sedan/Wagon Windshield Cowl Grille - 51-71-8-208-483
Vent Grille - 51-13-7-075-324
Cowl Grille Clip - 51-71-8-234-698
Roundel Emblem Replacement 82mm - 51-14-8-132-375BMW Hatch Lift Support - Stabilus 51248232873
BMW Headlight Lens - Magneti Marelli 63126924045
BMW Headlight Lens - Magneti Marelli 63126924046

Fluid:
Engine Oil 5W30 Genuine BMW
D4 ATF (1 Quart) - Red Line 30504
BMW Differential Service Kit 75W90 (E38 E39 E46) - Red Line 33117525064KT4
DOT 4 TYP 200 Brake Fluid (1 Liter) - ATE BF1200
BMW Coolant

Now back to the story….

In January I had my good bud Evan from Dynamic Details NC come and do a paint correction and we used AMMO NYC’s Reflex Pro 2 to ceramic coat the body, in anticipation of the painted parts later.

In February, we replaced the subframe bushings with Powerflex Poly (for street use), new OE diff bushings, replaced the rear lower control arms with Powerflex adjustable units, new Bimmerworld stainless brake lines, flushed the brake and clutch systems, ditched the DEPO side signals for OE units I found on another car (they are NLA from BMW), and installed the repaired cluster from Fixels.

In February, I also tossed in new center stack components including cupholder, console, sunglass tray, and surround. Decided I didn’t like the ***** head unit included with the car so I put in a Dynavin N8-Pro, backup camera, and microphone, tossed in a subwoofer and installed the freshly reupholstered black headliner with all the pillars and trim bits that came with the car. A new battery, fresh alignment, AC recharge, two brand new BMW keys, new BMW floor mats, and a freshly welded shifter bracket also went in (PO had screwed the bracket to the chassis – bad!)

Finally by April, the body parts were ready and I got them installed along with freshly refinished upper window trim (from chrome to matte black) and brand new BMW lower window trims in matte black.
















In May, I installed brand new rear wheel bearings and hubs, swapped out the UUC shifter for a Rogue shifter (much better), new factory selector rod instead of UUC, and a few other misc things.

Airbag recall was done in September and I also opted to upgrade the headlights with much higher output projectors, white halos for DRLs, and installed Morimoto projector fog lamps as well.

In October, I fixed some PDC errors so that it was fully functional.

Here is where it gets interesting. My wife loves how the car drives (we both do) but she loves how my M3 wagon feels and smells (new leather) when she gets in, so she requests a fresh interior. My original plan was to get some M3 seats and reupholster them in new natural brown leather but I ended up finding a source for nappa cinnamon leather instead, so I bought some used M3 front seats, my friend Stephen helped retrofit brand new foam, lumbar support, and heaters from another set of donor seats, and I sent the entire interior to the upholstery shop for the new leather. The seats are now fully functional M3 seats, but in a wagon, and without the side handles that we deleted during upholstery. They feel and smell amazing.

Comparison of cinnamon (top) vs natural brown (bottom):



Rear seats installed, front still original:



Fronts installed:



Door panel comparison (Note: I’m not happy with how the door panels turned out so I’m having them redone soon):





Now that the interior is done, and my old S54 will soon be available, I had a thought. What if I just M3 convert the wagon so she’ll have some more power and fun and as a bonus, this would allow keeping the S54 “in the family” since I’ve owned it and maintained it since 2016 and know it well. I contacted my friend Jorge at MPartsWorldwide and we put together a huge crate of parts in order to start the conversion process.






The parts arrived and I began planning the next phase. But first, since I’ll be pulling the rear end anyway, it’s time to do rear subframe reinforcments and a nice bonus – the V-brace from the M3 can be retrofit using some cool brackets from Attilla Csontos at M3Projekts in Hungary. My friend Jon from Speed House in Durham brought his welder over and got started. He’s done this multiple times and I wanted someone experienced to do the work. He's not cheap but quality rarely is:














Next, I spent a few days disassembling the M3 parts, refurbishing and repainting as I went along. New upper and lower bearings, new wheel bearings, new hubs, new diff bushings, transfer the poly subframe bushings from the 330 subframe over, new diff cover, a freshly rebuilt diff from RacingDiffs.com (it’s so smooth and quiet), and a host of other things. I’m a bit particular so I also clean all the hardware as I go along. Since the S54 isn’t ready to go in yet, I decided to install all of the M3 rear end parts now while we wait. Here’s how that turned out:












Now, in preparation for the F80 M3 brake upgrade, I realized that the ZHP Style 135 wheels do not fit over them, so I upgraded to Bimmerworld TA5R wheels in 18x9 square:



And in the mean time, I sent the four calipers to a local powdercoat shop, had new seals and bleeders installed, ordered some ///M decals online, installed the decals, gave them each 4 coats of 2k clear, and now we wait 30 days so I can ceramic coat them before they go on the car:



This is where the car stands now. Waiting on S54…will get back to this project soon.

[ugaexploder]

Wow!!!! This is awesome, thanks for sharing. I am super impressed with the quality of work done up in NC. Even from Casa de Mesa's build, you guys don't play around in NC!!!

[stephen]

Curious, who did you use for the headliner upholstery? I am local and looking to get the headliner in my sedan re-done.

[Redshift]

Curious, who did you use for the headliner upholstery? I am local and looking to get the headliner in my sedan re-done.

Gresham Lake

[Casa de Mesa]

I was building it for my wife and it got a little out of hand.

Nice ruse. LOL! "Hey honey, I'm doing this for you. No really. Love you!"

Kidding aside, that's a hell of a nice build done to a very high level of quality. I love "DIY" builds like this that are professional level good. Appreciate you posting this here and sharing the journey.

I absolutely love your garage.

I'm in the Statesville area, would love to figure out a time and place to have a meetup / drive with the NC and surrounding area forum members. I'd really like to see this build in the flesh. I know stephen is in the general RTP area if memory serves.

Thanks ugaexploder for the shout out and kind words.

[stephen]

Nice ruse. LOL! "Hey honey, I'm doing this for you. No really. Love you!"

Kidding aside, that's a hell of a nice build done to a very high level of quality. I love "DIY" builds like this that are professional level good. Appreciate you posting this here and sharing the journey.

I absolutely love your garage.

I'm in the Statesville area, would love to figure out a time and place to have a meetup / drive with the NC and surrounding area forum members. I'd really like to see this build in the flesh. I know stephen is in the general RTP area if memory serves.

Thanks ugaexploder for the shout out and kind words.

Yeah I'm in the RTP area. Wish I was able to make it to the last meetup you guys had. Looked like a good time.

[Redshift]

She's driving it again while we wait for the s54 and loving it. She may not want to switch to the m2 after all. We shall see.

[nextlvel]

Just subscribed, loving the build so far !

[inlinesix123]

Having cabinets your garage is such a gangster move

[Redshift]

Having cabinets your garage is such a gangster move

That's actually my shop. The "garage" has a few cabinets but it's mostly where we park the bikes and cars.

[Redshift]

Big updates on this project.




Last week I pulled the M54B30 ZHP engine and ZF 6mt in preparation for this past weekend when my friends Paul and Steve from Charlotte came into town to help with the S54 and F80 swap.









This brings us to Saturday morning. Of course you don’t remove an engine without detailing the engine bay and undercarriage of the chassis, now do you?









Time to start getting the parts pile ready for transplant:









Got the low mileage (about 115k) S54 back from Partee Racing (this is the same engine that was in my red M3 touring), fully re-sealed. Every exterior gasket was done.









Also while we have everything apart, it’s time to replace all wear items on the ZF 6-speed for reuse with the S54:









She also got brand new front lower control arms, wheel hubs, wheel bearings, dust caps, all power steering lines, PS reservoir, a restored subframe, engine mounts, header gaskets, and soon a big fat Hotchkis front swaybar to match the rear that is already installed.



















Let’s mount the rear brakes:









Paul swapping the fuel pump to the M3 pump:









Rogue shifter mounted to the transmission:









After starting on Saturday morning, here’s where we ended Saturday evening, ready for Sunday:









Now, Sunday morning!









Now that the front subframe is in, time to start assembling all the new suspension goodies starting with brand new wheel bearings and hubs:









And now the F80 brakes:














A nice underside photo showing how clean everything looks:









Sport button wired up and cluster installed:














Airbox getting ready to go in:









And finally, on Sunday afternoon:

[Bry5on]

Love this. You doing the flap?

[Redshift]

No flap.