Hello and thank you for viewing my offering.

Back in 1998, I ordered a new 318ti for myself, which I still own and drive. But, I was disappointed with the performance- specifically needing to turn off the A/C to merge into highway traffic... And that was brand new! Now these cars have hundreds of thousands of miles on them, and are even more tired than when new. If you can relate to this, keep reading.

I knew the E36 platform was perfect for modifications. It was the first platform fully designed "virtually" by BMW. So, a lot of the platform was carried over from car to car. I am even aware of one German tuner who put the V12 into a Z3...

As soon as my original warranty ran out, I had my engine in the air. In my case, a 1999 M Roadster was the engine donor. I needed to keep OBD-II for emission control restrictions (note my car was still a current model when I did this swap myself) and also to preserve the "driveaway protection" (EWS) functionality. 

I collected all the information I could at the time (which was essentially ZERO), and also worked closely with my local dealer, to get the car wired and back on the road. That took about two months. For several years after that initial drive, I was constantly fighting incompatibility issues, that I had to hunt down and resolve one at a time. It turns out that the root cause was the incompatibility of the M Roadster wiring and DME as compared to the 318ti chassis wiring. It is absolutely essential to have the factory BMW "Electrical Troubleshooting Manual" (ETM) for both the specific ti and the specific donor car, to be successful. If you've done an engine swap in the past, the mechanical is very straight-forward (and clearly detailed in my manual); however, the electrical incompatibilities must be addressed in order for the car to function properly.

Historically (and the first "documented" swap of a 1997 318ti, which was in Bimmer magazine) the car would be converted to OBD-I using a 1995 model year engine and DME. That early OBD-I EWS system was quite crude and easily bypassed. Trouble is, you would not pass emissions that way, unless the car was checked at the tailpipe. It was fine for the track at the time however. If your car was subject to "plug-in" emissions testing, you would never pass.

Now, in the 21-st century, we all know that the OBD-II system is not just a more versatile performance tuning architecture, but the real-time diagnostics capabilities are also very useful for a tracked car. Information can be downloaded to a computer for off-line analysis, if you have the software and ability to do so. Maybe you just want a "clean" install, or still need to satisfy local "plug-in" emission laws. Either way, an OBD-II car should be operating with the OBD-II engine management. Don't try to sell an OBD-II car that has been converted to OBD-I for road use. That could be very bad news depending on the laws of your area as well as those of the buyer's area.

I created this manual, to document what I did, but also to capture useful tips and tricks to make the swap as fast and painless (plus control costs) as possible. Following this, you will have an install that will appear factory-installed. Or, do additional modifications as you see fit. This is just a guide- use it as you need for your specific case.

So, what's the deal here you ask?

Select the year of your ti, and also the year/model of your donor car from the list above, and I will email to you a PDF of the manual (330 pages long) as well as PDFs of the appropriate ETMs for the ti and the donor car. If you order late at night or over the weekend / on holidays, it will be sent the next business day.

Can other donors be used? Certainly. A 1995 ti could be used with a 1995 M3 donor for example. That's an OBD-I swap, and my manual is certainly useful for such a swap but not absolutely essential. There are others offering OBD-I swap information out there. (I do cover the OBD-I swap as a 'glossy overview' in my manual, as a curtesy)

Can an E46 M3 engine be used? Yes; but I do not have the supporting ETMs for the E46 variants. It is possible wire color codes and pin-outs are similar, but I have no idea honestly. It has been done; I'm just not sure how well.

Can the E36 Euro M3 engine be used? Yes, but I have limited Euro ETMs. Contact me directly and I'll help as best I can.

What if I have problems with my swap? I provide a limited support to all manual buyers. I'm certainly not flying out to your place to work out the bugs, but Email support is included. I have run into some unique problems over the years supporting this document, and I integrate them into the latest revision. But, that is not to say you won't find something new... I always suggest fully reading the book through a couple times, to familiarize yourself with the various sections, and vast technical support offered in there, before you start taking stuff apart. I wrote the book to capture the tricks and bugs because I can't remember every one of them!

Best of luck with your swap, and stay safe out there!

DISCLAIMER: I do not work for BMW and this document is not sanctioned or in any way approved by BMW. It is my private work, with contributors being credited where appropriate throughout the book. It is copyrighted material, and it is not to be distributed beyond the original purchaser.

Limit of Liability:

This document has been prepared as a guide to help with the replacement of an engine and associated projects. These tasks can be complex and dangerous. If you are not capable of doing the work described within this document, please seek the help of a professional mechanic. Do not attempt work that is beyond your capability. Neither the originator of this document, nor his family or associates, shall be liable in any way for any losses that work described herein, resulting from, or after the completion of, the installation project may cause, either directly, or indirectly. By accepting ownership of this book, you are bound to these limits of liability.  

Also know that BMW accepts no liability whatsoever for any modifications you may do to your car, and the resultant outcome. You should already know this, but you are on your own out there.

Purchase of the book is not a guarantee of success.