Author Topic: Should i a m42 e36 (Read 11601 times)

beamer814 · « **on:** January 03, 2011, 06:53:27 PM »

Yea i know this has been a question many times before but its mostly never answerd or everyone says the motor has limatations get a 325 or 328 bla bla bla.....
But im looking at 1992 318i 4 door 5 speed for 1200 hundredbucks its supposed to get good gas mileage and be sporty, but ive never owned a e36 only e30's and only 325i/s and there pretty sporty. So am I gonna enjoy this e36 or is it just gonna be something i hate.

If i do buy it plans are
BMW E36 318i/is Apexcone Brand Exhaust 043-PER-5490-5154336318 - DDM Tuning Car Part Store Online
http://millerperformancecars.com/cat...category_id=45
Then pretty much anything that will fit from akg or ireland engeenering
But prob a super charger come this time next year.
power goal for a 2800lb car im hopping to be around 200 +/- a few
also a 9lb flywheel and maybe a rear end with a meaner gear

asubimmer · « **Reply #1 on:** January 03, 2011, 07:52:41 PM »

The m42 in the e36 is pretty slow. It will be fun but...if you want a 4 cylinder I would say go e30 AND if you want an e36 go 325/328. The only exception obv would be a boosted e36 318.

DesktopDave · « **Reply #2 on:** January 03, 2011, 08:25:39 PM »

It's a pretty slow car. 3000-ish pounds is a lot for 134-ish hp. The M42 handles very well though (the motor sits further back and it's lighter than the M50). It's pretty reliable if the timing chain doesn't blow up. The e36 isn't as "lively" as the e30 but it's more comfortable & predictable. No way an e36 318i will stay with an e30 325i, but you'll be laughing at gas stations, an M42 e36 in decent shape does mid-20s city & low-30s highway.

No way you'll get 200hp from an M42, not unless you turbocharge it or swap in a Euro diesel crank & M3 ITB's. The flywheel is a great idea, a short diff works well...but I'd suspect the most a decent M42 will do is about 130rwhp.

Tell you what...buy it & if you don't like it swap an M5x/S5x. Very easy to do in that chassis.

nomade30 · « **Reply #3 on:** January 06, 2011, 05:23:48 PM »

You'll hate it I believe, it's not fast at any means, or even fun to drive.

My e36 325is got 27-29mpg constantly around town and avg'd 32 mpg on my trip to bimmerfest last year. I would say e30's are much more forgiving, you can push border a lot, where as with e36's they can easily be pushed too far and cause you oversteer like a mother bitch.

Oh and you're not gonna get a 4 door e36 down to 2800 and drive it comfortably. Correction the motor does not sit further back, it actually sits farther forward, which brings the transmission forward, it's just not as long. If it was actually pushed back like the six cylinders are the car would handle so much better IMO.

persianbmw · « **Reply #4 on:** January 07, 2011, 12:17:51 PM »

lol its proven that the m42 e36s handle better. he wouldnt be getting it down to 2800 lbs. the car is 2800lbs stock.

that said as much as i love my specific car if i had to do it over id prob get the 325 just because how much greater the aftermarket support is

DesktopDave · « **Reply #5 on:** January 07, 2011, 02:52:35 PM »

This thread has them getting an M42 e36 down around 2600. That's not too much heavier than the 2500-ish stock M42 e30.

I might have to get my car on a truck scale as I have no idea how much it weighs.

-eur04lif3- · « **Reply #6 on:** January 04, 2012, 02:24:39 PM »

i agree with DesktopDave, namade30 & asubimmer...

I own a e36 m42, granted is the 318i so its even heavier than 318is. But its slow, its embarasing. lol
I got it as a graduation gift from my parents, so i cant complain. Its a great daily driver, but thats about all.

bbarnumboy · « **Reply #7 on:** January 10, 2012, 01:57:09 PM »

Just like any 4 cylinder you gotta keep the revs up ;-) they do just fine. I have tracked my E36 318is with some people in the passenger seat who race miatas and such, and they were very impressed at how well the car kept its momentum up all the way through the track for being a 1.8Litre.

DesktopDave · « **Reply #8 on:** January 10, 2012, 07:34:00 PM »

Besides...it's not the car that matters. All that matters is the driver. Take the money you save with a cheap M42 & have some fun with racing classes!

The M42 is faster around a curve than mostly anything if you drive it right. BMWs aren't meant to be dragsters nor luxo-barges. They're an excellent all-round compromise (except for the big fat ugly new ones).

E36-italia · « **Reply #9 on:** January 14, 2012, 11:17:04 AM »

True about the driver.. I have 2 M42 E36 coupes, one for the track (no comfort at all) and one daily.
With the track car I can keep up with 500 Abarths (but not on the straigths).. but that maybe because I have bigger balls

(don't care to kick up dust from the run off area)

My daily isn't that bad, sure it won't beat a civic at the lights from idle... but when does daily power counts.. here in holland its full of speed cameras and such.
Only when i'm in germany i sometime whished it got a bit quicker back to the 200km/h... but for normal shopping duties its fair enough.

fred89 · « **Reply #10 on:** January 31, 2012, 12:07:44 PM »

im pretty sure the e36 has the M44 not the M42. Its basically the same but i think the intake manifold is diff and the upper and lower oil pans are diff because of the steering rack. I loved my 318is e30, but like mentioned above its not the fastest lol.

Slick92GS-R · « **Reply #11 on:** February 07, 2012, 12:18:52 AM »

Oh LAWD please.. as a drivers car .. the E36 M42 is horrible ..SLOW SLOW SLOW .. and stay away from the Automatic version .....

u can flog the piss out of it and still have to watch some blue haired Grandma in an older Buick take your lane away from in a merge situation.
.. Ask me how I know..

the only great thing about an E36 M42.. is that it has the gorgeous lines of the E36 body style.. put some nice late model 17''s and a lowered shock/spring combo.. and get ready for some stares.

Hope this helps

DesktopDave · « **Reply #12 on:** February 07, 2012, 07:13:41 AM »

Quote from: fred89;109917

im pretty sure the e36 has the M44 not the M42. Its basically the same but i think the intake manifold is diff and the upper and lower oil pans are diff because of the steering rack. I loved my 318is e30, but like mentioned above its not the fastest lol.

Not to be an M42 nerd, but the e36 ran both motors, split about halfway through its production. The M42 was installed in the first e36's in late '89 and ran clear until about 11/95...the M44 overlapped, being phased in from about 8/95 IIRC. The M44 is basically a higher efficiency OBDII version of the M42. I'll bet it thrilled the bean counters...cheaper to build, slightly better fuel economy. I suspect the Z3 also ran it for a similar length of time.

Slick92GS-R · « **Reply #13 on:** February 08, 2012, 06:30:25 PM »

Quote from: DesktopDave;110066

Not to be an M42 nerd, but the e36 ran both motors, split about halfway through its production. The M42 was installed in the first e36's in late '89 and ran clear until about 11/95...the M44 overlapped, being phased in from about 8/95 IIRC. The M44 is basically a higher efficiency OBDII version of the M42. I'll bet it thrilled the bean counters...cheaper to build, slightly better fuel economy. I suspect the Z3 also ran it for a similar length of time.

just to add to this brilliant piece of info.. M44 of course, displaces 1.9L

mr.vang · « **Reply #14 on:** February 09, 2012, 11:19:45 AM »

Quote from: Slick92GS-R;110060

Oh LAWD please.. as a drivers car .. the E36 M42 is horrible ..SLOW SLOW SLOW .. and stay away from the Automatic version .....

u can flog the piss out of it and still have to watch some blue haired Grandma in an older Buick take your lane away from in a merge situation.
.. Ask me how I know..

the only great thing about an E36 M42.. is that it has the gorgeous lines of the E36 body style.. put some nice late model 17''s and a lowered shock/spring combo.. and get ready for some stares.

Hope this helps

haha, i should of got a manual. if you're just going to DD then its fine. i myself got an e36 m42 automatic which the tranny suck. i don't see you having any problem with a manual though. they are not that bad, its not like your racing from lights to lights.

Author Topic: Should i a m42 e36 (Read 11601 times)

-eur04lif3-