Author Topic: E36 M42 and ltw flywheels? (Read 3195 times)

Kingsly · « **on:** October 13, 2008, 07:37:44 PM »

Hi all, long time member over on BF.c, first time on M42club.

After digging around in your forum for a few days I've gotten excited all over again about my "lowly" 4 pot. (we take a helluva beating over on BF.c

)

Anyway, I'm very interested in getting a ltw flywheel and rediscovering the awesomeness of 1st and 2nd gear! I am about to order a new sachs clutch from a 328i from a fellow bf.c member... if I'm dropping the tranny anyway I may as well seize the opportunity to go ltw.

I've read about E30 flywheels, E36 flywheels, etc, and, frankly, my head is spinning from it all! What should I be looking at for a ltw swap? :confused:

Thanks!

Hodge · « **Reply #1 on:** October 13, 2008, 10:56:05 PM »

Well, I don't have any experience other than my own setup:

1) UUC 11.5# flywheel
2) E34M5 Clutch disc
3) E36M3 Pressure Plate
4) E36M3 Slave Cylinder

#1-3 aka UUC Stage 1 kit (I bought from understeer.com)

It feels awsome. Car definitely revs better, and just feels alot happier. Throttle response also improved a bit as well. Great mod to do IMO, especially if you are in there. I could have gone lighter on the flywheel, but I felt that it was not worth the extra money, and that it would probably hurt the daily driveability of the car. The drivetrain rattles alot, but I don't really care. It also rattles a bit at certain RPM levels, but it doesn't really bother me. Car is already so damn loud and drivetrain wise is very tight. It works well for both duties.

I use the car for our BMWCCA Auto-X as well, and the setup feels great. Clutch really grabs nicely.

NOTE: If you get an M3, 328i, M5, etc clutch and pressure plate, make sure you get an M3 slave cylinder unless you like really hard clutch pedals.

Kingsly · « **Reply #2 on:** October 14, 2008, 01:20:29 AM »

Going with E36 parts I assume it's all bolt on? Did you have to modify the starter or tob?

Hodge · « **Reply #3 on:** October 14, 2008, 09:54:10 AM »

No. All bolt on stuff.

Kingsly · « **Reply #4 on:** October 14, 2008, 02:28:58 PM »

So it appears that flywheel mods are much easier on an E36 than on an E30? According to UUC, their flywheel is bolt on for any E36. Make sense?

Hodge · « **Reply #5 on:** October 14, 2008, 10:59:40 PM »

Yes, all of their E36 Flywheels bolt to any E36 model (US Spec)

The E36 318's and 325's used the exact same tranny (Getrag 250G) and the 328's and M3's used the ZF tranny. But they are all interchangeable.

With E30's you can do an M20 flywheel conversion, but it requires gathering more parts, than just buying a kit. They also make flywheels for the E30 M42 as well.

szed03 · « **Reply #6 on:** October 17, 2008, 11:28:25 PM »

I went with a JB Racing flywheel from Bimmerworld. VERY nice and light unit at 9lbs. I'm running the stock Sachs clutch kit. Revs like there's no tomorrow. However I'm getting some very harsh trans noise at the moment, similar to what Hodge mentioned earlier. It was present with the stock dual mass but that same noise is much louder with the ltw flywheel and occurs between 2500-3000rpms mainly during deceleration/engine braking. I'm at my wits end diagnosing it.

If you're going with the 240mm 6cyl clutch, you'll need to get the 6cyl flywheel. Fidanza is another option, weighing in at 13lbs. Some of the guys on the "Track" forum on BF.C have experienced flywheel bolts backing out on UUC flywheels. No definitive explanation/reason other than the fact that everything was ok after switching to a different flywheel.

nicknikolovski · « **Reply #7 on:** October 18, 2008, 05:23:23 AM »

I heard that running a lightweight flywheel reduces the ability to use engine braking? Is this true?

They will definently be louder in operation as they are used for racing where driveline noise doesn't matter.

As for the flywheel bolts backing out, I would always use Loctite on the threads and always torque the bolts to spec.

szed03 · « **Reply #8 on:** October 18, 2008, 03:42:36 PM »

Quote from: nicknikolovski;58792

I heard that running a lightweight flywheel reduces the ability to use engine braking? Is this true?

They will definently be louder in operation as they are used for racing where driveline noise doesn't matter.

As for the flywheel bolts backing out, I would always use Loctite on the threads and always torque the bolts to spec.

Not necessarily. Either way, braking with the brakes rather than the engine is a much wiser choice.

I have a hard time believing my noise to be "normal". But we shall see...

Yea the guys having issues with the bolts backing out did use high temp-high strength loctite. That was with the UUC flywheels from what I've read.