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Andrew's Defender 90 NAS 3.2i Project

308K views 1K replies 99 participants last post by  Chip 
#1 · (Edited)
Hey everyone,
This is going to be my project thread for the ongoing restoration of my 1994 Defender 90. I'm building it as a tribute to one of the lost NAS 90 2.8i prototypes. It will be very similar to one of those original trucks that came out of BMW's Rosslyn plant in South Africa, except it will be left-hand drive, have a 3.2L S52 engine with all USA emissions equipment, and some other improvements such as ABS with traction control. It is being modeled after the later 2000 model year 2.8i.

Note: Before you continue reading keep in mind many decisions were changed as this build evolved over the years.



I bought this truck in 2012 and I've been fixing it up a little here and there since with the ultimate goal of returning it to it's former glory, but with some improvements. :)

I've always been a BMW guy and this is my first Land Rover. I've always wanted a Defender though. Before I was old enough to drive I remember sitting in one and dreaming at the auto show when they were new. My dad told me, "This is a real Land Rover." One of the biggest things that drew me to BMW though was their engines. I think they are great. And since I've had the Defender I've been thinking about putting a BMW engine in it. I've done an engine conversion before so I knew mostly what it would entail. I had a 88 325is that I swapped a S54 from a E46 M3. (Build thread here: Andrew's S54 Swap - R3VLimited Forums) The S54 is one of my favourite BMW engines, but as a high-revving motorsport engine I felt it wouldn't be appropriate for a 4x4 vehicle, so I decided that a 3.0L M54 should go in the Defender (I later changed my mind to the 3.2L S52 as you will see farther into the thread due to technical difficulties related to CAN bus).

Luckily most of the major parts to do the conversion from the V8 are factory items since Land Rover built the M52 powered Defender 2.8i in South Africa and the M51 diesel powered P38 Range Rover so very little custom work will be needed. I originally sourced an M51 P38 bell housing from the UK, but I discovered it is different from the 2.8i bell housing. I was able to find one of those in South Africa. (The clutch housing is the same, but the bell housing piece closer to the gearbox is different.)

I bought a new Valeo clutch kit and LuK dual mass flywheel from the UK.



Because my truck is left-hand drive the location of the steering box will be in the way of the power steering pump on the BMW engine, so I am installing a P38 steering box. I will also need to relocate the alternator higher up.

This week I started the work and yesterday I got the old engine out. :)





 
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#13 ·
Dave, no worries...we know your skills haven't quite reached his level...:rolleyes

------ Follow up post added July 10th, 2014 02:30 PM ------

How do you stay so well-coiffed during a motor pull?

I cant do a thing with my hair...

Nice Bimmer.


.
I'm glad to see someone other than myself with nice hair like that! Very brave of you to do a mod of this type, wish it was on a salvage, but to each his own! will be following with interest and I like the other thread also!! :thumb::popcorn:
 
#15 ·
Andrew, take the ribbing from these guys with a grain of salt and know that it would be a lot worse if they didn't respect you just a little but for doing your own wrenching.

You may as well replace the top end gaskets and PCV breather kit on that M54 while you're in there! Otherwise it's a solid lump for sure. I wanted to transplant an M54 into my '73 E9 but it would have been so costly that I might as well went with a full on S38 swap. It's nice that you were able to locate the bellhousing etc. that makes a huge difference when you don't have to have stuff fabricated.
Good luck with the rest of the build
 
#20 ·
Okay. :)
That stuff won't be too hard to get to later on so I'll just leave it for now since the engine has low miles. We just replaced an engine in a E46 328i because it failed due to a bad CCV, so I know about the problem. I guess it kinda turned the oil into mayonnaise during a cold snap this past winter and injected it into the cylinders and exhaust. After I get the engine started I'll put a balloon over the dipstick tube and see if it inflates. :) So did you put the S38 in your E9?

------ Follow up post added July 11th, 2014 10:26 AM ------

Interesting, one of my mechanics is doing a similar build using a M54 older version, but then the M version. Probably will be the only M powered Defender.
That's very cool. Will he be using it for racing? A guy in South Africa built one with a M engine. I guess the M engine's bearings didn't take too kindly to the off-road treatment though and he tore up some R380's. See my post about it here: http://www.defendersource.com/forum/showpost.php?p=540463&postcount=34
 
#23 ·
The TD5 pedal provides two signals so that's a start. What kind of signal is the BMW expecting? The TD5 basically has 2 potentiometers that give inverse voltages that ad up to the input voltage. So if you gave it 12V, the sum of the two signals will be 12V (or some constant fraction close to 12V)

I paid way too much for my connectors, but once I had them in hand, they appear to be Delphi 12065425.
 
#24 ·
Thanks for the help, but I'll just use the BMW gas pedal. I don't want to risk damaging the ECU.

------ Follow up post added July 11th, 2014 10:58 PM ------

The pedal in the new BMW i3 has a couple little brackets, so I might order those to help get me started.

 
#25 ·
I would personally research the bmw needs more myself. What's the model # for the ECU and the pedal? It's very hard to hurt the ECU unless you get the voltage wrong. The defender TD5 uses 5V for example.

It's your build so just take it with a grain of salt, but besides being much more durable, the TD5 pedal will have the right foot resistance and pedal travel to fit in with the other pedals. I don't think you'll like the feel of the BMW pedal in the defender - the seating position is totally different.
 
#27 ·
Yes, that's true. It'll probably work out okay though. Land Rover put the BMW pedal in the L322 Range Rover. The pedal I bought is part # 35426858575. The ECU is a Siemens MS43 from a 2002 330i.

------ Follow up post added July 12th, 2014 02:10 PM ------

I would consider swapping the steering box to a P38a or scout II steering box. They mount outside the rails. Having owned a DBW 530i, the pedal mounting will be interesting to say the least with the shape of the D90 bulkhead.
I've considered using the P38 steering box, but I'd like to avoid doing that if I can. I'm not sure how I'd avoid running into a problem with the panhard rod bracket. If I can't fit the alternator, I'll mount it on the other side of the engine, but then of course I couldn't fit the A/C compressor. I've been trying to decide whether I want to keep A/C and I believe I do. If I have to mount the alternator there then it looks like I could probably get an electric A/C compressor from a Toyota Prius.

 
#37 · (Edited)
The wiring diagram for the TD5 pedal doesn't give very much info and it has a different number of wires compared to the BMW pedal. Do you know what each wire is?
Here's the TD5 accelerator pedal wiring diagram:



Now, I've looked up the diagram for the TDCi/Puma accelerator pedal and it looks like it may be more compatible. It has 6 wires just like the BMW gas pedal and it tells you what the wires are. Except I don't know what those terms mean. Can you tell if 2 are voltage supply (output from DME), 2 are signal (input to DME), and 2 are ground like on the BMW pedal?

Here's the TDCi/Puma accelerator pedal wiring diagram:



------ Follow up post added July 18th, 2014 01:32 PM ------

It looks like the TDCi/Puma pedal is a Ford design. I found this in regards to the pedal in the Ford Escape:

"There are two pedal position signals in the sensor. Both signals, APP1 and APP2, have a positive slope (increasing angle, increasing voltage), but are offset and increase at different rates. The two pedal position signals make sure the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) receives a correct input even if one signal has a concern. The PCM determines if a signal is incorrect by calculating where it should be, inferred from the other signals. If a concern is present with one of the circuits the other input is used. There are two reference voltage circuits, two signal return circuits, and two signal circuits (a total of six circuits and pins) between the PCM and the APP sensor assembly. " -From AutoZone

It doesn't say anything about 2 of them being ground, but are the "two signal return circuits" grounds? Because according to the Lucas wire colour code, SIGRTN and SIGRTN4 should be grounds, correct?

So based on the diagram and Ford's description this is what I have:
-APP1 and APP2 are signals
-The 2 APPBVREF's are voltage supply
-SIGRTN and SIGRTN4 are ground

Think that is correct?

But then I am unsure which APPBVREF and which SIGRTN corresponds to which APP, or if it matters.
 
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