Bmw 2.4td

nitec

Vendor
Joined
Jan 30, 2006
Location
Ottawa, ON
TDI
1.9TDi PD
Eurotrash Motorsports: M21 2.4TD into an E23 7 series...

Not your usual TDIclub thread...and not the usual place to find yourself a good diesel engine...


so what is under the hood you ask?
well it's a BMW 2.4TD M21 engine...all 150k original kms of it :)


looks like back in the mid 80s, Ford purchased 3000 of these babies and dropped them into some Lincolns...pulled it out yesterday

turns out they also used the original BMW transmissions too :)

therefore - direct swap into anything BMW from the early 80s to mid 90s
on the lookout for a receptor chassis right now - can't seem to make up my mind...320s and 520s are a direct swap but a 7 series would be oh so sweet...
stay tuned - this should be a lot of fun....turbo is a T3 from what I can see so a Holset fits nice and tight in there...engine doesn't have an IC from the factory so I`ll put one in, bigger injectors and oh look at that - a Cummins fuel pump is pretty much a direct fit - this is already a straight 6...
 
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TomJD

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2010
Location
St. Louis
TDI
2000 Jetta TDI GLS, 2015 Golf TDI
Now find parts...The rare diesels are cool, but hard to work on.
 

nitec

Vendor
Joined
Jan 30, 2006
Location
Ottawa, ON
TDI
1.9TDi PD
That Lincoln was done - not worth repairing...The engine, however is in like new condition...
Now let's play a little game I like to call "What's under the snow?"


picked her up today for 500$ :) 180k original kms...body and underside are very clean with small exceptions...interior is like new!






 

jck66

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 4, 2001
Location
Greenwich, CT, USA
TDI
12 Passat SE / 14 BMW 535d
That's pretty cool - you'll end up with a car the same size as or smaller than the current NMS TDI Passat but probably more robust and reliable and cheaper to own. Not to mention RWD. Thumbs up!
 

mrspindlelegs

Active member
Joined
Jun 28, 2004
Location
Shelbyville, IN
TDI
Golf TDI, 2004, Reflex Silver
Those 2.4 TD engines are very prone to blowing head gaskets due to poor heat dissipation so don't count on them being very reliable.
 

nitec

Vendor
Joined
Jan 30, 2006
Location
Ottawa, ON
TDI
1.9TDi PD
interesting...as far as I know that engine is pretty much identical to their M20, which is bulletproof...diesels produce less heat than their gas counterparts so I'd be surpised to see this give me headgasket issues...mind you if I`m not lazy I`ll refresh all gaskets just for piece of mind but the engine ran very well so perhaps I `ll keep it together for now..

good to know anyways - I've never dealt with BMW cars/engines before so the learning curve would be steep...
 

nitec

Vendor
Joined
Jan 30, 2006
Location
Ottawa, ON
TDI
1.9TDi PD
1986 735i - E23 chassis....the M30B34 engine was the only North American option offered - interestingly enough, the same engine in EU is pushing an extra 30hp...they had to put cats and reduce the compression for the NA market...
 

bhtooefr

TDIClub Enthusiast, ToofTek Inventor
Joined
Oct 16, 2005
Location
Newark, OH
TDI
None
Indirect injection diesels actually put a TON of heat into the head, due to the prechambers or swirlchambers.

Even the VW IDI diesels were known for warping and cracking heads because of that.

There's a reason why the VR6 launched as a 2.8 gas engine, not a 2.3 IDI NA diesel. (And by the time VW had direct injection figured out for a Golf-class car, turbocharging was cheap enough that they didn't see the need to do a VR6 diesel any more.)
 

nitec

Vendor
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Jan 30, 2006
Location
Ottawa, ON
TDI
1.9TDi PD
cleared up a few cars from the garage so it's time to dig in...

hmmm...some Ford components apparently:





figured we'd take most things off for a good clean up...





going in for a new timing belt and crank seals



making a list of parts and going shopping...will have to figure out what to do with the engine mounts...
 

RDC98tdi

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2009
Location
Louisville KY
TDI
'13 Jetta 6MT Prem / (RIP) '98 Jetta 5MT [280k+mi]
I'm pretty excited to see the end result and hope you don't abandon like the 68 Camaro TDI guy did :p
 

LRTDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 15, 2002
Location
Red Sox Nation
TDI
RIP 16 GSW... Just the LR diesel now
Used in Range Rovers briefly as well. Only in Europe. BMW gave Ford and Land Rover the engine they stopped using....
 

k1xv

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2009
Location
southern Vermont
TDI
09 TDI sedan, sold back 12/16. Present cars 2013 BMW X5 diesel, 2015 Corvette convertible
I was considering getting one of those Lincoln BMWs, but in the end got something else. I remember I used to see one on the street in Dover NJ, some old duffer drove it.
 

nitec

Vendor
Joined
Jan 30, 2006
Location
Ottawa, ON
TDI
1.9TDi PD
there's no going back folks...we gotta finish this car so I can get the garage back...my dad is a strange bird - always complaining when I spill a little drop of oil but taking this engine apart, he's spilled ALL of the engine oil and ALL of the transmission oil all over the garage floor...it's like an oil swimming pool in there :) oh wait - he also did that in the drive way...lol

hit the first wall yesterday - NO parts for 524d at my parts guy - we`ll have to cheat...tranny is used on the 525 as well, most of the engine stuff is the same as the M20 gasser as well so we`ll be able to push forward...only thing that I`ll have to order is the timing belt kit - I can't match that to anything else right now...anyways pics for clicks...









rad out...going from an M30 to an M20 will free up some awesome space up front...the stock M21 doesn't have an IC but I plan to fit one up there...I think Ill be looking for a nice stock rad size Volvo unit



tranny's out for a clean up...





weather permitting - the M30 is coming out today...quite an involved process actually - these BMWs are closed off at the front so unfortunately we can't take the whole lump out...the tranny needs to come off first and then the engine comes out the top - stupid BMWs lol
 

nitec

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Jan 30, 2006
Location
Ottawa, ON
TDI
1.9TDi PD
hahahaha...

I would normally agree with this but frankly - this is a weekend cruiser for my dad...nuff said...he just wants an old school diesel boat to make him smile on sundays :) the transmission won't matter much...
 

RDC98tdi

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2009
Location
Louisville KY
TDI
'13 Jetta 6MT Prem / (RIP) '98 Jetta 5MT [280k+mi]
Man, I am jealous. This is the exact type of project I would love to literally get my hands dirty with. Good work and keep the updates frequent for those of us doing this vicariously through you haha.
 

nitec

Vendor
Joined
Jan 30, 2006
Location
Ottawa, ON
TDI
1.9TDi PD
some tranny differences...looks like the back plate simply swaps over - I wonder if Lincoln had to extend the shaft to fit their driveline...probably not a BMW OEM extension piece...



phew...

#1 lesson learned - CUT THE DAMN CROSS BAR AT THE FRONT OF THE CAR!!!



argued all day with my dad that we should cut that off and just pull the engine out forward as opposed to upward...we could have done it in one go and not take the tranny off. He insisted he wanted to keep it together so we had to take the tranny off in less than 2 ft of clearance under the car - I`m surprised it didn't break our hands when it finally came off...I made it clear that when the diesel`s coming in he's either cutting that bar or he's doing it by himself....such clean entry into the bay with this thing off...it's removable on my Audis (at least anything newer than 88) and I`m pretty sure BMW smartened up about it as well later on...

next steps:
- clean up/degrease/repaint the engine bay
- replace all gaskets/seals on the transmission
- replace all gaskets/seals on the engine
- timing belt
- install
- enjoy :)

as of right now the mounts are the only question mark...by the looks it, the bay the geometry is the same as the 5 series...

Here's a touring M50 auto:


and a sedan M30 manual:



it looks like I should be able to use engine brackets from a 5 series M20 (M50) setup into this...I`ll have to dig a little more but I`m hopeful...the I`ll have to use a 5 series oil pan as well - the one from the Lincoln will not work guaranteed
 
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nitec

Vendor
Joined
Jan 30, 2006
Location
Ottawa, ON
TDI
1.9TDi PD
scored an oil pan from a 325...turns out it was cracked...

then scored an oil pan from a 528 - awesome! unfortunately the mounts from the 528 that I was banking on won't work - they don't bolt to the block at all...regardless - pushing forward...replaced most gaskets and bearings and started putting everything back together:



oil pump from the 325...the original Lincoln one was modified to fit the custom pan with dual chambers...this one is bolt on and works with the original BMW pan











got most exhaust manifold studs off - 3 are being stubborn...I think I`ll leave them there - not in the mood to be drilling them out if they end up snapping...3 out of 10 is not too bad...using new gaskets from a 325 gasser - the ports are identical



next weekend we`ll try to close all of this off, mount the tranny up and drop the engine in the bay...once the mounts are fabbed up the car will be fairly close to running - not much in terms of wiring for these old coal burners...if we get this started before September I`ll be a very happy camper
 
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