'01 X5 3.0i engine replacement project
 

As mentioned in my post here http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...ck-x5-3-a.html , I am replacing the M54 in this X5 with another M54. The original motor has a cracked head/bad head gasket, so it is easier, quicker, and cheaper to swap in a known good motor than to fix the current one.

The motor was purchased from a salvage yard that sells on ebay and has good feedback. I was able to get the engine out of a '02 530i with 107k miles that had been rear ended and totaled. The motor was tested before removal and has a 6 month warranty. Price with freight shipping was $890, which isn't a bad price for a relatively low mileage M54B30.

Not much to show as of yet, since we just started the process last night. First thing to do was get the replacement engine prepped.

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Valve cover removed...things look nice and clean.
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Intake manifold, all wiring, and oil filter housing removed.
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So far I replaced the valve cover gasket and installed new spark plugs. The hard plastic coolant lines have been removed, and we degreased the engine the best we could. Tonight I will install the new coolant pipes, new water pump and thermostat, replace the oil filter housing gasket and reinstall the housing. The Vanos solenoids will be removed and cleaned liberally with carb cleaner to prevent any sticking.

While I am dong this, my friend that is part owner of the shop we are using will be prepping the X5 for engine removal. Our goal is to have the new engine in and running by this Sunday evening. i'll try to take plenty of pictures and keep the thread updated on our progress as time permits.

That a good price for that engine. You are going to have lots of fun. Keep us posted on the progress

This sounds fun....and something I was hoping to do starting in Dec. Post lots of pics. There are many interesting interchange and upgrades you could do as well, particularly if the thing is out of the car.

Update on the project: We worked from 6pm Friday evening to 2am Saturday morning, then started again around 11am Saturday and had to stop around 4:30 that afternoon. We actually got a great deal accomplished, although we aren't yet finished. I think we made the correct choice of dropping the subframe and removing the engine and transmission as a unit, however it definitely is difficult to move everything around and get it into position. I wish we had a better system, but all we had were two floor jacks and a transmission jack. It works, but I wish it was easier. Now, onto the pictures.

We got started Friday by putting the X5 on the lift, and removed the exhaust, disconnected the driveshaft, disconnected the shifter cable and the brake calipers.
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We then disconnected all of the wiring harnesses from the e-box and laid it on top of the engine. The radiator and all associated cooling components were removed. I had hoped we wouldn't have to open the AC system, but even with the compressor moved in every direction it wouldn't allow the engine to clear the body. Not a huge deal, as we used a Snap-On AC recovery/recharge system to pull all refrigerant before removal-and will use it again to refill the system when done.

Once everything was disconnected, we lowered the lift to put the subframe on jackstands, removed the 6 bolts holding the subframe to the chassis, and the bolts holding the transmission crossmember to the body...and then unbolted the upper strut mounts. It was now time to lift the body from the subframe assembly.
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And, it's out.
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Once that was done, we immediately started pulling the parts we would be swapping from the original motor to the replacement...such as the intake manifold assembly, alternator, pulleys, etc.

This is the replacement engine with some of the swapped parts installed.
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Next, we separated the transmission from the engine.
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We then removed the old engine from the subframe so we could make room for the replacement engine when the time comes.
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With that, we called it a night...or rather morning, as it was almost 2am Saturday morning.

We got started today around 11am. The main goal was to get the oil pan swapped over, all wiring back onto the replacement engine, reinstall the transmission onto the engine and get the entire assembly attached back to the chassis. We almost reached our goal...

Oil pan removed from the original engine. This is actually after cleaning most of the milkshake out of the pan...it was terrible.
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Oil pan cleaned and ready to install.
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But before we put it on, we decided to quickly weld the oil pump nut to prevent it from coming off. This is a problem on the M54B30 engines, so best to take care of it while you have access.
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Oil pan installed.
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After that was finished, we finished up installing the engine harness and other items on the engine. We put it back on the subframe and re-installed the transmission.
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And this is where we had to end. We got the assembly positioned under the chassis, and lowered the X5 back down but weren't able to bolt everything back together today. We plan to start back on it tomorrow morning, with the goal being to drive it out of the shop tomorrow evening. Keeping our fingers crossed!

Solid work. I'm glad to see you are making good progress. What are you doing with the old block?

That's a good question...it really depends on a few things. Once all of this is completed and I have some time, I am going to remove the head from the block to see what is cracked, warped, etc. If the block isn't warped, and if the rod and crank bearings don't show signs of damage, then I will reuse it. I may have access to a good cylinder head shortly, and if that's the case I may install it on this engine and have it around as a spare.

If the block is too far gone, I will probably scrap it for the aluminum. That would be a shame, as I the only time I have been able to drive the X5 was the 2 miles from my house to the shop where we are doing the work. It ran perfectly fine...no odd noises, no vibrations, and the power was fine. I would surely like to reuse it if possible.

that's a lot of progress. good job .

Great post and great pics! :) Do you think pulling it out from bottom with subframe was easier than pulling out from the front ?

Overall, yes I think so. I got the idea from Nathan's DIY Garage YouTube channel, where he was pulling a motor in an E53 4.4i in his yard. He said he's done it both ways and this way was the best.

The only issue is that it is one big assembly, so you need a large area and a few jacks to be able to make it work. Having the use of a shop with a lift, engine hoist, engine stand, and every tool you'd ever want made it easier in this instance...but it still wasn't really easy regardless.

I'll have an official update later as I'm about to reinstall the exhaust. Yes it's running and it's running perfectly! It will be tomorrow before I can drive it but so far this are going well.

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Well that is awesome.

I think I might use the wired safety nut on the oil pump instead of welding. I hear if you have to come back in for it after its welded you have to walk it off in some rather long procedure.

Can you tell us what adapter/bolts you used to bolt the engine to the stand?

I trust you generously greased the splines on your front driveshaft before reassembly. One of your first photos seemed to show a fair amount of rust there that could indicate advanced internal wear of the splines. Great job with the thread though.

2002 X5 3.0 307,700 miles
2014 428i 21,200 miles

2004 325i sold at 123,600 miles
2001 325i sold at 66,000 miles

1970 Firebird - Under restoration

The longest I could find at the local hardware store was M12 with 1.75 thread pitch, 90mm length. Those worked, but my friend had some that were more like 130mm long. I am not sure where he got them, but they were way more than long enough. The 90mm did work, but I did like the longer length of the longer bolts.

Actually, I am somewhat ashamed to say that I didn't. I honestly didn't even thing about it..I was more worried about getting everything back together. I will probably have to replace both of the outer boots soon, so at that time I will pull them back out and grease them properly.

At around 4pm today, we officially finished the engine swap. I spent the day reinstalling the passenger drive axle (it gave me fits, so we wound up removing the shaft from the hub and it popped right in), then changing the transmission filter and added new Valvoline synthetic fluid. I had just one oops moment...during the final fill of the transmission, one of the lines popped loose from the transmission heat exchanger. After a few minutes of messing with it, we got it to properly seat and it hasn't come loose since.

The X5 is now running perfectly...I got very lucky with the motor, as it runs super smooth with no issues. I've got one SES code popping up, and it is the evap purge valve. No big deal, as I have a few good spares lying around. I will change it in the next few days. At least it isn't something like a vacuum leak, which can be difficult to diagnose.

Sorry but I don't have any pictures today...there really isn't much to show now that everything is back together. I have a few other items to address soon, as it now needs an alignment and new tires. There are other plans for it in the coming year, but they will have to wait as time and the budget allow.

So far, I have a total for $3200 in the purchase, a replacement 107k mile motor with all new cooling system and other new maintenance parts. Not too bad for a pretty clean '01 X5. But what really matters is the wife is happy with her new ride!

Congrats, good to see you got it done without much drama! :thumbup:

Congrats and good posting images. Hopefully it will inspire a few others to join in the E53 X5 ownership experience on vehicles that need a little extra work to make serviceable.

Happy wife, happy life! :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance: