Has anyone done a manual tranny swap on there 3.0 E53?
 

I have been searching and I can not find anyone that has done that with the 3.0 e53. I have seen people do it on my e46 forum but not here.

I hope to swap mine one day and want to spend as much time as possible learning about this.

( yeah I know I their and there is not the same but I dont know how to edit it)

I have

Are you really the only one that has done something like this? Uh oh, I wonder if it is harder than doing on an e46 330xi.

It is probably close to the same amount of work as the e46. Everything bolts in for the most part. Parts are the biggest cost by far. You need to source most of the parts from junk yards. I was actually surprised how easy it was once you have the parts.

I just bought my E53 with a manual trans already lol

If one were to undertake that swap, I would rec'd using the newer 6 speed MT vs the 5 speed MT...

Those of us with the 5 Spd MT enjoy it, but the 6 Spd has a slightly overdriven 6th gear which makes for more comfortable/slightly lower RPMs at highway speeds.

Sounds like a lot of sourcing and work. Maybe just hunt for a manual trans X...
GL, mD

Using car-part.com I have found some manual tranny parts locally. It actually seems easier to swap the car than to find one in the right condition at the right price with the manual tranny. Of course, if I stumble on one here locally I will buy and sell the AT x5.

Then I just might supercharge this thing to have the same power as the 4.4 but with the manual tranny.

Squid, lets do this brother. I've done the manual conversion on e30's and e36's. Go with the 6 speed. I think you can also go with the e83 X3 6speed. Gearing is much better. Supercharged M54 would be sick. I'm loving the idea of a twinscrew. Keep me posted buddy.

I'd love to drop 5300 on the ESS supercharger, swap 4.4 diffs for 3.64 gearing, and have daily driven reliable POWER in my manual E53

What will the 3.64 do for you? Gas mileage?