BMW S65 MT in a 33 Ford

[In33anity]

As this is an S65 forum and I’m moving into the mock-up phase of the performance aspects of my S65 based project, I thought its time to introduce it to this forum. I’ve been lurking around this site (and that other one) for the past several months as I’ve been thinking forward, while I’ve been busy doing the heavy lifting of fabricating motor and transmission mounts, building the rear cradle of the chassis to accept the subframe, etc., all to accept the complete drivetrain of a 14.6K mile wrecked manual trans 2008 e90 M3 into a 1933 based Ford Hot Rod. Have had a buildpage up on the ffcars.com forum documenting progress, a site more targeted to builders

By way of background, as a 1970’s teen, I purchased a 66 Buick Riviera with a 425 nailhead that was wrecked in a head on collision for $75. Spent the next two years, while waiting to get my license, completely rebuilding the car and souping up the drivetrain. Car went super fast, but only in a straight line. When I blew the engine some months after it was on the road, I picked up a Triumph TR-6, 2400 pounds with a straight 6 and dual carbs. I bored and stroked the engine and did a full frame off restoration in my parents garage. The car was fast and with its IRS and large heavily cambered rear wheels could handle curves like it was on rails - - I fell in love with that top down two seater sportscar ride at high speed!!!!!


The result was that for the next three and a half decades I have had the dream of building a lightweight American Hot Rod body matched with a European sports car drivetrain and suspension to get both the performance and look I wanted. Life (career, kids, marriage) intervened and that dream was put on hold. When a few years ago my kids sent me to Skip Barber's formula racing school at Laguna as a father's day present, a long dormant itch was really awakened.


About two years ago, when my youngest went away to school (and long-since divorced), started to think I had the time to do this project and began looking in earnest at drivetrains and suspension packages. Before long I was bidding on Copart on wrecked e9x M3’s. Wasn’t as sure of the chassis I’d use as a starting point, but just after I found a low mileage complete drivetrain at the right price, came across an article on Bret Voelkel’s Ridetech 1933 Ford Hot Rod beating a Lambo on the track at 204 mph and the handling he got from a Factory Five 1933 Ford with its tubular spaceframe chassis and the plan was complete: a car weighing 2100 pounds with an S65, the manual 6 (just more fun in a hot rod IMHO) and the full 5-link 3.85 geared M3 rear in a fenderless 1933 Ford Roadster. Even luckier that the donor S65 already had the Gintani rear exhaust and I was blown away by that sound.

In short, the basic theme of the project is a street legal hot rod that has that traditional hot rod look from 20 feet away – no roof, hood, fenders, very sparse racecar like interior, light on creature comforts, monster rear and littler front wheels, etc, with no clue as to its supercar handling and performance. I found a set of HRE wheels on EBAY off a wrecked Lamborghini (same 5 x 120 bolt pattern as BMW) that was OEM matched for 200 plus mile performance with just the right track width for the ff chassis, traction patch and that hot rod look of monster wheels in the back and smaller up front: 19 X 13.5 (335/30/19) rears and 18 X 8.5 (235/35/18) fronts. Have time to decide on tires, but current thought is the Nitto NT05’s.


Before I started I had read every post on S65/85 swaps and potential swaps and knew how rare they were, but until I got into it did not have a full appreciation for how every single tab, bracket, attachment point, pulley, etc etc etc would have to be custom built to make the project work. I now have a bandsaw, plasma cutter, 230 volt welder and milling machine in my garage (and thanks to the Artic Vortex this year, a new 80,000 BTU garage heater!) all getting a workout almost every weekend as I fabricate and frequently re-fabricate each and every part until it is just right functionally and aesthetically to my eye (this is after all my project).


While this has become my own private version of a midlife climb to the peak of Mount Everest, no expedition has ever been successful without some incredible supporters, whose roles are invaluable. I was lucky to find a BMW dealer tech on Craigslist who loves the concept and the project and helping out when he can. In addition, I’ve been blessed with a group of supporting vendors that are all car guys, willing to provide advice and insight and support that goes way beyond providing parts. You wouldn’t climb to the top of Everest without the advice and support of those that have been there before, and the success of this project is no different.


Well-known in this community, Active Autowerke and VAC Motorsports are providing invaluable support and fantastic products, understanding that I am doing the installation myself yet over-enthusiastically providing advice and a sounding board (plus, plus, plus!!!) for all the tweaks necessary for this project to work. This week I am anxiously waiting for the first wave of AA’s stage II, Level II supercharger kit, and VAC’s studs and bearings to be delivered and will be removing the oil pan to ship to VAC for baffling (with much more to come from each of them). I’m getting similar fantastic support from the teams at Factory Five and The Driveshaft Shop who is building the custom Driveshaft. I’m in the process of finalizing several others who I’ll post about later.


As far as the S65 goes, besides the AA SC and the VAC bearings and baffle, I am firming up plans on a Pectel based SQ6 standalone. Milling my own remote oil filter set-up as none are commercially available and I need to get the filter out of the way so I have room for an alternator as the chassis is too narrow up front to fit one in the low OEM position. I will be making my own billet brackets to run the alternator (probably Jones Racing or March) above the passenger side valve cover symmetrical to the Rotrex C38. Made my own aluminum engine mounts and a new crossmember to work with the Vorshlag poly’s.


A rod with an open engine bay and an 18” wide grille commands equal attention to aesthetics and the challenges that brings. I am super stoked about the look of Active’s kit, particularly the plenum. It’s being shipped to me raw for the mock-up/get the motor running phase and will then go back to them for their amazing finish work when I tear the project down and send the chassis out for powdercoat. The challenge in the coming weeks is to get the intercooler and radiator and the tubing/piping mocked up so it all has that hot rod look in an installation where there is no place to hide and everything is on display.


Some specs:


Engine – BMW S65 with AA gen II, Level II SC, VAC bearings and baffled pan, remote oil filter, standalone ECU. AA kit estimated at 640 hp and 413 lb/ft torque (plus effects of deleting power steering pump, AC compressor and secondary air system and added benefits of a standalone)


Trans – BMW Getrag six speed manual


Driveshaft – custom by The Driveshaft Shop


Rearend/suspension – BMW 3.85 5-link IRS, with OEM subframe and differential mounted with Turner’s solid subframe and diff bushings in a handfabricated cradle, RuffStuff off-road shock towers, and custom true coilovers


Front suspension – Factory Five unequal length a-arm control arms with in-board coil-over shock suspension


Steering - Ididit shorty tilt steering column and Unisteer electric power steering unit


Pedals – Tilton triple floor mount with drive by wire assembly


Brakes – Wilwood 12.69" rotors with 6p calipers in front, BMW M3 OEM in rear, Tilton .75 dual master cylinders, CNC billet triple Reservoir
Wheels – HRE 547R’s, 19 X 13.5 (335/30/19) rears and 18 X 8.5 (235/35/18) fronts


Exhaust – 100 cell cats, custom H pipe (chassis won’t allow for an X and no ground clearance below), Gintani rear section (pipes modified/shortened)


Seats – Kirkey vintage road race


Rollbar/backbrackets/removable sidebars – Custom home fabricated with 1 ¾” D.O.M. .134 wall tubing


Body – Factory Five 33 Hot Rod fiberglass tub, doors and trunk lid. No hood, nose cone, fenders, roof, door glass!


In addition, details on a very long list still to be worked out, but at the moment finalizing custom fuel cell, on-board fire suppression, custom radiator to nest with the intercooler piping, alternator, etc.


Car is being built street legal with a view to lots of track days (more road than drag, but will certainly take it there too to get some numbers) and look forward to seeing many of you at the track.


I was going to post other pics, but apparently don't have enough reputation points on this site to link to them yet. Hopefully that will change.