[damonito10]

First let me say, I cannot afford to trade in my car for a newer one as I am still making payments on it. I would trade in a heartbeat if I could. Please don’t offer that as a suggestion.

I have a 2012 328 that suffered from oil starvation. Rod knock occurred, and I found that my oil level was far below minimum. $1200 later and still in a very crap situation, I’m stopping all repairs on this engine that has 105,000 miles. I’ve found a few salvaged vehicles with N20 and B48 engines. I plan to swap them out as my job requires me to have a car (short trips, but work is only 6 miles round trip). My question is, can the B48 from a 330/430i work for the swap? I’m sure the N20 would make the process easier, but I don’t want to deal with future timing chain issues, and an engine that’s suffered long OCI. I’ve thought about having my current engine rebuilt, but assuming the crank is done for, I’m sure the price skyrockets. Ideally I just want this vehicle to last another 20k miles while I build credit and save up for the car I really want (Porsche 718). I cannot sell this car, I cannot trade this car in, and I cannot buy another one. I’d like to keep costs under $4500. $1300-$1800 for the salvaged vehicle, and $1200-$1500 for labor is what I’ve seen plus a few hundred for miscellaneous things that will no doubt come up. So if I have to do an N20 so be it, but could I make a B48 work with the 328i chassis and electronics? Not asking the price of the engine, but with basic independent BMW shop labor, and a readily available engine, can this be done?

Also any suggestions in Los Angeles would be amazing. Especially if this mechanic could rebuild my engine, reliably, and inexpensively

[rjd_F30]

I'm sure that it could be done, but there's no telling what sort of problems you'd run into and I can almost guarantee that it will be more expensive than just swapping in an N20. It might work, but it's going to be a lot more hassle. I'd recommend sticking to an N20, just make sure you get a good one.

[BrysonDM]

If you're hurting for cash, and just need something to drive you for the next year and a bit, sell it and buy a 99' civic and save up till you can afford a new car. With it being an n20, there's no real point to build it in my opinion, the engines are known to be fragile with anything over 330whp. And swapping it for a b48 isn't something i'd do since that engine is even weaker than the n20, not to mention, the amount of extras you'll have to be buy in order for it to even remotely work, will blow that budget out of the water.
Sorry you're in this predicament. I was in a similar situation a year and a half ago when my wrx engine blew up lol. Choose to sell it and save up for a couple months.

[sqwinny]

stick n20 back in. before you do rebuild the motor. if work is ~6 miles away, find a cheap 5-speed Mazda protege/civic/camry or something. craigslist made it easy:

https://losangeles.craigslist.org/la...127179970.html

[kahnfucious]

Originally Posted by sqwinny

stick n20 back in. before you do rebuild the motor. if work is ~6 miles away, find a cheap 5-speed Mazda protege/civic/camry or something. craigslist made it easy:

https://losangeles.craigslist.org/la...127179970.html

Or bike - 6 miles on a bike is like a 20 minute bike ride - yeah it will be hot some days, cold others and raining some but you'll get through it. Would not recommend jumping into a Porsche if financial concerns are there - the cost of parts alone in those cars is out of control

[Billfitz]

Get an N20 built after 1/15 and the timing chain isn't an issue.