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General => Naturally Aspirated Tuning => Topic started by: jc43089 on December 01, 2013, 09:17:42 AM

Title: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: jc43089 on December 01, 2013, 09:17:42 AM
Hey, just wondering if anyone is running the m54b30 intake cam in their m50b25tu.  Also which tune would be a good starting point.  I haven't purchased the chip yet but I will be getting one and installing it and the cam while its torn apart for the winter.  Also at what point do I need to upsize injectors?  Using some calculators it appears the stock 17# aren't good for much more than the stock 190hp.

No major mods, K&N CAI, m52 stock exhaust headers, .020 over, maxsil pistons, UUC flywheel, no A/C.
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: ding on December 02, 2013, 06:17:30 AM
What exhaust cam will you be using, m50nv intake?

It seems like at this time they don't have a tune for that setup, and will probably tell you to start with the m50 performance.  But I could be wrong,  I plan on running the m54 intake and m50nv intake in the future, so hopefully it works out for you, and we can share some info.
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: jc43089 on December 02, 2013, 09:31:14 AM
Just using the stock exhaust cam, I was told by the guy who I got the cam from, who builds lots of BMW engines, that I should just use the stock exhaust cam unless going to turbo, then use the nv intake cam on the exhaust side.  I am curious if the m50 perf or a tune for m50 w/ s50 cams would be a better starting point.  The cam is about in the middle, but closer to the s50 cam.  This could be wrong about the exhaust cam advice, so take it with a grain of salt.
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: ding on December 02, 2013, 03:23:05 PM
I would this the s50 cams tune would be very close if you used the m50nv cam for the exhaust, as the profile is close ish.
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: Alameer on December 03, 2013, 08:14:09 AM
I would love and appreciate more information about this combination of camshafts in a M50 engine
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: ding on December 03, 2013, 02:22:44 PM
m54b30 Intake Cam = 240* @9.7 lift
s50/s52 Intake Cam = 252*@10.2 lift
m50tu Intake Cam = 228*@9mm lift

Non Vanos m50 Intake Cam = 240*@9.7mm lift
s50/s52 Exhaust cam =240*@9.7mm lift
m50tu Exhaust Cam =228*@9mm lift

So its not quite a set of s50/52 cams, but its really close and much cheaper.  I do know that you need to shave 5mm off the end of the m54 cam, as its a dual vanos cam, so it wasn't really made to work in the m50tu head, and you might need the tray and lifters as well from the m54, I forget.

Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: Alameer on December 04, 2013, 01:12:54 PM
Thanks a lot for the numbers, been looking for those figures for some time.

as for the trays for the m54 cam, i wonder if you should change the trays and lifters to M52 in order to accomodate the m54 intake cam.

so if i wanna do the cam mixture of M54 intake cam, and M50NV exhaust cam... does this mean that i need to have m52 tray for the m54 intake cam, and m50 tray for the m50NV exhaust cam?
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: jc43089 on December 15, 2013, 07:03:16 AM
Thanks a lot for the numbers, been looking for those figures for some time.

as for the trays for the m54 cam, i wonder if you should change the trays and lifters to M52 in order to accomodate the m54 intake cam.

so if i wanna do the cam mixture of M54 intake cam, and M50NV exhaust cam... does this mean that i need to have m52 tray for the m54 intake cam, and m50 tray for the m50NV exhaust cam?

This is correct about the trays, the lifters are a different diameter from the m50 to the m52.  M52 is the same as m54 though.  The trays are the same other than the lifter diameter, and the cutouts for the cam profile are larger on the later cams as they have extra material for vibration reduction.  The m52 and m54 trays are the same so when getting the m54 cam try to get the tray and lifters with it or you will be buying new lifters.  You would see right away the difference in OBD1 vs OBD2 cams.  The profile is the same though from a m50tu to an m52 and they are interchangeable as long as the tray matches the cam.
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: Alameer on December 23, 2013, 03:45:21 PM
thanks a lot for the provided information :)
would i benefit a lot of using this combination of M54b30 cam with the M50NV intake cam?
if yes then what is the approximate numbers for such an addition to the engine over the stock cams?
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: jc43089 on February 04, 2014, 04:04:25 PM
Got the cam installed, won't be firing it up for a couple months yet, doing a bit of restoration work while snow is on the ground.  Still need to shorten the vanos gear up, hopefully I can get some dyno numbers over the summer.
Build thread:
http://www.wibimmers.com/board/index.php?/topic/2092-savin-big-money-project-thread/ (http://www.wibimmers.com/board/index.php?/topic/2092-savin-big-money-project-thread/)
The darker colored one is the m54b30 cam,
(http://i1317.photobucket.com/albums/t621/jc43089/WINTER%2013-14%20PROJECTS/1-29-14/024_zps1d72bf48.jpg) (http://s1317.photobucket.com/user/jc43089/media/WINTER%2013-14%20PROJECTS/1-29-14/024_zps1d72bf48.jpg.html)
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: nate on February 11, 2014, 09:56:18 AM
Question, how do you plan on timing the engine with the M54 cam? I was told it cant be timed with the regular method.
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: jc43089 on February 25, 2014, 06:01:54 AM
It will time exactly the same with the m54b30 intake cam.  The tricky part is if you use an nv intake cam on the exhaust side the square won't be lined up.  From some pictures I have seen it may be with the flats at a 45 degree angle and the cam lobes at #1 cyl are a mirror of each other like this / \.  Definitely double check though, there was a template floating around for an alignment tool to be used with this setup.  I have never used a tool though, just a straightedge to get the squares flat works well.
Title: Re: Advice for m50b25tu with m54b30 intake cam
Post by: munich.marauder on February 04, 2015, 05:22:25 PM
Hey, I'm also looking at putting an M54 cam in for my intake, a 330i ZHP cam (S50 exhaust cam - timing/installation with stock tools FTW).  JC43089, any chance the you've made progress on figuring out the maps for your M54 3.0 intake? You're only 4 degrees and 0.3mm lift away from mine; also, what intake are you running - M50 or M52, and have you done anything to your tune for that?