This story is one of those capable of making the fans of both brands stand on end. On the side of the defenders of BMW the simple idea of putting a turbo engine from Toyota on an M3 E46 is simply heresy. On the side of Japanese fans, putting an engine as iconic as the 2JZ-GTE used by the Toyota Supra in an M3 is something that should be punished by law.
However, the owner of this 2004 BMW M3 E46 convertible didn't care about either one or the other and decided to go ahead with the conversion. Now anyone who wants this asphalt “Frankenstein” can buy it as it is on eBay for £24,995 (about €28,700).
As a rule, these transformations take place when the original engine is out of order. However, in this case this did not happen, as when the current owner purchased it in 2014 the original engine was in perfect working order. However, the owner wanted to feel the emotions provided by a turbo engine and therefore decided to go ahead with the exchange.
The transformation
To carry out the transformation, the owner of the M3 E46 used the services of the company M&M Engineering (nothing to do with the chocolates) which removed the atmospheric engine and exchanged it for a 2JZ-GTE from a Supra A80. After that they converted it to use a single Borg Warner turbo, together with some more changes or adaptations and started to debit about 572 hp.
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To achieve this power, the engine received a K&N intake, 800cc high-performance injectors, new fuel pumps, a handcrafted exhaust line, intercooler and a new programmable ECU. The used engine was around 160,000 km long when the replacement was made and was completely rebuilt before being fitted to the BMW.
Despite the changes and the expressive increase in power, the gearbox remains manual, having only received a new clutch with a dual-mass flywheel capable of supporting up to 800 hp. In terms of suspension, the M3 E46 gained an adjustable suspension. It also received a mechanical locking differential from Wavetrac, improvements to the brakes and the wheels of an M3 CSL.
It's not the first time we've seen the 2JZ-GTE find a place in the weirdest cars. We have already mentioned its installation in a Rolls-Royce Phantom, a Mercedes-Benz 500 SL, a Jeep Wrangler, even a Lancia Delta for ramps… There seems to be no limit to where to apply this legendary engine.
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