The owner of this elderly BMW 8 Series (E31) cut out its powerful and still functional V12 and put a straight-six engine of the first-gen BMW M5 in its place. What on Earth for? Read on to find out.
First, the V12 in question – M70B50 – came out four decades ago and did not age well. Second, even its best effort of 295 hp (220 kW) still isn’t quite as good as the 315 hp (235 kW) of the new mill. Furthermore, the I6 installed here actually pumps out 335 hp (250 kW) thanks to new air intake and exhaust systems.
Okay, so maybe forty horses ain’t that much to warrant an engine swap! But this is beside the point. The point is, whereas the old engine weighed north of 250 kilograms (550+ pounds), the new one is under 150 kg (330 lbs). The same applies to the transmission: the old automatic gearbox was considered heavy even by the standards of its time, while the new Getrag manual six-speed box weighs a fraction of that.
You can realize what the tuner really aimed for with this project when you notice the ultra-lightweight Enkei Wheels wrapped in Hankook Ventus RS4 and explore the interior stripped down to the bare necessities. The result is a sports car that weighs in at 1,590 kilos (3,505 lbs) – a whopping 400 kg (880 lbs) less than the original. Imagine what its acceleration and fuel efficiency are like!