Ecoboost E36 BMW - affordable powerful swap

This E36 BMW has a Ford 2-liter Ecoboost engine swap. Is that the one out of a Focus ST? Yes. But it’s also the same engine that’s found in a Ford Escape (minus the oil cooler)… which makes them very plentiful & affordable.

You can grab a 2.0 Ecoboost out of a junkyard for about $800..

And, the 2.3 Ecoboost runs about $1600. The Ecoboost is not a record-breaking engine from a horsepower standpoint, but it is juicy… as this car’s owner Shawn Allgood puts it. It’s a really fun driver’s engine that comes with a good punch of low-end torque. What’s more – the Ecoboost is very aftermarket responsive.

Shawn Allgood is the social media coordinator behind JEM-Sport…

And JEM-Sport (IG)… is the facilitator of this Ecoboost swap. The aftermarket company got its beginnings in the Subaru & rally world, and then expanded-over to drift cars. From there, JEM-Sport’s knowledge of Nissans & BMWs grew. And nowadays, JEM-Sport has been expanding & evolving again… to focus more directly on swap components, R&D, and manufacturing. As drivers & enthusiasts themselves, JEM-Sport was searching for a viable swap-solution that checked a lot of boxes, and kept landing on the Ford Ecoboost.

About 6 years ago, there was some strong momentum behind the ST Ecoboost swaps…

But when Ford pulled the plug on the ST/RS cars, they also cut a lot of factory aftermarket support, like the control pack harnesses. So the emerging movement kind of fizzled. Big thumbs up to Ford for that one (read ironically). But…

JEM-Sport has overcome the obstacles of an Ecoboost swap…

Today, they manufacture everything you need to complete the Ecoboost swap in an E36 or E46 BMW. And next in their crosshairs, is the Nissan S13 & S14 chassis, followed a little later down the road by the Z33 & Z34 (and Gs). And they’re already tackling custom 1-off projects for unique restomods. But to reel it in back to the E36-generation BMWs, JEM-Sport makes motor mounts for the Ecoboost engine, as well as an adapter plate for the BMW ZF 5-speed transmission. They also make a bracket for the power steering pump, and oil pan options. JEM-Sport’s wiring specialist, Andrew Kouts, custom makes each Ford-to-BMW harness. Allowing Jake Minard, JEM-Sport’s tuner & owner, to delete the Ford PATS (anti-theft) system. From there, it’s a wide open lane for tuning using your personal preferred tuning solutions from Cobb, HP Tuners, etc.

This E36 BMW…

Is a baseline build, running a basically stock 2-liter Ecoboost. On the dyno, it pulled 240hp & 340tq. And as mentioned, the Ford Ecoboost engines are very aftermarket friendly & fun to modify. It’s hard to explain, but they’re just a rambunctious engine that wants to play. Shawn said – the 2-liter Ford engine shaved about 200lbs off the nose of this BMW when compared to the original M50 inline-6. That translates to a much more agile & spirited car on the street, and especially at drift days… eliminating some weight-transition frustrations the car experienced with the underpowered & heavy factory engine. I’m going to link you below to a few things we have done with our own Ecoboost Ford ST platforms. But don’t hesitate to reach-out to JEM-Sport with any questions about the Ecoboost swap in an E36 or E46 BMW.