BMW M52B28 / M52TUB28 Engine

Characteristics of the M52B28 engine

Main differences:

• The M52B28TU now has Double VANOS (inlet and exhaust phase control).
• Environmental class of M52B28TU is higher – EURO 3 (M52B28 has EURO 2).
• The service life of the M52B28TU is increased by 50,000 km (up to 350,000 km).

Motor installed

1. BMW 328i E36
2. BMW 328i E46
3. BMW 528i E39
4. BMW 728i E38
5. BMW Z3
6. Land Rover Defender

Reliability and repair of BMW M52B28 engine

The senior representative of the M52 family (which also includes M52B20, M52B24, M52B25, S52B32) appeared in 1995 on the E36, E39 and even on the large E38 728i. The engine’s cylinder block, as on all European representatives of the M52 (for North America the block is cast iron), is aluminum with nickasil coated cylinders. The engine geometry is square – 84X84 mm, the cylinder diameter is the same as on M52B25, the crankshaft has an increased stroke, the compression height of the piston is 31.82 mm, the cylinder head is from M50B25TU. M52B28 injectors are 250 cc.

Since 1998, a modified version called M52TUB28 was released, with cast iron liners, instead of vanos, double vanos system is used. And also with camshafts 244/228 lift 9 mm, with new pistons and connecting rods, with modified intake manifold variable geometry DISA, cooling system and with electronic throttle.

This power unit was used in BMW cars with the index 28i.
In 2000, the M52B28 engine received a successor from the new 54th series – M54B30 and in 2001 the production of M52B28 was phased out.

Modifications of BMW M52B28 engine

• M52B28 (1995 – 2000) – base engine. Compression ratio 10.2, power 193 hp at 5300 rpm, torque 280 Nm at 3950 rpm.
• M52TUB28 (1998 – 2001) – Double-VANOS on the intake and exhaust, new cylinder block, cast iron liners in the cylinder block, other camshafts (phase 244/228, lift 9). Compression ratio 10.2, power 193 hp at 5500 rpm, torque 280 Nm at 3500 rpm.

Problems and disadvantages of BMW M52B28 engines

1. The first years used nikasil coating on the cylinders and it deteriorated quickly
2. The engine is very afraid of overheating, from it immediately leads the cylinder head and punctures its gasket
3. The cause of frequent ignition skips is usually in hardened hydrocompensators
4. The DISA variable geometry flap can break off and fall into the cylinders
5. Another weak point is the crankcase ventilation valve diaphragm
6. After 100,000 kilometers, it is not uncommon for the Vanos phase control system to require repair
7. After 200,000 kilometers, oil build-up is often caused by piston rings that have seized up

Tuning the BMW M52B28 engine

Stroker

The easiest way to increase power on a fairly large motor is to buy a good intake manifold from M50B25, cold air intake, camshafts from S52B32 and tune. All this set will give about 240-250 hp, which is quite good for the city and not too expensive.

An alternative is to increase the working volume to 3 liters and get M52B30. This step is realized by buying a crankshaft M54B30, the standard piston is cut by 1.6 mm, the rest is all stock. It is recommended to buy an intake manifold M50B25 to improve power performance.

M52B28 Turbo. Compressor

The easiest way would be to buy a Garrett GT35-based turbo kit and install the turbo on a stock M52B28 piston. After tuning on Megasquirt, at ~0.7 bar, the M52B28 Turbo will show about 400 hp. This motor will be great for everyday driving and will be quite reliable.

The standard BMW M52B28 piston holds pressures up to 1 bar, sometimes a little more. With power from 450-500 hp, it is better to buy forged piston under compression ratio of 8.5.

For fans of compressor there are popular compressor kits from ESS on the basis of Lysholm supercharger. Such systems allow you to develop more than 300 hp on changing the pistons forged.

MOTOR RATING: 4