converting from 4 to 5 speed 260

[528iE12]

Hello. what other parts than a gearbox do i need to convert from 4 speed manual to 5 speed getrag 260 on a 1975 525? and how to put in speedo drive? Different driveshafts on 4 and 5 speed?

[Robert Bondi]

Hello. what other parts than a gearbox do i need to convert from 4 speed manual to 5 speed getrag 260 on a 1975 525? and how to put in speedo drive? Different driveshafts on 4 and 5 speed?

Yeah, definitely a different (shorter) driveshaft needed for the 5 speed. I didn't need to change my speedo, but you'll need a different
speedo cable segment in there. There's a nice list in the FAQs here:

http://www.firstfives.org/fspeed.html

[Dimitrov]

I have made such conversion on my 528i. But except the gearbox i swapped also the rear axle. Gearbox, driveshaft, rear axle - all from E28 528i. Everything is plug and play, except the rear antisway bar, for which u have to make mounting points. It is easy. I converted the car to use E28 electronic speedo.
In this topic u can find some info:

http://www.firstfives.org/bboard/viewto ... 0&start=15