BMW 3 Series E36 (1992-1998)

If your M50, M52, or M54 engine takes a few seconds to build oil pressure after sitting, there's a good chance that your factory oil filter housing drain back valve has failed. Over time, the factory plastic check valve degrades, allowing oil to drain completely out of the housing and back into the oil pan while sitting. Every cold start essentially becomes a dry start, resulting in a loud ticking noise and causing unnecessary wear on your engine's internals.

Unfortunately, BMW does not offer this check valve as a standalone part, forcing you to purchase a costly, complete oil filter housing assembly just to fix one failed plastic component. Thankfully, our team of BMW enthusiasts took note of this common failure mode and designed a permanent, cost-effective fix.

Our Billet Oil Filter Housing Drain-Back Valve is designed as a direct-fit upgrade for your factory oil filter housing. CNC-machined from high-strength billet aluminum, this upgraded valve restores positive sealing to keep the oil filter housing fully primed. Maintaining this hydraulic prime ensures rapid oil pressure stabilization upon startup, directly mitigating dry-start bearing wear and top-end lifter starvation without requiring the purchase of a complete OEM housing assembly.

The factory cast-iron exhaust manifolds originally fitted to M50, M50TU, and S50B30US-powered E36s are notorious performance bottlenecks, plagued by excessive weight and a tendency to crack over time. Our Equal Length "Shorty" Exhaust Headers offer the ultimate remedy. Engineered specifically to maximize exhaust flow and encourage exhaust gas scavenging, these headers unleash a noticeable boost in overall engine efficiency and grant your M5X that crisp, aggressive inline-six growl without sacrificing low-end torque.

Unlike restrictive, uneven OEM cast-iron manifolds, our design utilizes high-quality T304 stainless steel construction shaped by precision mandrel bending. This specialized process ensures a uniform pipe diameter throughout every bend to maximize exhaust gas velocity and eliminate internal turbulence. The flow-optimized, equal-length primary runners merge seamlessly into a heavy-duty cast stainless steel collector, creating a restriction-free transition that dramatically improves scavenging. Our refined design completely transforms your driving experience, delivering a deeper, more pronounced tone under load while remaining perfectly civilized and drone-free at cruising speeds.

Built to endure years of high-RPM track abuse and extreme thermal stress, these headers are engineered with longevity in mind. Every joint is meticulously TIG-welded for exceptional structural integrity, ensuring the tubes can handle intense heat cycling without cracking. To guarantee a permanent, leak-free seal, the headers feature thick, precision laser-cut flanges that aggressively resist warping over time. Best of all, this is a true, headache-free upgrade; they drop directly into the E36 chassis and mate perfectly with your factory mid-pipe using OEM gaskets and hardware, requiring absolutely no custom fabrication or modification.