BMW, the so-called “Ultimate Driving Machine,” has always brought about images of driving on the autobahn and maybe even dining on some fine mustard once you get to your destination. The cars are brilliantly engineered driver’s machines, but often lack some of the gusto and soul that we often associate with traditional American muscle. A growing trend that we’ve seen as of late though is dropping some distinctly American muscle into a German engineered machine such as this.

For sale on the Pensacola, Florida Craigslist is a 1995 BMW E36 3-Series coupe with a custom Ford 5.0 V8 swap. This project will need some completing, but once done, it could prove a unique and fun-to-drive project car.

Purists be damned, the idea of a V8-powered BMW E36 is just fascinating to those of us who enjoy a modern day hot rod. The E36 Bimmers are popular with the tuning crowd because of their light weight, rear-wheel drive, and inline-six engines. While those I6 engines made respectable horsepower, the aftermarket for the small block Ford 302 is so much larger, and the power potential a lot greater.

It wasn’t until recently that a mainstream Mustang was compared with a BMW by the general automotive press. The BOSS 302 was said to give the fabled M3 a real run for it’s money through the turns. We’re seeing an increasing number of enthusiasts who might not be able to afford a new BOSS or M3, or who just want something different take this engine swap approach, giving them the best of both worlds.

The engine in this particular car was donated from ‘94 Mustang GT and is backed by a T-5 5-speed manual transmission. However, the EFI system is gone in favor of a carbureted setup, along with aluminum heads and a F303 camshaft. The 302 engine looks right at home under the hood of the BMW. The seller says the project is supposedly only 75% complete and he has information as to what’s needed to finish the build. For $6,500, do you have what it takes to finish out this project?