2003 BMW M3 - The New Daily
Discussion
I ran Khumo V70A on my E30 M3 and thought they were pretty good overall. I've been really impressed with the Michelins over the past couple of weeks and they're certainly not the big drop in grip (when compared to the AR-1) I was expecting. That said, the difference may be greater once we finally have some warmer weather?
Hoping to take the E46 to Spain later this year and (hopefully) do some trackdays in mainland Europe. Mind you, I'm still getting used to the E46 and am considering losing some weight from it. I haven't been to Spa for many years and the last lap I did was in a fully laden Austin Montego Countryman!
Hoping to take the E46 to Spain later this year and (hopefully) do some trackdays in mainland Europe. Mind you, I'm still getting used to the E46 and am considering losing some weight from it. I haven't been to Spa for many years and the last lap I did was in a fully laden Austin Montego Countryman!
e46m3Mark said:
I ran Khumo V70A on my E30 M3 and thought they were pretty good overall. I've been really impressed with the Michelins over the past couple of weeks and they're certainly not the big drop in grip (when compared to the AR-1) I was expecting. That said, the difference may be greater once we finally have some warmer weather?
Hoping to take the E46 to Spain later this year and (hopefully) do some trackdays in mainland Europe. Mind you, I'm still getting used to the E46 and am considering losing some weight from it. I haven't been to Spa for many years and the last lap I did was in a fully laden Austin Montego Countryman!
Yup, I've never been keen on Kumhos, but those V70As really were what I wanted on track! If I can it will be interesting to do a back to back comparison between the two tyre sets.Hoping to take the E46 to Spain later this year and (hopefully) do some trackdays in mainland Europe. Mind you, I'm still getting used to the E46 and am considering losing some weight from it. I haven't been to Spa for many years and the last lap I did was in a fully laden Austin Montego Countryman!
And yes, the grip in the warmer weather will be larger ; the V70As were pretty sketchy in the cold! Going back to the PS4s was a welcome relief, even if I wasn't going so sideways!
JamesNL said:
Ahh you spotted me. SSX is mine, currently awaiting a CSL airbox and its now running 18x10's ARC-8 style.
Ah, I had a suspicion it was yourself. I sometimes saw your car at a workplace in Cov Edited by JamesNL on Wednesday 2nd January 12:26
.The ARCs look awesome!
Despite talking myself out of it for years and saying they are a waste of money (and the older folk telling me that!), I've decided that a CSL airbox may well be on the cards in the future
. But we are a way off from there!Why? My brake pads are running low and I need an MOT soon! While tyres may be discussed here is one thing I've got for my wheels.
M3 Pagid Pads by Charlieboy, on FlickrWhile I didn't find the brakes as bad as some do at tracks I always like an improvement in stopping power, and these should do the trick nicely! I was going to get RS29s just up front, but then I figured I may as well go all round. Round about then, the supplier in question convinced me to try the RST3s. I was apprehensive and thought about it for a while. So, yes, it will be interesting to see what the car is like on these!
ECG1000 said:
Read this from cover to cover. Really enjoyed it!
I've always wanted an E46 but have always shied away for fear of running/repair costs. One day hopefully...
Many thanks! Hopefully you've not found my tale too offputting! I've been through some ups and downs with this car but it somehow always manages to win me over and it has been one of my better companions as far as cars go; In the spec I have it, the car really suits itself to most occasions I like.I've always wanted an E46 but have always shied away for fear of running/repair costs. One day hopefully...
So, the 2CV has been getting alot of atention from me, with the M3 seeming almost as if it has been forgotten about! While I am driving it, this is not the case! Why? I had an MOT to get!
It passed but the tester sucked his teeth a little at the rear tyres! They around 2mm. I know I know! I'm pushing my luck! But then the car isn't driven as much as it once was, and I'll be honest, I'm in limbo as to what to do with the tyres! The way I see it, partly down to self-infliction, these are my choices:
-Fit some new 255/35R19s on the rear : At £200 a corner fo a Michelin Pilot Sport 4/4S, this does get pricey!
-Fit CSL sizes to the 19s ; they're around £160 a corner. But you do lose a little sidewall in addition to my fronts still having tons of tread 13,000 miles later.
The other choice is to get my 18s out. They're legal, but the tyres are near useless in this weather being Kumho V70a medium compounds.
What will happen? We shall see. I suspect I'll retire it out of action for a month or two and then put on/wear down the V70as. They're not quite the right size for the M3 ; the same money as the Michelins in the 19" sizes I can get Cup IIs (defying the point I know!), or Yoko AD08Rs. Goodyear Eagle F1s are almost £100 a corner, but tyre designs are getting limited without going over to track orientated designs. We shall see what I do.
Speaking of track orientated cars, I ended up splashing even more cash before the MOT! But it's the RR way right? Mods come before the necessities? I am joking there! I've fancied upgrading the brakes. They weren't bad at Spa or on 30 minute taster sessions, but it's always nice to have an improvement. I'm talking about the Big Brake Kit (BBK) conversions, but I'll digress. Given what happened to me on the Escort RS Turbo, with the Wilwood vs. Sliding Cosworth Caliper setup , I took these as lessons learned, especially with how the 'terrible' brakes on Stags weren't too bad on my car, which we found why for why they were on most other cars (That's me and Roger Keys, the next owner of the car). So, let's get started. I saw my choices as follows:
[ul type="square"]
[li]Porsche Boxster setup ; this can be either on stock discs or CSL items. From my calculations, these run a significantly smaller Effective Piston Area (EPA) than a stock M3 caliper 4535mm[sup]2[/sup] vs. the M3's 5655mm[sup]2[/sup]. Yes, they may flex less, but not enough to make up that kind of difference (what do the brake peeps reckon here?
. Many people praise this setup, but I do also wonder how many of those cars ran the correct pads and not wrong compound but cheaper 330i pads which motor factors gladly sell to owners, in addition to the condition of the fluid in addition to the discs; most owners will skimp on the latter due to costs ; they're £160+ now thanks to market forces in the correct floating format. When The Boxster setup is around £700-800 to do with discs, adaptors, pads and lines, it will make more sense for people to change the lot in one go.Some of you will say : change the master cylinder ; then I'll have to play with the rears. Boxster rears are similar to the front of a Boxster, due to a very different weight distribution etc. to the M3, so that solution will require more head scratching, and that's before you consider the DSC getting confused by things.[/li]
[li]K Sports ; Some of these run a similar or larger disc area to the stock M3 setup and EPA, but there have been quality concerns with these. Pads also get much more expensive.[/li]
[li]AP Racing/'True' Brembo setups,Stoptech. An all round conversion can come to £3k+ ; way more than I am willing to spend on a car not worth alot. I know you can't put a price on brakes, but I want a mild improvement from what I am, not something huge ; maybe I'll regret saying that...[/li]
[/ul]
So I wanted what everyone did, the moon on a stick. But I was aware that compromises would have to be made. What would I do? Enter Stage Left:
I paid more than I wished for on a set of brakes from a Z4 M. But why one of those? Simple ; they're the same brakes an M3 CSL came with. The differences?
[ul type="circle"]
[li]Larger front Disc Area : These run 345mm vs. the stock 325m. So at least the looks will improve too![/li]
[li]Larger Front Carriers : While the front calipers are the same, the carriers are larger to accomodate the front discs[/li]
[li]Larger rear piston area : these go up to 46mm vs. the factory 42mm ; There is no doubt this was done to redistribute the braking bias with the larger fronts[/li]
[/ul]
These came with nearly-new genuine discs which are in surprisingly amazing condition! These shall be kept for a rainy day! As for the fronts? They're lipped but not massively and they are still surprisingly well within tolerance. So I'll use those and replace when they finally die.
When the Z4 M came out and the M3 CS (with the CSL brakes) the braking had more praise but the braking feel was criticised, especially on the CS cars. While I am sure part of it was down to a lack of 4 pot calipers and having to stop 1600kg of car I do wonder how much was down to the slider bushes. My sister's car improved massively with new slider bushes installed. Many owners have reported good results with the Brass slider bushings for the calipers. So, after a couple of beers one night, my poor judgement got the better of me and I ended up ordering a set of these:
People say these can get dirtier due to being exposed but then the factory ones are also exposed. Furthermore, I tend to clean these anyway when the brake pads are changed, despite most people not doing this.
My plan for comparisons is to do a few stops, possibly on the track where allowed as follows
[ul type="disc"]
[li]Factory setup [/li]
[li]CSL setup with the pads it came with ; aftermarket pads, but not factory Textars[/li]
[li]The above with the Pagid RS pads[/li]
[/ul]
So, with the Pagid Racing pads and the modified CSL setup, will the brakes improve or will it be a waste of cash? Should I sell the setup and get setups that work for other people? Time will tell. But at least I'm making the car a little more different
.As I said in other threads started, I always want to do things to cars I've not owned. I'm talking of restomodding a Triumph TR6 with Jenvey ITBs, knock-off Minilites, fancy manifolds, brakes, and rebushing ; I've thought of the same on a 60s Mustang too, along with the suspension moreso.
I figured I may as well make it this one, without going too far obviously and compromising it for road use.
I did the classic boxster caliper upgrade.
Chief reason for doing this was totally cooking the brakes just hammering around some B-roads near my parents place. I've never experienced proper brake fade like that and didn't fancy doing it again.
Second reason was that the front discs were pretty badly worn anyway so was going to have to buy some new discs anyway
Third reason was for the looks!
I didn't take the car on track with the old discs and pads but the Boxster setup stood up to Bedford Autodrome very well - and it's a pretty tough track on brakes, although I did manage to wear through the set of pads which came with the calipers. I'm confident that the original setup would have wilted very quickly if it was given some equivalent abuse.
In terms of feel - and this is just running some standard Brembo pads - the feel isn't as grabby as the old discs and pads, but the braking performance I would say is very good, and resistance to fade is, as mentioned above, excellent.
The change in piston area does concern me. The standard M3 has 60mm pistons, whereas the Boxster S calipers have two pistons: 36mm and 40mm.
So total piston area as standard is 2827.43mm^2
Boxster piston area is (1256+1017) 2273mm^2
so 80% of the area. Since the master cylinder remains the same you're therefore getting 80% of the hydraulic pressure at the brake pad.
But having a 5% larger disc (325vs345) goes some way to balancing this out. So the Boxster calipers cause a change of bias towards the rear here by the looks of it.
Speaking from personal experience however suggests that something else is happening - my front wheels are getting much much more brake dust on them than before the swap. One would have thought there would be less brake dust on them given the front brakes are doing proportionally less of the work. So maybe something to do with the pad compound and brake pad dimensions - the Boxster pads look larger than the OEM pads:
This has been a bit of an essay but I've quite interested by this modification.
Chief reason for doing this was totally cooking the brakes just hammering around some B-roads near my parents place. I've never experienced proper brake fade like that and didn't fancy doing it again.
Second reason was that the front discs were pretty badly worn anyway so was going to have to buy some new discs anyway
Third reason was for the looks!
I didn't take the car on track with the old discs and pads but the Boxster setup stood up to Bedford Autodrome very well - and it's a pretty tough track on brakes, although I did manage to wear through the set of pads which came with the calipers. I'm confident that the original setup would have wilted very quickly if it was given some equivalent abuse.
In terms of feel - and this is just running some standard Brembo pads - the feel isn't as grabby as the old discs and pads, but the braking performance I would say is very good, and resistance to fade is, as mentioned above, excellent.
The change in piston area does concern me. The standard M3 has 60mm pistons, whereas the Boxster S calipers have two pistons: 36mm and 40mm.
So total piston area as standard is 2827.43mm^2
Boxster piston area is (1256+1017) 2273mm^2
so 80% of the area. Since the master cylinder remains the same you're therefore getting 80% of the hydraulic pressure at the brake pad.
But having a 5% larger disc (325vs345) goes some way to balancing this out. So the Boxster calipers cause a change of bias towards the rear here by the looks of it.
Speaking from personal experience however suggests that something else is happening - my front wheels are getting much much more brake dust on them than before the swap. One would have thought there would be less brake dust on them given the front brakes are doing proportionally less of the work. So maybe something to do with the pad compound and brake pad dimensions - the Boxster pads look larger than the OEM pads:
This has been a bit of an essay but I've quite interested by this modification.
Mikeeb said:
Where did you order the brass sliders from?
Hack Engineering. I thought I paid over the odds, but for my sister's Saab, a slider kit all round wasn't that much lessshalmaneser said:
I did the classic boxster caliper upgrade.
Some other very good points.
Speaking from personal experience however suggests that something else is happening - my front wheels are getting much much more brake dust on them than before the swap. One would have thought there would be less brake dust on them given the front brakes are doing proportionally less of the work. So maybe something to do with the pad compound and brake pad dimensions - the Boxster pads look larger than the OEM pads:
This has been a bit of an essay but I've quite interested by this modification.
You may it sound like I mind an essay. Far from it, it's good to debate this stuff Some other very good points
.Speaking from personal experience however suggests that something else is happening - my front wheels are getting much much more brake dust on them than before the swap. One would have thought there would be less brake dust on them given the front brakes are doing proportionally less of the work. So maybe something to do with the pad compound and brake pad dimensions - the Boxster pads look larger than the OEM pads:
This has been a bit of an essay but I've quite interested by this modification.
. Some good points raised there, and TBH less piston area isn't always a bad thing.Sure, you get less 'effective' force at the piston, but you can get a firmer brake pedal and feel.
With me I guess previous things caused me to rethink things.
My Stag had the stock brakes and they have a terrible reputation. But it seems with others agreeing, mine ws fine. But good pads are near impossible to get for a Stag now ; Only TRW seem to make anything worth buying,
I think the M3 suffers the same fate. ECP once sold me a set of 330i pads with their website then listing no other option for the M3 ;they are pretty much the same bar the compound ; alot of motor factors IME sell these to cover the M3 as well IME. There is a rumour M3 pads Textar sell are different to the dealer, but I can't verify that ; I'll have to record the numbers off mine (Textar's) to truly find out and compare with another M3 owner
.On a Mondeo of mine back in 2011 ('06 V6 3.0 Estate) I know it never faded on genuine Motorcrafts but it did on "OE" Bendixs from GSF, their 'premium' brand ; my dad's 2.5T is no different here ; The Bosch pads weren't too bad neither did the Brembo pads seem terrible when we covered the miles. We stupidly thought 'the compound must have improved over these years' and well, ECP surprisingly had no pads in stock, so the Bendix pads were bought again (Ford were closed, even if I do get a discount on parts). What did Einstein say about stupidity? Not that I practice that one much :lol:!
Porsches don't seem to suffer this issue, but owners do moan profusely about brake prices, hence why the much debated EBC pads grace quite a few. or at least they did on 944 Brembos when I had one.
Did you E36 have the floating brakes or had it been retrofitted with the 1 piece discs? I know on E46s there are now kits to use these, with them being around a 1/3rd of the price of stock discs.
My have never felt that bad. Even spanking it around the Evo triangle didn't upset it. Spa did begin to get to them mind you, albeit I was trying a little harder than last time (I had experience of the track) and I was on stickier rubber, so of course, I used that grip and speed more
.I'll keep you updated. I doubt the 'grabby' feel will go away, but you never know. At least with the CSL discs I can change calipers
.Interesting about the pads areas. I was attempting to weigh up which way it was in favour of and I reckon you are right. The pads will help with cooling I suspect as in more pad can soak up the heat.
FUBMW said:
Good choice and I think the best compromise on price and braking power. I replaced my fronts for E31 Brembo's with stock discs and for the price the improvement is brilliant.
Many thanks!The E31 setup I did debate. The calipers are getting rare now though surely? Do you run spacers or do the wheels clear? Some BMW setups seem to require them, while others don't. I take it yours improved alot like shalmanesers brakes?
.Edited by SebringMan on Tuesday 29th January 17:38
Edited by SebringMan on Tuesday 29th January 19:51
[quote=SebringMan]
Many thanks!
The E31 setup I did debate. The calipers are getting rare now though surely? Do you run spacers or do the wheels clear? Some BMW setups seem to require them, while others don't. I take it yours improved alot like shalmanesers brakes?.
They are. I didn't even know about the kit until someone on Cutters was selling his. Got a set of pads and skimmed discs for £300 all in - a bargain compared to K-Sport kit and Porsche brakes.
No spacers, there's plenty of clearance. I did debate going up to CSL discs, but I wasn't sure if the CSL carriers would fit the caliper so kept it as factory. The feel is certainly different, I had read of people reporting a spongey pedal, but it has plenty of bite and a notable improvment.
If you're ever in the Oxfordshire area let me know, would be good to meet another E46 M3 driver and go for a blast.
Many thanks!
The E31 setup I did debate. The calipers are getting rare now though surely? Do you run spacers or do the wheels clear? Some BMW setups seem to require them, while others don't. I take it yours improved alot like shalmanesers brakes?
.They are. I didn't even know about the kit until someone on Cutters was selling his. Got a set of pads and skimmed discs for £300 all in - a bargain compared to K-Sport kit and Porsche brakes.
No spacers, there's plenty of clearance. I did debate going up to CSL discs, but I wasn't sure if the CSL carriers would fit the caliper so kept it as factory. The feel is certainly different, I had read of people reporting a spongey pedal, but it has plenty of bite and a notable improvment.
If you're ever in the Oxfordshire area let me know, would be good to meet another E46 M3 driver and go for a blast.
FUBMW]ebringMan said:
They are. I didn't even know about the kit until someone on Cutters was selling his. Got a set of pads and skimmed discs for £300 all in - a bargain compared to K-Sport kit and Porsche brakes.
No spacers, there's plenty of clearance. I did debate going up to CSL discs, but I wasn't sure if the CSL carriers would fit the caliper so kept it as factory. The feel is certainly different, I had read of people reporting a spongey pedal, but it has plenty of bite and a notable improvment.
If you're ever in the Oxfordshire area let me know, would be good to meet another E46 M3 driver and go for a blast.
That may be alot sooner than you realise No spacers, there's plenty of clearance. I did debate going up to CSL discs, but I wasn't sure if the CSL carriers would fit the caliper so kept it as factory. The feel is certainly different, I had read of people reporting a spongey pedal, but it has plenty of bite and a notable improvment.
If you're ever in the Oxfordshire area let me know, would be good to meet another E46 M3 driver and go for a blast.
.ATM the M3 is a daily for me again. the wings are rusting which isn't helping me with taking it out. But I am really enjoying driving it again. Coming back from work in it is lovely. I know an E60 M5 would make a bad day at work seem like a good one, but this is pretty good anyway after a long day at work
.Well, there are more updates on this. This year has been a pretty busy year mind you!
This is what I wrote back at the start of the year about the M3.
Have I forgotten about this car a little? Maybe. A few things have changed with me however.
-Merc S124 E320 had gone to a mate. I was really really missing that car.
-I turned down a cheap BMW E61 535d SE Touring. It certainly shows where this M3 is 'old' but wow, what a car! I turned it out as the E6x horror stories scared me a little in addition to me wanting something cheaper after the W124. But, the old man has bought it off my mate, so it is in the family.
-I was going to buy a 2005 Audi A3 2.0 PD TDI SE DSG off the old man ; he bought it for an experiment. As accomplished as it is and frugal coming from the W124, it had one sin ; it was dull! It just didn't excite me! I almost debated making the M3 a daily again, which I'll come back to. But with the Old man buying my mate's 535d, I'll be having the old man's Mondeo 2.5T Titanium Estate. Now that is an unassuming car. It has character, and IMHO is similar on fuel cost to what the 535d is. It doesn't have the magic of the 535d, but it does have a big heart that can win you over. This month may kick off a thread in the Reader's Cars section soon.
Why was I considering the Audi? I no longer own one pricey-to-keep car ; I own two! In reality, I needed a more sensible daily driver!
Does that mean the M3 is gathering dust? Inevitably, yes. Any fault of its own? Well, the wings are in a bad way; I've come to accept that I'll have to replace them. Bar that, the car has been stellar on the reliability front!
But, it has been out and about, and driving it again reminded me why I like it so much, and the above comparison kind of made me side with the people calling it a modern classic. Sure, it's only 2 years older than the A3, and 4 years older than he 535d, but God it's so different to them! It feels older inside, but more inviting. It has a character ; when cold, it's not the smoothest thing to drive. It coughs a little and can be jerky, letting you know it demands respect. But with the right mix of modernness, it's playful yet involving. It's practical yet stylish. If I didn't care about putting more miles onto it or paying to service it (the next service will be either £800 or £400 just in parts alone!) ; it's an Inspection II next), I'd just keep on driving and driving this. But for now, I do have plans .
So, back in March, it went to the NEC Resto Show! Why didn't I update it? To put it simply, the Merc W108 280SE 4.5 I had purchased pretty much took up all of my time!
It was however, great to get back into the M3. What a great car. Despite it being a newer car on the stand, it didn't stop it garnishing alot of attention or me inadvertedly becoming an advice bearer for one of these!
Yup, the wings are terrible now! I'll to go new on theses ; to think I painted these years ago! Ah well, it's only money eh?
Still, at least it passed the 10 feet test! We have to see the silver linings in these instances!
It's fair to say that the stand hosted by a few of us including Matt certainly represented all sorts of classics, right from the established cars to the 'modern classics'
There's yours truly boring some interested parties! But they stayed! Out of politeness or interest? Who knows?
Believe it or not I had planned to do the following:
-Change the brakes to CSL items
-Wire up the handbrake cable on the head unit
-Change the coil.
What did I do in the end? Well, this is me, so it was the coil that I changed.
The car however does now run spot on, with more ooomph and is smoother. It almost seems to a shame to have it sat for a month at a mate's! Ah well. Little did I know, it would sit at my friend's house for 3 more months before I touched it again, partly down to my sister's wedding planning, and partly down to me being busy with the Merc and the ambitious plans I had for that!
This is what I wrote back at the start of the year about the M3.
Have I forgotten about this car a little? Maybe. A few things have changed with me however.
-Merc S124 E320 had gone to a mate. I was really really missing that car.
-I turned down a cheap BMW E61 535d SE Touring. It certainly shows where this M3 is 'old' but wow, what a car! I turned it out as the E6x horror stories scared me a little in addition to me wanting something cheaper after the W124. But, the old man has bought it off my mate, so it is in the family
.-I was going to buy a 2005 Audi A3 2.0 PD TDI SE DSG off the old man ; he bought it for an experiment. As accomplished as it is and frugal coming from the W124, it had one sin ; it was dull! It just didn't excite me! I almost debated making the M3 a daily again, which I'll come back to. But with the Old man buying my mate's 535d, I'll be having the old man's Mondeo 2.5T Titanium Estate. Now that is an unassuming car. It has character, and IMHO is similar on fuel cost to what the 535d is. It doesn't have the magic of the 535d, but it does have a big heart that can win you over. This month may kick off a thread in the Reader's Cars section soon
.Why was I considering the Audi? I no longer own one pricey-to-keep car ; I own two! In reality, I needed a more sensible daily driver!
Does that mean the M3 is gathering dust? Inevitably, yes. Any fault of its own? Well, the wings are in a bad way; I've come to accept that I'll have to replace them. Bar that, the car has been stellar on the reliability front!
But, it has been out and about, and driving it again reminded me why I like it so much, and the above comparison kind of made me side with the people calling it a modern classic. Sure, it's only 2 years older than the A3, and 4 years older than he 535d, but God it's so different to them! It feels older inside, but more inviting. It has a character ; when cold, it's not the smoothest thing to drive. It coughs a little and can be jerky, letting you know it demands respect. But with the right mix of modernness, it's playful yet involving. It's practical yet stylish. If I didn't care about putting more miles onto it or paying to service it (the next service will be either £800 or £400 just in parts alone!) ; it's an Inspection II next), I'd just keep on driving and driving this
. But for now, I do have plans .So, back in March, it went to the NEC Resto Show! Why didn't I update it? To put it simply, the Merc W108 280SE 4.5 I had purchased pretty much took up all of my time!
It was however, great to get back into the M3. What a great car. Despite it being a newer car on the stand, it didn't stop it garnishing alot of attention or me inadvertedly becoming an advice bearer for one of these!
Yup, the wings are terrible now! I'll to go new on theses ; to think I painted these years ago! Ah well, it's only money eh?
Still, at least it passed the 10 feet test! We have to see the silver linings in these instances!
It's fair to say that the stand hosted by a few of us including Matt certainly represented all sorts of classics, right from the established cars to the 'modern classics'
There's yours truly boring some interested parties! But they stayed! Out of politeness or interest? Who knows?
Believe it or not I had planned to do the following:
-Change the brakes to CSL items
-Wire up the handbrake cable on the head unit
-Change the coil.
What did I do in the end? Well, this is me, so it was the coil that I changed.
The car however does now run spot on, with more ooomph and is smoother
. It almost seems to a shame to have it sat for a month at a mate's! Ah well. Little did I know, it would sit at my friend's house for 3 more months before I touched it again, partly down to my sister's wedding planning, and partly down to me being busy with the Merc and the ambitious plans I had for that!Its time I provided bitesized updates, so here's the first one.
Firstly, the car has been put back into daily service. Why?
My old man has ordered himself a Love Island mobile (LIM). Sorry a Range Rover Evoque. Naturally, one car of his had to go, which of course my mum has access to. So off went our Mondeo 2.5T to a fellow RRer on here. He's pretty happy with the car, so I call that a result.
However, this left a problem. My mum needed a car to get around in for a month or two prior to the LIM arriving. Ah, that would be me.
Basically, the Mondeo 2.5T Estate I bought off my dad is now temporarily back with him until the new car arrives. So, where did that leave me? It left me with the Merc and the M3.
As much as I like the Merc, even the best will in the world can't argue that 16MPG average doesn't hurt the wallet on a 100 to 300 mile a week communit. In the case of the latter, I'm looking at £120 a week in fuel. Ouch! It's lovely in town mind you, but the MPG put that out of the question. And so it came back to the M3.
I didn't take photos, but my God, the car looked terrible at a mate's. It was filthy on the outside and it just looked forlorn or abandoned. To top matters off, the battery was truly flat! After a jump start, it fired up. 4 months of it being sat didn't do the car any favours. In short:
1) The DSC is beginning to kick in more often than it should do as time goes on, to the point I have to disable it now. It was OK when I drove it back, but it's getting worse by the day.
2) The rust on the discs is now causing a minor vibration when braking. This isn't a big issue ; I have the CSL items to fit remember.
However, despite that, the car is working well, and certainly isn't a bad way to get around, especially with it having working AC in this humid conditions! But I figured I'd treat it to a new battery as I showed above. After putting the old battery on a tester, it was clear the battery was well past it.
When it came to buying a new battery, that was interesting. I'm aware from my dad's E36 and my previous E36 that some batteries are too tall for the area ; Unipart batteries tend to be here. I don't tend to get Lion batteries as I've seen a few be unreliable and for that reason I no longer touch Bosch S5s ; I know of 5 that have failed within the warranty period, two of which came from my car. That left Exide, where I've had a good experience with them and a dealer battery.
Surprisingly, the dealer battery was about the same money as an Exide from ECP. It's fair to say that was a difficult decision to make.
I then set about putting it in. What is surprising is that the new battery has improved a few things. The main one I've noticed is the gearbox pump primes significantly quicker now. It also starts much better. For some time, the car would catch and then fire up. It's a very clean starting car now. So at least I saw some results after splashing out £100 on a battery! Yikes!
But then, there is the topper to come. That intake.
Firstly, the car has been put back into daily service. Why?
My old man has ordered himself a Love Island mobile (LIM). Sorry a Range Rover Evoque. Naturally, one car of his had to go, which of course my mum has access to. So off went our Mondeo 2.5T to a fellow RRer on here. He's pretty happy with the car, so I call that a result
.However, this left a problem. My mum needed a car to get around in for a month or two prior to the LIM arriving. Ah, that would be me.
Basically, the Mondeo 2.5T Estate I bought off my dad is now temporarily back with him until the new car arrives. So, where did that leave me? It left me with the Merc and the M3.
As much as I like the Merc, even the best will in the world can't argue that 16MPG average doesn't hurt the wallet on a 100 to 300 mile a week communit. In the case of the latter, I'm looking at £120 a week in fuel. Ouch! It's lovely in town mind you, but the MPG put that out of the question. And so it came back to the M3.
I didn't take photos, but my God, the car looked terrible at a mate's. It was filthy on the outside and it just looked forlorn or abandoned. To top matters off, the battery was truly flat! After a jump start, it fired up. 4 months of it being sat didn't do the car any favours. In short:
1) The DSC is beginning to kick in more often than it should do as time goes on, to the point I have to disable it now. It was OK when I drove it back, but it's getting worse by the day.
2) The rust on the discs is now causing a minor vibration when braking. This isn't a big issue ; I have the CSL items to fit remember
.However, despite that, the car is working well, and certainly isn't a bad way to get around, especially with it having working AC in this humid conditions! But I figured I'd treat it to a new battery as I showed above. After putting the old battery on a tester, it was clear the battery was well past it.
When it came to buying a new battery, that was interesting. I'm aware from my dad's E36 and my previous E36 that some batteries are too tall for the area ; Unipart batteries tend to be here. I don't tend to get Lion batteries as I've seen a few be unreliable and for that reason I no longer touch Bosch S5s ; I know of 5 that have failed within the warranty period, two of which came from my car. That left Exide, where I've had a good experience with them and a dealer battery.
Surprisingly, the dealer battery was about the same money as an Exide from ECP. It's fair to say that was a difficult decision to make
.I then set about putting it in. What is surprising is that the new battery has improved a few things. The main one I've noticed is the gearbox pump primes significantly quicker now. It also starts much better. For some time, the car would catch and then fire up. It's a very clean starting car now. So at least I saw some results after splashing out £100 on a battery! Yikes!
But then, there is the topper to come. That intake
.A few on this forum will know that I've really, really wanted to buy a CSL intake. I'm sure I probably speak for alot of 6-pot M3 owners here! In equal measure, I probably also speak for the same amount who are not willing to pay for one. Yes, really, to get that awesome sound, it does come at quite a price! But, speaking of that awesome sound, let's have a taster shall we?
https://youtu.be/76LnnTZDaWQ
OK, there is an exhaust in the mix of that as well, but you get the idea.
They also look pretty tasty too!:
So, how much is this goodness? Depending on how it is done and what compromises you are willing to live with (driveability vs. price basically), you are looking at £2-2.6k even if you fit the parts yourself. Ouch! For me, a 20BHP gain, the look and the sound is certainly superb but not quite that superb. What's worse is, I went in an M3 convertible with 100,000 miles less than mine with a Karbonius system fitted. While other people came out of the car with a massive smile, I didn't really. Sure, it sounded slightly louder than a stock M3 with that throttle body noise, but in reality, it wasn't that much. It didn't feel that quick either! If I wanted to spend that kind of cash, I'd want to be absolutely sure of what I was buying.
I can't really see myself buying a CSL either, as much as I'd love one. They're a little too rare and valuable for me to enjoy, when you bear in my daily driver is worth £1,000 on a good day! And I do like my creature comforts, like a sunroof, air conditioning, a decent sound system and the means of travelling hundreds of miles while feeling awake when I arrive? Do I want the moon on a stick? Pretty much!
So, the CSL airbox was out of the equation. This did however, open up a few options. One of the options is the well-renowned Eventuri cold air intake. It's a setup that has been revered by many for years. It's still not quite great value, but compared to the CSL airbox it is. What's more, there is no need to send your ECU away to accept a map sensor either as you do for a CSL airbox, unless you don't care about driveability. Why is that? The Eventuri merely replaces the airbox in the engine bay, not the entire plenum and airbox as the CSL airbox does. This does also mean almost anyone can fit it too.
So, given that I had made a promise to myself that I'd treat the car to an airbox if I managed to get through a tough patch of work (i.e redundancies, being thrown into the thick end of work with zero guidance or help), I did the stupid thing and bought an intake through CAI Automotive, who took care of me nicely here. They also sold me the Pagid race pads previously earlier on this year.
And so, the box arrived. And didn't it look great?
OK, maybe, not so great! The box within however did look superb! I think I was even sad enough to do an unboxing video at the time, so if the demand is there, I may as well put it up! So, what was in the box?
For the cash, not an awful lot!
But would I fit it then? No. A few things would come into play:
1) My friend was getting the itch to get a BMW and for some reason thought I'd be a suitable 'buyer' to take along with him.
2) Sister's wedding preparations were really beginning to kick in
3) I was pretty tired from a combination of work and the wedding prep in general
4) My back was getting bad again. Damn, I thought getting older was meant to be fun, not painful!
And so, the intake lived in my boot for a few weeks until I finally got around to fitting it, but I had a plan, and that plan would take time.
https://youtu.be/76LnnTZDaWQ
OK, there is an exhaust in the mix of that as well, but you get the idea
.They also look pretty tasty too!:
So, how much is this goodness? Depending on how it is done and what compromises you are willing to live with (driveability vs. price basically), you are looking at £2-2.6k even if you fit the parts yourself. Ouch! For me, a 20BHP gain, the look and the sound is certainly superb but not quite that superb. What's worse is, I went in an M3 convertible with 100,000 miles less than mine with a Karbonius system fitted. While other people came out of the car with a massive smile, I didn't really. Sure, it sounded slightly louder than a stock M3 with that throttle body noise, but in reality, it wasn't that much. It didn't feel that quick either! If I wanted to spend that kind of cash, I'd want to be absolutely sure of what I was buying.
I can't really see myself buying a CSL either, as much as I'd love one. They're a little too rare and valuable for me to enjoy, when you bear in my daily driver is worth £1,000 on a good day! And I do like my creature comforts, like a sunroof, air conditioning, a decent sound system and the means of travelling hundreds of miles while feeling awake when I arrive? Do I want the moon on a stick? Pretty much!
So, the CSL airbox was out of the equation. This did however, open up a few options. One of the options is the well-renowned Eventuri cold air intake. It's a setup that has been revered by many for years. It's still not quite great value, but compared to the CSL airbox it is. What's more, there is no need to send your ECU away to accept a map sensor either as you do for a CSL airbox, unless you don't care about driveability. Why is that? The Eventuri merely replaces the airbox in the engine bay, not the entire plenum and airbox as the CSL airbox does. This does also mean almost anyone can fit it too.
So, given that I had made a promise to myself that I'd treat the car to an airbox if I managed to get through a tough patch of work (i.e redundancies, being thrown into the thick end of work with zero guidance or help), I did the stupid thing and bought an intake through CAI Automotive, who took care of me nicely here. They also sold me the Pagid race pads previously earlier on this year.
And so, the box arrived. And didn't it look great?
OK, maybe, not so great! The box within however did look superb! I think I was even sad enough to do an unboxing video at the time, so if the demand is there, I may as well put it up! So, what was in the box?
For the cash, not an awful lot!
But would I fit it then? No. A few things would come into play:
1) My friend was getting the itch to get a BMW and for some reason thought I'd be a suitable 'buyer' to take along with him.
2) Sister's wedding preparations were really beginning to kick in
3) I was pretty tired from a combination of work and the wedding prep in general
4) My back was getting bad again. Damn, I thought getting older was meant to be fun, not painful!
And so, the intake lived in my boot for a few weeks until I finally got around to fitting it, but I had a plan, and that plan would take time
.Patience. I remember Take That made a crappy song about it. Something about having some. Maybe they had a point. These days, it seems to be something I severely lack!
So, I had the air intake! But, I wanted to fit it, whilst simultaneously testing it! It didn't help that I had a prospestive buyers of similar air intakes who wanted to know as well! But the way I saw it, after having the airbox for over a week.
[ul type="disc"]
[li]Fit it within 2 weeks[/li]
[li]Fit it well after my sister's wedding, so around about next month! ; I thought the Mondeo was broken, so that was more of a priority to fix[/li]
[li]Return it![/li]
[/ul]
Well, the day came, at the end of July, and so I put it onto the rollers!
And what was the result? It was 308BHP. That sounds under I admit. The dyno guy however did state that most M3s made between 290 to 320 on his dyno, obviously pending a few factors.
It was fair to say the baseline was set. And so in the carpark, on a mild, yet wet day, I proceeded to change out the parts
One part I added to the list was the Mishimoto smooth intake elbow. These elbows via another manufacturer are a popular mod over in Trump country. Would it help? Who knows!
After fitting the airbox, I only had one piece of the puzzle left to do. Remove the cold air intake off the factory airbox and then fit in the new item, made from swanky carbon fibre!
[img]http://img.retro-rides.org/i/v/chasr/b52c235ec5cf.jpg [/img]
After doing this, the only thing I could do was to stand back and admire my handiwork. The airbox to be fair is a very simple item to fit; most people could fit this I suspect and I did it in less than 20 minutes to boot!
But, I could not stand back and just admire the work, I had to see it too! I must say the car did sound a little fruitier as I was warming it up as I drove around for a short while.
I eventually put it back onto the dyno. The first thing I noticed? The noise! Wow, it sounded superb from outside, especially as the engine went beyond 4kRPM all the way to 7,500rpm! But Christ, I did feel horrible letting it go that high two times in a row!
And what was the result? A 10BHP gain! So yes, the online reports of this filter providing power are true! It may have made more, but I didn’t dare to do the 3rd run on this car with the airbox, despite doing so on the factory item.
With this done, there was nothing left to do, but to go home, put my foot down, and just listen to the roar!
It’s fair to say that with the MPG of the Merc making this car look frugal, I am enjoying it a little more! It’s a shame it’s getting a little shabby in places, and this would be the point where I’d normally sell a car, but I’ve decided to commit myself. After all, you can’t buy memories. That and the BMW E46 has officially entered the 18-30 car club, given that the first ones were made in 2000 ?.
Still, I may as well keep on enjoying it. And yes, I did put a stupid number plate onto it a few months ago.
One day, I’ll finally prioritise that bodywork. At least it looks good from the photos eh?
Oh, remember the guy who bought the Individual M3? Well, he bought another E46! A fairly rare one too! It was interesting finding a car like that! But, I'll spill more later on:
So, I had the air intake! But, I wanted to fit it, whilst simultaneously testing it! It didn't help that I had a prospestive buyers of similar air intakes who wanted to know as well! But the way I saw it, after having the airbox for over a week.
[ul type="disc"]
[li]Fit it within 2 weeks[/li]
[li]Fit it well after my sister's wedding, so around about next month! ; I thought the Mondeo was broken, so that was more of a priority to fix[/li]
[li]Return it![/li]
[/ul]
Well, the day came, at the end of July, and so I put it onto the rollers!
And what was the result? It was 308BHP. That sounds under I admit. The dyno guy however did state that most M3s made between 290 to 320 on his dyno, obviously pending a few factors.
It was fair to say the baseline was set. And so in the carpark, on a mild, yet wet day, I proceeded to change out the parts
One part I added to the list was the Mishimoto smooth intake elbow. These elbows via another manufacturer are a popular mod over in Trump country. Would it help? Who knows!
After fitting the airbox, I only had one piece of the puzzle left to do. Remove the cold air intake off the factory airbox and then fit in the new item, made from swanky carbon fibre!
[img]http://img.retro-rides.org/i/v/chasr/b52c235ec5cf.jpg [/img]
After doing this, the only thing I could do was to stand back and admire my handiwork. The airbox to be fair is a very simple item to fit; most people could fit this I suspect and I did it in less than 20 minutes to boot!
But, I could not stand back and just admire the work, I had to see it too! I must say the car did sound a little fruitier as I was warming it up as I drove around for a short while.
I eventually put it back onto the dyno. The first thing I noticed? The noise! Wow, it sounded superb from outside, especially as the engine went beyond 4kRPM all the way to 7,500rpm! But Christ, I did feel horrible letting it go that high two times in a row!
And what was the result? A 10BHP gain! So yes, the online reports of this filter providing power are true! It may have made more, but I didn’t dare to do the 3rd run on this car with the airbox, despite doing so on the factory item.
With this done, there was nothing left to do, but to go home, put my foot down, and just listen to the roar!
It’s fair to say that with the MPG of the Merc making this car look frugal, I am enjoying it a little more! It’s a shame it’s getting a little shabby in places, and this would be the point where I’d normally sell a car, but I’ve decided to commit myself. After all, you can’t buy memories
. That and the BMW E46 has officially entered the 18-30 car club, given that the first ones were made in 2000 ?.Still, I may as well keep on enjoying it. And yes, I did put a stupid number plate onto it a few months ago.
One day, I’ll finally prioritise that bodywork. At least it looks good from the photos eh?
Oh, remember the guy who bought the Individual M3? Well, he bought another E46! A fairly rare one too! It was interesting finding a car like that! But, I'll spill more later on
:Edited by SebringMan on Thursday 26th September 17:45
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff