E36 328i throttle body conversion....
Discussion
Invisible man said:
Dunk76 said:
The floor hinged throttle has always been a culprit of this behaviour in every BMW I've ever owned.
RobM77 said:
Invisible man said:
Dunk76 said:
The floor hinged throttle has always been a culprit of this behaviour in every BMW I've ever owned.
Small stones/grit/dirt rolling around in the footwell and getting into the pedal hinge was an issue for me - very much so in the two E36s I've owned, less so in the E46.
A brief hoover out always sorted it.
Lubricate throttle hinge/pivot is a listed service item in the E36 as I recall.
Dunk76 said:
RobM77 said:
Invisible man said:
Dunk76 said:
The floor hinged throttle has always been a culprit of this behaviour in every BMW I've ever owned.
Small stones/grit/dirt rolling around in the footwell and getting into the pedal hinge was an issue for me - very much so in the two E36s I've owned, less so in the E46.
A brief hoover out always sorted it.
Lubricate throttle hinge/pivot is a listed service item in the E36 as I recall.
Hi, I have a 1996 E36 328i convertible with factory fitted M bumpers and mirrors she's a real trooper I've been spanking her for Seven years she's up to 154,000 and still going strong. I've done the 325i manifold mod with a pipercross viper induction kit she dynoed at 190bhp at the wheels, running rich at low rev's and lean at high. I find if you don't run her on high octane she starts to pink at redline. She sit's on Eibach springs i'm putting Koni adjustable's on at the moment. She also has 18" alpina's with 225,40,18 bridgestone's. finally black diamond combi disks and pads all round. next will be strut braces front and back,exhorts system with hi flow cat and a viper chip if i can find one. i've been reading what you guys have been saying about the big throttle and i'm still undecided, If anyone knows what other mods would make it worth doing could they please let me know or where i can get a viper chip from it would be greatly appreciated i'm sure there's more BHP to be had out of the old girl. If anyone would like info on any of the mods i've made please do ask.
Next up IMO you need to get the BBTB (big bore throttle body) and some USA spec M3 camshafts. The cams need to be put in and timed properly by a decent independant garage with the correct cam tools to fully take advantage of these.
Be careful when sourcing the cams as they have the same casting numbers as standard 325i cams so you need to be sure you are buying kosher M3 ones.
After this you could get underdriven pullies and do a viscous fan delete if you have aircon, all in the name of reducing parasitic drag. A remap would comliment all of this nicely. Personally i think pretty much all remaps are generic unless you go down the route of something like a piggyback system such as dastek unichip.
If done properly you should be knocking on the door of 240BHP easily.
I had all of the above mods done on my 328i aswell as a GruppeM filter and the uber rare schrick intake manifold which was the other alternative to the 325i inlet
Totally transformed the car
Be careful when sourcing the cams as they have the same casting numbers as standard 325i cams so you need to be sure you are buying kosher M3 ones.
After this you could get underdriven pullies and do a viscous fan delete if you have aircon, all in the name of reducing parasitic drag. A remap would comliment all of this nicely. Personally i think pretty much all remaps are generic unless you go down the route of something like a piggyback system such as dastek unichip.
If done properly you should be knocking on the door of 240BHP easily.
I had all of the above mods done on my 328i aswell as a GruppeM filter and the uber rare schrick intake manifold which was the other alternative to the 325i inlet
Totally transformed the car
After reading this thread I followed the steps listed and removed the airbox restrictor over this weekend. It's a very simply job - this is coming from someone who has little patience or technical knowledge, but it takes all of 5 minutes to do. The difference is negliable to be honest... bit more of a howl from the engine over 3500rpm.
I will add the 325i throttle body when the car needs it's next service and will report back on that too.
I will add the 325i throttle body when the car needs it's next service and will report back on that too.
Skipppy said:
After reading this thread I followed the steps listed and removed the airbox restrictor over this weekend. It's a very simply job - this is coming from someone who has little patience or technical knowledge, but it takes all of 5 minutes to do. The difference is negliable to be honest... bit more of a howl from the engine over 3500rpm.
I will add the 325i throttle body when the car needs it's next service and will report back on that too.
Why would you put the 325 body on? It's no bigger than your existing one. I used a manifold kit that came with a bigger bore body but it was an enlarged 328 body. Best thing I ever didI will add the 325i throttle body when the car needs it's next service and will report back on that too.
Edited by Mr Bimmer on Tuesday 25th January 17:40
Mr Bimmer said:
Skipppy said:
After reading this thread I followed the steps listed and removed the airbox restrictor over this weekend. It's a very simply job - this is coming from someone who has little patience or technical knowledge, but it takes all of 5 minutes to do. The difference is negliable to be honest... bit more of a howl from the engine over 3500rpm.
I will add the 325i throttle body when the car needs it's next service and will report back on that too.
Why would you put the 325 body on? It's no bigger than your existing one. I used a manifold kit that came with a bigger bore body but it was an enlarged 328 body. Best thing I ever didI will add the 325i throttle body when the car needs it's next service and will report back on that too.
Edited by Mr Bimmer on Tuesday 25th January 17:40
I've just tried this mod, it certainly did not only take me 5 minutes, as per a previous poster, I had to remove the airbox from the car, which was straightforward enough, but connecting it back up again was a complete b
h. Took me about an hour 
Must admit, I'm hard pressed to notice all that much difference, as said, perhaps it does sound a little more throaty at higher revs, slightly harder edged, but it is fairly subtle. In actual fact, I think I'd liken the difference to being somewhat similar to when I drilled the airbox on my old MX5.
I'm guessing a proper cone filter would make a much more noticeable difference?
I also went to try the "golf tee" mod to keep the exhaust flap open, to give it an apparently more "meaty" sound at low revs, but discovered that someone has already done this for me
I always thought my 328 sounded louder than my best mates 328 at idle, perhaps this is why...
I wouldn't mind doing the manifold / throttle body mods, but to be honest, reading up on here about it, unless I was prepared to part with about 1K to do it all properly, it's probably not really worth it - personally, to me the car feels pretty fast anyway... in fact, I'd say I wouldn't be surprised if these are kicking out a bit more than 190 bhp. A couple of years ago, I had an import DC2 Integra Type-R that was kicking out a claimed 197 bhp, along with weighing approx 300 kg less than this beemer, and yet I don't remember that car actually being any quicker accelerating - it perhaps felt quicker because it was more raw to drive, but I don't remember the numbers coming up any quicker. I find in the Beemer, without even trying particularly hard to drive fast, you can be at 3 figure speeds before even realise you're doing it.
h. Took me about an hour Must admit, I'm hard pressed to notice all that much difference, as said, perhaps it does sound a little more throaty at higher revs, slightly harder edged, but it is fairly subtle. In actual fact, I think I'd liken the difference to being somewhat similar to when I drilled the airbox on my old MX5.
I'm guessing a proper cone filter would make a much more noticeable difference?
I also went to try the "golf tee" mod to keep the exhaust flap open, to give it an apparently more "meaty" sound at low revs, but discovered that someone has already done this for me
I always thought my 328 sounded louder than my best mates 328 at idle, perhaps this is why...I wouldn't mind doing the manifold / throttle body mods, but to be honest, reading up on here about it, unless I was prepared to part with about 1K to do it all properly, it's probably not really worth it - personally, to me the car feels pretty fast anyway... in fact, I'd say I wouldn't be surprised if these are kicking out a bit more than 190 bhp. A couple of years ago, I had an import DC2 Integra Type-R that was kicking out a claimed 197 bhp, along with weighing approx 300 kg less than this beemer, and yet I don't remember that car actually being any quicker accelerating - it perhaps felt quicker because it was more raw to drive, but I don't remember the numbers coming up any quicker. I find in the Beemer, without even trying particularly hard to drive fast, you can be at 3 figure speeds before even realise you're doing it.
When it comes to the "golf tee" mod, I must be in the minority because I actually like the fact that My 328i sport is quiet and discreet at low engine speeds and louder only when she needs to be.
To me it gives it an air of class rather than having to be a: "notice Me, notice Me, I'm sporty because I make a louder noise!" car.
To me it gives it an air of class rather than having to be a: "notice Me, notice Me, I'm sporty because I make a louder noise!" car.
4rephill said:
When it comes to the "golf tee" mod, I must be in the minority because I actually like the fact that My 328i sport is quiet and discreet at low engine speeds and louder only when she needs to be.
To me it gives it an air of class rather than having to be a: "notice Me, notice Me, I'm sporty because I make a louder noise!" car.
To be honest, it still sounds reasonably quiet to me. My mates car on the other hand, without this mod, actually sounds almost silent when idling from inside the car, whereas this just lets you hear more of the engine. I still wouldn't say it's as loud as what a proper sports exhaust would be; it doesn't boom or anything like that. I'd say the noise it makes now is just right. It still sounds quieter from inside the cabin than my girlfriends standard Vauxhall Corsa C 1.2... so it's still pretty refined IMO.To me it gives it an air of class rather than having to be a: "notice Me, notice Me, I'm sporty because I make a louder noise!" car.
My last car was a Mk1 MX5 with a stainless steel exhaust, drilled airbox and decat pipe, and believe me, that thing was loud (not in a good way either), so I guess anything will probably sound pretty quiet to me.
Personally, I think the car as it stands now sounds really nice. I'm still curious about what effect a good induction would have though. Not too bothered about a sport exhaust - most of the time when I've had them put on cars, I ended up not liking those.
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