Sdrive30i performance upgrades

[cwliew]

Hi - I have been reading a lot about performance chips etc for the 35i and is etc, and was wondering what performance upgrades there were for the non turbo engine?
Or has anyone changed intake or exhaust on the 30i and found it to make any differences?

[Alext]

Originally Posted by cwliew

Hi - I have been reading a lot about performance chips etc for the 35i and is etc, and was wondering what performance upgrades there were for the non turbo engine?
Or has anyone changed intake or exhaust on the 30i and found it to make any differences?

Yes Burger Tuning do one for the N52 series cars called the Power Box. See www.burgertuning.com

Gains are minimal in the power department but driveability is improved.

[teagueAMX]

Originally Posted by cwliew

Hi - I have been reading a lot about performance chips etc for the 35i and is etc, and was wondering what performance upgrades there were for the non turbo engine?
Or has anyone changed intake or exhaust on the 30i and found it to make any differences?

The thing that is so great about modern turbocharged engine is the ability to electronically control the turbos' wastegate. By doing do you significantly increase intake boost. This is forced induction and pressurizes the combustion cycle.

Unfortunately, the route for normally aspirated (NA) engines is the old fashion way; increase compression, change cams, possibly bore the cylinders and provide a longer piston stroke thereby increasing the engine's displacement, modify the injection profile to provide more fuel, and alter spark timing. The only easy part through programing is changing the spark timing and the fuel injector maps.

All of those things are expensive and require a commitment to changing the driving dynamics of the car. You can do nitrous oxide (N2O) that will improve the cylinder charge by increasing oxygen during combustion. This a very short duration application of typically only a few seconds and not something you apply all the time.

The guys over on the M3 forum might have better advice for you.

[cwliew]

Yeah, ok, so probably not viable. Read a few things already, but nothing seemed very attractive at all...No big deal!

Thanks anyway.

What about other things? Can the handling be improved on the sdrive30i? Sway bars and the like? I haven't even got mine yet, but was just looking at what could be done - have read that understeer can be a problem as well...
Plus I have the 19 inch 326Ms with run flat tires. I hear the RFT have problems in the handling department. Not really sure what they are...

[Alext]

RFT arent so good over bumps. They tend to crash over bumps a little bit due to their sidewall stiffening. I find this can lead to a little loss of traction on rough surfaces. I currently have I think the 3rd(?) generation Bridgestone RFT on my car. In the outright grip department they are not bad at all. Of course there will be non-RFT tires that offer better performance.

[MilitaryE89]

of course as the car becomes more of a stalwart in the bmw stables more parts will become available. unfortunately, and anyone feel free to correct me if i am wrong (which i really hope i am), but the N52B30 engine used in the 30i is a magnesium alloy block which will not take well to many modifications. Especially turbo/supercharging. I would assume NOS would be out as well. I think the best investment as a start would be a LSD (bmw brand of course as not to void warrenties...whenever they come out with one for the Z). I have played with the idea of BMS powerbox, but its main selling point is the increase in throttle response by removing the throttle delay built into the car. this is something we can do already by toggling the switch to sport+. Besides the LSD then, intakes and exhaust and jet fuel lol

[ChuckB]

I have the 313 19" wheels which are bit "tight" on my 30 and did notice some wheel hop on a few corners and not as much compliance as I think a Z4 should have, but I added the H & R performance springs and handling is much improved without any harshness, so I voted against the H & R sway bars as the car corners extremely flat.

I sprang for the Eisenmann 4 outlet exhaust setup, and while I don't have any figures it does feel like it winds up quicker, but who cares - it sounds great...

[zEdP]

Originally Posted by ChuckB

I have the 313 19" wheels which are bit "tight" on my 30 and did notice some wheel hop on a few corners and not as much compliance as I think a Z4 should have, but I added the H & R performance springs and handling is much improved without any harshness, so I voted against the H & R sway bars as the car corners extremely flat.

ChuckB, how does the center point steering feels on der Autobahn? Is the vague feeling fixed with the springs but without the H&R sway bar?

What is the big difference between de standard and your new Eisenmann 4 outlet exhaust setup? Louder, deeper,???
What about the weight; is this new setup heavier or lighter?

EdP

[MilitaryE89]

hey chuck, ill be heading up to landstuhl tuesday and was wondering if you were gonna be around mannheim then. i would love to swing by and check out your set up like we talked about awhile back

[ChuckB]

Originally Posted by zEdP

ChuckB, how does the center point steering feels on der Autobahn? Is the vague feeling fixed with the springs but without the H&R sway bar?

What is the big difference between de standard and your new Eisenmann 4 outlet exhaust setup? Louder, deeper,???
What about the weight; is this new setup heavier or lighter?

EdP

zEdP: The center point steering feel is much tighter with the H & R Springs, no issues pushing the car to the limit, which I did today on the Hockenheim Ring track, the Sptizkehre was negotiable in 3rd gear [no idea what speed that was] but no noticeable lean. Overall the car feels much better connected with the road everywhere. The ride is not harsher than to stock springs except over large bumps, just a bit more progressive spring rate. given the improvement in handling, I don't feel the need for the Sway Bar. the only thing to watch out for is for the first 2 days the ride can only be called "brutal", until the car "learned" he new setup

The Eisenamnn exhaust is a bit heavier than the stock system on the 3.0 as it adds a seconds muffler, however it only adds about 5Kg to the car as the Stainless Steel construction is fairly thin, but still built pretty well. As far as the sound goes words are so limiting, it has a slightly louder rumble at idle which is not much louder than stock, but much meatier. the resonance I heard before in the car is till there below 1800 RPM, above 1800RPM it turns into a DTM howl all the way to the red-line. Backing off the throttle makes the most exquisite rumbling and popping when it is warmed up, even my wife loves it. The only strange part is that at 4000RPM giving just cruise gas , it makes almost no noise, but step on the gas and the beautiful noise starts like a switch has been turned on. Fuel usage has stayed the same with the top closed, but once the top is down I can't help but waste a lot of fuel just listening to the exhaust. Drop me a PM and I will try to get a real sound byte this week as the clip on the Eisenmann Web Site doesn't really do the system justice

http://www.eisenmann-sportauspuff.de...rive_23_30.php

[ChuckB]

Originally Posted by MilitaryE89

hey chuck, ill be heading up to landstuhl tuesday and was wondering if you were gonna be around mannheim then. i would love to swing by and check out your set up like we talked about awhile back

I'll be there, PM sent with location details

[Alext]

Hey cwliew: I just found this. It is a flash at home solution that everyone has been waiting for (I know I have!!). Only US$440!

http://oetuning.com/index.php/produc...4-e85-3-0.html

OE tuning apparently have a great reputation.

It adds +15HP.

[cdeslandes]

Originally Posted by teagueAMX

The thing that is so great about modern turbocharged engine is the ability to electronically control the turbos' wastegate. By doing do you significantly increase intake boost. This is forced induction and pressurizes the combustion cycle.

Unfortunately, the route for normally aspirated (NA) engines is the old fashion way; increase compression, change cams, possibly bore the cylinders and provide a longer piston stroke thereby increasing the engine's displacement, modify the injection profile to provide more fuel, and alter spark timing. The only easy part through programing is changing the spark timing and the fuel injector maps.

All of those things are expensive and require a commitment to changing the driving dynamics of the car. You can do nitrous oxide (NO2) that will improve the cylinder charge by increasing oxygen during combustion. This a very short duration application of typically only a few seconds and not something you apply all the time.

The guys over on the M3 forum might have better advice for you.

It'd be cheaper to get a 35i instead. 50 more Hp for $6,000 (in the US). Then another 80 Hp of so for another $2,000 with Dinan software (also in the US).

[teagueAMX]

Originally Posted by cdeslandes

It'd be cheaper to get a 35i instead. 50 more Hp for $6,000 (in the US). Then another 80 Hp of so for another $2,000 with Dinan software (also in the US).

I completely agree.

[zEdP]

Originally Posted by ChuckB

zEdP: The center point steering feel is much tighter with the H & R Springs

Sounds great...

Does your 30i has the adaptive or standard suspension?

I guess the H & R Springs make the 30i lower than the original setup?

EdP

[ChuckB]

Originally Posted by zEdP

Sounds great...
Does your 30i has the adaptive or standard suspension?
I guess the H & R Springs make the 30i lower than the original setup?
EdP

I have the Adaptive Suspension, so the drop was only about 10cm vice the 20/30 drop on the normal suspension. The pic below is after 3 weeks of daily driving, and it doesn't appear to have dropped any additional amount, even after 2400km across France...

[Vintage]

the car looks great with the lower stance

[yoonskim]

oh my god, i can't wait to get my car this weekend after looking at that picture... same car, color, wheels

[Alext]

Love the stance. Is that Jet Black or Sapphire metallic black. Looks like JB?

[teagueAMX]

Originally Posted by cwliew

Yeah, ok, so probably not viable. Read a few things already, but nothing seemed very attractive at all...No big deal!

Thanks anyway.

What about other things? Can the handling be improved on the sdrive30i? Sway bars and the like? I haven't even got mine yet, but was just looking at what could be done - have read that understeer can be a problem as well...
Plus I have the 19 inch 326Ms with run flat tires. I hear the RFT have problems in the handling department. Not really sure what they are...

Wasn't trying to be a downer or discourage you. It's just a bummer that increasing the output of a NA engine is very difficult and costly, whereas turbo charged engine is fairly simple, but I think the folks above are giving some advice that may be useful for you.

[ChuckB]

Originally Posted by Alext

Love the stance. Is that Jet Black or Sapphire metallic black. Looks like JB?

It is the Jet Black

Originally Posted by yoonskim

oh my god, i can't wait to get my car this weekend after looking at that picture... same car, color, wheels

All you need are the springs to drop it a bit, but this is a personal preference but the the 313's raise the car up almost 1", and the springs lower it about 1", so no trade off on ground clearance if that is a concern.
------------------------------
The only folks I know of doing N52 upgrades are Noelle Motors who are able to get 306HP, 256 lbsft out of an N52, but that is taking it to 3.2 ltrs with all new internals to the tune of about Euro 11,000 [don't quote me on the price but saw it somewhere I can't remember], but I think you will loose the warranty along with a lot of longevity getting what appears to be a track kit, and not yet specific to the new Z4.

I have driven both and from a seat of my pants perspective the difference is not that great, the 35 is quicker but the the 30 is lighter and I think corners better [it is 200lbs lighter, mostly unsprung weight front the bigger brakes and the weight of the turbo setup directly over the front wheels] and uses less gas [which is issue with gas being $2.00 a quart over here], but my sense of enjoyment was the same on both cars - there is no bad choice here. I would have gotten a 35 if the dealer had one, but the demo I picked up was a 30 [considerable discount] and I am not disappointed at all

[cwliew]

Thankyou all for your comments and advice. Its not really that I wanted to make huge gains, and definitely for for 11 thousand euros, but was wondering if anyone had made minor changes to intake or exhaust and noticed anything good.

One thing that alarmed me was the 19 inch 313s. I have the 326M's coming which are fairly similar - do all 19 inch wheels raise the ride height of the car? That doesn't make a lot of sense to me, given that you'd probably have lower profile tyres to offset it - would have thought that ride height didn't change with changing the size of the wheels...but I could be wrong.

Also, the adaptive suspension only drops the car ride height by in my mind, and unnoticeable 1cm (10mm)...Really, its all in the stiffness of the suspension and the modularity right?