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      08-11-2020, 04:31 PM   #1
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N54 mod wishlist

Hi all,
2010 e89 z4 35i
any recommendations on where i can find a hks bov + charge pipe in canada?
also, any suggested tunes for stage 1 with possible stage 2 in the future?
I don't plan on tracking my car.
thanks all, stay safe.

Last edited by eli371; 08-11-2020 at 10:03 PM.. Reason: tl;dr
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      08-12-2020, 05:44 PM   #2
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MHD is all you need for software, you can find plenty of info on this forum or >> others << where they (MHD guys) hang out.

I don't see that most of the bigger vendors would not ship to Canada. FYI - Z4 is different charge pipe from any other N54 (bends differently)
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      08-12-2020, 06:54 PM   #3
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Hey thanks for the reply,
I didn't see MHD on that sticky mod list, was leaning towards JB4, but will check MHD out. All i could find locally was vrsf + tial. I think i'm going with the Evolution Racewerks charge pipe and hks bov, seems to be designed specifically for my car, but in the sticky thread someone mentioned that they tried it and it didn't fit. It's the only hks kit i could find though.
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      08-13-2020, 01:37 AM   #4
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Well that sticky mod list is 10 years old... a lot has changed since. Chargepipe
you have to get the one thats specifically made for Z4, Intercooler is same as other n54 bmw-s. Downpipes for stage 2 is same story as chargepipe - Z4 specific product needed. Chargepipe... i think it does not matter what brand you go. In the end it is just a pipe. Maybe stay away from noname china ebay pipes. VRSF is ok i think.You can get everything from them(intercooler, chargepipe, downpipes with a single order). Just choose what diverter valves or blowoff you are going with and get the pipe that works with these. With single big blowoffs like hks and TIAL you must know this: they need a bigger diameter vacuum line to work properly. You cant use oem nipple on the intake manifold for that... You can go ghetto and drill and fit a new nipple or there were some adapters you could buy and fit between somewhere to get the bigger feed nipple without drilling and so on. If you want to use oem vacuum line and feed from intake manifold you have to get smaller dual diverter valves/ blowoffs like turbosmart or forged. Personally i have a parts list made up and have turbosmarts on that build/wishlist. Turbosmarts because they are easier to get in the EU.
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      08-13-2020, 03:14 AM   #5
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Also when going with dual setup you can get upgraded chargepipe and keep oem plastic divertervalves, and upgrade them later to forged or turbosmart.

With tial you have to get everything at once.
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      08-13-2020, 06:56 PM   #6
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I had found an adapter for a 1/8" to 1/4" line and wasn't sure what it was for. When I looked it up it had mentioned if you don't go bigger you'll likely end up with flutter with an atmospheric bov. So will definitely be ordering the adapter. It was only $80 i think.

VRSF doesn't have the HKS flange, only Tial and Turbosmart =(
So I ordered the ER CP + HKS BOV + DCI
I also have index 12 injectors on order.

Tunes are overwhelming for someone with little experience. It's rough, we used to swap B/D series engines in 2 hours max back in the day but never really got into electronics/tuning. Unfortunately Cobb doesn't support my year Z4 because BMW was using 5 different ECUs at the time apparently. I looked into MHD but the "stage 1" tune looked like it was only 20-30hp gains but 1/5th the price of JB4. From what I thought i gathered, I felt like ~370hp stage 1 was doable. JB4 is a lot to take in. I don't know if it makes sense to get it just for map 1 (which they call 'Map 1: 13psi. Suggested for most racing applications.') or if it's suitable for above mods, how much power to expect. The other features are pretty cool (valet, cold/hot protection, on the fly tuning, in dash UI etc). While reading through the JB4 manual I saw something about it working with MHD, no idea what that's all about. I'm also having a hard time finding out what happens to "normal/sport mode" with these tunes. I still have a bit of research to do I guess.

I want to leave myself open for stage 2 in the future, although unlikely, JB4 seems to do that for me. It hasn't been necessarily easy to look up details on all the possible tunes, which ones are only "hard flash" and which ones have further potential.

For next spring I have my eyes on the Eisenmann exhaust. Also saw the E82/88 1 series performance oem brakes fit.

Last edited by eli371; 08-13-2020 at 07:04 PM..
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      08-14-2020, 01:04 AM   #7
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Stage 1 (up to 360HP/520NM) - 91oct/95ron, 93oct/98ron, 95oct/102ron, for stock cars.
Stage 1+ (up to 390HP/600NM) - 91oct/95ron, 93oct/98ron, 95oct/102ron, FMIC recommended.
Stage 2 (up to 380HP/560NM) - 91oct/95ron, 93oct/98ron, 95oct/102ron, high-flow downpipes recommended.
Stage 2+ (up to 420HP/650NM) - 91oct/95ron, 93oct/98ron, 95oct/102ron, high-flow downpipes + FMIC recommended.
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      08-14-2020, 01:09 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KennyP View Post
Stage 1 (up to 360HP/520NM) - 91oct/95ron, 93oct/98ron, 95oct/102ron, for stock cars.
Stage 1+ (up to 390HP/600NM) - 91oct/95ron, 93oct/98ron, 95oct/102ron, FMIC recommended.
Stage 2 (up to 380HP/560NM) - 91oct/95ron, 93oct/98ron, 95oct/102ron, high-flow downpipes recommended.
Stage 2+ (up to 420HP/650NM) - 91oct/95ron, 93oct/98ron, 95oct/102ron, high-flow downpipes + FMIC recommended.
Stage one sounds about right 360hp... this OTS map seems to work with both 91oct and 93 oct...

On cobb there are different maps for 91 oct and 93 oct... and 93 oct feels more powerful for sure than the 91 oct map.
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      08-14-2020, 08:37 PM   #9
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Well, I gave it a go today. Couldn't get the K+DCAN cable to prompt anything when connected to my phone.

The user manual says I should have got a pop up when connecting it asking which app to use, but nothing. Not sure if for some reason this cable isn't made for my specific car or if my phone is the problem.

The only thing I found to check was if my phone was OTG enabled, and it is. (Pixel 4)

I think i'm going to have to end up shelling out some more $$ for the MHD wifi obd adapter and hope for the best.
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      08-15-2020, 04:45 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by eli371 View Post
Well, I gave it a go today. Couldn't get the K+DCAN cable to prompt anything when connected to my phone.

The user manual says I should have got a pop up when connecting it asking which app to use, but nothing. Not sure if for some reason this cable isn't made for my specific car or if my phone is the problem.

The only thing I found to check was if my phone was OTG enabled, and it is. (Pixel 4)

I think i'm going to have to end up shelling out some more $$ for the MHD wifi obd adapter and hope for the best.
I think that wifi adapter is worth it. Makes life so much easier.. no plugging cables in... no cables dangling to your phone mount etc. My cobb is not plugged in and sits in its case in the trunk most of the time just because that cable gets in the way in the interior all the time.

If you have obd cable with the switch on it... then you may want to try different positions... it changes some pinouts on the connector that are different on earlier bmw-s from more modern stuff... If you dont then you may have a cable that is meant for the earlier cars.
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      08-15-2020, 07:07 AM   #11
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Yea to be honest, I just grabbed one that would get here next day on Amazon, but someone in the comments had mentioned that on his 2009 135 he had to switch it to D, so I just hoped for the best. (any of the 3 positions to the right). I watched a video explaining the positions (essentially a 4 position switch but only has 2 settings - K / D / D / D)

Right now I'm just going to ask around if someone has a tablet with usb C that i can borrow for 5 mins just to see if the cable reacts differently but i'm doubtful thats the case. I likely have a cable not meant for my car. Not sure how long it'll take get here, but i'm ordering the wifi one today if I can't manage to get it working.
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      08-20-2020, 07:13 PM   #12
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car is running great on stage 1, surprising how much quicker it is. wifi adapter was a 20 min initial write, reflashes are about 1 min. highly recommended.

now to look for coils/plugs/injectors to do during storage.
thanks again for your input.
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      08-20-2020, 07:16 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KennyP View Post
Stage one sounds about right 360hp... this OTS map seems to work with both 91oct and 93 oct...

On cobb there are different maps for 91 oct and 93 oct... and 93 oct feels more powerful for sure than the 91 oct map.
forgot to mention, there are different maps for each of the octane levels with mhd as well, i imagine theres a marginal difference between the two though. 93 is tougher to come across here, so i'm on 91 right now
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      08-22-2020, 05:00 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by eli371 View Post
forgot to mention, there are different maps for each of the octane levels with mhd as well, i imagine theres a marginal difference between the two though. 93 is tougher to come across here, so i'm on 91 right now
on cobb 93 tune allows a bit more boost... last time i hooked my cobb up to do some checks(few days ago) max boost i hit was 16.5psi i think 91 map was 14.5 psi or something like that...

When you are doing plugs... get Iridium 1 step colder ones. N55 engine had iridium one step colder ones stock and for tuned N54 they are recommended. First time doing plugs i changed to oem bosch plugs... these did not last long... 10000 km maybe and had already signs of wear on them. Now im running N55 oem colder plugs and soon after that i changed to Delphi coils from stock Bosch. Eldor is said to be marginally better but they are more expensive aswell. For me Delphi was easily purchaseable and cheaper. For Eldor i should have had to order them from the dealer or from usa. Car runs great.

When i got my Cobb i had 3 stage one maps... 2 91 oct maps ( drive, sport) and 93 oct (agressive)...each map ups the boost a tiny bit... i started with the mildest, got used to it changed to second map and finally started using 93 oct map. Now im used to that and want even more. Cobb has a linear throttle option for each map aswell. I used it in winter conditions briefly. Stock throttle is like a switch past halfway point of pedal travel... In icy conditions that makes it right away break loose and isnt really pleasant. With linear max power is at the bottom of the pedal travel and you can modulate the power more easily. More control essentially. For summer, spring and autumn i switch it back to stock throttle. Feels more powerful and fun. No grip issues so no problems.
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Last edited by KennyP; 08-23-2020 at 07:56 AM..
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      08-23-2020, 05:26 PM   #15
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MHD has a linear throttle options but i haven't bothered with it (they describe it as "stock 40% throttle = 80% torque, linear 40% throttle = 40% torque)

I've been on stage 1 for a while now and yesterday I got a random misfire at the top end of 3rd, started running rough, seems like the car shutdown the cyclinder, i pulled over, restarted the car, and it was fine, but i didn't get on it since then. I'm not really sure if that scenario points to anything specific, so now i'm doing the entire ignition system asap.

MHD only support 2 aftermarket coil kits, so it's looking like i'm going with the bimmerlife tuning coil kit, I saw them recommend the NGK N20 with a 0.026 gap on the N54, but for some reason my car isn't on that plug fitment list, i'll try and find the ones you mentioned.

I'm on the fence for injectors, FCP has them for about $1400 or so, but i've found index 12s for less than half that so i'm still doing some research.
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      08-23-2020, 06:23 PM   #16
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https://bmwsparkplugs.com/products/n...26686704058468

I have the bosch ones that are mentioned on this website.... pretty much same thing as the NGK plug mentioned there... both are iridum.
I have mine gapped 0.022"(0.56mm) Works fine for stage 1. Maybe a bit overkill as its said to be for cars pushing 400hp or more. I havent had any issues with it.

FCP euro gives 2 gapping measures:
Quote:
N54 applications require the spark plug gap to be changed to OE 0.7mm (0.0275″) or 0.56mm (0.022″) for high boost
ECSTUNING says to gap at 0.022" aswell..
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ngk-part...six/n54plugkt/
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      08-23-2020, 06:29 PM   #17
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I've gone ahead and ordered delphi coils and ngk colder ones kit from fcp, they were half the price of the bimmerlife ones, so i'll give them a go for this tune up.

now just have to figure out injectors.
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      08-23-2020, 06:34 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by eli371 View Post
MHD has a linear throttle options but i haven't bothered with it (they describe it as "stock 40% throttle = 80% torque, linear 40% throttle = 40% torque)
Same thing as cobb then.
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      08-23-2020, 06:54 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by eli371 View Post
I've gone ahead and ordered delphi coils and ngk colder ones kit from fcp, they were half the price of the bimmerlife ones, so i'll give them a go for this tune up.

now just have to figure out injectors.
Nice!
I dont think you are going to need those race ignition kits. They are expensive.
There was a good video by Vehicular DIY comparing oem coils. Bosch being the worst, Delphi good and Eldor is newest and probably best. So im guessing they are enough for stage 1. For full bolt on car and onwards. Then i would start considering those kits you can check off on MHD app.

https://youtu.be/Tjsx-K1mjkQ

index 12 isnt cheap. If you dont have any issues with the ones on now. You dont have to hurry with the purchase.
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      09-03-2020, 10:27 PM   #20
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Update:
Car is running amazing! I was getting spark blow out at stage one on high load high rpm, went with that delphi/ngk kit gapped at .022 as you did and no more issues. Once the car sat for a couple days over the weekend and it started rough, threw a misfire code. I'm chalking it up to leaky injector, which i'm working on now.

Installed: MHD Stage 1, BMS DCI
Waiting for delivery: Charge pipe + bov, oem index 12 injectors
Sourcing: FMIC, Downpipes (recommendations?)
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