Ah, it feels so good to be back in a BMW and writing a fresh progress thread.
My name is Norb, a mechanical engineer from WNY working in the aerospace industry. I've been out of the BMW game for some time, but finally in my first ///M car - and a hell of a machine at that. It's an '09 Interlagos M3 with a 6 speed, but the story of my appreciation for German iron (aluminum?) really starts back in around 2012-ish, and takes many detours along the way.
I tend to be long winded and enjoy documenting my automotive journey/adventures, and that is even more true given the current pandemic situation - so grab your favorite beverage and enjoy.
I'll sprinkle in some of my past build threads/journals here and there if anyone is interested.
In 2011 I was a freshly graduated engineer working for a mechanical contractor/design firm driving an '06 Sentra SE-R Spec V - a fun car in its own right, but somewhat didn't fit into my new lifestyle. What it did teach me via various brake jobs, wheel bearing fixes, and bolt-on installs, was that working on cars was not difficult and actually enjoyable. It also saved me a ton of money, which freed up funds to feed my automotive passion.
So, with the desire for something more comfortable and sophisticated while still being fun to drive, I dove head first into the German car world and bought a 2001 BMW 540i Sport. 6 speed manual, 4.4 M62TU V8, fun options like rear sunshade, heated seats, etc. It was a great car and I drove it basically stock while replacing the cooling system and getting it back to decent mechanical condition.
https://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=588590
It did okay burnouts for an open diff. I installed an exhaust cutout and fell in love with V8s.
After about a year of driving it stock, I got the itch for more power and decided to go nuts.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/conversio...-bmw-540i.html
