Esquire's Dakar Yellow M3 coupe - a Photo Modification Journal

[Stallion150]

very nice man! I hadn't really considered yellow before on a car, but yours looks sweet.

[Pauldramos]

Awesome Ride!!! I dig the yellow.

[OC3]

+1 on The R's Tuning

[pedrobot]

Red is the faster color!!!

Awesome ride!

[Powerbeast]

Originally Posted by esquire

Thanks man. Pretty much how I feel about your car too..

Thanks man.

[the infamous...]

Originally Posted by esquire

The sprewells I wanted are on back-order. So I guess i'll just have to settle for the lexani's. Do they make the ones I want with neon back-lighting? Thats the new hot thing in the car-modding world - neon.

darn... shame bout the sprewells, i kno how much u wanted 'em. smh
n iono bout the neons man, i mean they look ridiculous n all (in a good way) n will be def unique,
but imo they're jus so 12 seconds ago.


btw i noticed ur new sig pic's a lil too big, it cuts off,
so i made 1 thas a better size along w/ a reflector delete:

[esquire]

So....... I received a number of PM's recommending MRF engineering for a performance alignment. I researched MRF on the forums and it became pretty apparent that they had a good reputation. Now after having gone to MRF, I can see exactly why its reputation is as good as it is.

Malek at MRF, has to be the most detail oriented person I've ever met, and when it comes to my car, and for a person as detail-oriented as me, there's no better compliment I can give. First he spends time getting to know the kind of driver you are, asking directed questions that give him insight into your driving habits and preferences. Then after figuring out settings best-suited for me and my needs, he spent almost 2 hours calibrating my toe, and camber, as well as wheel alignment. He went so far as to have me sit in the driver's seat and have me place the wheel at what I considered to be center - the idea being that every person's idea of "center" is slightly different, and that as a result the alignment should be tailored to that person's perception. A very nice touch, if I do say so myself. Every figure was double-checked or triple checked for precision.

By itself, that would have been enough to earn my business, but Malek also took an extra 45 minutes or so helping me with a few items entirely unrelated to my alignment, including making some fine-tune adjustments to my suspension settings (which anyone who has clubsports knows requires getting your car up on the racks, and taking the lining off of the trunk), and adjusting the tips on my akra exhaust.

When it was all said and done, the car drove more precisely and aggressively than ever before. And of course, when I placed the wheel at dead center and took my hands off, the car drove in a perfectly straight line with no deviation - exactly the way that it should do. Camber was set perfectly. Toe was set perfectly.

Did i mention he did all of that for $85? Unbelievable.


The shop is located in Lake Forest/Irvine, so definitely worth a check out for people in Orange County. A major thank you to Malek @ MRF Engineering for all the hard work.

- esquire

[esquire]

Originally Posted by Stallion150

very nice man! I hadn't really considered yellow before on a car, but yours looks sweet.

When i was a kid, maybe around the time when I was 16, I would read all the amazing magazine review about the e36 M3. I vividly remember seeing pics of the car in yellow and thinking "that's the color I want." I dreamed of owning one. Somehow, I managed to talk my dad into getting one. But my young powers of persuasion weren't enough to get him to go with Dakar Yellow. He got Hellrot Red instead (which is still a pretty damn amazing color). But I told myself, that when my turn comes, I would make sure that my M3 was in Dakar.

Childhood dream : accomplished.

Originally Posted by Pauldramos

Awesome Ride!!! I dig the yellow.

Thanks Paul.

Originally Posted by OC3

+1 on The R's Tuning

I've heard good things about R's Tuning too. But as you see above, I decided to go with MRF. Very pleased with the results.

Originally Posted by pedrobot

Red is the faster color!!!

Awesome ride!

That's true, I've heard red shaves off about 2 seconds on the quarter mile. On the flip side though, I've heard red cars get no chicks. Lol. Jk.

Originally Posted by the infamous...

btw i noticed ur new sig pic's a lil too big, it cuts off,
so i made 1 thas a better size along w/ a reflector delete:
Attachment 663103

Thanks for the photochop man. I want to use it as my sig, but I just can't do it in good conscience. Not til my reflectors are actually matched. Until then, I have to do the honorable thing and have my sig reflect the way my car really looks - mismatched. lol. ugh.

Thanks for all the kind words everyone. Will be posting pics of my M-stitched DCT and e-brake boots very soon.


- esquire

[OerdingE93]

probly one of my favorite cars on here...good job dude

[Amans_e90]

What percent tint do you have on the car. Car looks freaking great.

edit: nvm got it lol

[GOLFFRR]

Nice Sasan looks like I need to catch up with you a little bit I am falling behind lol I better call Malek up and get a Performance Alignment now!

Def 2 for MRF and Malek. Malek really knows his stuff.

[Malek]

Sasan,

Your car looks amazing. It was also more than a pleasure meeting you and helping you out. I look forward to more of it!

Jimmy, bring it in my man, you already know what I want to say.

Malek

[kwike92]

Originally Posted by esquire

So....... I received a number of PM's recommending MRF engineering for a performance alignment. I researched MRF on the forums and it became pretty apparent that they had a good reputation. Now after having gone to MRF, I can see exactly why its reputation is as good as it is.

Malek at MRF, has to be the most detail oriented person I've ever met, and when it comes to my car, and for a person as detail-oriented as me, there's no better compliment I can give. First he spends time getting to know the kind of driver you are, asking directed questions that give him insight into your driving habits and preferences. Then after figuring out settings best-suited for me and my needs, he spent almost 2 hours calibrating my toe, and camber, as well as wheel alignment. He went so far as to have me sit in the driver's seat and have me place the wheel at what I considered to be center - the idea being that every person's idea of "center" is slightly different, and that as a result the alignment should be tailored to that person's perception. A very nice touch, if I do say so myself. Every figure was double-checked or triple checked for precision.

By itself, that would have been enough to earn my business, but Malek also took an extra 45 minutes or so helping me with a few items entirely unrelated to my alignment, including making some fine-tune adjustments to my suspension settings (which anyone who has clubsports knows requires getting your car up on the racks, and taking the lining off of the trunk), and adjusting the tips on my akra exhaust.

When it was all said and done, the car drove more precisely and aggressively than ever before. And of course, when I placed the wheel at dead center and took my hands off, the car drove in a perfectly straight line with no deviation - exactly the way that it should do. Camber was set perfectly. Toe was set perfectly.

Did i mention he did all of that for $85? Unbelievable.


The shop is located in Lake Forest/Irvine, so definitely worth a check out for people in Orange County. A major thank you to Malek @ MRF Engineering for all the hard work.

- esquire

i cant agree anymore, i personally took my moms e46 to MRF for just a normal alignment, and in the process, we talked about my own car (09 m3) and he definately takes time to understand what your using the car for and recomends the RIGHT parts, not just the most expensive parts just to make a buck, Malek seems to be a pretty cool dude, and its hard to find a good shop that u can trust, especially when their working on your $70k+ machine. i will be visiting this shop soon to have my car lowered on HR springs and possibly new wheels

[Dodge2Dub]

x4 regarding Malek. Great guy who knows his stuff. I've spent over an hour on the phone with him and at least 30 minutes in person discussing both of our vehicles and how to maximize our personal driving enjoyment. He also went above/beyond on a transaction that I had with him.

Sasan, thanks for the write-up. I will definitely need to make a pit stop at MRF soon.

[Singletrack]

That is awesome about malek and MRF!! That is absolutely the proper way to do things - load the driver position with weight for accuracy; assuming you drive most of the time sans codriver. Unfortunately, almost no one does it!

[J335Red]

Sasan your car looks phenomenal. After following your thread I have grown to fall in love with the Dakar yellow bro.

As for MRF two thumbs up!!!
Love there work. He is clean and his shop is clean. I have been taking my car to Malek for about 5 years now and I wouldn't take my car anywhere else.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by GOLFFRR

Nice Sasan looks like I need to catch up with you a little bit I am falling behind lol I better call Malek up and get a Performance Alignment now!

Def 2 for MRF and Malek. Malek really knows his stuff.

Originally Posted by kwike92

i cant agree anymore, i personally took my moms e46 to MRF for just a normal alignment, and in the process, we talked about my own car (09 m3) and he definately takes time to understand what your using the car for and recomends the RIGHT parts, not just the most expensive parts just to make a buck, Malek seems to be a pretty cool dude, and its hard to find a good shop that u can trust, especially when their working on your $70k+ machine. i will be visiting this shop soon to have my car lowered on HR springs and possibly new wheels

Originally Posted by Dodge2Dub

x4 regarding Malek. Great guy who knows his stuff. I've spent over an hour on the phone with him and at least 30 minutes in person discussing both of our vehicles and how to maximize our personal driving enjoyment. He also went above/beyond on a transaction that I had with him.

Sasan, thanks for the write-up. I will definitely need to make a pit stop at MRF soon.

Originally Posted by Singletrack

That is awesome about malek and MRF!! That is absolutely the proper way to do things - load the driver position with weight for accuracy; assuming you drive most of the time sans codriver. Unfortunately, almost no one does it!

Originally Posted by J335Red

Sasan your car looks phenomenal. After following your thread I have grown to fall in love with the Dakar yellow bro.

As for MRF two thumbs up!!!
Love there work. He is clean and his shop is clean. I have been taking my car to Malek for about 5 years now and I wouldn't take my car anywhere else.

Lot of MRF supporters out there. Who knew. Good customer service begets strong customer loyalty.

[tvieso]

Just went through this entire thread for the first time. I usually don't like yellow cars, but the sophistication of your mods has really appealed to me. Congrats on such a beautiful car! Definitely stands out above others.

[anthony @ eas]

I had the chance to snap some pics on Friday. Looks great!

[the infamous...]

^^^ whoa excellent pix as usual, Anthony. oss n r-crt lip really sets it apart from the rest.

[Powerbeast]

I feel we're like brother now!

[esquire]

Originally Posted by Powerbeast

I feel we're like brother now!

Worlds first Dakar yellow 1M!! Post up some more pics here. Are you pleased with how it turned out? Looks pretty damn good so far.

Now should I set you up with Luis from OSS so you can get a blackout? Your car is begging for it