Amazing Wind Tunnel Testing Data on M3 and 335

[Curt2000]

awesome find!

[ss134]

Awesome thread! - Explains why my old 335i front end sometimes felt very light on the autobahn at high speed (not a nice feeling at all) - will be interesting to compare it to my M3 when it arrives in a couple of weeks time.

Great find OP

[Evice]

I was more impressed with Focus RSs numbers.

[Oulixes]

Good data - thanks.

[GreenPlease]

Awesome data. Thanks for the post.

[samuraisaiyo]

Wow!! GT3 it's very cool

[rzm3]

Originally Posted by Sleeper519

Any difference btw/ a front lip and a true splitter on the aerodynamics of the M3?

A true aerodynamic lip, apron, however you call it... creates a stagnation point at the front of the car and generates noticeable down force. Most of the aftermarket lips for the M3 are for cosmetic purposes only.

[graider]

Originally Posted by Dartanium

Very impressed by the GT-R data in terms of very little lift

thanks for sharing some neat stuff

+1. damn...

[Robert]

The more I look at the GTR the more I like it.

[kaykay]

The aerodynamics on the M3 are truly amazing, I remember watching the M-Technic factory video (posted somewhere on these forums) when they emphasized how important the wind tunnel testing was/is for M cars.

Truly a testament.

On another note, I wonder what kind of insane downforce this car is making - the Ferrari 599XX which just set the WORLD RECORD at Nurburgring - get ready for it - 06:58.16


06:58.16


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[x838nwy]

Originally Posted by Evice

I was more impressed with Focus RSs numbers.

Me too, but as an ex-owner of an Evo8, I am thoroughly impressed with Mitsubishi. The Evo7 (which, is basically an 8/9) actually makes 37kg of downforce at the front!!! AND I had a rubber front apron, so I was probably making a little more.

Anyhow, to make more sense of these numbers, would it not be more sensible to calculate the downforce as a percentages of the cars' weights?

But, yes, amazing find

[x838nwy]

Originally Posted by kaykay

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meh

[bavarian19]

[cotmfk]

Good info

[supergoji]

anyone have numbers for the nismo 350z and nismo 370z, twin turbo 300zx?

what about skyline GTRs?

[Alpina_B3_Lux]

Originally Posted by rldzhao

Got these from Sport Auto. It's pretty amazing that a magazine would spend the money for these data.

Anyhow it seems that the aerodynamic improvements on the M3 are actually quite significant:

Front Lift @ 124 mph:
335: 42 kg (93 lb)
M3: 10 kg (22 lb)

Rear Lift @ 124 mph:
335: 28 kg (62 lb)
M3: 23 kg (51 lb)

This German car magazine does one "supertest" (as they call it) per month. This is a very elaborate testing procedure which also entails track testing on the Nürburgring and Hockenheimring circuits in Germany, as well as the wind tunnel testing mentioned here. It is indeed very expensive (which is also why they limit it to one supertest per month), but the most reliable and comprehensive testing I've seen in a car magazine.

FYI, they've also done a supertest on the Alpina B3 Biturbo which also uses the 335i (E92 in the relevant case) as a basis, but adds front and rear spoilers as well as reduced ride height. This has apparently also contributed to significant aerodynamic improvement which are (in the rear) even significantly better than the M3:

Front Lift @ 124 mph:
335: 42 kg (93 lb)
M3: 10 kg (22 lb)
Alpina B3 BT: 12 kg (26.45 lb)

Rear Lift @ 124 mph:
335: 28 kg (62 lb)
M3: 23 kg (51 lb)
Alpina B3 BT: 13 kg (28.66 lb)

Needless to say, that was the very reason why I chose to add the Alpina front and rear spoilers to my car.

Alpina_B3_Lux

[Jacque8883]

very useful info

[IND-Distribution]

That is such a cool article! Thanks very much for sharing. I for one was very impressed at the nearly 77% decrease in frontal lift found on the M3. Thanks BMW M.

[Tam@SupremePower]

Makes me want to get an M3 now!

[rhyary]

Here is the M3 with the GTS kit.
Positive down force