Long term track use: How are people's cars holding up??

[RickyBobby]

Adding engine mounts to my list.
Mine were done at 50k. Bimmerworld track mounts installed yesterday and the car feels great.

[hayes180]

Power steering: No issue to report

Brakes: destroyed stock pads, upgraded to Endless MX72, going in for change in rotors. Using Castrol SRF brake fluid.

Engine: 28K, 6 track days in the last 9 months. All conditions normal.

Bushings & Subframe: Nothing to report.. yet

Discuss..

Right wheel baring was replaced. Oil change every 5K miles 10W60 BMW M Performance.

March 5/6: this weekend at Buttonwillow car went into limp mode with a transmission malfunction, limited gear continued driving is possible... etc, etc (already a thread on this).. Taking it into the dealer this week (as I'm under warranty) and will see what comes from it.

[RickyBobby]

2016 update. I replaced my subframe, differential, and front control arm bushings with all metal parts. The old ones weren't in horrible shape, but the car wandered a bit similar to the sensation of slightly under inflated tires.

The new parts made a noticeable difference!

[admranger]

Originally Posted by RickyBobby

2016 update. I replaced my subframe, differential, and front control arm bushings with all metal parts. The old ones weren't in horrible shape, but the car wandered a bit and gave the sensation of slightly under inflated tires.

The new parts made a noticeable difference!

Any change in NVH?

Miles on car when you did the change?

[RickyBobby]

Originally Posted by admranger

Any change in NVH?

Miles on car when you did the change?

Yes the differential bushings added quite a bit of gear whine. Nothing noticeable from the rear subframe or front control arm bushings in terms of nvh. I really like how the car feels with these parts so the trade off is worth it to me. Especially the crispness in the drivetrain.

[Richbot]

I don't have much to add here, ever, really, because I track my car extremely rarely, but I tracked it again at 121,000 miles and change, for a light two-session day, last weekend, and the car performed flawlessly. It's one of the things that makes me love these cars so much, if it's running, it's probably running real good

Stuff like this is why I tell everyone to buy one. $15-20k for a car that can do all this and still be nice and relatively reliable for a fast car? How are there any still available?

[MasterP]

I'm at the point the only significant consumable i forsee continuing are suspension rebuilds and wheel bearings.

I do rod bearings every two seasons. Spark plugs every two seasons and ignition coils as they go.

My car makes all sorts of whines and buzzes now since poly engine mounts and trans mounts.

[m3peat]

Reviving this for the 150k+ milers still tracking their cars.

I'm closing in on 150k and have only autox'd the car with no problems, other than the driver.

As I'm thinking of getting back into tracking the car with less and less autox venues available, I would like to address known issues on higher mileage cars.

I have done general maintenance (fluids/filters/plugs etc) way more than 'required' per BMW but what other things should I be on the lookout for at this mileage?

I have replaced the alternator after it went bad @118k, TA's (took a dump at 142k), Bearings, engine mounts (@94k but probably due for another set), thermostat (twice) and dampers recently (went with MCS singles and stock springs, along with all new rubber parts while in there).

Any other big ticket items I should replace or be aware of before venturing back out onto the track?

thanks in advance

[nicksm3]

Alittle over 39k miles, 18,5k Track Day/event miles and it's a dream. Just keep on top of maintenance and it will take care of you!

[redpriest]

Originally Posted by m3peat

Reviving this for the 150k+ milers still tracking their cars.

I'm closing in on 150k and have only autox'd the car with no problems, other than the driver.

As I'm thinking of getting back into tracking the car with less and less autox venues available, I would like to address known issues on higher mileage cars.

I have done general maintenance (fluids/filters/plugs etc) way more than 'required' per BMW but what other things should I be on the lookout for at this mileage?

I have replaced the alternator after it went bad @118k, TA's (took a dump at 142k), Bearings, engine mounts (@94k but probably due for another set), thermostat (twice) and dampers recently (went with MCS singles and stock springs, along with all new rubber parts while in there).

Any other big ticket items I should replace or be aware of before venturing back out onto the track?

thanks in advance

Make sure you have the thermostat TSB harness fix installed or you'll just go through more thermostats.

I keep a set of camshaft position sensors around because those went bad on my car a few times as the engine aged. Ended up having to replace low pressure fuel sensor as well.

Water pump if OEM is probably on last legs. The plastic impeller was busted at ~165k miles.

You already did the alternator, mine died too.

Power steering pump might let go, mine did.

My TAs surprisingly enough at 180k miles is fine.

[m3peat]

Originally Posted by redpriest

Make sure you have the thermostat TSB harness fix installed or you'll just go through more thermostats.

I keep a set of camshaft position sensors around because those went bad on my car a few times as the engine aged. Ended up having to replace low pressure fuel sensor as well.

Water pump if OEM is probably on last legs. The plastic impeller was busted at ~165k miles.

You already did the alternator, mine died too.

Power steering pump might let go, mine did.

My TAs surprisingly enough at 180k miles is fine.

thank you for the feedback. You have some mileage behind you too.

Did you get codes or warnings for the camshaft sensors and lpfs?

[redpriest]

Yes, you'll definitely get codes for all of them.

[rhyary]

My radiator hose just gave up

[danvitmon]

Figured I'd revive this a little bit, 4 track days this year so far.

Power steering: No issue to report, added GT4 style overflow

Brakes: PFC 11 pads holding up, Motul RBF660 with no issues. Got a front PFC Z54 BBK for cheap, gonna be installing that soon.

Engine: 146k miles, no issues so far. Oil changes every 6-7k miles depending on how many track days. Still on Motul 10w60, might swap to Redline 5w50 after this oil change.

Bushings & Subframe: Bought a set of Millway Delrin Diff bushes, gonna buy solid Bimmerworld SF bushes, already have a set of Revshift orange trans bushes, still deciding on BW engine mounts, or some revshift orange mounts I have on hand.

Driveshaft is completely fucked, the u-joints are toast and I already tore through a brand new CSB. Gonna go with the Seems Legit Garage Shaft since it seems to be decent with no vibrations, cheaper than a Genuine one and way cheaper than a cf one.

[Thumbie]

I also would love to see some updates from those that were originally posting here 5+ years ago. I've only done one track day so far and the car runs great.

There is someone on one of the Facebook groups with a bright green e92 that gets raced all the time. I asked him and said there really aren't too many common issues outside of maintenance. No chasis issues.

Originally Posted by danvitmon

Gonna go with the Seems Legit Garage Shaft since it seems to be decent with no vibrations, cheaper than a Genuine one and way cheaper than a cf one.

So the Seems Legit driveshaft ...seems legit??

I'll leave now.

[m3peat]

I’ll start asking here and tried searching a little here and there but will move it to the full track section if no solutions.
I have an 09’ with 170k miles and all the usual suspects replaced/upgraded/maintained (sans main bearings) but haven’t touched the radiator.

Car runs really well and engine feels good.

I’ve done one track day and oil temps were as expected, maybe a little over halfway to the 255* mark. It was also December, so cooler here in SoCal.
I have autox’d the car quite a bit and feel like oil temps come much closer to the 255* mark after each event and also closer than the one track day.

I have fresh oil (10w/60 LM) and the updated water pump (metal impeller).

Outside of upgrading my radiator, is there other solutions that won’t cost much?

I’ve put redline water wetter in before but can’t recall if the current coolant tank has it in there (if that even helps oil temps).

FWIW, the Autox’s I generally run at are 60-70 second runs and 8-15 minute breaks between each run. I push the car but generally in 2nd gear the whole time and rarely hit the limiter.

[kolosy]

Originally Posted by m3peat

I’ll start asking here and tried searching a little here and there but will move it to the full track section if no solutions.
I have an 09’ with 170k miles and all the usual suspects replaced/upgraded/maintained (sans main bearings) but haven’t touched the radiator.

Car runs really well and engine feels good.

I’ve done one track day and oil temps were as expected, maybe a little over halfway to the 255* mark. It was also December, so cooler here in SoCal.
I have autox’d the car quite a bit and feel like oil temps come much closer to the 255* mark after each event and also closer than the one track day.

I have fresh oil (10w/60 LM) and the updated water pump (metal impeller).

Outside of upgrading my radiator, is there other solutions that won’t cost much?

I’ve put redline water wetter in before but can’t recall if the current coolant tank has it in there (if that even helps oil temps).

FWIW, the Autox’s I generally run at are 60-70 second runs and 8-15 minute breaks between each run. I push the car but generally in 2nd gear the whole time and rarely hit the limiter.

What are you trying to solve? 255 oil temps are fine for this platform. I have a csf oil cooler (and radiator and do88 dct cooler) and I get into the 260s on hot track days.

[m3peat]

Originally Posted by kolosy

What are you trying to solve? 255 oil temps are fine for this platform. I have a csf oil cooler (and radiator and do88 dct cooler) and I get into the 260s on hot track days.

Ah, I didn’t make that clear. I have 2-3 buddies with the same car but don’t see the same temps as I do after each set of runs. I would estimate 10-25* lower for the same car. My car has 60-120k miles more but something must be causing the higher oil temps. It was not above 80* when these runs occurred most recently.

TLDR, I feel like my engine runs 10-25* hotter than I like and wondering if there is something causing it that is easy to remedy.

[kolosy]

Originally Posted by m3peat

Ah, I didn’t make that clear. I have 2-3 buddies with the same car but don’t see the same temps as I do after each set of runs. I would estimate 10-25* lower for the same car. My car has 60-120k miles more but something must be causing the higher oil temps. It was not above 80* when these runs occurred most recently.

TLDR, I feel like my engine runs 10-25* hotter than I like and wondering if there is something causing it that is easy to remedy.

I mean yes in that case the cheapest and easiest are the two coolers (oil and water). Are your friends running the same times?

[omgzirra_exe]

Originally Posted by m3peat

Ah, I didn’t make that clear. I have 2-3 buddies with the same car but don’t see the same temps as I do after each set of runs. I would estimate 10-25* lower for the same car. My car has 60-120k miles more but something must be causing the higher oil temps. It was not above 80* when these runs occurred most recently.

TLDR, I feel like my engine runs 10-25* hotter than I like and wondering if there is something causing it that is easy to remedy.

Yeah, you really can’t base it on what your friends are running. They might have different mods, a different track setup, or they might just be driving at a different pace. They could be much faster than you, or you could be faster than them, and that alone will change temps.

Engine load, R-comp tires, driving ability, all of that can push oil temps higher.

An oil cooler won’t really make the car run cooler overall, but it will help stabilize temps under braking and on long straights when the engine is off load. It also helps bring temps back down quicker during cooldown laps or when idling in the pits.

Some people still see 255F or more even with a DO88 or other upgraded coolers.

Honestly, 255F isn’t a temp I’d stress about. If you’re hitting 290F, then yeah, that’s when you start thinking about adding a cooler or refreshing the system. If something was actually wrong, like a bad thermostat or weak water pump or poor oil choice, you’d see sudden spikes instead of the car just holding steady at 255.

On a good day at Buttonwillow my temps are about 275F-280F, but it's reflected in my lap times too, that means I'm pushing, on my days where I'm just lapping, hitting targeted lap times and not breaking PB's I'm chilling around 250-260F.

So unless you’re consistently hitting around 290F, just ignore it. That’s the point where you really need to start looking at a cooler, and honestly it probably means you’re putting down some good laps.

Side note: I'm willing to bet the issue is 10W60 Liquid Moly because Liquid Moly is trash.

[m3peat]

Originally Posted by omgzirra_exe

Yeah, you really can’t base it on what your friends are running. They might have different mods, a different track setup, or they might just be driving at a different pace. They could be much faster than you, or you could be faster than them, and that alone will change temps.

Engine load, R-comp tires, driving ability, all of that can push oil temps higher.

An oil cooler won’t really make the car run cooler overall, but it will help stabilize temps under braking and on long straights when the engine is off load. It also helps bring temps back down quicker during cooldown laps or when idling in the pits.

Some people still see 255F or more even with a DO88 or other upgraded coolers.

Honestly, 255F isn’t a temp I’d stress about. If you’re hitting 290F, then yeah, that’s when you start thinking about adding a cooler or refreshing the system. If something was actually wrong, like a bad thermostat or weak water pump or poor oil choice, you’d see sudden spikes instead of the car just holding steady at 255.

On a good day at Buttonwillow my temps are about 275F-280F, but it's reflected in my lap times too, that means I'm pushing, on my days where I'm just lapping, hitting targeted lap times and not breaking PB's I'm chilling around 250-260F.

So unless you’re consistently hitting around 290F, just ignore it. That’s the point where you really need to start looking at a cooler, and honestly it probably means you’re putting down some good laps.

Side note: I'm willing to bet the issue is 10W60 Liquid Moly because Liquid Moly is trash.

Responding to you and Kolosy:

First, thank you.

We all have roughly the same mods which is mainly just 200 tw tires, no engine mods and very little to suspension (front bar). We are all close enough in time and all pushing. Not enough difference to make a difference.

If 255* or close to it is acceptable, I’m ok with that then.

I am curious about the LM oil comment. Haven’t seen that before but also haven’t looked to see what’s considered crap or not in years.

What’s your oil suggestion then?

Thanks

[omgzirra_exe]

Originally Posted by m3peat

Responding to you and Kolosy:

First, thank you.

We all have roughly the same mods which is mainly just 200 tw tires, no engine mods and very little to suspension (front bar). We are all close enough in time and all pushing. Not enough difference to make a difference.

If 255* or close to it is acceptable, I’m ok with that then.

I am curious about the LM oil comment. Haven’t seen that before but also haven’t looked to see what’s considered crap or not in years.

What’s your oil suggestion then?

Thanks

I run Redline 5W50 and yes 255F is absolutely acceptable