DanMpower's M3 thread

[DanMpower]

9/13 Update - Shift knob

Today's project, F10 M5 shift knob retrofit. Was a pretty easy DIY job after being inspired by Nolan12's thread here. I used a ton of small paper clips and epoxy to set the leather to the new base ring

Everything clips in like OEM and wow, it feels so good. The F10 M5 knob sits a little lower than stock but my AS shifter I ordered was custom made for a 10mm increased height, that way it should bring the knob closer to the OEM position.

Every 6MT M3 owner should do this mod, it feels very solid now, can't wait to see how it feels combined with the AutoSolutions shifter.

[94jedi]

On my list of to-do items for sure!

[AR_Motorwerkz]

Great job on the shifter install! Looks great

[DanMpower]

Originally Posted by DRLane

What you know about JUKI?

My family's go-to sewing machine brand when we ran our sweat shop...ahem, I mean clothing production line.

Originally Posted by 94jedi

Awesome! Plug change lined up for my car in the next few weeks! It'll be a DIY...any tips for me? Back two are a PITA, I know...

It's not bad at all, I've done it a few times now. The rears aren't all that bad, just make sure when you put the coil back it "pops" into place. You will hear an audible pop/click when it snaps into place.

[DanMpower]

9/15 Update - Undertray and fluids

My front undertray has seen better days. Today's project, replace it with new OEM pieces.








New pieces installed and looking fresh again.

[DanMpower]

Since we're under the car, let's knock out the transmission and diff fluid service.

First up, transmission fluid change.






Finished it up with a rear diff fluid change.





ECS magnetic drain plug.

[derbo]

Damn those felt pieces were not cheap!

[DanMpower]

Originally Posted by derbo

Damn those felt pieces were not cheap!

Tell me about it. $400 for a couple of pieces of plastic which I'll most likely destroy again, sure does sting a bit.

[DanMpower]

Update 9/16 - UCC and AS Shifter

Finally, after nearly 2 months of waiting, my AutoSolutions Shifter has arrived!

I told Ronald@Autosolutions I wouldn't have bought a 6MT M3 if his shifter didn't exist, it's THAT good. I chose a 12 percent reduction, 70A+ bushings, and a 10mm increase in height to offset my shorter F10 M5 knob.

I have combined it with an Ultimate Clutch Pedal and the combination is absolute HEAVEN. My E92 M3 went from one of the worst shifter/clutch combos I've experienced to now one of the best. The clutch take-up is shorter and way more natural, the shifter is PERFECT, short and precise, clicks into place like a gated shifter, like a mix of S2000 and GT350 but feels more substantial and robust.

Installation was cake since I've done it before on my E90 M3, I couldn't wait any longer so I threw it on tonight.

The magical combination right here.



Out with the terrible plastic clutch pedal and stock shifter.




Prepped for the new goodies.



All back together, with the AS shifter custom spec'd 10mm higher, the F10 knob now sits almost at the OEM height. Perfect height, words cannot describe how amazing this combo feels now, if you close your eyes and row through the gears you would NEVER guess this is a BMW.

[m3heaven]

Love the progress and documentation you're doing.

What setting did you end up on with the UCP?

[wyatth]

That clutch pedal is underrated. I had it on my E46 (the Mason Engineering version) and would absolutely do it and the SSK again if I had another 6MT.

Keep it up!

[DanMpower]

Originally Posted by m3heaven

Love the progress and documentation you're doing.

What setting did you end up on with the UCP?

Thanks!

I ended up with the "middle or sport" setting and removed the larger over-center spring leaving only the small one. Feels about perfect.

[DanMpower]

9/21/20 Update - DashCam

I've been feeling uneasy leaving my car without some kind of camera system.

Glad I kept the BlackVue DR900S 2CH 4K dashcam system from my F80. Installed everything today and found a PERFECT place for the B-124 Ultra battery pack in the trunk. Used a fuse tap to the fuse box, set up my hotspot/cloud service and everything is working great. I love this system for the added peace of mind, I get push notifications anytime someone touches the car, I can connect to the cameras anytime from anywhere and pull up a live feed and download any "events" that took place.

[NQRDDS]

I have this same dashcam in my car and I love it! Really like how you routed the battery into the trunk space. Mine is currently sitting under the passenger seat.

[DanMpower]

Update 9/23 - X-Pipe, round 2.

I loved the way my 1st MS X-Pipe w/HFCs came out and it sounded amazing but there were still a tiny bit of exhaust fumes that I can smell, even with 200 cell cats installed. My wife and I are very sensitive to smells.

Instead of welding on different cats to the pipe, I decided to just start fresh and purchase a new Macht Schnell X-pipe from Kevin@EAS plus GESI sport 300 cell cats.


Measuring twice...


Mocking it up on the car.



Welding it up and the finished product.




Overall, it did reduce the exhaust fumes even further with the 300 cell cats and the tone is just about perfect.

[derbo]

Originally Posted by DanMpower

Update 9/23 - X-Pipe, round 2.

I loved the way my 1st MS X-Pipe w/HFCs came out and it sounded amazing but there were still a tiny bit of exhaust fumes that I can smell, even with 200 cell cats installed. My wife and I are very sensitive to smells.

Instead of welding on different cats to the pipe and risk making it ugly, I decided to just start fresh and purchase a new Macht Schnell X-pipe from Kevin@EAS plus GESI sport 300 cell cats.


Measuring twice...


Mocking it up on the car.



Welding it up and the finished product.




Overall, it did reduce the exhaust fumes even further with the 300 cell cats, the trade-off was the exhaust sounds quieter, it reduced the spine-tingling scream a bit at 6k and the amazing warble around 3-4k.

The 1st X-pipe sounded the best, but this new setup does reduce the fumes I was looking for. Still deciding which one to keep, this was an expensive experiment.

You hate the sound. Sell it to me.

[DanMpower]

Originally Posted by derbo

You hate the sound. Sell it to me.

Selling my 1st one Derek, let me know if you want it. Should pair really well with your Supersprint F1s.

[derbo]

Originally Posted by DanMpower

Selling my 1st one Derek, let me know if you want it. Should pair really well with your Supersprint F1s.

Text me.

[M3R1]

Originally Posted by DanMpower

Update 9/16 - UCC and AS Shifter

Finally, after nearly 2 months of waiting, my AutoSolutions Shifter has arrived!

I told Ronald@Autosolutions I wouldn't have bought a 6MT M3 if his shifter didn't exist, it's THAT good. I chose a 12 percent reduction, 70A+ bushings, and a 10mm increase in height to offset my shorter F10 M5 knob. Sits just exactly where I wanted it.

I have combined it with an Ultimate Clutch Pedal and the combination is absolute HEAVEN. My E92 M3 went from one of the worst shifter/clutch combos I've experienced to now one of the best. The clutch take-up is shorter and way more natural, the shifter is PERFECT, short and precise, clicks into place like an S2000 but feels more substantial and heavy-duty. I LOVE IT.

Installation was cake since I've done it before on my E90 M3, I couldn't wait any longer so I threw it on tonight.

The magical combination right here.

Any chance you can post pics of the finished height? Also is the shifter close to the top edge of the boot opening in 1st, 3rd and 5th. I saw somewhere someone had this issue, however, perhaps it was an install issue?

[94jedi]

DanMpower I'm going to go broke trying to keep up w/ your build lol. Any sound clips of the exhaust?

[DanMpower]

Originally Posted by M3R1

Any chance you can post pics of the finished height? Also is the shifter close to the top edge of the boot opening in 1st, 3rd and 5th. I saw somewhere someone had this issue, however, perhaps it was an install issue?

Most likely an install issue, I have no problems at all with this shifter combo, in fact, it feels about perfect.

A little video I took.

[DanMpower]

Originally Posted by 94jedi

DanMpower I'm going to go broke trying to keep up w/ your build lol. Any sound clips of the exhaust?

I'm just getting warmed up baby lol.

Getting the "core" of the car dialed in before the real "fun" mods begin.

I'll see if I can take some videos of the exhaust setup tonight.

It sounds pretty much identical to this, just a tad quieter with the 300 cell.