Harry's "Build" Thread

[Hoosier_M3]

Hello everyone! I got my M3 a few months ago but just joined M3post. As quite a lot will be happening to my car in the next few days, I decided to start this thread to keep track of everything that's going on. I bought the car (sight unseen) from a dealer near my home (NY) while I was at school (IN) and didn't see it for over a month. Here it is at the dealer.



Once I got it to school I took it out to the lake (a few folks on here should recognize this view).



Since I got home for my brief summer break, the M3 has made a few friends.




(That's my buddy's Lime Rock M3 in the background)



Some big is happening tomorrow. I will take (and post) plenty of pictures

[M43S7RO]

She looks great! Take care of her and enjoy!!

[MMMCOOKIES55]

Sweet! love some jerez but i'm a little biased lol. look forward to see what you are doing for it.

[Hoosier_M3]

Thanks for the friendly comments! Took a trip out to Auto Couture to get my new (to me suspension installed). OEM ZCP shocks and struts (only 20k miles on them) with Eibach springs. I can't give much of a review (as I haven't been able to test the suspension out much) but I love the drop and the car feels very planted. I also got some coding done (including euro MDM).





Here are a few pictures I took while I was waiting at ACM…. awesome shop, awesome cars, and a great experience. I will definitely be going back. Also met a fellow forum member with a gorgeous frozen silver E92 getting test pipes installed









I should have some proper pictures of the car (pays to be friends with photographers) within the next week or two.

[Jack14]

I recognize the view. Car looks great!

[Blindside_137]

Congrats! Jerez is probably my favorite BMW black color. I have hibachi's on my 3 series and it is unreal the difference in handling and ride quality. I don't think you can beat them as far as springs go, subtle drop and great performance.

ACM is always loaded with nice cars, is that F80 a custom grey?

[Hoosier_M3]

Originally Posted by Blindside_137

Congrats! Jerez is probably my favorite BMW black color. I have hibachi's on my 3 series and it is unreal the difference in handling and ride quality. I don't think you can beat them as far as springs go, subtle drop and great performance.

ACM is always loaded with nice cars, is that F80 a custom grey?

Thanks! It looked like individual paint. The interior was definitely individual too… some sort of dark brown.

[Hoosier_M3]

Originally Posted by Jack14

I recognize the view. Car looks great!

Thanks Jack!

[superiaultra]

Is that lake Monroe?

[Hoosier_M3]

Originally Posted by btownsoccer22

Is that lake Monroe?

Is that….. your suspension?

[Analog Imports]

That GT3!!! Congrats on the purchase, excited to see what's next.

[Hoosier_M3]

This thread is long overdue for an update, as a lot will be changing on the car in the very near future. The updates will be somewhat light on pictures, but I will be sure to take plenty once the next round of mods gets installed.

2016: Replaced both throttle actuators as well as all 8 coil packs after one coil pack and one actuator failed at what seemed to be the same time (unfortunately no pictures of this rather unpleasant day).

January 2017: I was still at school in Indiana at the time and got a very good deal from a local shop specializing in M cars to handle my rod bearings over the winter —I went with OEM bolts and WPC treated bearings. The stock rod bearings did not look bad for 60k miles, with a service history of oil changes every 5k, but judge for yourself there:



Spring 2017: Do not recall the exact date, but modified my exhaust in the ACM/bypass style —was the thrilled with the sound, especially for the price. There are some clips in this thread, as well as a few of my current setup. This setup had no drone or rasp and a great tone.

Summer 2017: Got the Apex EC7s I had purchased over the winter during their 19" wheel clearance event installed and had Nick Murray (the YouTuber review my car). Link to his video. Also got a picture of the infamous Tui in my car.



After this, not a whole lot happened with the car until Spring of 2018, when I got my VRSF test pipes, Pedal Haus DCT paddles, and Vorshlag camber plates installed. I posted a pretty detailed review of the test pipes here:



I graduated college that summer and moved out to Utah, where things with the car have really picked up. I took part in my first track day at Utah Motorsports Campus with NASA in the fall and got absolutely hooked.



I have been amassing parts over the past few months to better set the car up for the upcoming track season. I am planning to get this round of mods on the car in the next month, with a shakedown at the first NASA Utah event in March, and the potential addition of more cooling for the summer events, any feedback/suggestions are always welcome:

Suspension

• Ohlins R&T Coilovers
• Vorshlag camber plates (already have these)

Brakes

• Fresh OE rotors
• SS brake lines
• Solid caliper guide bushings
• Motul RBF 600 brake fluid
• PFC brake pads (ordered these long ago, forgetting exactly what we went with)

Safety

• Bell Helmet
• Stan21 HANS
• Studio RSR NASA-spec 4-point roll bar
• OMP Champ-R seats
• OMP 6-point harnesses

Wheels & Tires

• 275/35/18 Federal 595 RS-RR
• 18x10 ET25 Enkei NT03M

General Maintenance

• Valve cover gaskets/spark plug tubes
• Spark plugs (approx. 25k miles on the current set)

I would also mention that I got my helmet, HANS, seats, and harnesses from Demon Tweaks in the UK. I had not thought to import all that safety equipment, but their prices are much better than any US dealers for the same parts —my seats were 50% cheaper than I could get them from any US dealer. Shipping is also surprisingly quick, my helmet showed up 3 business days after I ordered it and my seats took 1 week.