Searching for something special... | Mig's E92 M3 Clubsport Build

[m3_ultra]

In a world of downsized turbocharged engines and digital driving experiences, there exists a particular magic in rediscovering what M has left behind.

I think it's important to start this journal with some background on my history with cars. Feel free to skip this first post, the next ones will be shorter words and more photos but I hope you do give my intro a read!

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I have not owned many cars in my life... In fact, I still own my first car I bought in college. I have been building that car for the past 11 years! It is a 2006 Subaru Impreza that I learned how to do all my mechanical work on. I've done suspension, fuel system, alignments, buckets seats, larger Brembo GT 6 pot brakes, even pulled the engine myself in a home garage with 1 jack, 2 jack stands, and an engine crane borrowed from my wife's uncle. I never winter drive this car because the winters are brutal here in Toronto. I drive the car just for fun and only gets a few thousand km a year.




I've treated this base model grocery getter like it was something special. I mean, it is to me but in a different way than what I wanted. After only owning 1 project car and a daily, I felt after 11 years I could buy another fun car. One that was undeniably special through and through, not because I turned it into a highly modified street car.

So in the summer of 2024 I finally tried something new. I wanted something that my wife would be ok to go for drives in since the subaru drives rough and honestly, smells like fuel. I wanted something I could enjoy as an enthusiast from the factory. I think after never considering a new toy, I got caught up in the excitement of not being a broke college kid anymore and went for something new that was good looking and sporty out the box. For some reason I landed on an F87 M2. My only criteria was for it to be a comp and lowest km so I can continue to have a low km car since I drive my toys only on the weekend basically.

This car was purchased from a BMW dealership and it was also my first time buying a car from a dealership. I also had no exposure to BMWs. All my friends drove japanese cars. I was a bit intimidated to be honest..but the salesman I dealt with was really laid back and I enjoyed the process. I was a little hesitant to buy the car because it was a DCT because manuals are always better right ? (narrator: no). So welcome home my 2021 F87 M2 comp with 20k km, 400 hp and factory warranty for another year.



At first I was impressed. I never experienced a German car let alone a M car. The m2 is a track weapon and very reasonable sized. I instantly got it PPFd. There was always something wrong though... I found myself constantly convincing myself it wasn't a mistake or looking at other M2 builds for inspiration to convince myself I liked it. I'm very heavily inspired by car builds in Japan and Studie AG had some really nice M2 builds... it just never felt right though. I spent all this money to get something that was special, not fast. I had my Subaru for that which has a fully built engine and larger turbo with standalone ecu, etc, etc.

I am grateful to have tried a modern sports car but knew I had to get out. In less than 2 months I started shopping around for trades. I saw a 2019 M4 CS which would tick the special box but the market was in a weird place I felt that car was overpriced.

It was in front of you the whole time

Just like me stumbling into the F87, I don't know what pointed me to the E9x but I'd guess it was while I searched for F87 builds to convince me I liked the cars, I saw plenty from Schirmer in Germany. I think once and awhile I'd see the Schirmer GT builds when scrolling through F87 photos. I even looked at the photos on my phone and for wheel ideas I had E92 on E88 photos. Once I started digging more into this platform I fell in love with it. I was lured in with the styling and sold on the S65. How can it not get more special than that ? The only generation M3 with a motorsports derived, high revving, naturally aspirated V8.

I think what really sealed it for me is that this generation M3 was just from a different time in the world. German manufacturers were putting V8s and V10s in road cars for the masses. People didn't think about fuel consumption. The marketing campaigns were hilarious. The E9x platform just reminds me of a time where things were more optimistic. I didn't have my license at the time so maybe I'm just nostalgic for when I was a kid and didn't know anything about life so it all seemed good.

Eventually, I found an opportunity. A 2011 E92 M3 was for sale by a BMW dealership which meant I'd get the best trade-in for my F87. The listing price was very fair and made the deal.

Here is my 3 year old M2 Comp with 20,000 km (12k miles) next to its 14 year old replacement with 80,000 km (49k miles):



I still remember when I drove off the lot. I had such a grin on my face that I never got with the M2. Til this day, I have never once had to think if this was the wrong decision. I knew this car was special.

During the second week of ownership I drove it to Chicago. What a great way to get to know a car, road trip!




The next posts will try to be less story telling and more about the ownership, with lots of discussion on mods! I have a very high appreciation for authenticate craftsmanship and high quality parts. I hope you stick around to see what I have lined up. I'll share detailed photos of products I rarely see posted online. Installation photos. Troubleshooting. And just keeping the soul of motorsport alive in this BMW.

[m3_ultra]

Since I want people to follow the journal I will drop some of the modifications I already have collected over the winter and am currently installing on the car. I do all the work myself so I go slow but wrenching on the car is part of the fun.

I don't want to just list the items because that doesn't seem exciting but I will give clues.

- I have acquire a set of long discontinued canards from a Japanese company.
- I have imported a full carbon (no FRP!!!) splitter from a shop in Germany that will be chassis mounted. It reaches from the front of the bumper obviously and goes back until the axles. It includes diffusers and additional carbon splitter endplates.
- I have acquired and currently installing some coilovers that convert the rear to a true coilover design with race spec spring rates. These coilovers have no welds and everything is CNCd. Other clue is the springs are turquoise.
- I have 295/30 A052 tires that will be fitted on 18x10.5 +20 Japanese wheels
- I have sourced the best exhaust that cops won't give you a ticket for, and it's full titanium.
- I have 1 Japan only Recaro RSG seat for the driver because my wife would never go in the M3 if I put one in the passenger lol

and finally, the bumper is off for some plastic welding and it's not to repair damage but more so something that doesn't exist in europe

Here are some more photos of the totally factory M3.




factory carbon roof ftw!!




I am currently trying to make sure the car is ready for a road trip to tail of the dragon in May. That sounds like lots of time but given the tire package I've gone with it might take me a long time to dial in the fitment for it to work.

[m3_ultra]

reserved 2

[Stamos]

subscribed! congrats on the "new" E92.

[frozen.e92m3]

damn white in black TE. cant go wrong with that

[JEllis]

Sub'd. Looking good!

[m3_ultra]

I originally wanted to try and follow a more structured format to help readers get updates in chunks but I think that would just add too much work for me to track things so I'll share things in real time as they happen!

I'll update one of my first 3 posts to become like a table of contents with highlighted posts.

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Welcome to my tiny workshop!

The car was put into storage October 2024 at my home garage which is not heated. It's finally becoming warm enough in Toronto that I could brave it outside (albeit with a tiny heater).

First step was getting the car onto jack stands since I have new suspension and wheels going in.

I do have a low profile jack but even at factory height I needed to place the car onto some wood to reach the center jacking point under the engine. Once I did this I then realized ... I've been using jack stands from 1930 for solid axle cars LOL. I knew BMWs had specific jack points but wasn't prepared to need to buy adapters or new stands entirely (although, Rennstand's do look really tempting)




I took the front bumper off since it will be getting some body work done. I have seen a few videos of people complaining about the factory felt under tray being poor quality but mine was in good shape. I think it's important for people to not get caught up in the trap of thinking since something is aftermarket it must be an upgrade. I hope to keep the car as factory as I can while still pulling off the style and performance enhancements I want.



Looking at the above most might not think about this but I saw these support wires and thought that is so cool! In a future post you will see how I modify these or use their mount at least to create supporting rods for my chassis mounted splitter.

With the wheels off I got to start becoming familiar with the e9x and German engineering. Again, to regular BMW/M folks this might be nothing to think twice about but I love how much of the car is aluminum. With a bit of elbow grease you can have a rust free car to work on!






I know using a toothbrush to clean your car is not the most efficient use of time but the journey is kind of the point. Being able to just relax and work on improving something is enjoyable.

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I am currently working through the suspension installation which I'll make it 1 post where I share what I have and other "first time German car owner" bits I stumble into. Maybe me pointing out small differences that are huge to me will make others appreciate what they have too.

For now, I will share this photo from getting tires mounted on my wheels and seeing how much work it will be to clear the suspesion!

[cjpavao]

this should be good!

[M3_Legend]

Looking forward to this

[m3_ultra]

I'm working on dialing the suspension for the tire package. With 2-3 inches of wheel gap still, I am touching the helper springs with my tires. I am hoping I can add a 3-5mm spacer and be good.

I'll definitely have enough camber to tuck the wheels. Back looks easy without any tweaks but will need more camber to go lower.





Better photos of the suspension installation and my thoughts on the process to follow.. this is just a teaser. People can already tell I got some VOLK TE37s but I have some genuine Rays stickers that I haven't seen before that I will apply before these get ceramic coated.

Specs are 18x10.5 +20 with 295/30/18 A052.

[m3_ultra]

I've searched many threads and concluded I need a 5mm spacer for the front to clear. None of the threads mention needing a spacer for this tire package but maybe they remove their helpers. I don't want to do this.

Otherwise, I've moved on to dialing in the rear while I wait for those to arrive. Light content on the setup for now since I will dump all the suspension photos later but TL;DR I am looking for rear camber arms. I mentioned in my original post that I do not want to start replacing factory components because OEM is the best quality...but sometimes you have to if you are pushing the limits of something and I just need more camber in the rear.

Waiting to hear back from some shops on availability. I don't want to run SPL due to seeing too many failures. Hoping to find stock for Millway arms.

I also am told I should get arms to correct the bumpsteer in the front but I really do not like the aftermarket tie rods for this and Millway does not offer a solution (I think ?).

While I wait for front spacer and rear arms here are some photos of the rear. I am honestly trying to almost tuck the tire. I've taken big inspiration from StripclubDJ's setup. Not sure what tire they have but the ride height is 👌






I've been working on the splitter as well. Got some nice carbon support rods with kickass clevis that mount to OEM brackets. Very excited to share details on that when I get my bumper back from body shop. There's also some titanium pucks going on the bottom 😊

[StripclubDJ]

Originally Posted by m3_ultra

I've searched many threads and concluded I need a 5mm spacer for the front to clear. None of the threads mention needing a spacer for this tire package but maybe they remove their helpers. I don't want to do this.

Otherwise, I've moved on to dialing in the rear while I wait for those to arrive. Light content on the setup for now since I will dump all the suspension photos later but TL;DR I am looking for rear camber arms. I mentioned in my original post that I do not want to start replacing factory components because OEM is the best quality...but sometimes you have to if you are pushing the limits of something and I just need more camber in the rear.

Waiting to hear back from some shops on availability. I don't want to run SPL due to seeing too many failures. Hoping to find stock for Millway arms.

I also am told I should get arms to correct the bumpsteer in the front but I really do not like the aftermarket tie rods for this and Millway does not offer a solution (I think ?).

While I wait for front spacer and rear arms here are some photos of the rear. I am honestly trying to almost tuck the tire. I've taken big inspiration from StripclubDJ's setup. Not sure what tire they have but the ride height is 👌






I've been working on the splitter as well. Got some nice carbon support rods with kickass clevis that mount to OEM brackets. Very excited to share details [...]

Pm me

I’ll give you my number and guide you to the promise land if you’d like

[StripclubDJ]

Tank you for the love my good friend 🙂

[m3_ultra]

Originally Posted by StripclubDJ

Pm me

I’ll give you my number and guide you to the promise land if you’d like

Thanks, I’ve sent you a message. I am hoping to figure out what adjustments (parts) I need to order so when I return home from my work trip I can get those installed before my alignment scheduled in end of April.

[StripclubDJ]

Replied

[SalimM3]

Originally Posted by m3_ultra

Thanks, I’ve sent you a message. I am hoping to figure out what adjustments (parts) I need to order so when I return home from my work trip I can get those installed before my alignment scheduled in end of April.

Any chance you guys can share the suspension and fitment info here in the thread so we can all follow along if we are trying to achieve similar results?

Your build is looking great so far!

[m3_ultra]

I have been busy working on the car. I had to do a whole bunch of stuff at the same time and if I share progress on one part it shows incomplete work of another so I haven't shared along the way.

But, I have lots of photos and lots of updates to share soon. The car is at detailer right now getting the window tints removed, windshield banner, paint work, and vinyl wrapping some of the aero to be paint matched to the car.

Next week, May 12th, I will make the 12 hour journey down with some friends to Kentucky to begin a week long trip driving around the smokey mountains. I think this will be a awesome opportunity to experience all the work I've put in to the car and snap beautiful photos.

Apologies for the delays but you'll see that the car has been completely transformed with lots of parts you won't often see on a North American build.

The wait will be worth it!! Some last minute billet full kinematics from europe

[m3_ultra]

Originally Posted by SalimM3

Any chance you guys can share the suspension and fitment info here in the thread so we can all follow along if we are trying to achieve similar results?

Your build is looking great so far!

I will 100% share in great detail the information about my tire package, including alignment specs and how I got to fitting them.

Spoiler alert.. I gave up on fitting the 295/30 A052 up front and downsized to 265/35. I still have a lot of camber and increased track width with some adjustable LCA though.

[m3_ultra]

Ok so where do I begin. I shared some photos of things being done but I want to start from the beginning of the modifications and that means taking old stuff off.

Prep work

First thing to do was take my bumper off since I wanted to delete the orange side reflectors. It's funny how we always want what we can't have. I'm sure someone in europe/asia wanted a e9x bumper with the orange reflectors because theirs didn't come with them.



With the bumper off and stripped down, I brought it to my buddy to plastic weld the hole shut and repaint the bumper. Crazy thing is, the bumper was painted within the last year from the previous owner because they had the license plate holes shaved.

I moved my attention to the wheel well. This car is new to me just having gotten it in October 2024 so I have lots to learn about its past. Unfortunately it was dirtier then I liked.



Some people think I was crazy for this but I prefer working on clean cars so I had to take care of this before I could continue.



Yup, I literally used a toothbrush. I had a bigger brush for a few other spots but after a few hours it looked better. Working on cars is therapeutic so I don't mind listening to some music, drinking a beer and scrubbing away.

Suspension Installation

Now that the car is ready lets get on to the stuff I'm sure people actually care about.. to no ones surprised I've watched lots of videos of e92s attacking the Nürburgring. Who else is more infamous than the Schirmer builds. Now I don't want to be another Schirmer e92 but I was drawn towards the Nitron suspensions as to me, the build quality seemed unmatched. I considered the likes of MCS as well but I liked the Nitron has no welded parts and all anodized aluminum (not zinc plated steel). To me, having a kit that performed and looks new for long is important to me. Furthermore, the Nitrons are a complete kit. They include everything you need and I liked that. I ended up with a set of Nitron R1s. I spoke with the folks at Suspension Secrets and they gave me a spring setup that would match my requirements of something that will be aggressive (stiff) for wide tires and slammed. I like to drive my cars fast but you have to look good and lowwer your track car





The fronts are 140N (800 lb/inch or 14k) and rear 70N (400 lb/inch or 7k). This is pretty stiff but after driving with them they ride perfectly fine on the street.

No photos of the installation. Everything went smoothly...until I mounted the wheels.

I started with the goal of fitting 295/30/18 A052s square on 18x10.5 +20 wheels. I did research on the forums to see if they fit and knew it would need some work but I misunderstood one key thing. My Nitrons are not like other coils (MCS specifically). The MCS endlink bracket is welded on the backside of the damper whereas the Nitron uses a spinning collar attached the the damper. With this size package this is the different that makes it fit or not. Furthermore, my Nitrons have helper springs where-as most MCS do not. The wheel alone was close to the endlink collar but cleared. However, once I got tires mounted it was getting close to the springs. Once I lowered the car to my desired ride height which moves the springs closer to the tire... it was game over. The tires were literally spinning the helper springs if you rotated the wheel.



The above photo is before I lowered the car which made the tires touch the helper springs. I think even if I removed them the tires would touch the main spring.

I ordered a 5mm spacer to help clear the spring and this worked but with my tail of the dragon trip approaching I was nervous how much the tire was touching the liner! I'm not afraid of rubbing through the liner but it seemed like too much.

The rear was fine with inboard clearance but after maxing the oem camber bolt I couldn't tuck the 295/30 tire so knew I had to order some parts.

Away in Europe

So the timing wasn't great but I had a work trip to Portugal so had to pause work on the car. The road trip was I think 1.5 months away from this point and so to dial in the fitment felt pretty stressful and I haven't even shared the other modifications yet!

I decided while I was away to just pull the trigger on some kinematics to ensure when I got back I could have all the adjustments I needed (rear camber and front caster to move wheel away from liner).

I didn't like the common north american option of SPL and the similar variants that use a tiny bolt to lock the arms in place. All the european builds I'd seen had nice jam nuts and plus, getting something from europe seemed more interesting. I landed on a full MRT Engineer front kinematics kit and just camber arms from Millway. To be honest, I wish I could've gotten a full kit from Millway as their customer service was top notch and quality seems really good.

Millway Rear Camber arms:


MRT Engineer front Kinematics kit for camber, caster, and bumpsteer correction:



I knew I was going to slam this car so bumpsteer correction was important!




At the same time, right when I got back I ordered up 265/35/18 A052s for the front just to ensure I didn't have any issues on my trip. I wanted to run square for ease of tire rotations and the balance in grip though.

With the adjustments in place I basically just eyeballed everything and got the ride height I wanted. I took the car for a spin to see if it rubbed and was good. I was a bit conservative and put more camber than I needed because I was so afraid of cracking my fenders on the trip.

I know you can see one of the other modifications I did in the wheel well. More on that soon.

To be continued...

That concludes the suspension setup. I went with some Nitron R1s with 700/400 springs in a true coilover setup. I had to buy some last minute kinematics for the adjustment needed to fit the tires but ended up stepping down to a 265/35 in the front.



295/30 pictured^ I unfortunately don't have a side by side of the 265/35 on a 10.5j but the 295 is pretty bubbled, 11j would be best. 265 on 10.5j is fine.

also I cleaned the fender liners and the airbox....why did I take the airbox out though ??? hmm ???

[m3_ultra]

Updates still to come:
- air intake changes
- aero + front bumper changes
- seat changes
- exhaust changes
- paint work + ceramic coat + window tint + ppf
- share alignment specs
- discuss DME/DCT tuning work completed and to complete
- photos of trip to Tail of the Dragon and how the car did (to build suspense, there was metal shavings involved)

[e92data]

clean build!

[911r]

Great build so far. For the MRT kit, did you go with the longer spacer for all of the arms (tie rod, tension arm, lower control arm)?