Short list of the best performance mods for e92 m3

[bucktown]

Hey folks.

After a long haitus away from bmw coupes, I'm re-entering the arena with a 2011.75 6mt zcp m3. Since I left in 2010, the available power mods list has grown exponentially, and I'm getting a little bogged down trying to decide where to spend some money on my new(old) toy.

The car has a BMW performance exhaust already, so I'll leave that alone for now. But other than exhaust, and considering bang for buck, where is my money best spent? Tune? Brakes? Suspension? Cats? Intake/filter?

Edit: here is the new/old car in question, since everyone likes pictures

[akkando]

Originally Posted by bucktown

Hey folks.

After a long haitus away from bmw coupes, I'm re-entering the arena with a 2011.75 6mt zcp m3. Since I left in 2010, the available power mods list has grown exponentially, and I'm getting a little bogged down trying to decide where to spend some money on my new(old) toy.

The car has a BMW performance exhaust already, so I'll leave that alone for now. But other than exhaust, and considering bang for buck, where is my money best spent? Tune? Brakes? Suspension? Cats? Intake/filter?

my understanding is cats any then tune for no cats. If dct get the gts tune.

[pbonsalb]

Catless x pipe, tune, pulley, intake, one piece CF driveshaft, stiffer subframe bushings, wider wheels and tires, stiffer front swaybar, Bilstein B8 and mild lowering springs.

All this after maintenance. Rod bearings, check all suspension bushings, replace all fluids and filters.

[850tgul]

For pure, unadulterated joy, I would say a carbon plenum since you already have an exhaust. Not cheap and no gains but my Eventuri plenum has added so much to the driving experience it is well worth the money it cost.

[GotV8?]

When I got mine , in this order...

BPM stage 2 tune with Test Pipes (any),
2 new throttle actuators (FCP lifetime warranty)
SS brake lines x 6 with ECS rotors match with Hawk pads,
Exhaust***which you already have
set of new wheels BBS (optional)
Turner Solid Subframe bushing, and Purple Flex Transmission mounts
I too got the CF Eventuri Plenum paired with CF AFE intake ***sweet music to your ears,
Rod Bearings definitely a must, which is my next to do
and then shocks and suspension.


Good luck and let the Mods begin!!!

[bucktown]

Originally Posted by GotV8?

When I got mine , in this order...

BPM stage 2 tune with Test Pipes (any),
2 new throttle actuators (FCP lifetime warranty)
SS brake lines x 6 with ECS rotors match with Hawk pads,
Exhaust***which you already have
set of new wheels BBS (optional)
Turner Solid Subframe bushing, and Purple Flex Transmission mounts
I too got the CF Eventuri Plenum paired with CF AFE intake ***sweet music to your ears,
Rod Bearings definitely a must, which is my next to do
and then shocks and suspension.


Good luck and let the Mods begin!!!

Thanks for the list, this is along the lines of what I was looking for.

[bucktown]

Originally Posted by pbonsalb

Catless x pipe, tune, pulley, intake, one piece CF driveshaft, stiffer subframe bushings, wider wheels and tires, stiffer front swaybar, Bilstein B8 and mild lowering springs.

All this after maintenance. Rod bearings, check all suspension bushings, replace all fluids and filters.

I'm a maintenance nut, so as soon as I take delivery I will get started on the fluids/bushings type things. I want to do the bearings asap, but will send some oil away and see what kind of timeline I might have

[bucktown]

Originally Posted by akkando

my understanding is cats any then tune for no cats. If dct get the gts tune.

This seems to be very popular. Any idea what the performance gains are going catless? I'm in Canada so no smog testing.

[pbonsalb]

About 20 rwhp. You want a tune to go with it. Vanos can be altered to take advantage of the reduced back pressure. Might gain 30 with a good tune like the Epic Race Tune from Epic or Bimmerworld. Add intake and pulley and maybe another 10.

Every car varies. Stock, these cars dyno 330-350 rwhp SAE Dynojet. Yes, that is a big variation. May depend on the date of the factory software you have now. An update to the latest version, 241E, with no other changes usually improves power. With a tune on top of the software update plus the catless x pipe, intake and pulley, these cars usually dyno 380-395 rwhp. A handful have done around 400, but that has been extremely rare so far. If this sort of thing interests you, do some searching for S65 dynos since people post them regularly (EAS is good about doing this) and also look at http://www.bmwdynodatabase.com/

Rear exhaust does little other than sound good. Beware catless x pipe makes the car loud. Even with 4 resonators it will be louder than a stock x pipe.

[M3R1]

If you have found the car, I suggest rod bearings and a supercharger. I know it sounds excessive, however the car is transformed. Down the road perhaps a brake upgrade. You will never long for another car.

[BURAKUSTA]

Supercharger

[M43S7RO]

Supercharged LT1 and a big wang.

[MechEngineer408]

Not performance related, but installing the M Perofrmance alcantara steering wheel was an awesome updgrade. Makes driving even more enjoyable.

[OmairK]

For me the top mods will be the following (not in any particular order):
1) Intake - Dinan
2) Exhaust - Dinan Midpipe/Rear Muffler
3) Pulley's - Dinan
4) Suspension - B16 Damptronic Coilovers (Yet to be purchased)
5) Driveshaft - Carbon Driveshaft (Yet to be purchased)
6) Solid Subframe Bushings - MRF/Turner (Yet to be purchased)
9) All Control Arm's and bushings if over 60k miles (check for play) - O.E. BMW (Yet to be purchased)
8) Monoball for From Control Arms - Dinan/GAS (Yet to be purchased)
9) Supercharger - Harrop (Yet to be purchased)
10) Wheels - Apex 17"x 10" ET25 with 275/40/R17
11) Stoptech 355 MM BBK all around in Black (Yet to be purchased)

[Longboarder]

Cup2's at 30 front 27 rear tire pressure, alignment with as much neg camber as possible, Euro MDM. And nothing else.

[jd501]

Originally Posted by OmairK

For me the top mods will be the following:
1) Intake - Dinan

+1 for the Dinan intake.

[RE36TRO]

While I am a fan of the Dinan intake (being an owner of one as well), Not sure if I'd put that anywhere near the top of the "best" mods for the E9x. This is simply visual and possibly sound if not drowned out by a louder exhaust.

Test pipes and tune coupled with the typical suspension improvements/maintenance and braking are probably the most effective asides from an SC.

[jd501]

Originally Posted by RE36TRO

While I am a fan of the Dinan intake (being an owner of one as well), Not sure if I'd put that anywhere near the top of the "best" mods for the E9x. This is simply visual and possibly sound if not drowned out by a louder exhaust.

Test pipes and tune coupled with the typical suspension improvements/maintenance and braking are probably the most effective asides from an SC.

Good point; depends if you favor induction noise over exhaust. Exhaust is really low on my personal list.

[OmairK]

Sorry, to clarify... My list was not in the order of importance.

[amrazM]

1. supercharger
2. supercharger
3. supercharger
4. supercharger
5. supercharger

truth be told you can spend your days trying to go fast NA and pick up power with a pulley or an intake for $1000 plus another tune for $1000 but in reality its either you want to make power or you dont. You can pick up 625 kits on this board for $5k all day long and considering Eventuri, pulleys, tune will run you $1-2k to pick up 25-35rwhp you have to ask yourself what kind of performance are you interested in.

[Deebo]

Originally Posted by amrazM

1. supercharger
2. supercharger
3. supercharger
4. supercharger
5. supercharger

truth be told you can spend your days trying to go fast NA and pick up power with a pulley or an intake for $1000 plus another tune for $1000 but in reality its either you want to make power or you dont. You can pick up 625 kits on this board for $5k all day long and considering Eventuri, pulleys, tune will run you $1-2k to pick up 25-35rwhp you have to ask yourself what kind of performance are you interested in.

This. If you don’t want to jump right into a supercharger right away, you can do test pipes and a BPM tune to start. You’ll need the test pipes for when you have the supercharger installed, and the tune then is a minimal cost because it’s just another map from BPM. I wouldn’t dick around with pulleys or anything else, if you really want a fast car just save up and find a used kit on here. Or, you may be totally content with the power from minor bolt-ons, the car won’t be a slouch at that point.

I just completed my build and finished at around $6k installed with a brand new head unit on a VF650 kit. It’s absurdly powerful and drives like stock when you’re not on it. I now need better tires and solid subframe bushings, but the car is completely transformed and in a different league.

[New2Roundel]

Personally, I am a big fan of driving a car and seeing what I want to change for myself. I think the M3 is pretty fantastic in stock form---personally, though, a bit too quiet for me. If I wanted to get something with a lot more power, I'd buy another car. If I was hell-bent on this car but with a bunch more power, it's really hard to beat FI. I did this on one of the other cars in my signature and I'd never waste my money or time chasing NA power gains. I've run an aftermarket blown car (not a BMW) for over 10 yrs and I've never had a single regret. That's 100% how I'd go with an e9x M.