M Coupe LTW build

[Kuky]

Hi, where did you buy the silicone intake boot?

Originally Posted by Michael9218

A long overdue update on my experience with working with Joshua at Severn Tuning.

An outcome of the no start issue I had last spring (turned out to be the instrument cluster) was that the tuner I was using (the guy from Miami) didn’t care to be of much help. So I asked Joshua if he would tune and support my car. This car, as many know by now, is not a once and done type car/project. So I need someone I can work with that is responsive, interested, and flexible. In Sept our schedules aligned and he was going to be in the Atlanta area so we met at a local dyno shop for a live dyno tune. Tuning the MSS70 is a real pain in the ass. Uploads can take up to an hour for each iteration, so pack a lunch! I think we ended up with about 6 or 7 iterations. The final outcome was a solid 336 hp with a very smooth power curve.



Video of a pull. We used 5th gear so those wheels are literally spinning to 150 mph!


How do I get sound?

Josh also wanted me to stay with a MAF based tune for better reliability, but I had just installed my Turner CSL intake. So I decided to modify the CSL intake to accept the MAF. Why? Because that’s how I roll…and I like the shape of the trumpets on the Turner box and it weighed about 5 lbs less. We tested both and the Turner box in this configuration made all of a few more ponies.

To make this work, I needed to fabricate an interface. So out comes the carbon fiber supplies. I used some modeling clay and shaped the cone.





Once on track, he had me do some data logging to make final adjustments to fuel trims and such (maybe he can elaborate). Motor was running strong but I was getting a slight hesitation accelerating through 65 mph in 3rd gear. Weird…. Nothing we tried would make it go away. It was acting like I was lifting. We suspected it might be the brake vacuum control valve so I ordered the CSL specific part which of course was backordered for 4 months (hence this late post on the tuning). Well, this didn’t solve the issue either.

After much patience and perseverance, Joshua had an epiphany. I’ll quote him to best explain:

Tune14 attached. Please make sure it loads correctly and the car starts like it should prior to your track day this weekend.

I spent several hours reconstructing your original file’s firmware based on the read from the Epic file. This wasn’t easy, because your ECU has had its firmware info modified by one of its previous tuners or flash tools. I went parameter by parameter to see what changed, and had to consciously decide which of the 15000 bytes of data differences to transfer over. If I had access to the original firmware info (what BMW calls “software number” or ZUSB), I could have rebuilt the tuned file off of an original BMW file in about 15 minutes.

When I initially unlocked your ECU, I had to copy a stock BMW file over the data sections of the ECU which were locked. I’m thinking the stock file I used didn’t 100% match (it was maybe a 98% match), and the slight differences are causing the weird behavior.

Joshua Bettis, P.E.
Founder and Lead Tuner
www.severntuning.com

Success! I ran the car this weekend and the hesitation appears to be gone!

Previous tuners had done something to the ecu.

You’re just not going to get from other tuners the level of support and passion you get with Joshua. I mean, at one point I texted him at the end of a track day on a Saturday thinking he would get back to me Monday. He called me that evening and by morning I had a new tune to try.

[Michael9218]

Originally Posted by Kuky

Hi, where did you buy the silicone intake boot?

Probably Bimmerworld. It's an E46 M3 boot. The brake vacuum line is routed on the top of the CSL intake plenum. The stock intake requires a boot with the fitting for the vacuum line in it. Although you could also buy the E46 M3 vacuum line that mounts to the stock intake plenum in front of the boot.

[Westersund]

That's some really good numbers with stock internals. I know the stepped headers add around 10-11 hp compared to the stock Euro one's, how much difference does the dry sump do? Do you have underdriven auxiliaries? No cams?

The setup in my E46 M3 made 319 whp on the dyno. OEM headers and exhaust (except the mufflers) but catless, "CSL" plenum with an open air filter and stand alone ECU (MAP instead of MAF).

[Michael9218]

Originally Posted by Westersund

That's some really good numbers with stock internals. I know the stepped headers add around 10-11 hp compared to the stock Euro one's, how much difference does the dry sump do? Do you have underdriven auxiliaries? No cams?

Added underdrive pullies.
Stock cams.
I’ve heard the dry sump vacuum (10 in/hg) frees up about 10 hp on an S54. I didn’t verify.

[Westersund]

Originally Posted by Michael9218

Added underdrive pullies.
Stock cams.
I’ve heard the dry sump vacuum (10 in/hg) frees up about 10 hp on an S54. I didn’t verify.

Gotcha, that adds up compared to mine when you add headers/dry sump/pulleys.

[AK72]

Originally Posted by Kuky

Hi, where did you buy the silicone intake boot?

I have one locally for sale, PM me

[E86Z4MC]

Originally Posted by AK72

I have one locally for sale, PM me

Where might I purchase this if I were interested?

[MBan]

Originally Posted by Michael9218

A long overdue update on my experience with working with Joshua at Severn Tuning.

An outcome of the no start issue I had last spring (turned out to be the instrument cluster) was that the tuner I was using (the guy from Miami) didn’t care to be of much help. So I asked Joshua if he would tune and support my car. This car, as many know by now, is not a once and done type car/project. So I need someone I can work with that is responsive, interested, and flexible. In Sept our schedules aligned and he was going to be in the Atlanta area so we met at a local dyno shop for a live dyno tune. Tuning the MSS70 is a real pain in the ass. Uploads can take up to an hour for each iteration, so pack a lunch! I think we ended up with about 6 or 7 iterations. The final outcome was a solid 336 hp with a very smooth power curve.



Video of a pull. We used 5th gear so those wheels are literally spinning to 150 mph!


How do I get sound?

Josh also wanted me to stay with a MAF based tune for better reliability, but I had just installed my Turner CSL intake. So I decided to modify the CSL intake to accept the MAF. Why? Because that’s how I roll…and I like the shape of the trumpets on the Turner box and it weighed about 5 lbs less. We tested both and the Turner box in this configuration made all of a few more ponies.

To make this work, I needed to fabricate an interface. So out comes the carbon fiber supplies. I used some modeling clay and shaped the cone.





Once on track, he had me do some data logging to make final adjustments to fuel trims and such (maybe he can elaborate). Motor was running strong but I was getting a slight hesitation accelerating through 65 mph in 3rd gear. Weird…. Nothing we tried would make it go away. It was acting like I was lifting. We suspected it might be the brake vacuum control valve so I ordered the CSL specific part which of course was backordered for 4 months (hence this late post on the tuning). Well, this didn’t solve the issue either.

After much patience and perseverance, Joshua had an epiphany. I’ll quote him to best explain:

Tune14 attached. Please make sure it loads correctly and the car starts like it should prior to your track day this weekend.

I spent several hours reconstructing your original file’s firmware based on the read from the Epic file. This wasn’t easy, because your ECU has had its firmware info modified by one of its previous tuners or flash tools. I went parameter by parameter to see what changed, and had to consciously decide which of the 15000 bytes of data differences to transfer over. If I had access to the original firmware info (what BMW calls “software number” or ZUSB), I could have rebuilt the tuned file off of an original BMW file in about 15 minutes.

When I initially unlocked your ECU, I had to copy a stock BMW file over the data sections of the ECU which were locked. I’m thinking the stock file I used didn’t 100% match (it was maybe a 98% match), and the slight differences are causing the weird behavior.

Joshua Bettis, P.E.
Founder and Lead Tuner
www.severntuning.com

Success! I ran the car this weekend and the hesitation appears to be gone!

Previous tuners had done something to the ecu.

You’re just not going to get from other tuners the level of support and passion you get with Joshua. I mean, at one point I texted him at the end of a track day on a Saturday thinking he would get back to me Monday. He called me that evening and by morning I had a new tune to try.

Hi Michael,

As you may know, Karbonius ended up making a carbon plenum similar to yours. However, a lot (all?) of the people who have installed it have found that the factory rubber elbow slips off the inlet to the plenum. Some people (including me) have wrapped the plenum inlet in tape to get a better grip, but this seems like a short-term solution at best.

When you made yours, did you do anything special to stop this happening?

[Michael9218]

Originally Posted by MBan

Hi Michael,

As you may know, Karbonius ended up making a carbon plenum similar to yours. However, a lot (all?) of the people who have installed it have found that the factory rubber elbow slips off the inlet to the plenum. Some people (including me) have wrapped the plenum inlet in tape to get a better grip, but this seems like a short-term solution at best.

When you made yours, did you do anything special to stop this happening?

Not sure how Karbonius made theirs, but in the pic of mine, the wood ring in my mold created a nice trued interface. I also paid attention to the diameter it needed to be when finished so it would seal tight and not come off. I reinforced it with woven tape CF so it can’t flex or deform from the band clamp tightening around it.

Without seeing how Karbonius did theirs, it’s hard for me to say what they did wrong if your elbow piece won’t stay on.

“If you want something done right, do it yourself”…😎

[MBan]

Originally Posted by Michael9218

Not sure how Karbonius made theirs, but in the pic of mine, the wood ring in my mold created a nice trued interface. I also paid attention to the diameter it needed to be when finished so it would seal tight and not come off. I reinforced it with woven tape CF so it can’t flex or deform from the band clamp tightening around it.

Without seeing how Karbonius did theirs, it’s hard for me to say what they did wrong if your elbow piece won’t stay on.

“If you want something done right, do it yourself”…😎

Thanks, Michael.

I'm not totally sure why the elbow slips off the Karbonius version. Perhaps the angle of the inlet isn't quite right? It was prototyped on an E46 which uses a different rubber elbow, so it could be something like that I suppose.

In your experience with CF, would it be feasible to add a little raised lip on the outer edge of the inlet so that the hose clamp has something to hold against? Maybe you could use some kind of resin to build up the lip?

Thanks for your advice - if I can't find a permanent solution I think I'll take the plenum off, which would be a shame.

[Michael9218]

Originally Posted by MBan

Thanks, Michael.

I'm not totally sure why the elbow slips off the Karbonius version. Perhaps the angle of the inlet isn't quite right? It was prototyped on an E46 which uses a different rubber elbow, so it could be something like that I suppose.

In your experience with CF, would it be feasible to add a little raised lip on the outer edge of the inlet so that the hose clamp has something to hold against? Maybe you could use some kind of resin to build up the lip?

Thanks for your advice - if I can't find a permanent solution I think I'll take the plenum off, which would be a shame.

Molding a raised lip at this point would be difficult. I took a look at the comments on the Karbonius thread. If I understand correctly, the diameter of the oval opening is not too small. Are you using the rubber band type gasket with the plastic elbow? Has anyone tried using a silicone elbow like the one I am using? They have a lot of grip and may solve your issue. It requires the use of an E46 brake shutoff valve to change the routing from the elbow. That's what I did. I actually bought a CSL version that routes the line to the top of the plenum.

[MBan]

Originally Posted by Michael9218

Molding a raised lip at this point would be difficult. I took a look at the comments on the Karbonius thread. If I understand correctly, the diameter of the oval opening is not too small. Are you using the rubber band type gasket with the plastic elbow? Has anyone tried using a silicone elbow like the one I am using? They have a lot of grip and may solve your issue. It requires the use of an E46 brake shutoff valve to change the routing from the elbow. That's what I did. I actually bought a CSL version that routes the line to the top of the plenum.

I am using the rubber band gasket but I know at least one other person took it out. Do you think leaving it in would provide a better grip?

As far as I know, everyone is using the standard elbow, but that could be worth a try.

Is part 4 on the diagram below the air shutoff valve I need? Is it a direct replacement (ie no other changes required)?

https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/showparts?id=BL92-EUR-12-2002-E46-BMW-M3&diagId=11_3019

Thanks again for your help!

[Michael9218]

Originally Posted by MBan

I am using the rubber band gasket but I know at least one other person took it out. Do you think leaving it in would provide a better grip?

As far as I know, everyone is using the standard elbow, but that could be worth a try.

Is part 4 on the diagram below the air shutoff valve I need? Is it a direct replacement (ie no other changes required)?

https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/sho...diagId=11_3019

Thanks again for your help!

Yes, that’s the part. Requires no modification. A bonus to using a silicone elbow is they flow air better.

Using the OEM plastic elbow without the rubber band gasket would not work. Hard plastic and epoxy would not grip at all.

[maupineda]

The e46 M3 silicone elbow does not fit. I tried.

I have also given the solution on the other thread but people don’t read/listen. Use floor anti-slip tape, done!

[3002 tii]

Originally Posted by Michael9218

Updating from a cross post. This winter I replaced my pitted glass windshield with a polycarbonate windshield from Plastic 4 Performance.

Got the OEM windshield off and test fit the P4P Lexan windshield. Perfect fit (just like the rear window).



The 1/4" Lexan weighs 16 lbs. The stock glass a bit over 22 lbs. Was hoping for more weight savings, but the 1/4" (6mm) Lexan is thick and doesn't need a center support rod. A thinner 3/16" (5mm) would've weighed less, but according to Peggy at Raceshields would've required support. FWIW, the OEM glass windshield is 3/16" thick.

To prevent scratching and pitting, I put a Pro-shields protective film on the windshield. This can be replaced as it gets beat up so you always have a clear windshield.

How hard / finicky was it to install the windshield film?

[Michael9218]

Originally Posted by 3002 tii

How hard / finicky was it to install the windshield film?

Pretty difficult…

They don’t make a Pro-shield fitted for the E86, so you need to buy a generic piece and form it to the glass windshield before installing on the Lexan (so keep your glass windshield in your shop for forming replacement film. Too much heat to do it on Lexan). They provide instructions on how to heat form the shield, but with the compound curvature of our windshield I could not get it to cover the entire windshield and settled for a 16” band that covers my viewing area. Basically covers from below the 11” banner to a couple of inches up from the bottom of the glass. The good news is one 36” x 60” will make two shields…

[Michael9218]

Been over a year since an update. Time flies! Hasn't been much to report. Just been running the car without issue. A good problem, eh?

This past winter I decided it was time to replace the radiator as it's been in the car for 5 years and is no doubt packing up with sand. I decided to also move my oil cooler under the radiator for a better forced, or captive, air solution. Oil temps with an 8" x 11" Fluidyne cooler were a bit warm at 240 at inlet on a hot day. Just not enough airflow with it being in front of the PS tire.

So, I found a circle track LS style radiator from PWR for only $600 and TIG welded some tabs for mounting. This radiator is shorter than stock but thicker at 2.25" vs 1.62" (57mm vs 41mm) so it has more volume. It will require more air flow to get through a thicker radiator, but airflow up front I have in spades with my vented hood.

I then paired it with a CSF oil cooler (8201) that is similar in thickness for balanced airflow. Air will flow the path of least resistance, so you don't want a thick cooler stacked with a thin cooler.



This install required custom brackets to lean the radiator more forward for @20 degree lean. And then brackets to hold the oil cooler. I also had a replacement front bumper fabricated for a cleaner unobstructed front end that will better allow the all important ducting. The CF tube feeds the cold air intake.



Here I mocked up the front side air box. Working with card paper allows you to get the cuts and bends right where you want them.



The back side mocked up with an Improved Racing inline thermostat for the oil. It progressively opens starting at 212f.




And then in .025" aluminum. The backside ties into the hood vent.





Three weekends on this new setup so far, and it's working perfectly! Water is staying @190f and oil @210 at inlet. And best of all, no leaks!

[Michael9218]

Another small update. I didn't like the air filter on the Eventuri intake. Clogs up too much with sand and just doesn't look to me like it can flow air at high rpm. So, I sourced a generic K&N cannister filter that has 3x the surface area and used a velocity stack for smooth flow. I then molded a bucket with carbon fiber and created a cold air "box" that's fed by the intake tube. Just tried this out the other weekend. Seems happier at high rpm, but the butt dyno is a deceptive mistress...

[Vanne]

Nice work bud

[86Zed]

Great fab work and inspiration to dig into some of my own projects. Any videos on track??