GB: AutoSolutions SSK for Z4M

[ZeD4Mr]

I supposedly should have gotten mine today but I wasn't home. Got a pick up notice for delivery at the post office for tomorrow. Canada as well and I hope for a complete kit like inTgr8r

[mfanatic325]

Originally Posted by JDN34

I supposedly should have gotten mine today but I wasn't home. Got a pick up notice for delivery at the post office for tomorrow. Canada as well and I hope for a complete kit like inTgr8r

All the Canadians will receive full kit, including bushings and tool according to Ronald. Hence why they shipped out a bit later than they otherwise could have.

[sabbanick]

haha, i've never been this excited to pay for a something in a while!

Just waiting for that invoice to appear in my inbox. No rush as I plan on waiting a bit for install.

[mfanatic325]

Got my car back! Four words: O M F G !

Barely any more NVH with the 3.91 gearing, and the SSK is exactly how I remember it from my first time test-driving it; perfect.

[inTgr8r]

More on the 3.91 when you have a few miles on it please.

[mfanatic325]

I'm pretty happy with the get-up with the 3.91
I've put just over 100 miles on the new setup already. I probably wouldn't recommend 4.10's to anyone unless they have an otherwise stock car. Everything cost me $1450 in total (parts and labor), which is a damned good deal for the amount of effective wheel torque increase.

And what's even better (since we use it 24/7), is the shifter. AS SSK = flawless
It's like stock, but everything's tightened up. No more crunch, no more insecurity. Every gate is a weighted strong engagement. You could just bang it in, and you wouldn't mis-shift. I would try and use a sexual innuendo, but even that won't suffice in properly describing the level of perfection


Will report back after my LA trip (~1200 miles in total), and after my DynoJet session next Wednesday

[RBull]

LOL on the sexual innuendo.

Great to hear about the shifter and your thoughts on the 3.91.

Looking forward to more detail on the diff, shifter and explanation on 4.10 and "stock" car, after your trip.

[mfanatic325]

So, I've almost tallied 1200 miles already with the new 3.91 ring & pinion setup + AS SSK. Going to get my diff flushed out on Wednesday, along with a short DynoJet session

My opinion still stands. I am extremely satisfied with both additions to my car. The way the car is right now, I firmly believe that I'm done with the car for now. Until I raise my driving level up to the point where I can outdrive the car, everything as-is is way more than I need

The 3.91 has slight NVH over stock, but definitely within acceptance; still very daily-drivable. I do of course notice the slight increase in rpm per gear, but cruising at 80mph, the rpm is @ around 3400, whereas before it at like 3050 or so. Not bad at all really. My average gas mileage for the LA trip and back is 21.5 mpg, with mostly freeway miles and only some LA (congested) traffic. I think the 3.91 is enough gearing for my car. The 4.10 would probably too much. But if anyone is planning on keeping their cars relatively stock, then 4.10 would be good for you. My long-term future goal is forced induction for my car (hopefully someone comes out with a turbo kit for our cars by then), and I honestly think 3.91 would already be overkill with an FI setup.

I'm still surprised sometimes by the get-up that the gearing provides. In essence, I don't need to rev as high for power anymore. I can short-shift at 4k rpm and still have enough go for passing. On the freeway, 6th-gear is really all I need for passing. I don't even need to downshift

But when I did downshift for the various LA on/off ramps (which were LOADS of fun!), the SSK provided almost telepathically-crisp gear changes. 6th to 5th never was a problem to begin with for even the stock shifter, but the decrease in throw is enjoyable for any gear. 5th to 4th is ridiculously easy. 4th to 3rd wasn't a problem either for stock. 3rd to 2nd was a pretty big improvement, but still requires a tiny bit of guidance into the gate.
There's no more 1st to 2nd crunch though, so I'm all smiles there
I slightly grinded a 1st to 2nd shift once, but it was because I let the clutch out just a slight bit too early before actually finishing the shift.

What needs to be noted about the AS SSK is that the gate-entry per gear is more solid, and therefore requires a bit more initial force. But it gives you a nice crisp feedback "clunk". For those of you that have driven the Honda S2000, it's just like that shifter's feel; with good feeback. Your shifts with the AS SSK need not be swift, but dedicated, with just enough force to get it past the gate-entry point. But while I already knew what I was getting myself into (having driven it once before), most of you don't; and I just wanted to point that out.
Most of you will need to get used to the SSK for the first 10-15 minutes after your install. After that, you'll literally be banging gears like a pro

[inTgr8r]

Thanks for the great writeup.

If my math is correct, the 3.91 is aprox 8% change in gearing.
So an OE reading of 3000RPM should yield aprox. 3240 RPM on the 3.91 diff.
not bad at all.

A 4.1 diff is about 13.15% change, so 3000RPM would yield just under 3400RPM


...can't wait for spring to get the SSK in & tested.

[sabbanick]

So yesterday I got to drive my friends e46m and he just installed 4.10 diff and autosolutions SSK with 40% reduction in throw. The car felt great, the shifter is really beefy and requires some muscle to get into gates. It's all very tight and you all will get the sexual innuendo when you experience it first hand. There is an audible and tactile thump when shifting.

The throws were a little too short for my liking but that was just my opinion. According to info on this thread ours is ~17 reduction.

The 4.10's were awesome, car is really transformed and pulls like a freight train. On the track this would be an awesome upgrade as it would be much easier to lay power down on track out.

mfanatic thanks for setting up this group buy, and for the review. Can't wait to see your post install dyno numbers. Enjoy the car!

[RBull]

Yeah nice write up mfanatic. Thanks for setting up the GB. My SSK was shipping today with install planned for later this spring.

[mfanatic325]

Haha you're very welcome guys! By the way, I was able to log a GPS-recorded speed of 151mph on the interstate-5 freeway =P
The speedometer told me it was in the 160's/170's, but obviously at those speeds, the speedo is going to be off a little, so I had my GPS record for me @ the same time. I was also able to do some tunnel runs and got some recorded videos lol
All of this was done when no-one else was around me though, so as to not endanger anyone else
I was only able to do 151 because I caught up to traffic and wanted to brake well ahead of time just to be safer heh. I really wanted to try out the car's true top speed, but two attempted runs was all I could muster. Didn't want to go to jail or anything either haha. Totally not worth the risk IMHO.

As for my dyno session, it's not for the ring & pinion (since those won't show up on a dyno at all), but actually for my other mods. I've got drop-in intake filter and ceramic-coated headers installed since the last time I dynoed, so I want to see where I'm at now. I unfortunately won't be able to get back on the original DynaPack where I got all my previous dyno #'s, because some crazy 800+ whp car broke it LOL!
But the DynoJet session in two days will serve to kill two birds with one stone: 1) get post-performance mods #'s and 2) get a comparison between DynaPack & DynoJet.

As for the E46 M3 AutoSolutions SSK, the described feel is spot on. One of my best friends has the kit in his M3, and I drove it just a day prior to getting my car back from the shop, and it was WAY stiffer than our kits. To a point where I actually did nor like it. The shifts were precise, but required too much initial force to enter each gate. With ours, only slight force is necessary. A little more than stock, but definitely not as bad as the E46 M3 version kit.
And the E46 M3 version was pretty highly heralded mind you. So that kind of gives you and idea of how ours is going to be >_^
Our kits are only a modest ~15% reduction in throw compared to a higher reduction in the E46 M3 kit, but it's because our tranny already had shorter throws to begin with =P
Don't let those #'s fool you.

[inTgr8r]

Dang it's going to be a long time until spring

...BTW what shift knob are you using?

[sabbanick]

your numbers will be a lot higher on a dynojet compared to a dynapack if i'm not mistaken. I you want to get an accurate figure of the performance gains from the headers and air filter in addition to the AA tune i would recommend you wait for the dynapack to be fixed. Otherwise the numbers really will not mean anything...damn dyno's.

[mfanatic325]

Originally Posted by inTgr8r

Dang it's going to be a long time until spring

...BTW what shift knob are you using?

I'm using the sock shift knob, because when I tried the AS SSK with the ZHP shift knob, I didn't like how it was too short. The weight was better on the ZHP knob, but I like a taller shifter so that I have more effective shifting torque via a longer upper shift arm. As long as my bottom half (under the shift boot) has reduced throw, I'm happy enough with it

Originally Posted by sabbanick

your numbers will be a lot higher on a dynojet compared to a dynapack if i'm not mistaken. I you want to get an accurate figure of the performance gains from the headers and air filter in addition to the AA tune i would recommend you wait for the dynapack to be fixed. Otherwise the numbers really will not mean anything...damn dyno's.

See, that's what I want closure on as well. It's been said that DynaPack reads lower than DynoJet, blah blah blah.
I will put all of this to rest with DynoJet for now. Because my car should be @ ~320rwhp, and probably ~265rwtq. Will see what DynoJet reads.

The last time on DynaPack (without headers and drop-in air filter), my car put out 295rwhp and 245rwtq or thereabouts. I forget the exact #. Going off the ballpark that I remember.

As for the DynaPack getting fixed, I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon unfortunately. Because it's going to cost over $8k excluding shipping the units cross-country lolll...good game.
I hope the owner of that 800+rwhp car that broke the dyno will be willing to help pay for the repair costs hahah

[sabbanick]

Well, all I am going to say is do not get upset if the numbers are out of spec to your expectations. The are so much variations when it comes to dyno plots, and so many variables that can possibly effect the outcomes.

how tight car was strapped down...
fan set up....
tire size, if changed from initial run....
time of year....
type of dyno....

[inTgr8r]

Originally Posted by mfanatic325

I'm using the sock shift knob, because when I tried the AS SSK with the ZHP shift knob, I didn't like how it was too short. The weight was better on the ZHP knob, but I like a taller shifter so that I have more effective shifting torque via a longer upper shift arm. As long as my bottom half (under the shift boot) has reduced throw, I'm happy enough with it
.....

That's what I was thinking as well.
Not a big deal, but we'll get the shift light back as well.

Depending how it feels, I'll might have a look to see if the OE can be modded at all to add a little weight.

[mfanatic325]

Originally Posted by sabbanick

Well, all I am going to say is do not get upset if the numbers are out of spec to your expectations. The are so much variations when it comes to dyno plots, and so many variables that can possibly effect the outcomes.

how tight car was strapped down...
fan set up....
tire size, if changed from initial run....
time of year....
type of dyno....

Oh yeah no worries. I've a lot of experience with dynoes, mostly DynaPacks, but some DynoJet and Mustang dynoes as well. I just haven't used anything other than DynaPack for my own personal cars, that's all =P

Ohh by the way, I forgot to specify that my DynoJet session on Wednesday is part of a Groupon deal: 2 pulls for $30 lol. My friend bought a Groupon coupon for me so it's free

[Shereef_Osman]

Has anyone done this install themselves? I've got my car pretty much dissembled but it's always easier to take things apart than to put them back together!

Three questions:
1. Are we supposed to dissemble the new shift lever? Cause I see no way of installing it in the shift arm and then installing the shift lever / shift arm combo back in the car unless you remove the drive shaft.
2. I know how to remove the shift coupler, but actually doing it, is a different story. I'm even more worried about installing the new one. Can't see a thing up there! I'm curious as to the difference between the stock one and the aftermarket one, if any?
3. What is the difference between the stock shift arm and the aftermarket shift arm? They look very similar, even have the same part numbers on them. I'm assuming he went and bought the stock arm and then modified it?

Anyway, if anyone is planning this install themselves, it is not the easiest job in the world, although I am no mechanic. If I didn't have a lift, there is no way I would attempt this, lol.

PS wrh3's UUC install is a great help. Much appreciated, as the included AutoSolutions instructions are next to useless unless you have done something like this before.

[wrh3]

This might help, a lot of similarities other than the shifter carrier:

http://m3.madrussian.net/diy_as_ssk.shtml

Shifter carrier removal for the most part is by feel, limited visibility. The AS shifter carrier is modified for the geometry of the AS shifter.

Hang in there, you'll get it. The E46 M3 installation is worse due to the different carrier.

[Shereef_Osman]

Originally Posted by wrh3

This might help, a lot of similarities other than the shifter carrier:

http://m3.madrussian.net/diy_as_ssk.shtml

Shifter carrier removal for the most part is by feel, limited visibility. The AS shifter carrier is modified for the geometry of the AS shifter.

Hang in there, you'll get it. The E46 M3 installation is worse due to the different carrier.

Thanks very much, that should help. I will resume tomorrow night. Hopefully make some more progress.

LOL, step 17 of the DIY you just posted "For some ungodly reason the shift lever is shipped connected to the selector rod from AutoSolutions." I guess that explains it, I couldn't believe he would assemble shift lever if we had to disassemble it!

[wrh3]

Originally Posted by Shereef_Osman

LOL, step 17 of the DIY you just posted "For some ungodly reason the shift lever is shipped connected to the selector rod from AutoSolutions." I guess that explains it, I couldn't believe he would assemble shift lever if we had to disassemble it!

He may assemble it to make sure everything is correct and works.....and it gave me a look at how it should be assembled.....before I had to take it apart and reassemble it