HULK vs M3
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Originally Posted by djben
e46 m3's are a bit heavier and nobody has really turbo'd one yet successfully. Active has a page of 600+hp cars they have done and several of them are e36 m3s...not a single E46 there. The only kits out there for them now are SC, which do put out some pretty decent numbers but they're very pricey.
There is a guy in California who has the fastest 1/4 mile time now, you probably saw jmweb's time in a phoenix yellow m3 in miami which got a time of 11.98, which was recenly beat with 11.972 by the california guy tazam3. Both times could be a lot better -- jmweb's car was SMG which is terrible for launching at the drag strip, and tazam3's car was run at a poor track 2700ft above sea level. Both cars have the yet-to-be-released active stage III SC kit.
An ace driver in stock m3 can get into the high 12s, so those times can definetally get better. For the most part though it is a low-13 second car.
For the money it takes to SC the e46 m3 you could put together a separate car (or two) that would spank it in the 1/4. For the money I paid for my car I could have put together a fleet of cars that would own it so don't worry, there are probably no bruised egos on the BMW owner's part unless he made a mistake buying a new M3 thinking it was a fast car
There is a guy in California who has the fastest 1/4 mile time now, you probably saw jmweb's time in a phoenix yellow m3 in miami which got a time of 11.98, which was recenly beat with 11.972 by the california guy tazam3. Both times could be a lot better -- jmweb's car was SMG which is terrible for launching at the drag strip, and tazam3's car was run at a poor track 2700ft above sea level. Both cars have the yet-to-be-released active stage III SC kit.
An ace driver in stock m3 can get into the high 12s, so those times can definetally get better. For the most part though it is a low-13 second car.
For the money it takes to SC the e46 m3 you could put together a separate car (or two) that would spank it in the 1/4. For the money I paid for my car I could have put together a fleet of cars that would own it so don't worry, there are probably no bruised egos on the BMW owner's part unless he made a mistake buying a new M3 thinking it was a fast car
And yeah, 11.9 seems kind of weak considering the car and amount of mods.....what's the deal with that?
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Originally Posted by fadedSTi
wow, 11.9s being the quickest for the newer M3s, i would have never expected that. is there something holding them back? is there just no market for the newer M3? that would mean i really dont have to worry when running any new M3 at all. i dont think an ego was hurt during the run, he definately has a beautiful car. id drive one any day
Add FI into the mix and you can get good HP out of the motor on stock internals with a SC bolt on kit (the two cars previously mentioned I believe are 500+ WHP). The S54 has an 11.5:1 compression ratio, which from my limited experience is pretty high and doesnt lend itself well to FI.
A company in California "Horsepowerfreaks" is working on a turbo kit for the E46 M3. They claim that the hardware side of things is done and it all comes down to the software tune, which apparently is a bitch with these cars. If they follow through and actually get their kit completed, my guess is you will probably see see sub-11sec e46 m3s shortly after the kit's release.
If Tazam3 can get to a good track and get some good runs in, he may get into the 10s but should at the least be into the low 11 range.
Another factor is weight -- the M3 is still a luxury car despite it's racing heritage -- an m3 coupe is 3400lbs, add a few options and you're close to 3500. Weight of a vert? forget about it heh. The E46 M3 can lose a good bit of weight but it is costly -- carbon fiber trunklid/hood/bumpers, racing seats/lightweight battery/aftermarket exhaust and headers/lightweight wheels. Doing all that properly could probably run you 20k if not more but you'll probably be in the 2900lb range (just a guess there). There are guys who go all out and remove the rear seats, but when you're going that far you may as well have gone with a Z06 if you are willing to lose the benefits of being able to comfortably seat 4 adults in a nice interior.
Last edited by djben; Jul 9, 2006 at 10:59 AM.
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as far as weight, the M3 and the STi are about exact.
you are right, that high compression definately doesnt help the boost. i would just spray mine with that ratio. a healthy 100 shot and some tuning should put you near the low 12s id assume.
you are right, that high compression definately doesnt help the boost. i would just spray mine with that ratio. a healthy 100 shot and some tuning should put you near the low 12s id assume.
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Originally Posted by fadedSTi
as far as weight, the M3 and the STi are about exact.
you are right, that high compression definately doesnt help the boost. i would just spray mine with that ratio. a healthy 100 shot and some tuning should put you near the low 12s id assume.
you are right, that high compression definately doesnt help the boost. i would just spray mine with that ratio. a healthy 100 shot and some tuning should put you near the low 12s id assume.
If jmweb's car wasnt SMG he could have been at least a half-second faster. Not to say SMG is bad, but without a clutch to work yourself the only thing it doesn do well is launch.
Boosting the E46 M3 is expensive and it is already a very expensive car. I don't even want to think about how much taza and jmweb put into theirs. It is more practical to buy a second car for a speed demon, which seems to be a not too uncommon practice among BMW owners, especially since many E46 M3's are still under factory warranty (hopefully the aftermarket improves as the car ages).
I was at the dealership the other day and a woman drove up in an E46 325 and was admiring my M3. We talked a little and she then showed me the photos of a dragster she takes to Sunshine and Bradenton -- very cool
Last edited by djben; Jul 9, 2006 at 11:25 AM.
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Originally Posted by djben
Both of the M3's I mentioned were on spray.
If jmweb's car wasnt SMG he could have been at least a half-second faster. Not to say SMG is bad, but without a clutch to work yourself the only thing it doesn do well is launch.
If jmweb's car wasnt SMG he could have been at least a half-second faster. Not to say SMG is bad, but without a clutch to work yourself the only thing it doesn do well is launch.
