What is the easiest way to add HP ?

[MaxSpeed]

Have a 330i and still would like a few more HP and more Torque - any simple, inexpensive ways to do this ?:dunno:

[eugeneDC/TX]

Originally posted by MaxSpeed
Have a 330i and still would like a few more HP and more Torque - any simple, inexpensive ways to do this ?:dunno:

umm probably the shark injector whenever it becomes available (although for best gains with it you'd probably want a CAI too)

[Jon S.]

Originally posted by MaxSpeed
Have a 330i and still would like a few more HP and more Torque - any simple, inexpensive ways to do this ?:dunno:

Go for the ECIS CAI - www.ecisbmw.com !!!

Shark injector a good tip too...



:thumbup:

[johnlew]

Originally posted by MaxSpeed
Have a 330i and still would like a few more HP and more Torque - any simple, inexpensive ways to do this ?:dunno:

Buy a 540

[TD]

Originally posted by MaxSpeed
Have a 330i and still would like a few more HP and more Torque - any simple, inexpensive ways to do this ?:dunno:

Trade it in on an M3.

Common sense here. If there was a simple, inexpensive way to add HP that did not significantly degrade engine longevity or have some other major drawback to it, don't you think the car would come from the factory like that?

[Razzmatazz]

Originally posted by TD


Trade it in on an M3.

Common sense here. If there was a simple, inexpensive way to add HP that did not significantly degrade engine longevity or have some other major drawback to it, don't you think the car would come from the factory like that?

TD,

Serious error in judgement.:tsk: You know better than this.

What do YOU think is behind the magic of a M technik GMBH powerplant???

Let's go over the basics in the order of priority.

1. Firmware
2. Exhaust and Intake tuning
3. Camshafts
4. Higher compression pistons
5. Lower inertial thresholds for moving components
6. Larger displacement

A person who wants to tune their engine using the above, will not suffer detrimental service life, assuming the work is competent.

The easiest and cheapest way to obtain more output is remapping of the ECU fuel/ignition to advance timing and allow more fuel into the engine. Vanos engines require a little more but the concept is the same. Sometimes raising the rev levels is necessary to take advantage of the new mapping as horsepower gains are usually found at the upper end of the rpm band. This action is relatively inexpensive if available for a particular model. All the major tuners offer their chips at competitive prices. This upgrade alone results in a higher output per dollar spent than any other modification and it will not have any degrading effects on service life of the engine. Stevie D's chips do not violate BMW warranty.

Lots of owners love to go the intake and exhaust route, with good results, not great though, but good. In extreme cases one has to admire Oliver Nowack and his accomplishments to the M5. Nowack also includes expensive headwork, however reducing exhaust and intake restrictions within reason can be modestly obtained.

Camshafts are probably the last of the easy mods which have the greatest return on investment.

Any further tuning now becomes expensive. Headwork, SS headers, larger displacement, forced induction.

To simply say the factory would have provided such modifications had they found them to be reliable, is simply not correct.

Compromises of the automobiles objectives are always in check when it is released. This doesn't mean the stock engine is already tuned to it's highest level of reliability. A non M engine is nothing more, than just "more conserative", then it's M counterpart.

With proper care, a M powerplant is just as reliable as it's non M counter part. Sure they both do different things, and they had better to justify the cost differential, however I for one do not believe one is more or less reliable than the other.

:mad: razzmatazz

[TD]

Originally posted by Razzmatazz


TD,

(Lots of content)

:mad: razzmatazz

Um, yes and no.

For the sake of brevity, I admit to oversimplifying the concept of pre-optimized from the factory. As manufacturers (on their mainline vehicles) have to account for behavior such as running poor quality fuels and spotty maintenance behavior, engine specs are set for a greater margin of error. And, yes, for many vehicles, aftermarket chips (re-programming devices, whatever) exist to modify the stock specs to reduce the margin of error and increase performance. Generally permium fuels are then required and fuel efficiency is often compromised (two items that are non-issues for someone like me).

I have always been skeptical of the performance gains produced by "intakes" and "exhausts" and, even if there is some gain to either/both, they are minimal and certainly, IMO, not cost effective.

And, to me, modification beyond any of these are not "simple" in the context I believe the original author was referring to as they would generally require shop time to have them installed (most of us can DIY an intake, most of us cannot DIY new exhaust manifolds). And shop time adds up quickly.

But while, overall, I agree with your content, I think our central point of disagreement centers around the original paramenter of "inexpensive". Forgive me for jumping to conclusions, but I inferred from the original poster that he might fit a certain demographic of "modder" where a few hundred dollars (the cost of a reputable chip) is pushing expensive.

Not to mention, it has been widely discussed that, specifically on the M54 3.0s, exhausts, intakes and chips have an especially minimal effect as the car/engine WAS more highly tuned to get the performance gains over the prior M52 2.8. Even Dinan claims ZERO power gains on their M54 S/W.

And a correction- ALL Dinan products void BMW's warranty. It's just that Dinan offers a warranty to supposedly cover any warranty denials by BMW. This is a common misconception. But Dinan products DO void the BMW warranty.

[·clyde·]

Originally posted by TD

I have always been skeptical of the performance gains produced by "intakes" and "exhausts" and, even if there is some gain to either/both, they are minimal and certainly, IMO, not cost effective.

Probably neither here nor there, but in addition to actual service issues, manufacturers also need to comply with other esoteric regulations that can compromise performance which may not apply to aftermarket products in certain areas, or the end user may choose to disregard those regulations (off road only exhaust, white indicator lights, etc). In a similar vein, many cars come with harder tires than anyone would normally want on thier cars in an effort to eek out a another tenth or two of gas milage to meet CAFE requirements.

[LIL RAJA]

lose some weight. cheapest alternative and might do one some good.

intake, chip probably.
short shifter, with big clutch stop and some performance driving
classes.

my 2 cents.

LIL Raja

[JetBlack330i]

MaxSpeed, glad to meet another Austinite on the board.

Given that this question was posted in the "Dear Jon..." forum, the correct answer must be "trade it in for...". Unfortunately, that doesn't meet the "inexpensive" requirement. :cry:

If this was posted in the "330" forum, I would have to agree with TD's answer that any real inexpensive mod ($50 K&N filters, $50 Tornado thingy, etc), if they really worked, they'd have been adopted by manufacturers and would have come from factory.
Case in point... the $20 Shawn Fog mod to the air box. Proposed several years ago for the Z3 and now adopted at least in all 3-ers.
BTW, the OEM air box is already a CAI (in the strict sense of the term). Some of the cheaper CAIs are not. They lack a firewall and thus suck in hot air from the engine bay. I have not seen any independent hard data that support the theory that 3rd party "CAIs" improve performance. All I've seen is butt-dynos.

As for reprogramming, at $500 I wouldn't call it inexpensive. Upgrading your tires would cost you less and offer you more performance (I found that my original ContiSports were the bottle neck, not the engine). Beyond the price issue, my biggest concern with reprogramming is that once downloaded, you've practically locked yourself out of any future software upgrades made available by BMW.
Maybe in a few years, when my 330 is out of warranty I will try the Shark. That'd be perfect, cause the OEM sofware would have been stable by then (BMW unlikely to release any new updates) and the Shark should be more then vaporware.

[Plaz]

Originally posted by JetBlack330i
Maybe in a few years, when my 330 is out of warranty I will try the Shark. That'd be perfect, cause the OEM sofware would have been stable by then (BMW unlikely to release any new updates) and the Shark should be more then vaporware.

I'll shark my 330 as soon as it's available.

The beauty of the Shark Injector, compared to the Dinan, AA, or other chips, is that it's reversible.

Worried about smog check? Want to see if the dealer upgrades the OEM s/w? Just d/l the original s/w back into the ECU prior to your appointment.

As far as intake/exhaust -- I view these as more aesthetic upgrades than anything else... aesthetic in terms of the whole visceral sensory experience... just that it affects sound more than looks. I think the sound of intakes and exhausts probably influence ye olde butt dyno as much/more than actual HP differences.

There's nothing wrong with that -- if it makes you enjoy the car more and makes you feel it's more powerful, it might as well be, because the only audience that matters is the driver.

[JetBlack330i]

Originally posted by Plaz

Want to see if the dealer upgrades the OEM s/w? Just d/l the original s/w back into the ECU prior to your appointment.

And what do you do if the dealer does upgrade the OEM s/w?
Do you undo the dealer's work with the Shark?

[Plaz]

Originally posted by JetBlack330i

And what do you do if the dealer does upgrade the OEM s/w?
Do you undo the dealer's work with the Shark?

Well, at least you have the choice.

[328bimma]

dinan supercharger....

J

[RKT BMR]

Originally posted by 328bimma
dinan supercharger....
Unless Dinan has just released an E46 blower and I've missed it, no such animal exists.

However, ESS has a kit out for the 330 (I've got one on my 330cic), and RMS just released theirs for sale a month or two ago.

Contrary to some mild criticisms I've recieved here in other threads, supercharging a 330 with an ESS kit if you do the install yourself is considerably cheaper than buying an M3 in the first place -- $6k vs $10k. And, if your car is a hobby project, you have the fun, pride, and satisfaction that goes along with transforming your wheels.

To date, I've made the following performance mods to my 330cic:

ESS Supercharger
UUC Swaybarbarians
UUC Twin Silencer Exhaust
UUC Short Shifter

I have more peak torque (330+ESS is 306ft-lb) than a stock M3 convertible (262ft-lb), and it shows so far in various uncontrolled tests -- I can beat an M3 coupe 0-60 (I've "raced" a friend to test this out on a series of multiple drags), and a stopwatch test says I get there in about 5.2 seconds.

On top of that, I didn't have to wait over a year to order my car. Ordered in April '01, took delivery in July.

There are some significant downsides:

Seriously compromised warranty -- expect to fight BMW if anything goes wrong with the drivetrain
ESS is in Norway, so service/support is problematic -- you better be able to diagnose/fix things yourself... One more relatively complex system to fail. Note that it's not just the blower -- the injectors are upgraded, oil is routed from the oil pressure sender port to provide lubrication and a new dipstick tube is installed to provide a return path, the crankcase breather is rerouted, and a whole bunch of other stuff. It's a major mod to the engine (for details, see my write-up here (http://www.davidwaller.net/BMW330Cic/Modifications/supercharger/index.htm)).
Reprogramming of the ECU is required, and the only way to do it is send it to ESS in Norway. 1 week turnaround at best. Mine took 2. If BMW screws up and loads new S/W during service without asking first, you're hosed; unlike the Sharkinjector, you can't DIY the software.
All that power is seductively tempting to leadfoot-it on a regular basis, 'cause it is just so fun! A real testosterone trip, especially when the plethora of pimply-faced kids with E46 M's around here think they can gain an ego by blowing my little wimpy 330 out of the water. Boy are they surprised (and usually humbled -- I've got some stories!) Add the handling upgrades, and the car beckons constantly. This impacts safety negatively, and fuel economy even more. If I drive conservatively, I actually get slightly better mileage than pre-blower. However, if I actually use the thing, the car's a gas hog (no surprise there).
Tickets
Passing smog -- the ESS blower doesn't come with an exemption # stamped on the blower. Something that I found out after the fact is needed on CA to pass smog. I have to get this resolved with ESS and/or Vortec before I have to smog the car in '03.

There are, of course, many more pros and cons that can be listed. Going this route is definitely more of a commitment than buying an M3. However, in retrospect, I have no regrets, and would do it this way again, with one exception: ESS is right on the verge of releasing their kit for the E46 M3, so I'm seriously considering selling of my current rocket, getting an M3 cab, and putting a blower on that. They estimate 415hp, no torque figures available yet on their website.

Happy mod'ing!

Dave