Like opinions and ... well... seems like everyone's got one. :dunno:
This isn't much, but ya gotta start somewhere.
:thumbup:
This isn't much, but ya gotta start somewhere.
:thumbup:
Elvis's Official Mod Thread
Elvis530i
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Okay, today's update, in a slightly more serious tone: I took out my intake muffler. My intent with this and the K&N filter was to emulate a CAI, without spending $500+, by removing the two main flow restrictions in the stock intake.
I've seen this discussed a few times before, but no one bothered to take any pics. So, I did. This is a very simple mod, and all you need is a flat head screwdriver and a metric socket set. It took me about 15 minutes and would probably have taken half that if my 5-year-old hadn't insisted on helping me.
I take no responsibility for what this may do to your car--it's an experiment on my part, though I can't see how it could do much harm since the whole kit and kaboodle comes out if you install a CAI.
The photos:
1) This is easier if you take out your air filter (the intake muffler actually protrudes into the air box). All you have to do here is take out the air box. First remove the indicated bolt (in the photo, it's out already).
2) Loosen the screw holding the clamp at the base of the air box.
3) Carefully pull the air box up out of the clamp you just loosened. It may take a few tries to get it out. It's not necessary to disconnect the MAF. The intake muffler is the horn-looking thing sticking out of the bottom of the air box. It's held in place by a couple of clips (red circle; there's one on the other side). Poke them in with the head of the screwdriver (but gently--too hard and you'll break them like I did with one side ) and slide it out.
4) The intake muffler out of the box.
Then just put everything back the way it came out. The air box is much easier to get back into place with the muffler out.
Does it make a difference? Yeah. Not a big one, but I noticed definite increase in engine response and volume. I've been told it may improve your gas mileage, so I reset my OBC to see what effect it has.
Next up is the shadowline trip tape, when it arrives.
I've seen this discussed a few times before, but no one bothered to take any pics. So, I did. This is a very simple mod, and all you need is a flat head screwdriver and a metric socket set. It took me about 15 minutes and would probably have taken half that if my 5-year-old hadn't insisted on helping me.
I take no responsibility for what this may do to your car--it's an experiment on my part, though I can't see how it could do much harm since the whole kit and kaboodle comes out if you install a CAI.
The photos:
1) This is easier if you take out your air filter (the intake muffler actually protrudes into the air box). All you have to do here is take out the air box. First remove the indicated bolt (in the photo, it's out already).
2) Loosen the screw holding the clamp at the base of the air box.
3) Carefully pull the air box up out of the clamp you just loosened. It may take a few tries to get it out. It's not necessary to disconnect the MAF. The intake muffler is the horn-looking thing sticking out of the bottom of the air box. It's held in place by a couple of clips (red circle; there's one on the other side). Poke them in with the head of the screwdriver (but gently--too hard and you'll break them like I did with one side
) and slide it out.4) The intake muffler out of the box.
Then just put everything back the way it came out. The air box is much easier to get back into place with the muffler out.
Does it make a difference? Yeah. Not a big one, but I noticed definite increase in engine response and volume. I've been told it may improve your gas mileage, so I reset my OBC to see what effect it has.
Next up is the shadowline trip tape, when it arrives.
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Some more photos. Found the time to do a full detail (clay bar, etc.) today. Fortunately, the weather cooperated and the kids stayed down for their naps just long enough. :thumbup:
Is it just me, or do E39s photograph really well? :angel:
:thumbup: Is it just me, or do E39s photograph really well? :angel:
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I love the rear 3/4 view of E39s! :thumbup:Elvis530i said:
I like the side view from slightly above too.
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maybe you guys are just thinking it helps
Seems bmw would have not put in a part that makes engine less responsive,Elvis530i said:Okay, today's update, in a slightly more serious tone: I took out my intake muffler. My intent with this and the K&N filter was to emulate a CAI, without spending $500+, by removing the two main flow restrictions in the stock intake.
I've seen this discussed a few times before, but no one bothered to take any pics. So, I did. This is a very simple mod, and all you need is a flat head screwdriver and a metric socket set. It took me about 15 minutes and would probably have taken half that if my 5-year-old hadn't insisted on helping me.
I take no responsibility for what this may do to your car--it's an experiment on my part, though I can't see how it could do much harm since the whole kit and kaboodle comes out if you install a CAI.
The photos:
1) This is easier if you take out your air filter (the intake muffler actually protrudes into the air box). All you have to do here is take out the air box. First remove the indicated bolt (in the photo, it's out already).
2) Loosen the screw holding the clamp at the base of the air box.
3) Carefully pull the air box up out of the clamp you just loosened. It may take a few tries to get it out. It's not necessary to disconnect the MAF. The intake muffler is the horn-looking thing sticking out of the bottom of the air box. It's held in place by a couple of clips (red circle; there's one on the other side). Poke them in with the head of the screwdriver (but gently--too hard and you'll break them like I did with one side
4) The intake muffler out of the box.
Then just put everything back the way it came out. The air box is much easier to get back into place with the muffler out.
Does it make a difference? Yeah. Not a big one, but I noticed definite increase in engine response and volume. I've been told it may improve your gas mileage, so I reset my OBC to see what effect it has.
Next up is the shadowline trip tape, when it arrives.
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Think a little harder. The part is called an "intake muffler," and it's there to reduce the sound of the engine. It does this by restricting the air flow, thus damping the sound waves that come out of the throttle.JYG Y2k5285spCT said:
BMW isn't selling race cars, it's selling "luxury performance sedans." There are all sorts of design decisions they make that are trade-offs between performance and luxury.
Yeah, I noticed that the Dinan software was 50% off was well. However, I have a '98 528. I read somewhere on here that it would make only minor differences on a 528, and that it makes more sense to upgrade that 540's. Is this true? Would it be pointless to put a performance chip in my car?
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Dinan says there is no HP increase for the M54 engine from their stage 1 software, just an increase in response and sportiness--one of the reasons I've held back from spending $800+ on the upgrade. At half-price, though it might be worth it. :eeps:xclone said:
To get a real HP increase, you have to spring for additional mods like a CAI or exhaust. In answer to spiker's question (no harm no foul
) I don't think there really is one, from what I have heard from folks who've done the S1 package and/or the VF s/c on the 530. Note that Dinan doesn't offer a s/c for the 530, and worse, there are no s/c's for this model that are approved as street-legal in CA due to emissions regulations. 
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I performed the intake muffler delete tonight.. great guide Elvis. A couple of notes that I thought may help others:Elvis530i said:Okay, today's update, in a slightly more serious tone: I took out my intake muffler. My intent with this and the K&N filter was to emulate a CAI, without spending $500+, by removing the two main flow restrictions in the stock intake.
I've seen this discussed a few times before, but no one bothered to take any pics. So, I did. This is a very simple mod, and all you need is a flat head screwdriver and a metric socket set. It took me about 15 minutes and would probably have taken half that if my 5-year-old hadn't insisted on helping me.
I take no responsibility for what this may do to your car--it's an experiment on my part, though I can't see how it could do much harm since the whole kit and kaboodle comes out if you install a CAI.
The photos:
1) This is easier if you take out your air filter (the intake muffler actually protrudes into the air box). All you have to do here is take out the air box. First remove the indicated bolt (in the photo, it's out already).
2) Loosen the screw holding the clamp at the base of the air box.
3) Carefully pull the air box up out of the clamp you just loosened. It may take a few tries to get it out. It's not necessary to disconnect the MAF. The intake muffler is the horn-looking thing sticking out of the bottom of the air box. It's held in place by a couple of clips (red circle; there's one on the other side). Poke them in with the head of the screwdriver (but gently--too hard and you'll break them like I did with one side
4) The intake muffler out of the box.
Then just put everything back the way it came out. The air box is much easier to get back into place with the muffler out.
Does it make a difference? Yeah. Not a big one, but I noticed definite increase in engine response and volume. I've been told it may improve your gas mileage, so I reset my OBC to see what effect it has.
Next up is the shadowline trip tape, when it arrives.
1 - On step 3, the actually get the horn out of the clamped intake, I pushed back the retractable air duct and inserted a flat blade screwdriver to help guide the horn out with minimal force. Since the air manifold is flexible, it kept getting in the way of the horn "lip" and catching.
2 - On step 3, there is one clip to be depressed on the outside of the airbox, the other is on the horn inside of the airbox. Just reach your hand inside and you will feel the lever to depress.
3 - Before putting your airfilter back in, I would highly recommend "shop vacing" the air filter chamber as I found a decent amount of dirt had been released by the removal process. A small amount was on the engine side of the filter... :yikes:
On my short test drive, there is a deeper growling noise under hard acceleration but scarecely notable if you aren't paying attention. The car felt slightly more responsive but didn't achieve any speeds where others have noted a difference. Will provide more of an update once I get on the highway and can let the horses run free.
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Well, after much dithering around, I finally purchased and installed the ///M trunk lip spoiler. I talked my wife into getting me one for Xmas, which she ordered on my suggestion from Xenonspecialist on eBay. I had to wait until the weather improved (we've had some nasty rain + wind the past few days), but installation was a snap.
For such a minor mod, it really does give the car a noticeably sportier appearance. :thumbup:
I'll get some photos uploaded when the photo gallery is back up.
For such a minor mod, it really does give the car a noticeably sportier appearance. :thumbup:
I'll get some photos uploaded when the photo gallery is back up.
Elvis530i, you have inspired me to take out the air horn, and since I am a numbers guy, I collected some air flow data.
I did 4 passes in second gear, with the throttle wide open from about 2,500 - 6500 RPM. I used my OBD-2 scan tool to capture the MAF and RPM data.
Note: The data that is reported to the OBD-2 post is not "raw", but "cooked" by the DME. My OBD-2 scanner gives me about 1-2 samples per second. Since I am in second gear, accelerating quickly, I don't get a lot of data points. With all this in mind, the graph below is ODB-2 accurate, but may not be DME accurate.
![Image]()
I have double check the data to make sure I didn't mix swith the the old foam filter with the E45 M3 filter data. I don't know why a brand new E46 M3 filter flows less than the used foam back filter. The "butt" dyno didn't feel any difference and the throttle response felt exactly the same.
Peek flow by Filter:
(1) Old style foam back Filter (-869): 186-192 g/s
(2) New style E46 M3 filter (-946): 187-189 g/s
(3) E46 M3 filter and air horn delete (AHD): 190-193 g/s
My Conclusion: In looking at this data, it seems like the overall flow does not change when the air horn is deleted. (at least when comparing the foam backed stock filter to the E46/M3 filter with the air horn removed)
One thing the data does not tell us is throttle response. With the air horn removed, the throttle response is 90% IMPROVED. The throttle feels very "sharp". Before it was OK, but more like stepping on a wet sponge. The gas pedal now feels directly connected to the throttle. I like it very much!!
Also, the car seems to pull a little harder in the upper revs, but the fuel economy meter now swings much faster into the 20s (l/100 Km) Time will tell...
I think the purpose of the air horn is to make the intake slightly quieter, with out changing the total power. The air horn does slow down the the "rate of change" of the intake and I think that is why the throttle response is greatly improved.
Thanks again Elvis530i for posting this thread and the pics.
Do you have any more free mods?
I did 4 passes in second gear, with the throttle wide open from about 2,500 - 6500 RPM. I used my OBD-2 scan tool to capture the MAF and RPM data.
Note: The data that is reported to the OBD-2 post is not "raw", but "cooked" by the DME. My OBD-2 scanner gives me about 1-2 samples per second. Since I am in second gear, accelerating quickly, I don't get a lot of data points. With all this in mind, the graph below is ODB-2 accurate, but may not be DME accurate.
I have double check the data to make sure I didn't mix swith the the old foam filter with the E45 M3 filter data. I don't know why a brand new E46 M3 filter flows less than the used foam back filter. The "butt" dyno didn't feel any difference and the throttle response felt exactly the same.
Peek flow by Filter:
(1) Old style foam back Filter (-869): 186-192 g/s
(2) New style E46 M3 filter (-946): 187-189 g/s
(3) E46 M3 filter and air horn delete (AHD): 190-193 g/s
My Conclusion: In looking at this data, it seems like the overall flow does not change when the air horn is deleted. (at least when comparing the foam backed stock filter to the E46/M3 filter with the air horn removed)
One thing the data does not tell us is throttle response. With the air horn removed, the throttle response is 90% IMPROVED. The throttle feels very "sharp". Before it was OK, but more like stepping on a wet sponge. The gas pedal now feels directly connected to the throttle. I like it very much!!
Also, the car seems to pull a little harder in the upper revs, but the fuel economy meter now swings much faster into the 20s (l/100 Km) Time will tell...
I think the purpose of the air horn is to make the intake slightly quieter, with out changing the total power. The air horn does slow down the the "rate of change" of the intake and I think that is why the throttle response is greatly improved.
Thanks again Elvis530i for posting this thread and the pics.
Do you have any more free mods?
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