650 Upgrades or not?

Hi all,

I am in a sort of a dilemma trying to decide between trading in my 06' 650 Convertible for a newer one, or doing some upgrades on my current car and keep it a few more years. The problem is what upgrades are worth doing? The car has only 33,000 miles on.

The two things I find an issue are the seats being uncomfortable to me, (the seats in my 08' 535 sport package were way more comfortable), and the quiet exhaust system. Then I wonder about the suspension and if there is a worthy upgrade that will make the car feel more responsive?

So any guidance or advice would be most welcome.

Suspension? Exhaust? Chip? Cold air intake? Seats?

Thanks!

Steve

Do you have the sports package? I find the 6er sport seats one of the most comfortable I've owned. If you don't have the sport seats maybe try to score a set on eBay. They are easy to install - 4 bolts.

Unfortunately none of bolt-on upgrades available are going to add much of a performance gain. They will make the car sound a lot more aggressive if that is what you want.

If you want to improve handling then go for KW Variant 3 coilovers. With the adjustability of coilovers you can make the car as low or as stiff as you want.

Do you know if you have the Active Roll Stabilization? This system works amazingly well at keeping the car flat in the corners. If you don't have it then I would upgrade your anti-sway bars while doing the coilovers.

Any idea of how I would check to see what packages I have? I assumed it had the sport package and active suspension but how can I confirm it? Purchased it as a CPO from BMW two years ago but didn't get the sticker from the original purchase.

Thanks.

Sport package gives you 19" wheels and sport seats.

Here is a pic of sport and standard seats. Look at the side bolstering for the difference.

To determine if you have the "Dynamic Drive" active anti-sway bar option grab a flashlight and take a look under the rear driver's side of the car.

Sorry for the crappy iPhone pics but this is what it looks like - just in front of the exhaust towards the middle of the car you will see a large coffee can sized cylinder covering the anti-sway bar.

If you don't see this and have a plain solid bar then you do not have Dynamic Drive.

thanks guys, I'll take a look in the morning. the seats are a tough call as they look very similar but mine just don't squeeze me like my 5 series used to, so maybe I don't have the sports package....

Ok Checked it out. Have both the sport package and active suspension. I guess I'm just too thin for even the sport seats. Thanks for the help.

Originally Posted by ShooterSteve_53

Ok Checked it out. Have both the sport package and active suspension. I guess I'm just too thin for even the sport seats. Thanks for the help.

Have you tried playing around with the lumbar control?

I have Active Roll Stab but will the H&R sway bar will give a big improve or just slightly different? If not a big improve then not worth the investment.

Originally Posted by reytran

I have Active Roll Stab but will the H&R sway bar will give a big improve or just slightly different? If not a big improve then not worth the investment.

You cannot upgrade the rollbars to H&R if you have active stability.

You would not want to upgrade even if you could. Active roll stability performs much better than any "normal" sway bar ever could. My 6er is as flat as my M3 in corners on the track and the M3 has coilovers, Ground Control swaybars and weighs 1,000 lb less.

So what can I do with my car. So is it at its max handling?
How about lowering and spacer ? should I? Thanks for acknowledge me.

Sway bar wise there is nothing to do.

You can add springs (Eibach or H&R) to drop the car ~ 1.2" with no change in ride quality.

You can add coilovers (KW variant 3) if you want to go lower. I would say 95% of the population cannot out drive the capabilities of the stock setup so I would not go stiffer for increased performance. Just lower for looks.

You can do an intake from Dinan, plus software and exhaust for performance. But don't expect miracles. A new diff will probably give you the most bang for the buck.

Wheels and lighting plus front grill and maybe a lip for looks. Spacers are an option too.

http://sv-concepts.com/index.php/6-s...550i-650i.html

So to getting the look 6er have to sacrifice the performance. How about the aFe intake? Seem cheaper and easier for DIY. Thank Yorgi.

http://sv-concepts.com/index.php/6-s...550i-650i.html

So to getting the look 6er have to sacrifice the performance. How about the aFe intake? Seem cheaper and easier for DIY. Thank Yorgi.

The aFe will sound amazing but will very likely result in a loss of a few HP since you will be sucking in air from the hot engine compartment. Both the OEM setup and Dinan suck in cold air from a snorkel.

The aFe lost considerable HP on the M6 application (dyno proven) but I have not seen a dyno run for aFe on a 650i. Before I got my hands on a used Dinan intake I was about to order the aFe just for the sound, I think the car is fast enough and did not care if I lost a few HP.

Yes. There is the thing that Dinan is illegal to use in CA and aFe is legal. Actually who cares. I only care when if come about warranty because BMW parts are hella expensive. And they say it will void the warranty to the parts connected to the aftermarket one.