Horsepower?

Originally Posted by bmw330ci04

the gauges on the zhp are grey with red needles, not orange, i liked the basic black with white, there is nothing wrong with that.. and ive owned enough BMW inline 6s to know that is where the torque really kicks in and pulls, why would i need the hp at 5000 revs? its unrealistic

Actually the only difference are the needles (red), the surrounds which are more of an aluminum finish vs chrome, and the redline markers. The M3 is the only one with grey gauges. You could have just "reverse felt tipped your needle" to silver which would have been much more cost effective.

In all honesty, the best way to make your car faster, like measurably faster in real life tests, not on a dyno, is to essentially recreate a ZHP by retrofitting all the differences.

A chaper way to give you results would be to get the 3.46 diff swap and add the ZHP exhaust so it will sound better.

Originally Posted by bmw330ci04

ive owned enough BMW inline 6s to know that is where the torque really kicks in and pulls, why would i need the hp at 5000 revs? its unrealistic

Afterthought:

Judging by what you`ve posted, it`s obvious that you`re driving the wrong brand. A Nissan Maxima would serve your needs much better than an E46. Their excellent V6 is tuned specifically for mid-range power, and would probably make you squirt in your pants....

Originally Posted by Fast Bob

Afterthought:

Judging by what you`ve posted, it`s obvious that you`re driving the wrong brand. A Nissan Maxima would serve your needs much better than an E46. Their excellent V6 is tuned specifically for mid-range power, and would probably make you understeer off the road the first time you tried putting that power down in a corner....

Fixed it for ya

Originally Posted by Fishful Thinking

Fixed it for ya

sorry to hijack the tread, just a quick question, will changing the intake manifold be of any effect? free up bhp.

apparently seen here.... http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=852338


'''''(All information taken from owners handbook, based on manual gearbox)

So according to BMW, the 328i is 2.6 seconds quicker to 62MPH and 2.3 seconds quicker on in gear acceleration.

Whilst the 328i may only be 40BHP more powerful than the 320i, the far more important figure is the torque figure where the 328i has 70lb-ft more and this is what is required for acceleration, not BHP.

The 328i does weigh 20Kgs more than the 320i but it should also be realised that the 328i is artificially strangled back down to 193 BHP (via the intake manifold) by BMW for german tax reasons and that it's true BHP should be realistically @203~213BHP and therefore it's torque will also be higher and in the real world, torque is far more important when driving than bar room bragging BHP figures.(See here: http://www.e36manifoldconversion.com/home/m50manif... or search: BMW 328i M50 manifold conversion for more info). '''''''''''''

Originally Posted by bmw330ci04

the gauges on the zhp are grey with red needles, not orange, i liked the basic black with white, there is nothing wrong with that.. and ive owned enough BMW inline 6s to know that is where the torque really kicks in and pulls, why would i need the hp at 5000 revs? its unrealistic

I OWN a ZHP and the gauges are black with ORANGE needles (I suppose the coupe is a greyish gauge face, but still orange needles). And the redline on these engines is 6500 (6800 for ZHP) for a REASON.

I have no idea how much power increase expected, but I pretty happy after VANOS rebuild and installing ultralight aftermarket wheels. At list you will return your 225 hp which likely missing now because of imminent VANOS seals failure-common problem. One mechanic during drive test cannot believe its 2.5L motor and now I can keep up with 330 automatic. It's not something 5 hp for 50 buck but it works for me.

Originally Posted by LX-biker

I can keep up with 330 automatic.

by "keep up" u mean u can still him wayyy ahead of u while he's pulling away?

Just follow the lighter is better rule that Lotus has lived by for years. Take 200-500 lbs off your car and you have a much faster car w/o the need to add hp/torque. Start with the unsprung weight of your current rims and possibly tires too.

There's tons of sound deadening insulation throughout the car, start stripping away if you don't mind having a loud uncomfortable close to track specific car. Swap out the seats with racing seats and remove the others that you won't use.

Turner Motorsports did a ZHP upgrade path that costs quite a bit but only put it on the range of the E9x 330i afterwards. Not worth the coin imho. Check out the link below.

http://www.turnermotorsport.com/t-pr...-330i-zhp.aspx

BTW, here's the best example of a lighter is better with brute power applied by the Lambo Sesto Elemento aka 6th Element; only 2200lbs, are you friggin kidding me. Plus it's got a V10 pushing 570HP, that's insane. My new dream car.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamborghini_Sesto_Elemento

Originally Posted by bmw330ci04

i love what ive got, id love it even more if it was that little bit faster, cant hurt it to leave it the way it is though

Put a supercharger on it. Presto more power and you will know for sure its not money wasted since it WILL increase power.

But honestly I have other vehicles that I get my need for speed fix out of. I like the DRIVE my bmw, not race it. Ive bought quite a few vehicles since I bought my bmw years ago. Ive also sold a bunch of those vehicles and still have my bmw. I will be buying a ferrari next just because its on my "do before your too old to drive" list of things

But it wont replace my bmw as my favorite car to drive. Actually thinking about it my bmw is slower than anything else I own. Well its faster than the excursion I bought my wife awhile back but its a ton slower than my f250 8500lb diesel superduty 4x4 pickup truck. Its probably even slower than the truck when the trucks pulling a trailer. But it has a chip and a few other things so thats not exactly fair comparison. Talking 0 to 60 not top end speed.

The point is I think of the bmw as pure joy just driving. Its the only thing I own that makes me want to find some reason to need to go somewhere, to the store, etc. Just to drive it. If I want to get that speed itch out of my system I hop in something with 380 to 550hp but that "fun" gets old fast compared to the feeling from just driving the bmw.

If your wanting to satisfy a need for speed Id buy something else entirely if it was me or get another car to use for getting that itch out of your system from time to time.

Short of a ton of money your not going to get anything meaningful hp increase wise out of your current car. But thats just my opinion. As my grandfather used to say all the time "Just drive it."

Originally Posted by heztheone

by "keep up" u mean u can still him wayyy ahead of u while he's pulling away?

I mean if I stick middle finger out of my window, he defiantly will close enoUgth to notice and

This board needs more threads such as this...

naturally asperated, i have seen 244 hp on a 3.0 M54......
supercharged, they make over 300. i just worked on an aftercooled meth'ed M54 330 this afternoon FWIW lol

Originally Posted by bigugly fab

naturally asperated, i have seen 244 hp on a 3.0 M54......
supercharged, they make over 300. i just worked on an aftercooled meth'ed M54 330 this afternoon FWIW lol

OK....you know the drill by now....

what that bud?

Originally Posted by bigugly fab

what that bud?

*Details*, my man....what kinda mods, how were those HP numbers arrived at, crank or RWHP, what kinda dyno, what correction factor was used, you know....

Here's another option if you are willing to work on your NA engine via over-boring the block then properly using matched parts. Alpina's B3 E46 with a 3.3L M54.

http://www.alpina-automobiles.com/en...eries/e46.html

http://www.fantasycars.com/sedans/HT...na_b3_e46.html

Originally Posted by Fast Bob

*Details*, my man....what kinda mods, how were those HP numbers arrived at, crank or RWHP, what kinda dyno, what correction factor was used, you know....

A guy I know (Adam) had built an incredible track car that was a naturally aspirated 3.0 M54. It was with stock cams, block, with basically all accessories powered by an alternator to reduce rotating losses. It was at the wheels, on a dyno jet.

I know after that he shot it with Nitrous and it make great power as well.......


Go plonk yourself down and look up "pei330" and you can see a guy with some serious passion, talent and $$$$$$ involved in an E46. It was just a heartbreaking read....the time and effort, photography, detail and components invoked.......... The car caught fire and burned to the ground on the track. Adam was burned slightly and had to recover...... But now he has another one

Solution:

Put 323 brakes and 15" wheels in the back
Put 323 brakes and donuts on the front
remove doors, rear seats and trunklid
= BINGO@