Page 3 of 4 FirstFirst 1234 LastLast
Results 51 to 75 of 93

Thread: '95 E36 325is Track Build

  1. #51
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    Sooo uhh... I got an S52! I'm pretty stoked to get it in the car, but that's going to be a while because of school and stuff in the next few months. So hopefully by summertime I'll be banging gears with the new M power. It's a used motor that's been rebuilt. The heads been done and it's got new valves, springs, and a bunch of other stuff I can't remember off the top of my head. There was a Turner stage 3 motor that I also could have gotten but didn't quite have the extra cash to drop. That motor would have been absolutely amazing, but the S52 is quite the upgrade itself so I'm happy nonetheless.

  2. #52
    Join Date
    Feb 2015
    Location
    Nevada City, CA
    Posts
    229
    My Cars
    E60 550i 6MT
    Dang those Enkeis are beautiful!

    Love your functional aero - hoping to do the same for my build.

  3. #53
    Join Date
    Jun 2007
    Location
    H-Town/Los Angeles USA
    Posts
    1,911
    My Cars
    bmw e36 328i 4dr saloon
    Awesome! Can't wait to see the progress. Nice work!!
    1996 328i (m52B28US) OBD1 euro ZF 5spd. 3.23LSD conversion / Chem. PnP Head/ DINAN stg.2 CHIP/ VAC race valves/ S52 cams/ A/C delete/ fan delete/ Washer Fluid resv delete/ ARP head studs/ Cometic 140MLS / VAC Solid Engine/trans Mounts/ CAI / 2.5"Borla race exahaust/ NGK R spark plugs, M50 Mani, S50 Oil Res, Riot Racing HFTB, SAMCO Hoses, JBR FW, X-Brace, Mtech Front Bumper, RE RSMs, stoptech SS lines, Bilstein sports, H&R Race Springs, S52 Reinforcement plates, Kosei K1 w/ bridgestone RE960as, Brembo/stoptech slotted rotors, M3 Trailing arms, M3 Calipers, M3 Axles, ACS strut brace, weight reduction.

    http://mbuild.blogspot.com/

  4. #54
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    This past weekend I competed in the Tire Rack SCCA Championship Tour up in College Station, TX. I got the chance to size myself up to the other top FP cars in the texas region and I had an absolute blast. I was 4 seconds behind the next car over the course of the weekend (they take your fastest time from day 1 and 2, combined them and that's your time for the weekend). Which I don't think is terrible considering my lack of experience and disadvantage car wise. Here are the most important things I learned.

    - Since you only get 3 runs on the course, you really have no time to get a feel for the track.

    - It was my first time on this type of asphalt and I had no idea what kind of grip I'd get or how the car would handle the bumps on the surface. Due to my lack of experience I pretty much had to overdrive the car to see where my limits were and then back down from there.

    - Power and powerband is really important at these types of events. I was always at the top of my rev range, and even hitting the limiter at 3-4 spots around the course. My 2.5 in 3rd is an absolute dog so I just had to clench and hope the engine holds up. Usually I can make up my lack of power in the slow sections, but when you have such large areas of flat out, I was falling behind quite a bit.

    - My FP competitors were way faster than I thought they'd be. Not just in terms of driver skill, which they excelled at, but their cars were incredible. One of my competitors explained to me his tactics going around corners, "I don't brake. If I find myself going to fast into a corner I nail the throttle to get the car to rotate." I subsequently tried this but lack of power+ tons of rear grip = hella understeer.

    - My car weighs 2820 lbs. The next fastest at the event was 2500 lbs. The officials said something like I was actually overweight, but that didn't really matter since I came in last anyway. The next fastest car also runs about 270-300 hp. Where I'm at 150 or so.

    - Be careful where you drive on an airfield. The first day at practice I picked up a gnarley screw in my BRAND NEW slick. I was super bummed until one of my competitors offered to plug it up for me. Which brings me to my next point...

    - Everyone is super nice! I knew quite a bit of people there just from competing in local events, but even the people I didn't know stopped to talk or offered shelter in the rain.

    - I'm still a little perplexed with tire pressures. I'm getting a lot of understeer. But when I bring the pressure in the front down it's unbearable. I'm currently running 36 PSI hot all around and the car seems to like it like that. I'm not running the correct spring rates so that could be the cause too. If anyone wants to help me out diagnosing this issue, I'll put my specs down here:

    Tire pressure cold: 34 Front and Rear
    Tire pressure hot (after a run): 36 Front and Rear
    Spring Rates: 400 Linear in the front 550 Progressive in the Rear
    Sway Bar: 30mm front 24 mm back. Both set at softest setting
    Front Alignment: -3.2 degrees of camber, 0 toe
    Rear alignment: -3 degrees of camber, 0 toe
    Coilovers: ST XTA (KW V2) Front damping is 3 clicks away from full stiff and Rear is 2 away from Full stiff
    The car is NOT corner balanced (Yes I know I need to get that done) but I have the specs from weighing in at the event.
    Weight: 2820 LBS
    Front Right: 763 Front Left: 748
    Rear Right: 660 Rear Left: 648
    That's about a 55/45 F/R ratio if my calculations are correct.
    Tires are Hankook Z214 C51 Medium compound DOT slick 275/35/18

    Here's a video of my fastest runs from day one and two this weekend!

  5. #55
    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Location
    Frederick, MD
    Posts
    70
    My Cars
    1994 BMW 325i
    Spring rates are way too low. I run 700# in the front and 600# in the rear. Also, that front sway bar is HUGE. Put the stock one back with the control arm endlinks (don't use the strut style that came with the M3). Also, decrease camber in the rear. You want at least 1 degree of camber difference from front to back to help with understeer.

    Hope this helps!

  6. #56
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    Vancouver, BC Ca
    Posts
    3,255
    My Cars
    1993 325is
    These cars need a huge front swaybar. Try running NO rear sway bar and stiffer rear springs. No rear bar makes it easier to put down power coming off the corners. Oh, and get some more weight out of the car. FP is a magical land where you have free reign over removing your interior. Have a good read of the rules.

  7. #57
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    I'll have to try out the no bar thing sometime even though I'm not exactly lacking rear grip. Even if I nail the throttle in the corner the rear tires would grip and the front tires won't keep up. As for springs, I have a set in mind but I just need to put the order in. Regarding weight, my car is pretty much entirely stripped except for most of the dash which I'd like to keep for now, and some of the sound deadening. This week we've replaced the rear glass and rear quarter glass with lexan, gutted the trunk lid, and removed a few unnecessaries in the engine bay. We're hoping to reach at the most 2600 lbs.

  8. #58
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    Vancouver, BC Ca
    Posts
    3,255
    My Cars
    1993 325is
    Many people don't realize that the geometry preservation (loss of camber from roll) that a large front bar achieves FAR exceeds the perceived loss of grip from stiffening up the sway bar.

  9. #59
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    Stage 2 of weight reduction has begun!








  10. #60
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    dover
    Posts
    281
    My Cars
    none
    is that NACA duct backwards? Love the NTO3's!


    IG: dimitriantoniou

  11. #61
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    Quote Originally Posted by e30 394 View Post
    is that NACA duct backwards? Love the NTO3's!
    Indeed it is. I unfortunately didn't get a say in the matter but their reasoning was to have something to get rid of the pressure while the front windows are open. I'm not sure how effective it's going to be but...racecar? And thanks!

  12. #62
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    So I finally beat my competitor at the autocross this weekend. I've been chasing this FP WRX for months.



    What's in the works?

    Sending my S52 ECU in this week to Kassel Performance to get it unlocked and tuned to be ready for the engine swap. Received the headers the other week, they're ebay brand modeled after I believe the supersprint headers. The plan is to get the engine in later this month and I'm super excited!


  13. #63
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    The S52 swap is underway and nearly done. Engine is in, OBD1 manifold is on, and the tuned ECU is in. Unfortunately, I just got word today that the car won't run properly. It's apparently backfiring through the manifold with a gnarly light show. I was super excited to run the car this weekend at Autocross but I'm going to have to wait til this issue is ironed out

    If anyone has any ideas on what might be happening, let me know! Rummaging through old forum posts I've found guys with similar issues, one having an improperly installed crank pulley and the other a disconnected ICV hose. This is the part of the process where it's super stressful that I'm not there to help out. And since it's at a shop, work can only resume next week. "It'll be an easy swap" the internet said XD

  14. #64
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    Slidell, LA
    Posts
    450
    My Cars
    Many
    Backfiring through the manifold sounds like some sort of timing issue. Did you do anything with the cams or timing belt on the motor? If not, look at crank position sensor, cam position sensor, etc.


  15. #65
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    Engine was rebuilt by Boost Logic. Heads were done by someone here in Austin. Got new valves, springs, and some other goodies. Is it possible hat when replacing the valves they could have messed with the timing?

  16. #66
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    Slidell, LA
    Posts
    450
    My Cars
    Many
    They could have mis-timed the cams, but that's probably not likely for a shop. Check all the connectors for your sensors.


  17. #67
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    After a long and stressful process, the S52 is finally good to go! It runs beautifully and sounds great. We've been having issues over the past week but it turned out to be just a wiring issue. The maiden voyage will be at an autocross this weekend at the Circuit of Americas!

    Edit: forgot to mention the main issue. It was the timing that was out at first. Then we started having issues with idle and on power, that's when I found that connectors were in the wrong places.


    Yes I need to clean the engine bay





    Last edited by Sterk; 05-17-2017 at 09:52 PM.

  18. #68
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Location
    Bay Area / Long Beach
    Posts
    443
    My Cars
    E36 325i (sold)
    Nice build, keep it up! Debating if I should S52 swap my 325 as well.

  19. #69
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    Vancouver, BC Ca
    Posts
    3,255
    My Cars
    1993 325is
    Why is the TC throttle body still there? That'll never work for autox!!

  20. #70
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    Quote Originally Posted by jakermac View Post
    Why is the TC throttle body still there? That'll never work for autox!!
    Working on it! The swap took wayyyy longer than anticipated so we're a bit back logged right.

  21. #71
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    Today I removed the plate inside the TC throttle body and unplugged it. Didn't have a proper fitting for the main TB so it'll have to do for now!

  22. #72
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Noblesville, IN
    Posts
    1,760
    My Cars
    98 328i, 79 911SC
    what do you have the weight down to?
    you have ditched the crank driven fan, right? what about the AC condenser? AC from firewall bulkhead connection forward is ~45lbs.

    also. have you considered a smidge of toe-out up front to help with understeer? i run about 1/16" toe-out on each front. (1/8" total toe out)

    super cool build.
    always trying to make it lighter and faster

    ^^former build: http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...-neglected-M3/
    current build: http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsc...car-build.html
    instant grams: doktor_b

  23. #73
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    Quote Originally Posted by doktor b View Post
    what do you have the weight down to?
    you have ditched the crank driven fan, right? what about the AC condenser? AC from firewall bulkhead connection forward is ~45lbs.

    also. have you considered a smidge of toe-out up front to help with understeer? i run about 1/16" toe-out on each front. (1/8" total toe out)

    super cool build.
    AC condenser is out, fan will be out as soon as we can get some better electric fans. I've been told about toe out too, haven't tried it yet though. Will for sure next event!

    Autocross at COTA this weekend was super fun! Engine ran great but we had some gnarly lifter noise. We were running 5w30 just because we have a bunch and have been told to run 15w50 rather in the Texas heat.

    The car pulls really hard after 3500 rpms but is a little sluggish at the low end. I guess I'd attribute that to the M50 manifold and the long tube headers. But definitely a HUGE difference from the M50. I can finally get the car to dance around a corner rather than nailing the throttle mid corner and having nothing happen.

    Here are some runs! The video is backwards, better runs first and then my first runs of the day are later.



    Edit: Also in the video you can see I was having trouble with the launches. My tires never retained heat throughout the day because it was relatively cool and windy. There was also a water truck leaking water all over grid. The car revs much more freely than the previous engine so I had trouble getting used to a good RPM to launch at. Hopefully as the weather starts to get warmer I'll actually be able to use these tires to their full potential.
    Last edited by Sterk; 05-22-2017 at 02:46 PM.

  24. #74
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    Long time no see! It hasn't been a very productive summer as I've been traveling for the past 2 months. But now that I'm back I'm ready to get back into the swing of things.

    This past weekend was an Autocross hosted by SASCA. I ended up finishing 11th in raw time out of 100 something people. I'd say I'm pretty pleased with that. The new motor is working great although I'm getting some gnarley lifter noise. I've been told this can be fixed with baffles or an accusump. I'm planning on getting stiffer springs. I don't want to go too stiff and over spring my shocks so I'm just bumping them up to 500 in the front and 650 in the rear. Eventually, I'd like to go stiffer but I'd need new shocks at that point. We also acquired a roll cage. It's coming out of another E36. Great looking cage, good welds. The plan is to cut the roof off both the cars and just drop the cage in and weld the roof back on. I'm also looking into brakes. I've acquired E46 328i rears and am still looking for M3 fronts or E46 330i fronts. As of right now, it's just a matter of scouring the junkyards as I'm not too keen on spending TOO much money.

    Here's my fastest run from the past Autox.


    I'm convinced my understeer is due to my lack of spring. I'm hoping that along with a good corner balance will help improve it. I was reading again through previous comments and will try running with no spoiler for a few runs next time to see what happens. In terms of tire pressure, I've been running pretty even front and rear. I don't believe that I can accurately make effective adjustments until the spring issue is fixed. When the body roll stops I think I can finally dial in the tire pressure via feel. As of right now, I can't feel any change less than 5 psi.

  25. #75
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Austin, TExas
    Posts
    71
    My Cars
    1983 BMW E21 320i
    An eventful week. Started the car up on Wednesday, let it idle for a bit, sudden oil pressure drop. Turned the car off, got out, saw oil all over the floor of the nice new trailer. Found out the vanos line busted with a nice split. Ordered a new line, oil pan gasket, and a drilled oil pump nut. Also ordered a new set of springs from Swift. 500# front and 650# rear. I know I should go higher but that's the most I'm comfortable going with these shocks before re-valving.



Page 3 of 4 FirstFirst 1234 LastLast

Similar Threads

  1. BMW Noob E36 325IS Track Car Build
    By BMW272 in forum Track Car Builds
    Replies: 59
    Last Post: 11-24-2015, 05:37 PM
  2. starscream2k1's BMW E36 325is Track Build - The Mean Green Machine
    By starscream2k1 in forum Track Car Builds
    Replies: 13
    Last Post: 06-05-2012, 02:04 AM
  3. E36 1993 325is Track Build Partout
    By jfrankE21 in forum Whole Parts Cars
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 10-02-2008, 01:46 PM
  4. E36 325is track day/autox build
    By Krank in forum Track Car Builds
    Replies: 26
    Last Post: 07-06-2008, 01:01 AM
  5. '95 E36 perfect track build
    By hellrotM3kid in forum BMW Cars For Sale / Wanted
    Replies: 27
    Last Post: 06-16-2007, 11:07 PM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •