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Thread: E46 M3 Auto-x setup

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
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    04 M3, 02 E39, 01 46 M3T

    E46 M3 Auto-x setup

    I have PLENTY of experience setting up E36s, but a very short drive in my 04 M3 says it is a VERY different animal. No way what is under my E36 M3 will fill the bill on the 04 M3. With the greater weight, rubber, and power, things will have to be different.

    So .....................

    Regardless of track rat or Solo on 200 rated tires, what are people using in the way of springs and tires? Dampers will be proper D/As.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
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    O Fallon,IL
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    2005 M3,1999 528i
    Hyperco springs 650f/750r,tires 275/35 RE-71r on 18x9.5 Apex ARC-8s. Same tires in 285/30 on 18x10 also a common set up but more aggressive than I want to run since car also sees some street duty. Same set up for autox and track. Car is otherwise bone stock.
    Mike Kenney
    E46 M3

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by lowflyer View Post
    Hyperco springs 650f/750r,tires 275/35 RE-71r on 18x9.5 Apex ARC-8s. Same tires in 285/30 on 18x10 also a common set up but more aggressive than I want to run since car also sees some street duty. Same set up for autox and track. Car is otherwise bone stock.
    Already have the same wheels with less than half used RE71's. Got them for dirt from a guy that stopped auto-xing his M3. I would prefer Rival S, but the 1.5's don't go that big.

    That spring package seems common. GC is recommending 800 rear with less rear bar.

  4. #4
    Join Date
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    DSP E46 330Ci
    On my DSP E46 non-M I was at 150N/mm front springs (about 850lb/in) and 140N/mm rears (about 800lb/in) with a tiny rear bar and a big Hotchkis front. This was on 315/30/18 A7s and 18x11" wheels. The car was around 2900 without driver and 53% of that was on the nose. I'd start around there on an M3 and see how it feels.

    The most important things were getting most of the rake out of the car and not running the front end too low. I ended up running only 1/8" of F/R rake, most people run more but I found it hurts corner exit.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by John V View Post
    On my DSP E46 non-M I was at 150N/mm front springs (about 850lb/in) and 140N/mm rears (about 800lb/in) with a tiny rear bar and a big Hotchkis front. This was on 315/30/18 A7s and 18x11" wheels. The car was around 2900 without driver and 53% of that was on the nose. I'd start around there on an M3 and see how it feels.

    The most important things were getting most of the rake out of the car and not running the front end too low. I ended up running only 1/8" of F/R rake, most people run more but I found it hurts corner exit.
    I was considering trying to contact you. My M3 scaled 3450 with 1/4 tank of fuel. Given the obvious limits as to what I can remove, I expect to land at about 3250. Wheels, exhaust, seats, battery (found a 7 pound lithium ion at Advance Auto !!) are about the limit or the normal stuff I could address. The GC hollow bars add a bit more lightness. The rest of the GC stuff is lighter as well. The junk in the truck, floor mats, and the owners books in the glove box are out as well.

    Based on 1) my experience with the E36s (328 and M3) over the past 6 years, and recommendations from GC, I am starting at 650/850 and big big front and small rear bars, and their static ride height suggestions, I have that as a baseline. Rolling stock is 18/9.5 with 275/19 RE71s. At the moment alignment is zero toe f/r, 3.8 and 2.5 cambers, and ride height looks almost level. So far, just "playing" on local roads at 30-50 mph (and not going nuts) and the bars set soft, The car is real neutral in, through, and out of turns, but power has to be carefully applied --- so neutral to loose, which I expected. Bar settings, rear ride height, and a touch of rear toe in may help.

    With weather conditions as they are, the car will ride on Pilot Sport 3 AS tires until things warm up. I fully anticipate more front spring. All that said, besides the class, power, and tire differences, the clear TALENT difference between you and me probably can't be "tuned" out !!!!!!! "I can build them better than I can drive them". Ask Hunter -- he has driven the E36s.

    p.s. I KILLED me that I could not install CSL clone headers -- cat location rules. I grafted in 100 cell cats in the stock exhaust manifolds (doing that and swapping them with the engine in the car was a huge bitch) but it helped a lot.
    Last edited by snaponbob; 01-18-2019 at 08:35 AM.

  6. #6
    Join Date
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    Ride height is hard to eyeball because of the way BMW stamps the fenders. These cars are very sensitive to rake. Measure the ride height at the jacking points (with the rubbers removed) and verify that you don't have too much rake. Those camber values should work. I was around -4.3 up front on my car and I would have gotten more if I could.

    I never could find any data on the stiffness of the GC bars, so could never make an accurate suspension model. That and their propensity to break made me go with the Hotchkis bar which is also hollow and very light. Without knowing the stiffness of their bar it's going to be hard to draw conclusions between how my car was set up and how yours is. But it would not surprise me if your front roll couple % is too low which will make it hard to put down power. Even their "small" rear bar is probably too big. But again without numbers, which GC doesn't publish, it's impossible to know without measuring them.

    FWIW I always ran next to zero rear toe on my car... 1/16" in total was about as much as I ever liked. That's where I'd start with an M3 as well. Less rear toe makes the car work better everywhere, transitions and steady-state... if it's too loose on corner exit just remove rake or take rear roll rate (bar / spring) out of it.

    Good luck, ping me at johnvitamvas at gmail if you have questions, I visit this board very infrequently.

  7. #7
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    Ok. Thanks.

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