Pic from Solo2 Nationals

[CoMZ302]

(Yes, I cross-posted this from RoadFly)

Thanks to Hsun Chen for taking and posting this pic of me at Solo2 Nationals... thought some of you Z3 types would appreciate it.



Link To My Pic

[1fastbmw-ny]

Look like you were having a good time!

What kind of wheels are those? More pics!!!

[///MINI]

That looks like a lot of fun! Those wheels look massive.

I agree...more pics, please!

[///MTV]

GREAT PIC....perfect..mount it on your wall.....and great to hear you placed third in the national standings!!!! Way to go!!!


Agree, more info on wheels would be appreciated....kinesis/fikse?

[MPHATIC]

they look like fikse FM10s to me. car looks awesome. i heard the 'stick' out there was amazing. i had a friend call me from the event and put the phone to his shoe, as he lifted it up. you could hear it release from the surface.

[CoMZ302]

Hey -- sorry about the delay. Those are Complete Custom wheels -- I got them through BimmerHaus performance in Broomfield (CO) near where I live... Bob Tunnel's outfit, for those in the know.

They are 18x10.5s, and weigh about 20lbs each. They're 1.5 lbs heavier than the 9.5 SSRs I've been running all year.

Tire wise, I'm on Hoosier (always!) and they're 285/30 A3S03s.

I'm pretty ecstatic to finish where I did -- I was just hoping for a trophy, and wound up with a great run on the first day. The 2nd day, I didn't drive nearly as well -- plus I think I have my car setup for high-speed stuff (like on the first course), and the low-speed handling isnt' great yet.

Still hoping that SOMEONE will come out with s/w (conforti?) that helps, and maybe a CAI and real dedicated exhaust. Someone around here is talking about converting to the Euro exhaust for the S54 MRoadster -- and different cats -- hoping to pickup at least the difference between the MZ3 and M3 HP/Torque (and more if possible).

Setup-wise, the cars' got:
Moton triples
H&R Fronts 500lbs
Eibach Rears 650lbs
ST front bar, full soft
Complete Custom wheels, and hoosiers
Wheel studs
Recaro and Kirkey seats
Stock rear bar... stock brakes...stock air filter... stock software...lots and lots of stock stuff...

Next year I'm hoping to be a contender. I think I need to get the low-speed handling corrected, and drive better too.

I'm not kidding myself -- although I was 2nd the first day (And 3rd overall) I know that I was pretty far off the 2nd day, and the car and I need some improvement if I'm going to give the championship a run.

Wish I had more pix -- everything else is Pro stuff and I'm not comfy scanning and posting that.

[bimmerpwr]

Woo~~~!!! I love it!!!
Your car looks GREAT.

I heard J.C. software will come out by the end of Sept. Well, it's almost that time so we will see soon enough.

I love those wheels. Man man man...another possible mod on list. I keep telling myself "no more mods" and someone with great wheels has to post a picture.

[CoMZ302]

Hm... stay away from super wide wheels.

Take a close look at my hood...

...that's not the stock hood, that's one from a junkyard painted to match. The front wheels are so wide, they never fit under the hood without chopping it.

Luckily, you can't really tell unless you know what you're looking for.

Anyway, if it curbs your desire... to do THESE wheels, you have to buy new hood, fenders, and bumper, have all them cut like crazy, painted to matched -- in short, another $2K beyond the cost of the wheels.

[///MINI]

Come on, man. You gotta have some more pics of that car! It looks very, very nice!

[CoMZ302]

Ok, yeah, now that I think of it, I do have more -- all of those have the "narrow" (9.5") SSRs -- is there a spot on this board to host them, or do I need to put 'em up on my "other" account and link like I did earlier?

[///MINI]

Instead of replying in the "quick reply" box, click on the button that says "post reply" on the bottom right and you will have the ability to attach files straight from your hard drive.

Get posting and....WELCOME aboard bimmerforums! I hope you'll stick around and enjoy. (check out the Silvy thread as a bonus)

[CoMZ302]

Thanks for the welcome ... I do like it here a lot; things seem somewhat more performance oriented, which is more like me. Plus that silvy thread. Whew!

[CoMZ302]

First event of the year... Local event in Denver.

[CoMZ302]

Later in the year...

[CoMZ302]

Octoberfest...

[TIATO]

Very nice pix. Love how that roll stiffness and high rear traction on concrete lifts the front right wheel of the ground.

Mario

[///MINI]

That's what I'm talking about! Keep them coming, man. Looking at them makes my adrenaline rush! Woohoo!

[CoMZ302]

From the warmup event. That's TCKline and his 2.8, Mary Medicus (GSL Nat'l Champ), and me...

...if you look VERY closely at the passenger side sun visor, you'll see that I (purposely) autocross with my garage door opener in place. This thing is my daily driver.

[CoMZ302]

North course -- probably my best driving of the year.

[CoMZ302]

More north course action.

[CoMZ302]

Even More North Course...

[///MINI]

Ever get the car on 3 wheels a la VW Jetta? Looks like you're pushing it hard around that one corner!

What kind of mods you looking to do? Any HP targets?

Thanks again for sharing.

[CoMZ302]

I guess this is as close to 3 wheels as I get -- honestly I was sorta surprised by the pic, because I didn't think I was picking up that wheel. I may think about some more rear spring rate.

I'm not positive what I'm going to do next year yet. I think that, for this car to actually beat the Z06s, I need much more torque or better gearing.

Since no one makes CAI or software yet, the only hope on torque is to switch to the euro exhaust and some sorta replacement cats. I'm also thinking of switching to just one muffler, for weight, and because I don't think I'm helping torque with two mufflers.

Right now, I really need to do something about low-speed handling -- and I'm not sure exactly what the issue is to be honest. It's possible I have too much castor, or maybe camber, or maybe my spring rates are just not right (too soft?) or perhaps the car should be lower or have completely different shock settings. I ran full-soft shocks pretty much all year, and just bumped up the compression a couple clicks at the event before nationals.

The one thing I wanna try is to "fix" the rear subframe. As you guys know, it's isolated in big rubber donuts, which means the entire rear suspension and subframe swings around during transitions.

Unfortunately, in ASP, I can't use subframe bushings or the super-cool Butt Strut (I have the Strong Strut CL on the front). But, there is a rule allowing suspension stabilizer devices, like panhard rods and the like. I'm working with a local fabricator on something that might keep the rear suspension from swinging around, which is what this car really could use.

Other than that, uh, might remove the AC for another 50lb gain, and I'd really like to look over a '98 and see if there's other things I can take out...

...for example, I know the HK system was an option on the 98s, but I don't know if you could order a car *without* a stereo. If I could take the speakers and head out, that'd be a few more pounds...

On the super-long list of things to try next year, I'm also considering going to something supercharged in SM2. I don't know if the S52 motor or the 2.8 or 3.0 would make more torque, but I honestly think I could make a 2500lb (or lighter) car. In SM2, I *can* use the subframe connectors, and the TCKline racing carbon hood too.... That'd be a killer car, way over a second faster than mine -- maybe even 2 seconds faster.

If anyone has thoughts on what to do, please make suggestions. There's a lot of common changes that are not ASP legal, but maybe you can think of something I haven't.

--Bill

[TIATO]

Bill

it will be a real challenge to get your M roadster down to under 2500lbs. IIRC, the M weighs 3000 - 3100lbs?

I did some serious work to my '97 1.9L, and that car is light to begin with (2700lbs). I figure between the seats, bumperweights, airbox, exhaust, hood pad, Momo steering wheel, windshield washer tank, I took out about 60lbs. The HMS rollbar,harnessbar D'Lan hidden hitch added an additional 50 or so lbs for a total reduction of 10lbs. So yeah the net effect was a 10lb savings, but my car was mouch more rigid and capable than a otherwise stock 1.9.

Since the car was part daily driver, I did not remove the spare, jack or tool kit (that could have saved 30 lbs)which of course you dont have to worry about.

To loose some serious weight, you will be looking at gutting the trunk area, removing carpets (the carpet foam padding is THICK), losing the passenger side airbag, replacing the stock steeering wheel with a momo one, dumping the rear bumper weights, roll hoops, convert your power top to manual by removing the motors, stereo system, firewall and transmission sound insulation. You had already mentioned removing the AC and swapping out exhausts for weight savings (btw the AC weighs 30lbs - follow link (http://www.sgmotorsports.com/mz3/weight.htm#) Weight to a site that shows how much certain M components weigh. Although the sie pertains to a coupe, many parts are shared).

The hood is a good start. TCs hood should save you 50lbs.

The hardest area to loose weight in will be the motor and front suspension. The S52/54 weigh at least 100lbs more than the M44 (4 cylinder).

If you ever deside to go for a full cage for the ultimate in body rigidity, TC makes a very nice one and it will add 90lbs to the weight of the car.

In a conversation with Mark Hughes some time ago, he told me that it was a real challenge trying to get their 1.9L Z3 race car down to 2300 lbs. They did it by removing unesesary bracing from the trunk, hood and body, fabricating parts out of fiberglass and gutting the ENTIRE interior, save the dash.

2500 lbs is a VERY aggressive but attainable goal which may render your car highly compromised as a daily driver, but boy would it be fun to drive

Feel free to Email me if you have any questions.

Mario

[CoMZ302]

Mario, thanks for the very detailed information.

My car still has the dreaded bumper weights (they're required for ASP competition), but between swapping the stock seats out (58lbs each!) and mufflers, etc, I was at 2952 on the scales at the Peru pro solo (with about no gas left).

I had thought the AC was more like 55lbs, but at 30lbs I'd be hard pressed to remove it from my ASP car.

*IF* I build the SM2 car, I'll do all that stuff. Assuming the S52 weighs about oh, 60lbs less than the iron block, dual VANOS S54, I'm already down to 2890. Go to the carbon hood and I'm at 2840 -- dump the bumper weights and I'm at 2810...In SM2, I can do much more interior and carpet gutting, so... I guess maybe you're right that 2500 is out of the question, but I bet you I can get under 2700...

...I'm already sure there's 2.8L cars out there at that weight.

Maybe 2750 would be more realistic, but that's still 200lbs less than my car, with like 100 more lb-ft of torque, no silly subframe swingin around, and no silly bumper weights.

Anyway, it's just a thought. Right now I'm more exploring my options -- anyone who knows me, knows not to bet on what I'll choose 'til right before I do. I really like my car, but wonder about beating the faster Z06s.