[Dreizo]

Hi All,

435i 6MT 2016 F32 owner here. Factory warranty until March 2020. M performance brakes, basic exhaust :|

I've been saving for parts since obtaining the car in May this year. Ideally, I want to upgrade the exhaust as it's currently muted. I'd like to get a BM3 Stage 1, maybe Stage 2 by May/June 2020. I might get a CDV as some of my MT friends say the 1st to 2nd shift is much better after it and it's a $100 fix. (Discussion for another time)

Ideally, i want to buy BM3 right now as I've heard you can flash back to avoid voiding your factory warranty. So far all the things I've bought are visual/plug&play (except CF spoiler technically, it's not installed yet).

I read a post that said the F32 N55 has a lot of incidents of chargepipe failure, so it would be best to upgrade the CP before doing a BM3 tune.

Also, read that the CP bolts to the Intercooler, so I should get them done at the same time to save on labor costs. (How significant this is IDK).

The universal thing I've seen (Mainly from reading Jeff @ TGS's post, and Mike from X-PH) is that if I want to boost the performance without sacrificing reliability, there's 5 MAIN things that need to be done. I'd love if experienced members/vendors are able to improve/recommend better things as a lot of threads I'm reading are recommending parts that have been on the market for a long time, and there might be better/newer things I'm not aware of.

1) Chargepipe (Important) - Based on reviews, i think the VRSF CP would suit me best. It comes in about 240$ (USD) on N54 tuning
2) Tune - $800 BM3. (Not interested in JB4/other tunes)
3) Downpipe - Ideally I'd want a catted DP, I believe i need to change my exhaust as well unless I'm mistaken so I'd prefer bundling it in here. I don't know much about the DP/Exhaust yet, should i upgrade it same time as the FMIC or would i be better off doing it in the future with the exhaust (After factory warranty runs out)
4) Exhaust - I love the deep burbles on the M perf exhaust but its $$$. I want it louder but with an option to have it quiet at night etc. I have a while to do this.
5) FMIC / Intercooler - Don't know too much about this, I don't plan to go FBO afaik, Downpipe/Chargepipe/Exhaust/Tune/FMIC/Wheels are the only mods i intend to do. Unlikely that I'll be touching the suspension as I have no intentions of lowering the car. Was looking at the VRSF 5" HD FMIC, VRSI79VF16, which is $420 (USD) on N54 tuning as well.

So far, if i do go for the VRSF 5" FMIC and the VRSF CP with BM3, I'm looking at 1210$ USD / 1600$ CAD ($1800 post-tax). Not sure at all how much labor would be or if this setup would void my factory warranty.

I'm located in Toronto,Canada

Help is appreciated on what the ideal steps on upgrading would be, ideal parts list, etc.

Also, Wheels will be done in the summer. No point buying DWS06 or any wheels right now since Winter's rolling around in Canada.

PS. I joined some BMW meetup groups through these forums, so if you know me and help me out, I'll owe you a beer.

[johnung]

Originally Posted by Dreizo

Hi All,

435i 6MT 2016 F32 owner here. Factory warranty until March 2020. M performance brakes, basic exhaust :|

I've been saving for parts since obtaining the car in May this year. Ideally, I want to upgrade the exhaust as it's currently muted. I'd like to get a BM3 Stage 1, maybe Stage 2 by May/June 2020. I might get a CDV as some of my MT friends say the 1st to 2nd shift is much better after it and it's a $100 fix. (Discussion for another time)

Ideally, i want to buy BM3 right now as I've heard you can flash back to avoid voiding your factory warranty. So far all the things I've bought are visual/plug&play (except CF spoiler technically, it's not installed yet).

I read a post that said the F32 N55 has a lot of incidents of chargepipe failure, so it would be best to upgrade the CP before doing a BM3 tune.

Also, read that the CP bolts to the Intercooler, so I should get them done at the same time to save on labor costs. (How significant this is IDK).

The universal thing I've seen (Mainly from reading Jeff @ TGS's post, and Mike from X-PH) is that if I want to boost the performance without sacrificing reliability, there's 5 MAIN things that need to be done. I'd love if experienced members/vendors are able to improve/recommend better things as a lot of threads I'm reading are recommending parts that have been on the market for a long time, and there might be better/newer things I'm not aware of.

1) Chargepipe (Important) - Based on reviews, i think the VRSF CP would suit me best. It comes in about 240$ (USD) on N54 tuning
2) Tune - $800 BM3. (Not interested in JB4/other tunes)
3) Downpipe - Ideally I'd want a catted DP, I believe i need to change my exhaust as well unless I'm mistaken so I'd prefer bundling it in here. I don't know much about the DP/Exhaust yet, should i upgrade it same time as the FMIC or would i be better off doing it in the future with the exhaust (After factory warranty runs out)
4) Exhaust - I love the deep burbles on the M perf exhaust but its $$$. I want it louder but with an option to have it quiet at night etc. I have a while to do this.
5) FMIC / Intercooler - Don't know too much about this, I don't plan to go FBO afaik, Downpipe/Chargepipe/Exhaust/Tune/FMIC/Wheels are the only mods i intend to do. Unlikely that I'll be touching the suspension as I have no intentions of lowering the car. Was looking at the VRSF 5" HD FMIC, VRSI79VF16, which is $420 (USD) on N54 tuning as well.

So far, if i do go for the VRSF 5" FMIC and the VRSF CP with BM3, I'm looking at 1210$ USD / 1600$ CAD ($1800 post-tax). Not sure at all how much labor would be or if this setup would void my factory warranty.

I'm located in Toronto,Canada

Help is appreciated on what the ideal steps on upgrading would be, ideal parts list, etc.

Also, Wheels will be done in the summer. No point buying DWS06 or any wheels right now since Winter's rolling around in Canada.

PS. I joined some BMW meetup groups through these forums, so if you know me and help me out, I'll owe you a beer.

Sounds like you've been doing your homework. It's a great car that you can have a lot of fun driving and modifying. Is this your daily driver that you depend on for work, etc? Are you planning on weekend tracking? Are you looking for a deep sounding exhaust or also a lot of burbles & pops? Just trying to get an idea if you are looking for a bunch of noise, which is fine, or not? I can give you a bunch of recommendations but need a better idea of what you are looking for.

You can learn a lot by watching videos from Kies Motorsports on YouTube. Bryan has a car show every July in NJ that drew 150 BMWs from Toronto to Georgia. You could caravan down with the Toronto crowd next summer if you are interested. I'd expect 200+ BMWs next summer. Great variety of cars and owners all in one place.

[Dreizo]

Originally Posted by johnung

Sounds like you've been doing your homework. It's a great car that you can have a lot of fun driving and modifying. Is this your daily driver that you depend on for work, etc? Are you planning on weekend tracking? Are you looking for a deep sounding exhaust or also a lot of burbles & pops? Just trying to get an idea if you are looking for a bunch of noise, which is fine, or not? I can give you a bunch of recommendations but need a better idea of what you are looking for.

You can learn a lot by watching videos from Kies Motorsports on YouTube. Bryan has a car show every July in NJ that drew 150 BMWs from Toronto to Georgia. You could caravan down with the Toronto crowd next summer if you are interested. I'd expect 200+ BMWs next summer. Great variety of cars and owners all in one place.

Daily Driver. 24,000 KM's on the Odo & Never winter driven (Will be this winter onwards).
I'll take it to the track maybe twice a year, but track performance isn't a priority by any means since even on the track I'll baby it.
I'd love a deep sounding exhaust like the M Performance BMW one, I plan to tune Sport+ to Max aggression/burbles on BM3 and tune Eco-pro mode to be as quiet as possible. I'd love to be able to go S+ and "wake up the neighborhood", but more importantly I'd want to go Eco-pro and sound relatively tame (Loud is fine, but I don't want droning/obnoxious levels of sound, like if tame sounds the same as MPPSK/M Perf exhaust where it's a "loud" car but factory levels of loud not modified levels of loud, it's fine)

I've been watching a lot of YT vids, found out that for now I can do the CP + IC + BM3 and be fine for reliability, but I wonder what kind of warranty issues this would cause (if any). Even the FMIC is optional esp. considering it's already sub 10c in Canada most days so drawing in "cooler" air right now isn't an issue. AFAIK, i also wouldn't have bottleneck issues with the current DP+Exhaust system unless I'm ripping it continuously (like in a drag race) and causing negative airflow/pressure buildup in the exhaust.

[alohasurftoad]

CTS Turbo charge pipe(x-drive) and FMIC. super high quality, zero fitment issues. well known in the Audi world and increasingly popular for BMW, i've never read a negative review, thread or post about them from members on the forum with their products, including myself. free shipping in CAN and US, wait for Black Friday, up to 25% off.

https://www.ctsturbo.com/product/cts...pe-set-xdrive/

https://www.ctsturbo.com/product-cat...-f30-f31-2013/

CG Precision DS-1 for high flow cat. it'll probably be on sale for Black Friday somewhere as well.
https://www.cgprecision.com/#!/DS-1-...egory=17975132

[thejeremyman9]

Originally Posted by alohasurftoad

CTS Turbo charge pipe(x-drive) and FMIC. super high quality, zero fitment issues. well known in the Audi world and increasingly popular for BMW, i've never read a negative review, thread or post about them from members on the forum with their products, including myself. free shipping in CAN and US, wait for Black Friday, up to 25% off.

https://www.ctsturbo.com/product/cts...pe-set-xdrive/

https://www.ctsturbo.com/product-cat...-f30-f31-2013/

CG Precision DS-1 for high flow cat. it'll probably be on sale for Black Friday somewhere as well.
https://www.cgprecision.com/#!/DS-1-...egory=17975132

Can you actually get the CG Precision DP anymore? I have never seen it in stock...

[alohasurftoad]

Originally Posted by thejeremyman9

Can you actually get the CG Precision DP anymore? I have never seen it in stock...

im not sure. i think if you contact them they can make it for you.

[Dreizo]

Originally Posted by alohasurftoad

CTS Turbo charge pipe(x-drive) and FMIC. super high quality, zero fitment issues. well known in the Audi world and increasingly popular for BMW, i've never read a negative review, thread or post about them from members on the forum with their products, including myself. free shipping in CAN and US, wait for Black Friday, up to 25% off.

https://www.ctsturbo.com/product/cts...pe-set-xdrive/

https://www.ctsturbo.com/product-cat...-f30-f31-2013/

CG Precision DS-1 for high flow cat. it'll probably be on sale for Black Friday somewhere as well.
https://www.cgprecision.com/#!/DS-1-...egory=17975132

Can't find the CG precision DS-1 or much information about it.

I spoke to some friends and they informed me that the FMIC isn't really needed. Some of them are Stage 2 BM3 with no IC doing fine. However definitely going to do the CP, I'll probably wait for Black Friday as 25% is significant change.

Think based on pricing and opinions I've gotten (esp on my warranty being valid) , I'll do BM3 now, Order the CP and do it around Black Friday, then do my catted DP + Exhaust + Stage 2 + Wheels when summer rolls back around.

[mgc9991]

Hi, I own your same exact car. As far as the M Performance exhaust goes, I wouldn't get it. It comes with a very loud hissing noise that isn't because of any problems, just poor development by BMW. If you are not keeping the warranty as shown by your desired modifications, get a CAT-back exhaust system by Borla, AWE, Fabspeed, etc. If you want a downpipe make sure you get one that doesn't give a CEL (engine code). You can always get those canceled out, but if you get them canceled out you should get a catless. If you have any other questions go ahead and ask.

- Mike

[thejeremyman9]

Originally Posted by Dreizo

Can't find the CG precision DS-1 or much information about it.

I spoke to some friends and they informed me that the FMIC isn't really needed. Some of them are Stage 2 BM3 with no IC doing fine. However definitely going to do the CP, I'll probably wait for Black Friday as 25% is significant change.

Think based on pricing and opinions I've gotten (esp on my warranty being valid) , I'll do BM3 now, Order the CP and do it around Black Friday, then do my catted DP + Exhaust + Stage 2 + Wheels when summer rolls back around.

If you have really low ambient temps all the time, you can get away with no IC. Just make sure you do some logs and monitor IATs if you are doing pulls when it is warm outside. IATs rise very fast on stock IC, even with stock tune. Also, doing stage 1 before the CP might be asking for trouble. May want to hold off on the tune until the CP is installed.

Also, with respect to warranty, any tune can void your warranty if something substantial enough happens and they investigate further. Even if you flash back to stock and relock the DME a tune can be detected.

[alohasurftoad]

Originally Posted by Dreizo

Can't find the CG precision DS-1 or much information about it.

https://www.cgprecision.com/#!/DS-1-...egory=17975132

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-cg-preci...e/0003ds1~cgp/ (stock photo is incorrect and for a B58)

see mlev in post #216 and #218. read through the whole thread as well.
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...n+ds-1&page=10

you can also get fabspeed, the best, for $400 more. https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...precision+ds-1

[Dreizo]

Originally Posted by thejeremyman9

If you have really low ambient temps all the time, you can get away with no IC. Just make sure you do some logs and monitor IATs if you are doing pulls when it is warm outside. IATs rise very fast on stock IC, even with stock tune. Also, doing stage 1 before the CP might be asking for trouble. May want to hold off on the tune until the CP is installed.

Also, with respect to warranty, any tune can void your warranty if something substantial enough happens and they investigate further. Even if you flash back to stock and relock the DME a tune can be detected.

I'm probably asking for trouble.

Just bought BM3 -
Ran into the issue of not having a battery charger/tender so will probably buy one tomorrow.
Second issue - I park underground with no signal/data and it's snowing outside right now, so I'd rather not go use McDonalds wifi and risk anything. Will have to wait for tomorrow morning to flash - Ideally on my own hotspot at work.

Video guides i watched said if my batterys charged, headlights off, a/c off entirely, any a/c power utilizing things disconnected, i should be able to get away with flashing w/ no issues. Since the car is still relatively new, i might just do that. Have spoken to 2 people who said they flashed without a tender and they're fine.

[mlev]

Originally Posted by alohasurftoad

https://www.cgprecision.com/#!/DS-1-...egory=17975132

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-cg-preci...e/0003ds1~cgp/ (stock photo is incorrect and for a B58)

see mlev in post #216 and #218. read through the whole thread as well.
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...-1&page=10

you can also get fabspeed, the best, for $400 more. https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...precision+ds-1

I ordered my CG DS1 catted DP from ECS tuning. They handle the order with the manufacturer.

Key point as aloha linked:
True 5" (127mm) diameter catalyst for 56% less flow restriction and better emissions than 4" sports catalysts used by competitors.

Larger diameter with less restriction allows for more sound so it'll make your exhaust louder as well. I've got it paired with full AWE catback. I used to have an MPE. Let me know if you have any questions.

[Dreizo]

Originally Posted by alohasurftoad

https://www.cgprecision.com/#!/DS-1-...egory=17975132

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-cg-preci...e/0003ds1~cgp/ (stock photo is incorrect and for a B58)

see mlev in post #216 and #218. read through the whole thread as well.
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...n+ds-1&page=10

you can also get fabspeed, the best, for $400 more. https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...precision+ds-1

Really appreciate this, looks like you made my choice for me. I'll probably go for the CG catted DP when summer comes around (after my warrantys gone) if i can find it at a good price. Gotta remember to refer back to this thread when the time comes.

For now i settled on just doing BM3 + CP which should run me about 1400$ CAD inc. 1 hour labor. Probably won't do anything more than this for now and do the DP + Exhaust + Stage 2 push in the summer.

- https://www.ecstuning.com/b-cg-preci...e/0003ds1~cgp/

$979 on ECS tuning, not sure if USD or CAD. I'll try to see if i can find it locally/cheaper, the thread you linked has people buying them for $600-800 .

[DreamerJoe]

if you want to save some money you can also look into finding someone selling their bm3 license.

[Dreizo]

Originally Posted by DreamerJoe

if you want to save some money you can also look into finding someone selling their bm3 license.

Already bought it new

[Dreizo]

Originally Posted by Tiago@VRSF

Most of our customers have a CEL free experience with our downpipes but we've been working hard on our existing F chassis lineup and we should have a Euro6 standard catted option on the way for both the 3.5" and 4.0" models that will be guaranteed to pass inspection.

They'll be the same price as our existing options and should be ready for purchase Q1 2019.

Anyone know if this was actually refreshed? No CEL at $400 Catted vs. the $980 for CG precision.

[mlev]

Originally Posted by Dreizo

Already bought it new

Good call - you can resell it then. You cannot resell used licenses so it makes more sense to just buy new.

Originally Posted by Dreizo

Anyone know if this was actually refreshed? No CEL at $400 Catted vs. the $980 for CG precision.

The price did go up on the DS1. It used to be marked down on ECS.

Regarding VRSF, it's not available and I would hold off on that even once it's released until there's lots of reviews out. Their current catted DP had to be revised as it was manufactured with an O2 flaw. VRSF has not responded with confidence on a release date. I'm not sure how they could release something for final production with the sensor in the totally wrong location - this sort of quality control worries me. Although I am running their HD intercooler with no issues.

If you are running Bootmod3, you do not need to necessarily only focus on "no CEL" catted downpipes. You can get any catted downpipe and adjust your Bootmod3 map settings to account for this. It is simply a "post O2" error that causes the CEL and can safely be hidden, just as it is by nearly everyone running a catless DP.

[johnung]

Originally Posted by Dreizo

Anyone know if this was actually refreshed? No CEL at $400 Catted vs. the $980 for CG precision.

How tough are emissions requirements in Toronto? Covering up a Check Engine Light with a tune so it doesn't show on the dashboard does not pass emissions because it will still be seen when they plug into your OBD2 under the dash. I believe Fabspeed is still the DP that guarantees no CELs. They use HJS cats which are the best in the world. It also dyno tested at 93% of the performance of their catless DP. It lists for $1,395 but a few times a year I've seen it 15% off ($1,186). I'd bet it will be on sale again for Black Friday. I saw all the labor and hassle guys we're going through to swap their DPs to pass emissions and easily justified the cost of the Fabspeed HJS Catted Downpipe.

The Fabspeed DP really sounds great too. I have the M Performance exhaust which was on my car when I bought it. I kept the stock midpipe because Mike at X-PH warned me against drone issues. He was right that this combination sounds great. If I were you I'd do the Fabspeed catted DP, stock midpipe and axle-back exhaust from AWE (which I've heard on several cars) or Remus (which I've heard Mike recommend). AWE has several tailpipe options. The larger ones (102mm?) look amazing.

I highly recommend the charge pipe from Evolution Raceworks. Super high quality and perfect fitment. With CP make sure to change the three o-rings. Cheap insurance against a big troubleshooting bill if they leak. Two directional o-rings on FMIC connections (only seal one-way and leak if backwards) and a larger o-ring on CP where it connects to throttle body.

You do save on labor if you install CP and FMIC at the same time because typically you need to remove the intercooler to install the CP anyway. It's worth asking your mechanic to see what the difference might be.

I know that you are hearing that you can get away with going BM3 Stage2 without upgrading your FMIC because everyone thinks Canada is always cold. I did my CP and FMIC at the same time when I only had a BMW MPPK tune which is much less than BM3 Stage1. The BMW failsafe systems work very smoothly. I didn't understand how much heat soak I had until the upgraded FMIC went on and suddenly heat soak disappeared!

Heat soak is basically when your intake air temperature gets too high and the engine has to intervene by cutting power to keep itself in a safe operating temperature. True that an FMIC isn't doing much in freezing temperatures but as soon as temperatures get normal, not even hot, an FMIC will be protecting your engine and its performance.

Mike at X-PH knows the most about intercoolers. He has written some good posts and blogs about them. Here's my short version. There are two types of intercoolers. Tube & Fin are lighter, have faster air flow rates & are more expensive to manufacture. Bar & Plate are heavier and are cheaper to manufacture. BMW uses a small Tube&Fin intercooler that is sized for the ~300HP stock performance while providing the least amount of turbo lag. Along with the twin scroll turbo it makes the stock car pretty responsive. The only aftermarket tube&fin intercoolers that I've found so far are the Wagner Competition EVO1 and Competition EVO2. (Wagner "Performance" model's EVO1 and EVO2 are NOT tube&fin designs)

So the two Wagner "Competition" models are basically larger, higher quality versions of the BMW intercooler. They have quick air flow through the cooler so they can keep chargepipe pressure higher and ,correspondingly, turbo lag down. So they are sized for higher horsepower modified engines which requires higher airflow overall.

I have an absolute hatred for turbo lag. Used to own a 1999 Volvo S80 twin turbo. Very powerful but step on the gas and literally count to 3-Mississippi before the car would go. Turbo lag is most apparent in daily driving from a standing start like when a light turns green or when you are cruising along at low revs when you suddenly want to accelerate to pass someone or to accelerate onto an on-ramp. So if the car is a daily driver with turbo lag you tend to notice it a lot.

The other type of intercooler is Bar & Plate which is literally every other aftermarket intercooler that I've heard of. B&P has the advantage of lower cost. If you are racing lap after lap you don't care about turbo lag because your engine revs are high where you won't notice it. You just want a large capacity intercooler to cool a lot of air. Many people buy Bar & Plate intercoolers for their street cars because they are cheap. Nothing wrong with that. Often they say that they notice more lag but can live with it at the low cost.

I was going to buy the Wagner Competition EVO2 because it's only $50 more, and well bigger is better, right? Mike at X-PH was adamant that for the smallest turbo lag I should get the Comp EVO1 because it would have the quickest flow and lowest pressure drop. If I was building a track lap car I might need the larger capacity Comp EVO2, but that wasn't the case.

So with aftermarket intercoolers the choices are really between the two Wagner Competition models (Tube&Fin) and literally everything else which are Bar&Plate. Obviously within all the Bar&Plate models there are varying sizes, prices and quality levels.

You did not mention intake. Besides exhaust, modifying the air filter intake is the most common way of changing the sound. There is a small amount of power to be gained by upgrading the intake. Not a lot because the airflow to the stock turbo is determined by the construction point in the turbo inlet pipe as well as the turbo capacity itself.

If the power gain is all that you want, along with a little sound gain, then you can swap the bottom piece of your plastic airflow box for the BMW M Performance intake, about $180. It has an extra hole in it for more air. You can accomplish the same thing by drilling or cutting holes in the same location in your own stock air filter box. The other thing to do is to upgrade to an aFe Pro Dry washable air filter. (~$75). Save the original filter for when the aFe is air drying after you wash it with soapy water.

If you want more air intake noise they are aftermarket intakes that are closed design like the stock box to try to draw in cooler air. And there are open designs that are loud but get criticized for pulling in hotter air from under the hood. Louder sound doesn't always mean more power because you can actually lose some potential engine power because the air flow entry is being disrupted to make that loud sound.

Another new sound option is to upgrade the Diverter Valve to an N55 Turbosmart Blow Off Valve (BOV) in the Dual Port model. (It's a total swap. No need to use parts from your stock DV.) It generates a big whoosh sound when it vents to the atmosphere. It also cuts turbo lag because it electronically controls intake boost pressure so that it bleeds of just enough to keep boost ready to go, instead of doing a complete boost dump like the DV often does.

I had the quieter Plumb Back BOV model installed at Kies Motorsports. I think Bryan may be installing the Dual Port on his 335 for video. Below is the link. I'll attach photos of some things I mentioned above.

Have fun with your car! Hope this helps!

Link to Dual Port blow off valve DV replacement.

https://www.kiesmotorsports.com/coll...30992358899797

[mike@x-ph.com]

OP,
Im glad to hear my post helped answer some of your questions.

Ideally you want to start with Bm3, then get a charge pipe, intercooler and downpipe so you can run stage 2 maps reliability

When picking an intercooler i recommend a 6" core to handle the additional power.

When getting these parts, make sure you take advantage of combo deals offered by vendors

Originally Posted by thejeremyman9

Can you actually get the CG Precision DP anymore? I have never seen it in stock...

Originally Posted by alohasurftoad

im not sure. i think if you contact them they can make it for you.

We carry this product

[Dreizo]

Originally Posted by johnung

How tough are emissions requirements in Toronto? Covering up a Check Engine Light with a tune so it doesn't show on the dashboard does not pass emissions because it will still be seen when they plug into your OBD2 under the dash. I believe Fabspeed is still the DP that guarantees no CELs. They use HJS cats which are the best in the world. It also dyno tested at 93% of the performance of their catless DP. It lists for $1,395 but a few times a year I've seen it 15% off ($1,186). I'd bet it will be on sale again for Black Friday. I saw all the labor and hassle guys we're going through to swap their DPs to pass emissions and easily justified the cost of the Fabspeed HJS Catted Downpipe.

The Fabspeed DP really sounds great too. I have the M Performance exhaust which was on my car when I bought it. I kept the stock midpipe because Mike at X-PH warned me against drone issues. He was right that this combination sounds great. If I were you I'd do the Fabspeed catted DP, stock midpipe and axle-back exhaust from AWE (which I've heard on several cars) or Remus (which I've heard Mike recommend). AWE has several tailpipe options. The larger ones (102mm?) look amazing.

I highly recommend the charge pipe from Evolution Raceworks. Super high quality and perfect fitment. With CP make sure to change the three o-rings. Cheap insurance against a big troubleshooting bill if they leak. Two directional o-rings on FMIC connections (only seal one-way and leak if backwards) and a larger o-ring on CP where it connects to throttle body.

You do save on labor if you install CP and FMIC at the same time because typically you need to remove the intercooler to install the CP anyway. It's worth asking your mechanic to see what the difference might be.

I know that you are hearing that you can get away with going BM3 Stage2 without upgrading your FMIC because everyone thinks Canada is always cold. I did my CP and FMIC at the same time when I only had a BMW MPPK tune which is much less than BM3 Stage1. The BMW failsafe systems work very smoothly. I didn't understand how much heat soak I had until the upgraded FMIC went on and suddenly heat soak disappeared!

Heat soak is basically when your intake air temperature gets too high and the engine has to intervene by cutting power to keep itself in a safe operating temperature. True that an FMIC isn't doing much in freezing temperatures but as soon as temperatures get normal, not even hot, an FMIC will be protecting your engine and its performance.

Mike at X-PH knows the most about intercoolers. He has written some good posts and blogs about them. Here's my short version. There are two types of intercoolers. Tube & Fin are lighter, have faster air flow rates & are more expensive to manufacture. Bar & Plate are heavier and are cheaper to manufacture. BMW uses a small Tube&Fin intercooler that is sized for the ~300HP stock performance while providing the least amount of turbo lag. Along with the twin scroll turbo it makes the stock car pretty responsive. The only aftermarket tube&fin intercoolers that I've found so far are the Wagner Competition EVO1 and Competition EVO2. (Wagner "Performance" model's EVO1 and EVO2 are NOT tube&fin designs)

So the two Wagner "Competition" models are basically larger, higher quality versions of the BMW intercooler. They have quick air flow through the cooler so they can keep chargepipe pressure higher and ,correspondingly, turbo lag down. So they are sized for higher horsepower modified engines which requires higher airflow overall.

I have an absolute hatred for turbo lag. Used to own a 1999 Volvo S80 twin turbo. Very powerful but step on the gas and literally count to 3-Mississippi before the car would go. Turbo lag is most apparent in daily driving from a standing start like when a light turns green or when you are cruising along at low revs when you suddenly want to accelerate to pass someone or to accelerate onto an on-ramp. So if the car is a daily driver with turbo lag you tend to notice it a lot.

The other type of intercooler is Bar & Plate which is literally every other aftermarket intercooler that I've heard of. B&P has the advantage of lower cost. If you are racing lap after lap you don't care about turbo lag because your engine revs are high where you won't notice it. You just want a large capacity intercooler to cool a lot of air. Many people buy Bar & Plate intercoolers for their street cars because they are cheap. Nothing wrong with that. Often they say that they notice more lag but can live with it at the low cost.

I was going to buy the Wagner Competition EVO2 because it's only $50 more, and well bigger is better, right? Mike at X-PH was adamant that for the smallest turbo lag I should get the Comp EVO1 because it would have the quickest flow and lowest pressure drop. If I was building a track lap car I might need the larger capacity Comp EVO2, but that wasn't the case.

So with aftermarket intercoolers the choices are really between the two Wagner Competition models (Tube&Fin) and literally everything else which are Bar&Plate. Obviously within all the Bar&Plate models there are varying sizes, prices and quality levels.

You did not mention intake. Besides exhaust, modifying the air filter intake is the most common way of changing the sound. There is a small amount of power to be gained by upgrading the intake. Not a lot because the airflow to the stock turbo is determined by the construction point in the turbo inlet pipe as well as the turbo capacity itself.

If the power gain is all that you want, along with a little sound gain, then you can swap the bottom piece of your plastic airflow box for the BMW M Performance intake, about $180. It has an extra hole in it for more air. You can accomplish the same thing by drilling or cutting holes in the same location in your own stock air filter box. The other thing to do is to upgrade to an aFe Pro Dry washable air filter. (~$75). Save the original filter for when the aFe is air drying after you wash it with soapy water.

If you want more air intake noise they are aftermarket intakes that are closed design like the stock box to try to draw in cooler air. And there are open designs that are loud but get criticized for pulling in hotter air from under the hood. Louder sound doesn't always mean more power because you can actually lose some potential engine power because the air flow entry is being disrupted to make that loud sound.

Another new sound option is to upgrade the Diverter Valve to an N55 Turbosmart Blow Off Valve (BOV) in the Dual Port model. (It's a total swap. No need to use parts from your stock DV.) It generates a big whoosh sound when it vents to the atmosphere. It also cuts turbo lag because it electronically controls intake boost pressure so that it bleeds of just enough to keep boost ready to go, instead of doing a complete boost dump like the DV often does.

I had the quieter Plumb Back BOV model installed at Kies Motorsports. I think Bryan may be installing the Dual Port on his 335 for video. Below is the link. I'll attach photos of some things I mentioned above.

Have fun with your car! Hope this helps!

Link to Dual Port blow off valve DV replacement.

https://www.kiesmotorsports.com/coll...30992358899797

Thanks, a lot of information here to absorb -

For now, I'm holding off on buying more parts as I may need to push it into winter tires. I anticipated being able to drive in winter with my all-season RFT's since i'm mostly city driving on clean roads, but reviews of the bridgestone RFT's are beyond terrible for winter conditions and 19" staggered tires for my 437m's are 1400$, while a throwaway set of 18" with winters are still 1800$.

[Dreizo]

Originally Posted by mike@x-ph.com

OP,
Im glad to hear my post helped answer some of your questions.

Ideally you want to start with Bm3, then get a charge pipe, intercooler and downpipe so you can run stage 2 maps reliability

When picking an intercooler i recommend a 6" core to handle the additional power.

When getting these parts, make sure you take advantage of combo deals offered by vendors


We carry this product

I will keep this in mind - For now it's BM3 + CTS Turbo CP. - Once summer rolls around, I'll see if I want to do a FMIC, but will definitely do DP + wheels&tires.

Thanks!

[johnung]

Originally Posted by Dreizo

Thanks, a lot of information here to absorb -

For now, I'm holding off on buying more parts as I may need to push it into winter tires. I anticipated being able to drive in winter with my all-season RFT's since i'm mostly city driving on clean roads, but reviews of the bridgestone RFT's are beyond terrible for winter conditions and 19" staggered tires for my 437m's are 1400$, while a throwaway set of 18" with winters are still 1800$.

My winter climate is similar with mostly cold and ice, 22" average snowfall and about 20 days per season driving on snow. I would have gone with Blizzak WS90 if snowfall/snow days were greater. But Blizzak drawbacks are noise and not as great handling on dry cold roads.

Bought Michelin X-ICE i3 which tick off all the boxes for my needs. 225/45-18 are about $800-$850 (with current rebates/sales) installed on my stock BMW 400M 18"x 8.0" wheels. I have summer Michelin PS4S in 245/40-18 but was cautioned by many to use stock size to cut through snow because wider tires tend to ride on top of snow with less control. Like hydroplaning tire on wet road, I guess.