feeler: BMS powerbox for 128i

[Nathan_h]

BIMMERPOST / Classifieds

Asking Price:
Sold

Location:

✓ Will Ship

Item Interest

The BMW powerbox does what it says: A bit more HP, and significant options to remap the throttle response. But after several months, I'm finding it's too aggressive (the horror!) for my daily driver, in heavy traffic.

So I'm trying to guage whether there is interest in it, before I take the time to disassemble the TCU to remove it.

The price new with shipping is close to $300. I'm looking to get $199 plus PP fees and shipping to the lower 48. 10% Discount for in person sale in the SF Bay Area. You can pay close to 50% more and get a new one, but since there are no moving parts, you can save $ and buy mine.

link: http://burgertuning.com/BMS_Power_Box.html

[Nathan_h]

from the manufacturer's web site:



BMS Power Box (PBX)
125i 128i 130i 323i 325i 328i 330i 523i 525i 528i 530i X3 X5 Z4 630i 730i


MORE HORSEPOWER! & MORE TORQUE!
Plus Adjustable Throttle Pedal Re-Mapping for Snappier Response
for your non-turbo BMW



The BMS Power Box is a piggyback style performance chip for the BMW 2.5L & 3.0L N51/N52/N53 6 cylinder motors. It features easy installation and removal, gas pedal switching between 7 performance maps, throttle remapping for snappier response, and dyno gains of up to 10+ Horsepower and 10+ lb-ft Torque. Finally you can enjoy the car how it should have come from the factory.
• Up to 10+ More Horsepower & 10+ More lb-ft Torque
• Throttle Re-mapping for Better Response / Reaction
• Removes "dead area" delay in gas pedal
• 7 Different Maps / Settings
• Can be turned on and off from inside the car
• Gives even more Power with intake/exhaust or other mods
• Plug & Play, No cutting or splicing
• Made in U.S.A.
Installation takes around 20 minutes using basic hand tools and is completely reversible with no cutting of wires. Simply extract the factory wire and replace it with the corresponding BMS Power Box wire. Installation is very discrete allowing most customers to leave the unit installed for basic service is NOT TRACEABLE through the factory ECU/DME or the BMW dealerships equipment and does not hurt fuel economy during normal driving.
Dynos below show horsepower and torque increase at the wheels over stock.



BMS Power Box on a completely Stock automatic BMW 328i on 91 octane.



BMS Power Box on a completely Stock automatic BMW 328i on 91 octane.



BMS Power Box on a completely Stock automatic BMW 330i on 91 octane.




BMS Power Box Map Guide

Map 0 - Disables BMS Power Box (Stock)
Map 1 - 30% throttle remapping, performance tuning on
Map 2 - 60% throttle remapping, performance tuning on
Map 3 - 100% throttle remapping, performance tuning on
Map 4 - 30% throttle remapping, performance tuning off
Map 5 - 60% throttle remapping, performance tuning off
Map 6 - 100% throttle remapping, performance tuning off
Map 7 - throttle remapping disabled, performance tuning on

How to Switch Maps from the Driver's Seat
Insert the keyfob and press the start button to turn the ignition on (lights on the dash but the engine is not running). Press and hold the gas pedal down to the floor for 4 seconds or more, then release. This puts the Power Box into listen mode. If you start the engine at this point you will be on map 0. For performance maps press the gas pedal to the floor and quickly release one time for each map you would like to select. For example, for map 3 press and release the gas 3 times, then start the engine. Your map setting will be saved until it is changed.

What is the BMS Power Box?
The BMS Power Box is a BMW Performance Chip with a pre-programmed internal chip that intercepts the stock signals from your BMW's electronic control unit (ECU) and changes them to achieve better performance by adjusting the air fuel ratio and spark timing. Made specifically for the BMW inline six cylinder motors. The PBX also has an adjustable throttle feature that can be combined with the Performance chip feature by selecting a setting or "map" as we call it. The BMS Power Box contains both a performance chip which gives you an extra 8-10 Horsepower at the wheels and an adjustable throttle boost feature that makes the gas pedal send a boosted throttle signal in increments of 30%, 60%, and 100% over the stock BMW signal. Depending on what setting/ "map" you select you can create a perfect blend of throttle response and horsepower and torque. For maximum horsepower and throttle boosting select MAP 3. The BMS Power Box is completely invisible to the BMW dealership and testing equipment so you can leave it in for routine service.

How does it compare?
Other products just have a single setting throttle booster. No horsepower/performance is gained or you have to reflash your ECU and there is no throttle boost feature. They are costly and are detectable by BMW's equipment.

What will the BMS Power Box do?
The BMS Power Box will make your vehicle more responsive, spirited and fun to drive. It will make your vehicle faster by increasing the horsepower and torque. It works well with other modifications like intakes and exhausts, but can also be used alone. It will remove the "dead space" when you push on the non responsive stock BMW accelerator. It changes the way the car drives and feels. You can turn it on and off from the comfort of your drivers seat to feel the difference. For BMW tuning the BMS Power Box is the clear choice.

To ensure your satisfaction all tuners include a 14 day money back guarantee. If you're not completely thrilled with the performance of your BMW simply return it within 14 days for a full refund.

BMS Power Box Applications:

• BMW 1 Series E82, E87, E88 - 125 128 130 Coupe and Convertible
• BMW 3 Series - E90, E91, E92, E93 - 323 / 325 / 328 / 330 Sedan, Touring, Coupe and Convertible
• BMW 5 Series (2006+ only) E60 / E61 - 525 / 528 / 530 Sedan and Touring
• BMW 6 Series E63 / E64 - 630 Coupe and Convertible
• BMW 7 Series E65 / E66 - 730 Sedan
• BMW X3 E83 - 2.5si / 3.0si Sports Activity Vehicle
• BMW X5 E70 - 3.0si Sports Activity Vehicle
• BMW Z4 E85 / E86 - 2.5si / 3.0i Roadster and Coupe
• BMW Z4 E89 - sDrive23i / 28i / 30i

The BMS Power Box was specifically designed for the N51 / N52 / N53
2.5L & 3.0L motors. Including xi vehicles.

[u2b]http://youtu.be/WT5JwwfNFO8[/u2b]

[Nathan_h]

wednesday bump. i need to purchase some tires... and will feel better about that if i have cash instead of this mod, in my warchest.

[Nathan_h]

tgif

[Nathan_h]

tgis.

I won't continue to bump so frequently but PM me if you have interest (like if you run across this in a month or two; i'm not in a rush).

[Nathan_h]

Bumping this. FINALLY got time to pull it out this holiday weekend. So it's ready to ship.

If you are one of the people that PM-ed me when it first went up, I apologize but since I ran out of PM space, I had to delete a lot of messages. Please PM me again.

[Nathan_h]

Ready to ship

[631twentyeighteye]

how exactly is the installation process? I'm horrible with wires. and how noticable is the difference? I was looking to use map 7 ideally.

[Nathan_h]

Originally Posted by 631twentyeighteye

how exactly is the installation process? I'm horrible with wires. and how noticable is the difference? I was looking to use map 7 ideally.

You can see detailed pictures of the installation on the BMS web site. I'm reasonably comfortable with tinkering, but it is NOT for the faint of heart.

You are literally pulling out the TCU (computer) that controls everything in the car, removing some wires from it, to go into the "mod chip unit" and then patch them back into the TCU. Obviously many people have done it, and it works, but if you are "horrible" with wires, I'd have a person who is good with wires do the job.

Read the instructions and look at the photos to see what I mean.

--

In terms of results (on an automatic): The throttle mapping options make a very noticeable difference in pedal response and shift points on the automatic. Super fun to try out different mappings and see what you like (though it takes a few days of driving for all the learning components in the car to adjust to your new way of driving with each mapping change, so you can't just try them all in an afternoon and know for sure what it will be like). I found them very interesting. If you are the kind of person who gets annoyed with the default shift points, this let's you essentially try a few different set of shift points -- and settle on the settings that you like.

The power boost: I dunno. Especially in an automatic, hitting the shiftpoints in a way to maximize power and feel the difference definitely takes a bit of skill and practice. Clearly, the dyno results show an impact. Whether I have the skill to manually shift via paddles at the right places to get that extra power is another question. The throttle re-mapping is the biggest, obvious difference, and that DOES make it seem like it has more power at almost all driving speeds, so even if you aren't an expert shifter, you'll notice more precision/response.

You mention wanting just the power boost and not the throttle mapping, and that you have a manual transmission. Since I don't have a MT, I can't speak to how easy it is to hit the spots where the power boost kicks in. Perhaps some other owners of the mod can speak up about that.

--

For me, I'm getting used to driving in sport mode, and using the paddles to keep me where I want to be in terms of RPMs and gear changes. It's more WORK to drive that way, but when I care about driving, it's worth it to be in control. And then when I'm sitting in stop-and-go traffic and don't want to think about driving, the car's default automatic settings, while suboptimal from a performance driving standpoint, are fine.

[Satalite]

Originally Posted by 631twentyeighteye

how exactly is the installation process? I'm horrible with wires. and how noticable is the difference? I was looking to use map 7 ideally.

I can also chime in and say that I had the BMS PowerBox on my car for some time as well. The install process is much easier with two people as this is a detail oriented install and could prove better with a second person checking your moves. (Moving small wires from the ECU and remounting them on the PowerBox has to be exactly as it states or your car wont work properly)

The install for my first time took me just under 1 hour. The results were instantly noticed after installing! The car in "D" feels much more agile and better suited for the eager driver (AUTO).

Uninstalling the first time took around 35 minutes as the wires were easily placed back 1-1 without much complications.

Overall I would highly recommend this if you are looking to gain some HP from your 128. If you are strictly looking at getting rid of the throttle lag there might be better alternatives.

[Nathan_h]

Originally Posted by Satalite

I can also chime in and say that I had the BMS PowerBox on my car for some time as well. The install process is much easier with two people as this is a detail oriented install and could prove better with a second person checking your moves. (Moving small wires from the ECU and remounting them on the PowerBox has to be exactly as it states or your car wont work properly)

The install for my first time took me just under 1 hour. The results were instantly noticed after installing! The car in "D" feels much more agile and better suited for the eager driver (AUTO).

Uninstalling the first time took around 35 minutes as the wires were easily placed back 1-1 without much complications.

Overall I would highly recommend this if you are looking to gain some HP from your 128. If you are strictly looking at getting rid of the throttle lag there might be better alternatives.

note that the OP (631twentyeighteye) is considering this for a manual transmission, so the cool impact you and i saw on an automatic is not going to translate directly.

[Nathan_h]

Current install guide for those who are curious:

http://burgertuning.com/instructions/powerbox.pdf

[Satalite]

Originally Posted by Nathan_h

note that the OP (631twentyeighteye) is considering this for a manual transmission, so the cool impact you and i saw on an automatic is not going to translate directly.

Gotcha. But there is still gains to be had never the less!

[Nathan_h]

Originally Posted by Satalite

Gotcha. But there is still gains to be had never the less!

Agreed

[Nathan_h]

bump for lowered price

[Nathan_h]

Bump. Ready to ship.

[Nathan_h]

Last chance for holiday delivery....