Finally had my 1M on the track -- video

[CarJunkie]

Heading to ORP again Monday 8/14, this time will be an open lapping day with open passing with point-by. We will be running the track counterclockwise so it will be like a new track for me. The day will be a test and tune for coilover settings, will be watching intake, oil and coolant temps on my conservative "detuned" track tune, will finally be able to check out the PFC-08s and PFC V2 two piece front rotors (thanks @ayao ) and generally having a great time.

Vid to follow . . . probably Tuesday.

[Dee Pee]

Dang it I am working that day. I'm friends with the Justesen Ranches family in GV and I was just out there.
I'm going out (eclipse traffic permitting) to meet up with the Palatov Motorsport guys on the 22nd. Prbly won't take the 1M though.

[CarJunkie]

OK, as promised. This is the same track as the original video, run in the opposite direction. It is great fun either way!

Observations:
Intake temps were never an issue on a day with ambient temps around 75 degrees, and really never exceeded 35-40 degrees above ambient temp. Coolant temps were also never an issue.

I found limp mode in the afternoon when oil temp reached 303 about 25 minutes into a session. I had stopped watching it because the highest I had seen before lunch was 292 degrees. The ambient temp after lunch was only about 3 degrees warmer, but I was becoming more comfortable with the line and pushing harder. I will be in the market for an upgraded oil cooler, which has been added to the winter wish list.

PFC-08 pads (matched with PFC V2 rotors up front, stock rotors out back) were amazing. They felt a little rough/coarse on the first 1-2 hard stops in each session when cold, and then were perfect for as long as I could abuse them, no change in pedal feel or response ever. I am also using Castrol SRF fluid and have stainless lines.

What can I say about the Ohlins R+T . . . amazing transformation. The car was predictable, balanced and easy to control at the limit. There are several places at this track where elevation changes create drifts from loss of grip, and those drifts were always 4 wheel drifts that were reproducible lap after lap. I would never have been comfortable pushing the car in those places with the stock suspension. Turn-in was sharp. When hitting a corner just right, the track out occurred with full-throttle power-induced rotation with the steering input straight just past the apex. It was fun to review those in the M-laptimer app where the car is clearly still rotating and pulling lateral G-s with a neutral steering input. Snap oversteer never happened.

This was by far the most fun track day I have had, limp mode aside.

[ayao]

Great feedback! What were you running for clicks (from full hard)on the Ohlins?
The oil temp limp mode is a bit concerning to me though. Is there any chance it is somehow related to your tune? I've been kicking around the idea of upgraded radiator (CSF?) and upgraded aux oil cooler but this would be more preventative since (knock on wood) I haven't seen oil temps much > 275F even on ambient >100F days on track.

[CarJunkie]

I was running 3 clicks from full stiff all around, which is the recommended setting. It felt so perfect that I didn't want to mess with it.

The oil temps are absolutely the result of my tune. Make more power = make more heat. The radiator seems to be up to the task, as is the FMIC. For my final session of the day, I flashed to the Cobb OTS Stage 1+ map, thinking it would be more conservative, and oil temps still got above 295 after about 15 -20 minutes. Coolant was at 233 degrees. Despite that, by the time I did 1/2 lap cool down and pulled into the pits, the oil temp was down to 270 and the coolant temp was down to 190. Once I parked and let the car idle for 2-3 minutes, the oil was down to about 260 when I shut it off. I think an upgraded oil cooler (and possibly the accessory radiator to match on the other side) will suffice.

[M3 Adjuster]

Originally Posted by CarJunkie

I was running 3 clicks from full stiff all around, which is the recommended setting. It felt so perfect that I didn't want to mess with it.

The oil temps are absolutely the result of my tune. Make more power = make more heat. The radiator seems to be up to the task, as is the FMIC. For my final session of the day, I flashed to the Cobb OTS Stage 1+ map, thinking it would be more conservative, and oil temps still got above 295 after about 15 -20 minutes. Coolant was at 233 degrees. Despite that, by the time I did 1/2 lap cool down and pulled into the pits, the oil temp was down to 270 and the coolant temp was down to 190. Once I parked and let the car idle for 2-3 minutes, the oil was down to about 260 when I shut it off. I think an upgraded oil cooler (and possibly the accessory radiator to match on the other side) will suffice.

Very intriguing comments on the suspension... no more snap oversteer ? Wow... hmmm...

[ayao]

Originally Posted by CarJunkie

I was running 3 clicks from full stiff all around, which is the recommended setting. It felt so perfect that I didn't want to mess with it.

The oil temps are absolutely the result of my tune. Make more power = make more heat. The radiator seems to be up to the task, as is the FMIC. For my final session of the day, I flashed to the Cobb OTS Stage 1+ map, thinking it would be more conservative, and oil temps still got above 295 after about 15 -20 minutes. Coolant was at 233 degrees. Despite that, by the time I did 1/2 lap cool down and pulled into the pits, the oil temp was down to 270 and the coolant temp was down to 190. Once I parked and let the car idle for 2-3 minutes, the oil was down to about 260 when I shut it off. I think an upgraded oil cooler (and possibly the accessory radiator to match on the other side) will suffice.

Do you have real-time monitoring of coolant temps (if so, what's your setup for displaying this?) or is all of the data pulled from logs?

[CarJunkie]

Originally Posted by M3 Adjuster

Very intriguing comments on the suspension... no more snap oversteer ? Wow... hmmm...

I am still judicious with my right foot mid corner . . . perhaps it would be better to say there are no surprises. I could get oversteer if I wanted to, but it was much easier to prevent and/or control.

The right hander at 1:14 in the video required a counter-steer correction a couple times mainly because the apex curbing isn't visible until you are on it and I got onto the curb with the right side tires a couple of times. Some curbs are worth using, this one isn't. 75MPH + crest of hill with minimal grip + curb tap + rear spring rates nearly double the front = oversteer. But still not snap oversteer.

[CarJunkie]

Originally Posted by ayao

Do you have real-time monitoring of coolant temps (if so, what's your setup for displaying this?) or is all of the data pulled from logs?

I was monitoring on the Cobb AP screen gauges in real time. I had intake air temp, oil temp and coolant temp ("ECT" on the Cobb) on the display. They give a max reading that is remembered until the car is restarted, so I knew the max for each session and was writing them down when I got back to the pits. Here is the max temp data:

Session 1 (30 minutes)
Ambient 64, IAT 109, Oil 278, Coolant 232

Session 2 (25+ minutes)
Ambient 66, IAT 119*, Oil 289, coolant 235

Session 3 (30 minutes)
Ambient 68, IAT 112, Oil 291, coolant 226

Session 4 (20 minutes) - finally comfortable with line and pushing harder
Ambient 74, IAT 121*, Oil 293, coolant 227

Session 5 (15 minutes before limp mode)
Ambient 74, IAT 118*, Oil 303, Coolant 239


I stopped writing down the numbers for my last two sessions, but suffice it to say I slowed down pulled off into the pits when the oil got up to 295, which took about 15 minutes.

*I am pretty sure the higher IAT's were actually recorded in pre-grid when heatsoaked, but I obviously didn't have a chance to reset the min/max after pulling out of the hot pits.

[ayao]

There is controversy over whether larger radiators will help lower oil temps vs bigger oil coolers. Do you think your data offer any insight on this topic?

[CarJunkie]

Very good question. The coolant was not the problem, so I am definitely going to upgrade the oil cooler for next year, and possibly just the accessory radiator to match. I believe CSF offers both.

[CarJunkie]

Just met with my friends at AD Engineering / Horsepower Barn and did some offseason work planning.

They will install an oil cooler this fall. I forget the brands, but they stock two quality radiator cores that they can mount into any BMW 1 or 3 series and have similar capacity. They'll use which ever one matches up to the 1M bumper ducting the best. They will also replace the stock oil thermostat housing with a plate and fittings that flow much better and will install an adjustable external oil thermostat located near the coolant reservoir. That should keep the oil happy!

Last but not least, they will have their fabricator relocate the forward DV bung on the ER chargepipe so that the forward DV will no longer contact the strut tower. Unfortunately, their 3" charge pipe won't fit the 1M without relocating the accessory radiator lines, and they didn't think the larger diameter would matter on stock turbos anyway. I am going to replace the stock DV's with Turbosmart DV's.

[infinitekidM2C]

That's what this car was made for!...i hate when i see garage queen 1Ms...yuck

[ayao]

Originally Posted by CarJunkie

Just met with my friends at AD Engineering / Horsepower Barn and did some offseason work planning.

They will install an oil cooler this fall. I forget the brands, but they stock two quality radiator cores that they can mount into any BMW 1 or 3 series and have similar capacity. They'll use which ever one matches up to the 1M bumper ducting the best. They will also replace the stock oil thermostat housing with a plate and fittings that flow much better and will install an adjustable external oil thermostat located near the coolant reservoir. That should keep the oil happy!

Last but not least, they will have their fabricator relocate the forward DV bung on the ER chargepipe so that the forward DV will no longer contact the strut tower. Unfortunately, their 3" charge pipe won't fit the 1M without relocating the accessory radiator lines, and they didn't think the larger diameter would matter on stock turbos anyway. I am going to replace the stock DV's with Turbosmart DV's.

Very interested in the oil cooler details.

It seems like the current "best" ones are either ER (Sport vs. dual -- ER says Sport is sufficient for 1M) or the Dinan ($$). Some of the more clever people on the 1addicts forum who are handy with a hacksaw or angle grinder seem to believe in buying "the biggest Setrab core possible" and jamming it into the oil cooler well but seldom provide useful details that allow the average shadetree mechanic to duplicate.

I've been waiting to install the ER CP I have sitting in the garage but the DV interference issue will drive me crazy. Boo. I wonder if your curved silicone tubing idea is worth pursuing further ...

[CarJunkie]

I have the luxury of having an N54 development and fabrication shop 20 minutes away.

Dinan $1400 - core size is about double OEM
ER sport $750 - core size is triple OEM
CSF $600 - no details on core size
Both units carried by ADE are used on single turbo cars making 700-800 HP. I completely forgot who makes them (not Setrab which is also $$$), but will let you know once I get one installed. I looked at both and they were high quality solid pieces. They both cost about $125, but they are not plug and play. The guys at ADE will take care of a solid mounting solution, which will still not come close to the cost of the ER or Dinan units even with the use of top quality fittings.

[infinitekidM2C]

i had the ER oil cooler installed after my first track with the car (where it had heat soak and eventual overheating). after install i did not have the problem again

[ayao]

Originally Posted by infinitekid2002

i had the ER oil cooler installed after my first track with the car (where it had heat soak and eventual overheating). after install i did not have the problem again

Did you have the dual or the sport version installed?

[ayao]

Originally Posted by CarJunkie

I have the luxury of having an N54 development and fabrication shop 20 minutes away.

Dinan $1400 - core size is about double OEM
ER sport $750 - core size is triple OEM
CSF $600 - no details on core size
Both units carried by ADE are used on single turbo cars making 700-800 HP. I completely forgot who makes them (not Setrab which is also $$$), but will let you know once I get one installed. I looked at both and they were high quality solid pieces. They both cost about $125, but they are not plug and play. The guys at ADE will take care of a solid mounting solution, which will still not come close to the cost of the ER or Dinan units even with the use of top quality fittings.

You would think that with all the N54s running around Northern California that there'd be more shops around here like yours. Although, the N54 clientele around here seems to be more badge envy than anything else...

[CarJunkie]

Originally Posted by ayao

You would think that with all the N54s running around Northern California that there'd be more shops around here like yours. Although, the N54 clientele around here seems to be more badge envy than anything else...

If you are interested, I could ask them to duplicate the mounting bracket, fittings and any hoses. I am sure they could send you a DIY "kit". I don't plan on any more track days this year, so I am not going to take the car to them until Late October. Until then, I need my daily drive!

[asiflicious]

Originally Posted by CarJunkie

This is at Oregon Raceway Park, fully stock except Mad Dad midpipe. Bridgestone RE11's in stock sizes, factory brake pads, fresh fluid.

This was my first track day in 7 years, but like riding a bike . . . I had FUN! It switches to a birdseye view about half way through which really shows the elevation changes. Insanely fun technical track. 2.3 miles with 16 turns, lots of camber changes and elevation changes to deal with.

Beautiful car and gorgeous track. I'm surprised I've never heard of this one and I live in Portland. Great video

[infinitekidM2C]

Originally Posted by ayao

Did you have the dual or the sport version installed?

just the sport.

[WhatsADSM]

Anything but the CSF upgraded unit . Hardly makes any difference at all