Purchasing and modifying a 135i

Millie · 10-20-2012, 08:31 PM

I'm currently shopping around for a new (to me) car and I've narrowed it down to a few based on my price range. They are the E9X M3, C63, C6Z and the 135i (N54). Obviously there are a few differences in the four cars and they all range in prices. The C6Z is at the bottom of the list since its unusable in the winter/snow and isn't very DD practical. The M3 and C63 are currently at the top of my purchasing budget but they are pretty much maxed out HP wise without adding FI. This is where the 135i comes in.

Since I love to mod cars I think the N54 is a great platform to start with. I've done some searching and it looks like I've already have a shopping list of mods I'd do immediately. Dinan LSD and sticky tires would be essential since I regularly autocross.

For the power section, it seems that RBTurbos would be a must along with dp's, intakes, FMIC, custom tune and for looks a quad exhaust of some sort. I looked around but haven't seen any hp figures for those mods, what would I be looking at in terms of hp/tq? I know with mods comes increased wear and tear on misc items, but how does the engine and trans (6MT only) handle these mods, will reliability be significantly reduced? I currently put on maybe 10k a year in mileage. Thanks for any help.

Stohlen · 10-20-2012, 08:51 PM

1st question... Are the others really that usable in the winter/snow?

Millie · 10-20-2012, 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stohlen

1st question... Are the others really that usable in the winter/snow?

With the proper winter tires, why not?

Suds · 10-20-2012, 09:26 PM

I drove a 2012 Audi TTRS Friday, AWD, hauls ass and has tuning options, add it to your list.
I think this will be my next toy.

ragingpanda · 10-20-2012, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Millie

With the proper winter tires, why not?

Then you should have no problem with the C6 Z06.

blutattoo · 10-20-2012, 10:34 PM

Without adding the turbo's those mods should make between 370-400 hp at the wheels depending on the tune. Power is relatively easy to make with this car. First mods should be suspension and tire related since the suspension is well suited for daily driving but a far cry off what you would need to be competitive in autocross. Lots of camber and a lsd should help tremendously. You can also bolt most of the M3 suspension directly to this car to improve the handling.

I have a newer N55 and so far it's been good in terms of reliability, but I can't speak on the N54. The tranny has been really good for me. I only have one complaint, that the 2-1 downshift is sloppy when autocrossing. I track and autocross the car frequently so other than tire and brake pad wear I haven't had any problems.

Good luck with your purchase. They are all fun cars.

Millie · 10-20-2012, 11:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ragingpanda

Then you should have no problem with the C6 Z06.

Not even close. No one drives a Z06, let alone a vette in Canadian winters. BMW actually tests their vehicles for snow. Plus a hockey bag doesn't fit in a vette.

Quote:

Originally Posted by blutattoo

Without adding the turbo's those mods should make between 370-400 hp at the wheels depending on the tune. Power is relatively easy to make with this car. First mods should be suspension and tire related since the suspension is well suited for daily driving but a far cry off what you would need to be competitive in autocross. Lots of camber and a lsd should help tremendously. You can also bolt most of the M3 suspension directly to this car to improve the handling.

That's helpful. I'll probably just add camber plates in the front and slam them to max negative for autox. I'm currently running 295's on all four corners on the STi, what can I get away with in a 135i?

Stohlen · 10-21-2012, 06:54 AM

Not 295s, if you're lucky you can fit 245s up front and 275s in the rear with fender rolling and negative camber. I've got 225s and 265s and thats as much as I can get away with without rubbing issues.

Millie · 10-21-2012, 01:07 PM

Also, in 6th gear what rpms are you at when cruising at 75ish?

blutattoo · 10-21-2012, 02:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Millie

Also, in 6th gear what rpms are you at when cruising at 75ish?

There are some guys here running 255 squared with fender rolling and neg. camber. Rear is easy to fit, but the front is tight. I run 235/265 with no issues, but the offset has to be correct on the wheels otherwise you'll rub.

Cruise rpm for me is about 2700 @ 75. If you change the gearing with your lsd that would obviously change, but most folks that get an lsd keep the same gear ratio.

Stohlen · 10-21-2012, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blutattoo

Cruise rpm for me is about 2700 @ 75. If you change the gearing with your lsd that would obviously change, but most folks that get an lsd keep the same gear ratio.

Of course if you dont care about gas milage on the highway getting shorter gears is probably the single simplest way to quicken your car. At 7500 rpm with the stock 3.08 gears you'd be going 211 mph. At that point you'd probably take flight.

geared · 10-21-2012, 04:33 PM

you cannot drive i c6z in the snow without using so much throttle and clutch feathering it becomes annoying, and its just not safe. trust me, i just sold my 08 z making ~520

Eyeman · 10-21-2012, 10:03 PM

So far it seems like N54s are holding up to all the extra HP. There are a couple of blown motor stories but they are probably just random. Btw you'll find much more hp stuff on the 335 side of this site. With the manual transmission you'll definitely have to upgrade the pressure plate, etc to handle 400+ HP. I think I remember someone using nitrous having some transmission issues?

FBO on an N54 gets you very close to 400hp at the wheels on pump gas. Meth gets you 40-50 more. Recently there have been reports of getting 500 hp at the wheels running E85. Some tunes on RB type turbos have been in the low to mid 400 hp to the wheel range whereas tunes running closer to 20lbs or boost get around 500 whp.

I think the Dinan LSD is just a remarketed Quaife? It's very hard to get good traction with the tire sizes we are stuck with. That's actually why I went to a custom tune instead of a higher HP piggyback and meth setup. At 400ish hp to the wheels I spin somewhat up to 60ish MPH. I still plan to eventually go to upgraded turbos in a few yrs. I guess I'll just really spin bad then..lol.

Stohlen · 10-21-2012, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geared

you cannot drive i c6z in the snow without using so much throttle and clutch feathering it becomes annoying, and its just not safe. trust me, i just sold my 08 z making ~520

I dont really think any of the others are all that safe either, snows aside...

alexmtl_135i · 10-22-2012, 10:44 AM

I drove my 135 in heavy snow and it handled it like a champ with proper tires and a bit of care, I was expecting a lot worse! I don't think the M3 and C63 should be worse - and they have LSD.

geared · 10-22-2012, 12:02 PM

agreed stohlen.....but the c6z being much more dangerous than the next....which I would say is probably the c63.

jb

Millie · 10-22-2012, 02:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eyeman

I think the Dinan LSD is just a remarketed Quaife? It's very hard to get good traction with the tire sizes we are stuck with. That's actually why I went to a custom tune instead of a higher HP piggyback and meth setup. At 400ish hp to the wheels I spin somewhat up to 60ish MPH. I still plan to eventually go to upgraded turbos in a few yrs. I guess I'll just really spin bad then..lol.

I see that a front end widebody is available and allows you to fit 285 up front. This also possible in the rear with a fender roll/pull? I'd like to fix the understeering issue before I go nuts with HP.

peeti · 10-22-2012, 03:25 PM

As a former C63 owner, I can tell you that you're very wrong about FI. There are 70hp/tq available with a simple tune. With long pipes add on another 20, change out the manifold and you are up another 30 or so. It's a tuner dream car. Mine was the model for ECU tuning that was sold to lots of folks - spent lots of time on a dyno with it.

Winter - it's just as bad as any other car driven poorly. Either car you still need winter tires.

DRedman45 · 10-23-2012, 05:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Millie

I see that a front end widebody is available and allows you to fit 285 up front. This also possible in the rear with a fender roll/pull? I'd like to fix the understeering issue before I go nuts with HP.

you might start smaller and do the m3 front control arms, fsb, and add camber plates before you jump straight to widebody as a solution

blutattoo · 10-23-2012, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DRedman45

you might start smaller and do the m3 front control arms, fsb, and add camber plates before you jump straight to widebody as a solution

+1 with M3 suspension stuff and neg camber dramatically less understeer than stock. Frankly it's pretty neutral right now. If you carry to much speed into a corner and then try to dial in more steering to make up for it then you'll understeer, but that is true for just about any car. The understeer is still there but just barely. I'm not sure the tire width would change much if you stayed with the staggered setup. If you went squared then it would all but eliminate it is my guess.

08LMB135i · 10-23-2012, 07:58 PM

Jutes?

Millie · 10-26-2012, 03:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 08LMB135i

Jutes?

Yep.

Thanks for all the responses.

10-20-2012, 08:31 PM	#1
Millie Lieutenant 120 Rep 595 Posts Drives: a bmw. Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Saskatchatoon iTrader: (1)	Purchasing and modifying a 135i - a few questions. I'm currently shopping around for a new (to me) car and I've narrowed it down to a few based on my price range. They are the E9X M3, C63, C6Z and the 135i (N54). Obviously there are a few differences in the four cars and they all range in prices. The C6Z is at the bottom of the list since its unusable in the winter/snow and isn't very DD practical. The M3 and C63 are currently at the top of my purchasing budget but they are pretty much maxed out HP wise without adding FI. This is where the 135i comes in. Since I love to mod cars I think the N54 is a great platform to start with. I've done some searching and it looks like I've already have a shopping list of mods I'd do immediately. Dinan LSD and sticky tires would be essential since I regularly autocross. For the power section, it seems that RBTurbos would be a must along with dp's, intakes, FMIC, custom tune and for looks a quad exhaust of some sort. I looked around but haven't seen any hp figures for those mods, what would I be looking at in terms of hp/tq? I know with mods comes increased wear and tear on misc items, but how does the engine and trans (6MT only) handle these mods, will reliability be significantly reduced? I currently put on maybe 10k a year in mileage. Thanks for any help.
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10-20-2012, 08:51 PM	#2
Stohlen Major 66 Rep 1,267 Posts Drives: AW 135i Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Waterford, Mi iTrader: (2) Garage List 2008 BMW 135i [5.66]	1st question... Are the others really that usable in the winter/snow?
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10-20-2012, 09:26 PM	#4
Suds /M Enthusiast 1599 Rep 1,618 Posts Drives: Responsiblish Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Lone Star State iTrader: (1)	I drove a 2012 Audi TTRS Friday, AWD, hauls ass and has tuning options, add it to your list. I think this will be my next toy. Last edited by Suds; 10-20-2012 at 09:57 PM..
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10-20-2012, 10:34 PM	#6
blutattoo First Lieutenant 22 Rep 380 Posts Drives: 2012 135i Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Sacramento iTrader: (1) Garage List 2012 BMW 135i [0.00]	Without adding the turbo's those mods should make between 370-400 hp at the wheels depending on the tune. Power is relatively easy to make with this car. First mods should be suspension and tire related since the suspension is well suited for daily driving but a far cry off what you would need to be competitive in autocross. Lots of camber and a lsd should help tremendously. You can also bolt most of the M3 suspension directly to this car to improve the handling. I have a newer N55 and so far it's been good in terms of reliability, but I can't speak on the N54. The tranny has been really good for me. I only have one complaint, that the 2-1 downshift is sloppy when autocrossing. I track and autocross the car frequently so other than tire and brake pad wear I haven't had any problems. Good luck with your purchase. They are all fun cars.
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10-21-2012, 06:54 AM	#8
Stohlen Major 66 Rep 1,267 Posts Drives: AW 135i Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Waterford, Mi iTrader: (2) Garage List 2008 BMW 135i [5.66]	Not 295s, if you're lucky you can fit 245s up front and 275s in the rear with fender rolling and negative camber. I've got 225s and 265s and thats as much as I can get away with without rubbing issues.
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10-21-2012, 01:07 PM	#9
Millie Lieutenant 120 Rep 595 Posts Drives: a bmw. Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Saskatchatoon iTrader: (1)	Also, in 6th gear what rpms are you at when cruising at 75ish? __________________ 2022 Nissan Armada (big couch) 2017 Camaro SS 1LE - Gone 2008 SSII E90 6MT - Gone 2009 SG E92 DCT - Gone
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10-21-2012, 04:33 PM	#12
geared Major 265 Rep 1,100 Posts Drives: 90' s54 325i ; 93' carrera 2 Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: palm beach gardens, fl iTrader: (6) Garage List 2008 Corvette z-06 [0.00] 2015 BMW m3 [10.00]	you cannot drive i c6z in the snow without using so much throttle and clutch feathering it becomes annoying, and its just not safe. trust me, i just sold my 08 z making ~520
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10-21-2012, 10:03 PM	#13
Eyeman Colonel 121 Rep 2,037 Posts Drives: 2008 135 blk, blk, step Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Atlanta, GA iTrader: (0) Garage List 1994 Porsche 968 Cab [0.00] 2017 AMG GTS [0.00] 1994 Porsche 968 Coupe [0.00] 1977 Mercedes 450SE ... [0.00] 2008 135 [8.00]	So far it seems like N54s are holding up to all the extra HP. There are a couple of blown motor stories but they are probably just random. Btw you'll find much more hp stuff on the 335 side of this site. With the manual transmission you'll definitely have to upgrade the pressure plate, etc to handle 400+ HP. I think I remember someone using nitrous having some transmission issues? FBO on an N54 gets you very close to 400hp at the wheels on pump gas. Meth gets you 40-50 more. Recently there have been reports of getting 500 hp at the wheels running E85. Some tunes on RB type turbos have been in the low to mid 400 hp to the wheel range whereas tunes running closer to 20lbs or boost get around 500 whp. I think the Dinan LSD is just a remarketed Quaife? It's very hard to get good traction with the tire sizes we are stuck with. That's actually why I went to a custom tune instead of a higher HP piggyback and meth setup. At 400ish hp to the wheels I spin somewhat up to 60ish MPH. I still plan to eventually go to upgraded turbos in a few yrs. I guess I'll just really spin bad then..lol. __________________ Injen, RR OCC, MadDad Whisper, donut spare, 19x8.5et43fr 19x9.5et45r Volk LE37's, rear fenders rolled/pulled, PSS4S 225/35fr 255/30r, KW V1's, AR coated catless dps, Cross strutbar, CF grills and license plate holder, iCarbon diffuser, ETS black anodized FMIC, M3 control arms, Quaife, ER chargepipe, ForgeDV's, Topspeed Custom Tune, V3sims, Braille, Andrey_GTA rear hub mod, Ebay Mstyle front bumper and performance style side skirts.
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10-22-2012, 10:44 AM	#15
alexmtl_135i First Lieutenant 31 Rep 371 Posts Drives: 2013 C63 Coupe P31 Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Montreal, Canada iTrader: (0)	I drove my 135 in heavy snow and it handled it like a champ with proper tires and a bit of care, I was expecting a lot worse! I don't think the M3 and C63 should be worse - and they have LSD.
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10-22-2012, 12:02 PM	#16
geared Major 265 Rep 1,100 Posts Drives: 90' s54 325i ; 93' carrera 2 Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: palm beach gardens, fl iTrader: (6) Garage List 2008 Corvette z-06 [0.00] 2015 BMW m3 [10.00]	agreed stohlen.....but the c6z being much more dangerous than the next....which I would say is probably the c63. jb
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10-22-2012, 03:25 PM	#18
peeti Second Lieutenant 15 Rep 232 Posts Drives: 2011 M3 e90 Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Chicagoland iTrader: (1)	As a former C63 owner, I can tell you that you're very wrong about FI. There are 70hp/tq available with a simple tune. With long pipes add on another 20, change out the manifold and you are up another 30 or so. It's a tuner dream car. Mine was the model for ECU tuning that was sold to lots of folks - spent lots of time on a dyno with it. Winter - it's just as bad as any other car driven poorly. Either car you still need winter tires.
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10-23-2012, 07:58 PM	#21
08LMB135i Rally Armored 135i, don't copy me! 1 Rep 186 Posts Drives: 2008 Lemans Blue 135i M Sport Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Calgary Alberta iTrader: (0)	Jutes?
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