Quote:
Originally Posted by apexwerks
Up next was the 3-stage intake swap. I didn't take as many pictures of this one... I was honestly surprised by how easy it was, and how inexpensive (at least if you do it the way I did).
Parts/cost:
1. 3 stage manifold. I pulled mine from a E60 530i at the junkyard. An intake manifold costs $29 there, and based on a quick perusal of their inventory the yard had at least 5 vehicles that had the intake. The E60 was the first one I found and the intake was there and intact. The other benefit of a junkyard pull was I got all the bolts and brackets along with the intake.
2. New DISA valves. I went with the VAICO models from FCP Euro, parts # 11617579114 & 11617560538. They seem to be the best of the aftermarket DISAs, and FCP will lifetime warranty them. $265.98
3. New gaskets. Elring manifold gasket set 11617547242 and throttle body gasket 13547582931. $21.68
4. Crankcase breather hose. Went genuine BMW on this one - 11157559528. $64.49
Total parts cost: $381.15, or about $11/hp. That's a bargain anywhere.
All the parts and the junkyard intake:
I used the Bimmerlab scripts and my existing WinKFP install + Bimmmergeeks cable. The coding went off without a hitch.
Butt dyno, the car feels torquier down low, and has notably more urgency above 3500 RPM. The pedal responsiveness is up as well, and it makes the car feel much more ready and willing where the N52 felt a little laconic before. I'm not sure how else to describe it- it's still not a powerhouse and there's a big difference between the N52 and the S54 in my M3, but the car is much livelier and pulls harder now. |
My butt-dyno (just did my 130i flash today) matches your observation. The throttle feels like it did a couple of lines of blow, and there's definitely more pull to redline (and it's more linear - before I flashed and was just running the 3-stage IM in 'passive' mode, there was a bit of a lump like coming on-cam around 3800RPM).
