E46 Things
-
Very cool, does it take a long time for oil temps to get up that high? I've monitored on other vehicles and it took a long time to get oil near 180F. Does it have a oil cooler/heater to the coolant? That would help warm up the oil quicker.
Yes, usually 8-9 miles of driving to get to 190. Less if there is frequent stopping/sitting.
The S54 oil filter housing has a restrictor for the oil cooler. Racers will remove it or replace it with a different one
-
Yes, usually 8-9 miles of driving to get to 190. Less if there is frequent stopping/sitting.
The S54 oil filter housing has a restrictor for the oil cooler. Racers will remove it or replace it with a different one
Oh that isn't too bad, is the oil cooler an air to oil? The V70R I had had a small plate HX for oil -coolant which I thought was a great design, very compact and it warms the oil to operating temp and then keeps it there. If I ever add an oil cooler to a vehicle I would do it like that, also no need for an oil thermostat because coolant temp is about perfect.
-
I have not driven much in the last couple weeks due to the rain and cold temperatures but today was an exception. As an essential employee I commuted to my essential job and ran essential errands afterwards.
There is something rewarding about operating a manual transmission that one needs to experience to fully understand. Amongst our own group, this shared understanding is part of what unites us. But as strange as it sounds, after ~20 years of manual transmission operation, I think I am finally starting to learn how to REALLY drive a manual transmission. And yet I have a long ways to go.
Putting aside my facetious poll about how good you are at shifting (sample text) Im really enjoying learning how to drive a manual transmission in this car. I have always felt I have operated at an average enthusiast skill level, nothing special, but not destroying clutches either. In the last year I have felt like things are starting to click. I cant explain this epiphany very well,
-
Heel toeing on all downshifts?
Last fall on track yes, otherwise not a lot of opportunities on street besides roundabout entrances or those lucky right turns on green lights.
The main changes/improvements are:
-Learning how to rev-match downshifts quickly, smoothly, and accurately. Prior to figuring this out I would always rev-match but it was never quite enough rpm or I would do it too slowly. I wanted to give it SOME rpm to attempt a rev match but not too much that it surges upon re-engagement.
-retraining my brain to make sure the clutch pedal is 100% depressed rather than 95% before starting to change gears. It didnt always happen but I noticed this bad habit that I have probably been doing my whole life.
-memorizing the rpm change for each gear and actually timing the clutch release for a smooth upshift instead of just “shift as quickly as possible as long as you are allowing time for the synchros to do their job”. This was learned because the heavy dual mass flywheel decelerates more slowly and the clutch release timing is slightly different than every other car I have owned
-It is now a habit to shift 1 and 2 palm inward and 3 through 6 palm outward
-overall im using the tach as a useful tool much more often rather than just for avoiding bumping the rev limiter
among other things.
Trying to describe it is probably makes me sound like a caveman driving manual for the first time. But like I said, the Clutch Delay Valve and tricky cold shifting really forced me to be more mindful of shifting and pay close attention to all the details involved. As a result I think I have improved on some bad form from years past.
Now I just need some smaller feet.
-
Kind of stuck with your feet, so think about shoes. Heel and toe tends to be easier for me on track with the race shoes. Size 13 feet. Though my foot size does make traditional/ actual heel and toe easier that just foot roll version. Also depends on pedal setup in the car. For a street car you can look into driving shoes: narrower, thinner but hard soles.
Watching tach on track means eyes down rather than up. I’ve got shift light on the top of the dash that goes off so I can keep eyes up and also avoid bogging at rev limiter. Especially on race starts where it’s a zoo or when I’m passing someone deep in a corner and need to make sure the other guy behaves. Realize installing a light may not be the best option for street car. But even without a light you can practice listening to engine noise and getting a sense of what noise is what rev.
For heel and toe shifting I rely more on sound cues that help to develop feel than tach. This means an exhaust loud enough to hear the throttle blips while wearing a helmet and also the rev noise when you get it wrong.
Good habit on palm reversal for 3-4 shift. With 5-3 shifts I tend to row 5-4-3 to make sure I get to 3 cleanly. Though again this depends if I’m clean into a corner or trying to deep pass after a long straight into a slow turn (e.g., turn 5 or 12 at Road America ).
-
Watching tach on track means eyes down rather than up. I’ve got shift light on the top of the dash that goes off so I can keep eyes up and also avoid bogging at rev limiter. Especially on race starts where it’s a zoo or when I’m passing someone deep in a corner and need to make sure the other guy behaves. Realize installing a light may not be the best option for street car.
Im imagining a zoo of identical sounding M20s + a helmet could very easily leave you bouncing off the limiter without a visual cue. I recently coded the tach warmup lights into shift lights. Cant beat free!
-
Im imagining a zoo of identical sounding M20s + a helmet could very easily leave you bouncing off the limiter without a visual cue. I recently coded the tach warmup lights into shift lights. Cant beat free!
Hah! The m20s and more the Spec Miatas in the same run group. Like running in the midst of a hive-belching swarm of loud angry bees.
Good deal on the coding. Nicely done!
-
I fired up my engine vape to see if there were any opportunities for improvement. The silicone coupling on the new intake was leaking. Silicone couplers always seem to “settle” after engine movement and heat, and require re-adjustment. All good now! No other leaks detected.
Aaand some smoke rings
-
-quick wash
-changed throttle mapping again to make a couple minor tweaks and Improvements to my first revision. It is much better than stock now. No dead zone on initial tip-in and sport mode isnt hyper-sensitive
-Finally got around to resetting the TPMS system. The light has been on ever since I have owned it. It’s wheel speed based rather than pressure sensors. This leaves only 2 more warning lights to remove from the dash, the washer fluid (just need to fill it
) and the brake wear sensors -
Signed up for July 15th track day at Blackhawk Farms with @patsbimmer1 . I'd love to see others sign up. A track day with a group of friends would be amazing fun!
Hello! It looks like you're interested in this conversation, but you don't have an account yet.
Getting fed up of having to scroll through the same posts each visit? When you register for an account, you'll always come back to exactly where you were before, and choose to be notified of new replies (either via email, or push notification). You'll also be able to save bookmarks and upvote posts to show your appreciation to other community members.
With your input, this post could be even better 💗
Register Login