2002 E46 M3 // Build Thread
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All videos with really good sounding S54s are deepfakes of an E36 M3 with a pitch adjustment /s
It is entirely possible to have a great sounding S54 but I have yet to find a quiet setup that sounds good enough to spend money on. Loud enough to actually hear it while driving but quiet enough to hear the induction sound and not be a nuissance.
When you see inside the stock muffler its a bit baffling at how they arrived at such a design.
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All videos with really good sounding S54s are deepfakes of an E36 M3 with a pitch adjustment /s
It is entirely possible to have a great sounding S54 but I have yet to find a quiet setup that sounds good enough to spend money on. Loud enough to actually hear it while driving but quiet enough to hear the induction sound and not be a nuissance.
When you see inside the stock muffler its a bit baffling at how they arrived at such a design.
Most of the nice sounding ones are running catless headers+resonators with an aftermarket muffler and are just stupid loud. It seems that adding back quieter mufflers just seems to cut the noise but maintain the rasp, which is exactly what I would want to get away from. I wonder if going to quad resonators, x-pipe, catless headers, and a moderately quiet muffler would be the solution?
Have any pics of said muffler guts?
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Most of the nice sounding ones are running catless headers+resonators with an aftermarket muffler and are just stupid loud. It seems that adding back quieter mufflers just seems to cut the noise but maintain the rasp, which is exactly what I would want to get away from. I wonder if going to quad resonators, x-pipe, catless headers, and a moderately quiet muffler would be the solution?
Have any pics of said muffler guts?
note the perforated pipes
Interestingly the Z4M seems to have better luck with muffler options that sound good.
The stock exhaust sound isnt BAD, it is unique if not just a little bit exotic, but it isnt a sound that gives James May a fizzing sensation.
The risk comes with modified exhaust as you can really ruin it, making it worse than stock.
@pynacl I wish you godspeed, just not a Godspeed exhaust
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note the perforated pipes
Interestingly the Z4M seems to have better luck with muffler options that sound good.
The stock exhaust sound isnt BAD, it is unique if not just a little bit exotic, but it isnt a sound that gives James May a fizzing sensation.
The risk comes with modified exhaust as you can really ruin it, making it worse than stock.
@pynacl I wish you godspeed, just not a Godspeed exhaust
Totally agree with what you and @P_Roloff said that it’s so hard to find a great sound that won’t rattle peoples brains around you. I’m going to just keep experimenting until I get it just right. For me it’s a weekend spirited driving toy, so a lil too loud is okay, long as I’m not upsetting the neighbors. If I tweak anything from that video clip, it’d be a larger muffler to bring the volume down. From what I’ve read a majority of the rasp can be eliminated further up the exhaust and the muffler is more of a volume control device, but I might not be correct on that. But I promise not to rice this car out and won’t stop until it sounds great lol!
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But I promise to rice this car out
Nice. Just what everyone wanted to hear.
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Nice. Just what everyone wanted to hear.
PVC wing was on back order but I got a screaming deal on these sick maxpeedingrods coilovers. They sound fast.
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Pedals always seemed silly to me, mostly because i'd never tried anything different than factory ones. After getting to feel some Turner ones that were on @B C M3, I caved and bought some. Also I'm in desperate need of an interior deep clean please don't internet bully me
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Which trans oil did you use? I tried Redline MTL, Redline D4 ATF, Pentosin MTF-2 (supposedly OE spec fluid), and Bimmerworld’s recommendation Redline MT-LV. MT-LV was the best experience followed by Pentosin MTF-2 as a close 2nd.
Life gets better after removing the CDV
Sell me your F30
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Which trans oil did you use? I tried Redline MTL, Redline D4 ATF, Pentosin MTF-2 (supposedly OE spec fluid), and Bimmerworld’s recommendation Redline MT-LV. MT-LV was the best experience followed by Pentosin MTF-2 as a close 2nd.
Life gets better after removing the CDV
Sell me your F30
I ended up doing what I think is the wrong thing and used Redline ATF lol. It feels pretty good to me, but I’ll have to checkout the MT-LV next time i swap it.
Also if you’re seriously interested I’m ready to sell it! Doesn’t get driven enough to keep it, think I’ve driven it 3 times this year
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Titan trim sucks. Such cheap build quality it shouldn't have even been an option on these cars. Mine was peeling/bubbling on every panel like you see in the photo below. I took all the pieces out, sanded them down with 200/600 grit, then primered and re-painted. Took me two tries because for whatever reason, if you don't use primer, paint has a strange reaction to the bare material and it'll bubble instantly. I ended up using Dupli-color "Storm Gray", which I believe is a GM color. Closest match I could and honestly would be hard to tell the difference. Seems like factory has a bit more warmer hue to it, but even side-by-side it's really close. Also new trim clip pins are $5 a pop!?
Edit: I want aluminum trim
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Looks good!
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Took @B C advice and downloaded ECUWorx and modified my M3 a bit this afternoon. Most notably disabled top speed limiter, enabled shift lights (flashes all segments at 7.5k RPM) and re-calibrated the warmup light sequence to more reasonable temps that doesn't promote WOT at 140F on those poor RBs. Below is a before / after on what I changed. I wrote up a blog post on how to use the software step by step here if anyone is interested: https://www.pynacl.com/blog/tune-your-e46-m3-yourself. Thanks Brian for your work in discovering and learning to use this software!
Stock:
Final:
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Finally the day has come! Pulled the trigger on tackling the subframe reinforcement as preventative maintenance. This is a project far beyond my skill level, so thank you to Austin Nelson for all his help. Decided I might as well replace just about everything nearby while the subframe is out. Here's a breakdown of what is getting replaced:
- TMS Subframe reinforcement plates
- Revshift 80A subframe bushings
- Revshift 80A differential bushings
- TMS sealed monoball RTABs
- OE differential axle seals
- OE differential input shaft seal
- OE differential center support / bearing
- OE guibo
So far most of the rear end has been removed, making way for gasket/bushing/seal replacement. Still have yet to grind down the factory undercoating to get a good idea of current hairline cracks. A quick shot of the subframe post looks solid though, so fingers crossed everything looks great underneath the undercoating!
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Finally installed the Rogue Engineering stainless clutch line I've had on the shelf for months. Mainly did this to remove the clutch delay valve for a more responsive clutch feel. Job was messy as all hell but a power bleeder made the bleeding process a breeze. Took it for a test drive and it definitely feels more responsive. Not a night and day difference per say, but totally worth it. Frig I love this car
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