Jake's Epic BMW 135i Build Thread! (5+ Years of Ownership)

[straight6pwr]

before i spout something I shouldnt, did Corbeau pay you in anyway in exchange for your review?

[REKIII]

Does anyone make a CF replacement roof skin for the 1 series?  Might be a better and cooler mod than just a sunroof skin.  A friend did this to his e39.  It was a lot of work but the weight savings was more than just a delete, and anything you can do to lower the COG is money well spent, almost as valuable as unsprung weight removal.

Cool seats BTW.

[Jdesign]

REKIII said:

Does anyone make a CF replacement roof skin for the 1 series?  Might be a better and cooler mod than just a sunroof skin.  A friend did this to his e39.  It was a lot of work but the weight savings was more than just a delete, and anything you can do to lower the COG is money well spent, almost as valuable as unsprung weight removal.

Cool seats BTW.

This is almost the exact comment I was going to make.

[suspenceful]

straight6pwr said:

before i spout something I shouldnt, did Corbeau pay you in anyway in exchange for your review?

Someone didn't watch the video

I explained that I was given a discount, but was intending to purchase anyways. I reached out to them with a sponsorship proposal asking if they'd hook me up with these seats and brackets. They agreed to a partial sponsorship; 10% off up front and an additional discount if I liked the seats enough to share content around them.

REKIII said:

Does anyone make a CF replacement roof skin for the 1 series?  Might be a better and cooler mod than just a sunroof skin.  A friend did this to his e39.  It was a lot of work but the weight savings was more than just a delete, and anything you can do to lower the COG is money well spent, almost as valuable as unsprung weight removal.

Cool seats BTW.

In an ideal world, I'd love to! It seems like there are a few options available:

https://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-399095-f82-135i-1m-roof-replacement-1x1-weave/

https://www.revozport.com/product/1m-raze/1m-coupe/1m-raze-lightweight-roof-panel/

https://ind-distribution.com/products/rkp-e82-carbon-fiber-roof-panel

All at $1,500... which is out of my budget and out of my installation comfort zone. Between the 3 sites, they claim a 8 - 24lb weight savings (not including the sunroof). Not sure why the range is so large.

The sunroof weighs about 35 lbs, so I will save that weight for a fraction of the price with the CF delete panel.

[straight6pwr]

suspenceful said:

Someone didn't watch the video

"an additional discount if I liked the seats enough to share content around them."

i didnt watch the whole video. i stopped after "Corbeau hooked me up with these seats" because i really didnt want to watch an advertisement. 

it's getting really old having to tray and decipher if a youtube creator's opinion is bogus because they were paid instead of just trusting them.   do they have to approve your content before giving you the discount? you are great at content creation and cinematography and they've realized they dont have to pay you real $$$$ for a real commercial because youtube creators are willing to sell their credibility for a couple hundred bucks. /oldmanrant

on a happier note - thank you for using very descriptive and non-"click bait" titles!

[suspenceful]

straight6pwr said:

i didnt watch the whole video. i stopped after "Corbeau hooked me up with these seats" because i really didnt want to watch an advertisement. 

it's getting really old having to tray and decipher if a youtube creator's opinion is bogus because they were paid instead of just trusting them.   do they have to approve your content before giving you the discount? you are great at content creation and cinematography and they've realized they dont have to pay you real $$$$ for a real commercial because youtube creators are willing to sell their credibility for a couple hundred bucks. /oldmanrant

on a happier note - thank you for using very descriptive and non-"click bait" titles!

A good content creator will disclose a relationship to a product/vendor like I try to. I am not a sellout and I only work with companies or products that I would buy otherwise. I'm sure some other content creators would be fine doing so, but I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I was promoting a product I didn't stand behind. Hell, I exploited expensive MMP products that I got a discount on saying I wouldn't recommend them. MMP got pissed off and re-designed their whole product line. I got emails yesterday asking if I'd be interested in working with Carly app and eManualsOnline, just name my price. I declined because I'm not interested in either of those products.

No, Corbeau didn't have to approve any of my content. I told them what my reach is and what I could do for them and then they gave the initial 10% discount. I sent them links to all of the content today (2 days after posting), and they said they ran a refund for another 30%. We're both happy, and they said they'd be interested in working together when I'm ready to get harnesses.

I'm an open book and have nothing to hide. Trust me, I get scrutinized all the time because of my content. It's part of the game when you open yourself up to public opinion. The amount of hate I get in comments is unreal, you'd be surprised how many people find the smallest things to pick you apart on. I just roll through it because I have a ton of awesome supporters who enjoy reading/watching.

[B C]

I find entertainment in observing the evolution of the car towards complete insanity

[suspenceful]

Well, I went back to the drag strip the other day. Made a decent shakedown pass, well on my way to setting a personal best.

Then I snapped an axle. This is the 3rd stock axle that I've snapped.

I'm sick of throwing junkyard axles in it and driving like I'm on glass, so I decided it's time to give the car the parts it really needs.

• MFactory LSD
• DSS axles
• BMS differential brace
• Powerflex differential bushings: front & rear
• BimmerWorld solid rear subframe mounts
• BimmerWorld adjustable rear toe arms
• ECS performance rear trailing arms
• BimmerWorld rear trailing arm bearings
• M3 rear wishbone kit
• M3 rear guide rod kit
• BimmerWorld rear camber arm bearing kit (inner)
• OEM rear camber arm bushings (outer)
• OEM rear shock mounts (lower)
• M3 front control arm kit
• BimmerWorld M3 front control arm bearing upgrade
• Front tie rod kit
• Rear calipers (15" conversion): left & right
• Rear brake rotors (15" conversion)
• Rear brake pads (15" conversion)
• Stainless brake set screws
• 3 series rear hub (x2)
• Rear wheel bearing kit (x2)
• APEX ARC-8 17x9" ET42 rear wheels
• Forgestar F14 15x10" ET44 rear wheels
• 1M-style front bumper
• Deka 17lb battery
• SAE battery terminal conversion kit
• Macht Schnell battery enclosure
• Carbon fiber door panels
• Seibon carbon fiber hood & trunk
• Carbon fiber sunroof delete
• VAC rollbar
• Custom F-series style headlights

A lot of content coming soon... will try to break down every install into it's own post. If you haven't already, please subscribe to my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/jakespence135?sub_confirmation=1

I'm also going to gut most of the car, but still make it presentable. Work in progress.

Goal is to have the car completely set up and ready by Sept 20th for NFZ 1/2 mile event.

[B C]

Exciting update!

Do you preload the drivetrain before launching?

[suspenceful]

B C said:

Exciting update!

Do you preload the drivetrain before launching? 

I half-ass pre-loaded it for my 10.90 pass, but didn't at this outing. Too many things going on and I didn't do it. Turning two cameras on, talking to the cameras, turn on my Dragy and start capturing data, open my tuning app and start a datalog, turn traction control off, worry about cutting a good light in competition, etc.

[SteelBlue]

Is that entire list of parts in your last post all stuff you recently purchased? That must have been an entire warehouse worth of packages on your front door.

I think Drew had said something about some of this stuff awhile back, but maybe that was other things.

Trunk sound deadening and such removed?

[B C]

What are those things under the seats that look like Celica-Supra wheels?

[GunMetalGrey]

Finally diving off the deep end I see! 
I look forward to seeing all of the boxes show up! Should be plenty of work.
If you are getting rid of your current ARC - 8's I may just know a guy...

If I had to take a guess I would guess that Bimmerworld jumped on-board in some capacity?

[suspenceful]

SteelBlue said:

Is that entire list of parts in your last post all stuff you recently purchased? That must have been an entire warehouse worth of packages on your front door.

I think Drew had said something about some of this stuff awhile back, but maybe that was other things.

Trunk sound deadening and such removed?

Half of it showed up already, but it continues to flood in.

Everything has been removed in the rear except for the parcel shelf and the glued on sound deadening, etc. I am going to try to find some dry ice or freeze spray to break off that stuff.

B C said:

What are those things under the seats that look like Celica-Supra wheels? 

The factory subwoofers. One thing I don't want to give up, a perfectly good sound system.

GunMetalGrey said:

Finally diving off the deep end I see! 
I look forward to seeing all of the boxes show up! Should be plenty of work.
If you are getting rid of your current ARC - 8's I may just know a guy...

If I had to take a guess I would guess that Bimmerworld jumped on-board in some capacity? 

Yup! BimmerWorld is sponsoring some parts and I will say I'm impressed with the quality of everything so far. Excited to get things installed.

As far as the ARC-8s, we could probably work something out. I'm not changing the fronts... but if we struck a proper deal, I might be persuaded to get 1M-style front fenders and more concave front wheels.

[YoungCR]

Impressive! Excited to see this launch like a rocket

[suspenceful]

YoungCR said:

Impressive! Excited to see this launch like a rocket

My driving still needs some work, but I'm excited for it to improve!

[B C]

Do you still daily drive it at all?

[suspenceful]

B C said:

Do you still daily drive it at all?

Yeah, I drive it to work or around town all of the time when the weather is nice.

[Jdesign]

Awesome man! I personally cant wait to see it all back together. Its come a long way and Im sure its going to be even more epic than it already is. 

[suspenceful]

I'm gonna be a tease here. I've posted some stuff on IG and YT, but haven't done much on the forums. The car went under the knife and I installed every single part (and more) from the list in one of my previous posts. I've been so busy in the garage and at the track that I haven't been posting much. Here is a picture and some video until I'm able to put together solid content.