Herbmiester

I have learned a lot about E90/92s in the past few months and I am not as worried now as I was. Yes there is plenty to go wrong but in my case the solutions were quite straightforward, but I guess that's easy to say in hindsight especially as I tried to fix everything else probably knowing what the actual issue was. The reward is in my case good horsepower in a pretty good chassis. If this maintenance burden is too much and I do understand if it is, then the options are Japan and for a little while longer Australia.

Personally I think this is good as it puts the established sports/performance car makers on notice. It will of course struggle to erode the brand cachet that European manufacturers have. However the good thing about the Euro manufacturers is the emergence of more affordable performance cars, M2, CLA and RS3. I think we are in such a great time for affordably quick cars especially in NZ as we can get second hand 335is for $20K, Nissan GTRS for 70k and 996 911's for less than 40k.

I find it quite interesting just how quick the Nissan GTR's are. For such a big heavy car they can set some pretty spectacular lap times. Also the Camaro Z28 's is quite outstanding, sure it has a 7l engine and 305 tyres up front but for a car that based on the Holden Commodore it moves.

So I post up something that could stimulate a bit of chat about fast cars.

While lap times will vary day to day it is still useful to judge where cars sit in the big scheme of things. Also you will see that some cars were tested in the same year that means they were tested at the same time as this is based on an annual event.

The US is hot perhaps the 335is was heat affected, pulled timing etc. Day it was tested could have been a lot warmer. The N54 is not heat tolerant for long lap stints. Edit just noticed the 335is was 2012 so probably an N55. It could have been tyres? It's a big track and small things make big differences on big tracks.

Some 2016 Lap times, The new Camaro SS 1LE did it in 2.54 and the 1LE V6 did it in 3.04, the M4 GTS did it in 2.53. The Mustang GT350 2.52, BMW M2 3.01, Ferrari 488 GTB 2.45.

Below are the Lap times for various cars tested by Car and Driver Magazine from 2006 to 2015. The track is Virginia international Raceway and the track is 4.1 miles long. Some very interesting lap times and some suposedly fast cars that perhaps are not quite so fast as we may think. The coloured blocks relate to where Car & Driver put them based on their category, price etc. 1 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder 2:43.1 2 2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 2:44.6 3 2015 McLaren 650S Spider 2:45.8 4 2009 Mosler MT900S 2:45.9 5 2015 Lamborghini Huracán LP610-4 2:47.5 6 2008 Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR coupe 2:48.6 7 2015 Nissan GT-R NISMO 2:49.4 8 2012 Mosler Photon 2:49.8 9 2014 SRT Viper TA 2:49.9 10 2012 Ferrari 458 Italia 2:49.9 11 2015 Porsche 911 GT3 2:50.4 12 2012 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 2:50.7 13 2014 Ferrari F12berlinetta 2:50.8 14 2015 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 2:50.9 15 2016 Mercedes-AMG GT S 2:51.0 16 2014 Porsche 911 Turbo S 2:51.2 17 2010 Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera 2:51.8 18 2009 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 2:51.8 19 2009 KTM X-Bow 2:52.3 20 2012 Nissan GT-R 2:53.2 21 2011 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 2:53.5 22 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray 2:53.8 23 2010 Lamborghini Murciélago LP670-4 SV 2:53.9 24 2008 Ferrari 430 Scuderia 2:54.6 25 2012 Lexus LFA 2:55.1 26 2009 Nissan GT-R 2:55.6 27 2011 Porsche 911 GT3 RS 2:55.9 28 2016 Cadillac CTS-V 2:56.8 29 2008 Dodge Viper SRT10 2:57.4 30 2014 Audi R8 V-10 Plus 2:57.5 31 2013 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 2:57.5 32 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo S 2:57.5 33 2009 Ariel Atom 3 2:57.6 34 2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Black Series 2:58.0 35 2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG 2:58.0 36 2007 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 2:58.2 37 2010 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport 2:58.8 38 2013 Porsche 911 Carrera S 2:58.9 39 2009 Nissan GT-R (all-season tires) 2:59.0 40 2014 Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG 2:59.1 41 2014 Jaguar XKR-S GT 2:59.1 42 2015 Mercedes-AMG C63 S 2:59.2 43 2016 Cadillac ATS-V coupe 2:59.2 44 2010 Audi R8 5.2 FSI Quattro 2:59.5 45 2016 Cadillac ATS-V sedan 2:59.8 46 2014 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG S-model 3:00.1 47 2013 Ford Shelby GT500 3:00.6 48 2015 BMW M4 3:00.7 49 2012 Porsche Panamera Turbo S 3:00.7 50 2006 Ford GT 3:00.7 51 2015 Jaguar F-type R coupe 3:01.0 52 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 3:01.1 53 2008 Chevrolet Corvette Z51 3:01.2 54 2013 Chevrolet Camaro SS 1LE 3:01.5 55 2006 Dodge Viper SRT10 coupe 3:01.6 56 2007 Porsche 911 GT3 3:01.8 57 2013 Jaguar XKR-S 3:02.1 58 2014 Porsche Cayman S 3:02.6 59 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 Laguna Seca 3:02.8 60 2014 Audi RS7 3:03.0 61 2007 Chevrolet Corvette Z51 3:03.6 62 2011 Porsche Boxster Spyder 3:03.8 63 2012 Porsche Cayman R 3:03.9 64 2011 Ford Shelby GT500 3:04.0 65 2009 Cadillac CTS-V 3:04.0 66 2013 Porsche Boxster S 3:04.2 67 2011 Cadillac CTS-V coupe 3:04.2 68 2013 Audi RS5 3:04.3 69 2007 Lotus Exige S 3:04.5 70 2007 Audi R8 3:04.6 71 2013 BMW M6 3:04.7 72 2012 Audi TT RS 3:04.8 73 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS63 AMG 3:04.9 74 2009 Lotus Exige S 260 Sport 3:05.0 75 2015 Ford Mustang GT 3:05.2 76 2013 BMW M5 3:05.2 77 2012 Lotus Evora S 3:05.3 78 2011 Lexus IS F 3:05.4 79 2009 BMW M3 3:05.4 80 2008 BMW M3 3:05.6 81 2015 Lexus RC F 3:05.8 82 2009 Porsche 911 Carrera S 3:05.8 83 2009 Porsche Cayman S 3:05.8 84 2007 Porsche 911 Turbo 3:05.8 85 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG 3:05.9 86 2007 Ford Shelby GT500 3:05.9 87 2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG coupe 3:06.3 88 2010 Jaguar XKR 3:06.4 89 2008 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG 3:06.5 90 2011 BMW 1-series M 3:06.6 91 2014 Jaguar XFR-S 3:06.7 92 2014 Cadillac CTS Vsport 3:06.8 93 2011 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG 3:06.9 94 2014 BMW M235i 3:07.2 95 2010 Ford Shelby GT500 3:07.4 96 2011 Lotus Evora 3:08.3 97 2009 Audi TTS 3:08.4 98 2011 Ford Mustang GT 3:08.6 99 2015 Alfa Romeo 4C 3:08.8 100 2011 Jaguar XFR 3:08.9 101 2006 Lotus Elise 3:09.2 102 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z51 3:09.3 103 2012 Dodge Challenger SRT8 392 3:09.4 104 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS 3:09.5 105 2006 Porsche Cayman S 3:09.5 106 2013 Audi S6 3:09.8 107 2006 BMW M6 3:10.0 108 2012 Dodge Charger SRT8 3:10.1 109 2012 BMW Z4 sDrive35is 3:10.4 110 2015 Subaru WRX STI 3:10.5 111 2007 BMW 335i coupe 3:10.5 112 2010 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution SE 3:10.6 113 2010 Audi S4 3:10.8 114 2007 Ford Shelby GT500 3:11.0 115 2012 BMW X5 M 3:11.1 116 2007 Audi RS4 3:11.2 117 2015 Audi S3 3:11.2 118 2007 BMW Z4 M coupe 3:11.7 119 2009 Nissan 370Z NISMO 3:12.0 120 2015 Volkswagen Golf R 3:12.3 121 2011 Ford Mustang V-6 3:12.5 122 2006 Nissan 350Z Track 3:12.5 123 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt SS 3:13.0 124 2012 BMW 335i Sport Line 3:13.2 125 2010 Ford Mustang GT 3:13.3 126 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution MR 3:13.3 127 2014 Lexus IS350 F Sport 3:13.4 128 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution MR 3:13.5 129 2008 BMW 135i 3:13.7 130 2012 BMW 335is 3:13.8 131 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX STI sedan 3:13.8 132 2011 Hyundai Genesis Coupe 3.8 R-spec 3:13.8 133 2013 Hyundai Genesis Coupe 3.8 R-spec 3:13.9 134 2012 Volkswagen Golf R 3:14.0 135 2008 Lexus IS F 3:14.0 136 2015 Volkswagen GTI 3:14.6 137 2008 Audi S5 3:14.6 138 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe 3.8 3:14.8 139 2008 Honda S2000 CR 3:15.0 140 2015 Mini John Cooper Works Hardtop 3:15.4 141 2015 Subaru WRX 3:15.5 142 2015 Ford Mustang EcoBoost 3:15.6 143 2007 Pontiac Solstice GXP 3:15.7 144 2007 Mazdaspeed 3 3:16.0 145 2010 Mazdaspeed 3 3:16.2 146 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8 3:16.3 147 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX Sedan 3:16.5 148 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX 3:16.6 149 2008 Lotus Elise SC 3:16.6 150 2010 Mazda RX-8 R3 3:16.7 151 2009 Mini Cooper JCW 3:17.1 152 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 3:17.4 153 2008 Infiniti G37S 3:17.5 154 2014 Ford Focus ST 3:17.6 155 2013 Dodge Charger Pursuit 3:17.8 156 2006 Dodge Charger SRT8 3:18.2 157 2012 Mini Cooper Coupe JCW 3:18.4 158 2013 Subaru BRZ 3:18.6 159 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI 3:19.0 160 2006 Mazda RX-8 3:19.0 161 2015 Volkswagen GTI 3:19.3 162 2010 Volkswagen GTI 3:19.3 163 2014 Ford Fiesta ST 3:20.4 164 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt SS Supercharged 3:20.6 165 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata Club 3:20.8 166 2008 Dodge Caliber SRT4 3:20.8 167 2006 Ford Mustang GT 3:20.9 168 2013 Ford Focus ST 3:21.4 169 2008 Volkswagen R32 3:21.8 170 2007 Mini Cooper S 3:22.9 171 2013 Chevrolet Caprice PPV 3:23.0 172 2012 Honda Civic Si 3:24.1 173 2008 Honda Civic Si Mugen 3:24.8 174 2007 Volkswagen GTI 3:25.1 175 2006 Honda Civic Si 3:26.5 176 2008 Volvo C30 Version 2.0 3:26.6 177 2013 Fiat 500 Abarth 3:27.3 178 2012 Volkswagen Jetta GLI 3:27.3 179 2006 Mazda MX-5 3:29.3 180 2015 Honda Fit EX 3:37.7

Thanks for that interesting reading, I knew about the E diff and turning it off if you have an LSD but the other settings are interesting to say the least.

I am traction limited. Since I uploaded the Stage 1+ MHD tune to the 335i I see the DSC light up with regularity. It has got to the point that even doing 80kph on a wet road flooring the accelerator will result in a quick shimmy and a flash of the DSC light. The MHD tune gives more top end power for sure but the torque and mid range power levels are where the real story is. I am starting to see why the N54 is so highly regarded by tuners; it hits hard from 2000 rpm upwards and while an N/A car builds revs the MHD tuned engine is already belting out some serious power. Throttle response is the best I have ever seen on a turbo car and even the Ford Barra 6 turbo which is a torque monster doesn't have the same instant response. Anyway I feel an LSD is now on the cards, I am thinking of an M Factory Helical style but they also offer a plate model for similar money but I haven't found a lot of detail on their plate models. If anyone has used an M Factory diff or perhaps a Wave Track let me know your experiences.

YEs I noticed how prominent the pump noise was when I flashed the other day. My first flash did not work and the car wouldn't start so I reflashed the factory map then started from scratch again. It worked fine second time around. Anyway perhaps try flashing the original factory map and see what happens. (After the battery is sorted).

M sport badges 330s are bait for 335i's that didn't come with them.

So I have the Stage 1 + 95 octane tune installed. There is a noticeable difference especially in the mid range. Up top it feels a bit stronger but not to the same extent it does in the mid range, (2500-4000 rpm) Throttle response seems a bit sharper as well. The tune has really woken the car up but as usual when you get a taste of something you want more. I have a set of downpipes that are recommended for Stage 2 so I might get those installed in the next few weeks. Has anyone had a dyno run with Stage 1 + or stage 2?

Going to the States in a few months, I might pick up an R1. Very cheap compared to NZ prices for detectors.

Looks like a great time sorry I missed it, good to the 330 in action

E46 is a very nice car missing mine already.

I have a 2007 E92 Auto and I have just flashed the MHD stage 1+ 95 Ron tune. I have new plugs my intake ports have had a clean (Not convinced it was that well done) I have a bigger intercooler and a ERW charge pipe. I have not logged yet but its smooth and noticeably quicker. Now when the I put my foot down the shift from 1st to 2nd sets of the DSC. Maybe time for an LSD.

Hard luck but you would not be alone with this type of crash, I hope it's fixable.

So true

If you buy a 325i you may regret not spending a few extra dollars and getting a 330i.

Has anyone done a side by side comparison on these two tyres. The RE003 seems to occupy that space where you get a very good tyre for not too much cash, sure there are better tyres Contact Sports, Pilot Sports etc but they cost quite a bit more. Where does the Dragon Sport sit?

Just do it, and make a video as well

Pretty stuffed but Diff, interior brakes etc would be nice. https://www.turners.co.nz/Damaged-Vehicles/Damaged-Cars-for-Sale/bmw/m-series/16426948

Style 194's are a nice rim, I bet they would look nice on an E46.

Good advice guys please keep the discussion going.