M TOY M3

[jeffbebe 1560]

It's a beaut.

[CSET 592]

Gave my seats a once-over in the weekend. Both front seats were looking very shiny in comparison to the rears; so much that they looked like a different material!

A big thanks to central3 (Paul) for pointing me to the right product and telling me how to use it!

1 box Lux soap flakes: $6 from pak n save:

Pre-soap flakes:

Post-soap flakes:

The results speak for themselves. I only used a tablespoonful for 2l of hot water – not much indeed.

The dull sheen really came up after cleaning off the soap from the leather & buffing with a clean, dry terry towel.

[Mark 178]

Looks fantastic. How do you apply the soap flakes / water mix... just with a cloth?

Might give this a go on the E34's shiny leather.

[CSET 592]

Looks fantastic. How do you apply the soap flakes / water mix... just with a cloth?

Might give this a go on the E34's shiny leather.

Yes, I used central3's original instructions as follows (the only change is the 2nd bucket!); soak a clean terry cloth, then wring out all the excess. Have a 2nd bucket with clean hot water & terry cloth ready soaking, and a 3rd dry terry cloth.

Buff the seats one at a time. Take your time to get each sq-in of leather. Then clean off the excess with the damp, clean terry before buffing dry. It's the last stage where you see the matte sheen really come out.

I was surprised by the amount of grime and sh*t that came out of my supposedly clean seats (I clean them regularly with 'leather cleaner' product - never again). I reiterate - you only need 1 tablespoonful of the soap flakes for 2l of hot water.

Good luck!

[camera doctor 25]

Post-soap flakes:

Love the after look.

I hate when car yards cover every inch of a cars interior with shiny liquid

There is a car on TradeMe at the moment that I am 80% keen on, but the photos show that it has had the shiny treatment, puts me off even going to look at it

[euroriffic 612]

Looks like a great result! Better do mine soon

[CSET 592]

Hi everyone. About time for an update, as I've received a few things in the post!

A big thanks to Mac at FortyOne for the intake - didn't take long at all to be shipped in from the USA. Fitted up last weekend with the help of my unbelievably patient wife:

Excuse the dirty plenum, its actually powder from my gloves. Nowhere seems to sell good powder-less disposable gloves off the shelf.

Really seems to rev out easier in the higher gears (3rd up) - however this may be a placebo from the added racket!

And look what's arrived from Germany, about 15 weeks early! Still waiting on the rears to show up, then it's time to hunt for some good tyres. I'll keep the daily wheels for now as spares - they're only a few months old, and unmarked.

I also got into yakking with Seth the other day. The daily is like an oven in direct sunlight, so before long I'd booked in the daily to get some light front tints to match the rears. Ahem

So checking in with the many-times-revised to do list. Glad to say it's looking quite short now!

COMPLETED:

Bumper plinth

Replace wheels & tyres

Front spoiler

Radar detector hard-wired

Tinted glass & roof wrap

Replace gearknob to metal M5

Repaint HK speaker covers

Intake

YET TO DO:

- Tyres: Michelin PSS or Conti’s? These seem to be the best two options, although I've heard Toyos are good too.

- Suspension: I really like the H&R springs, but as it’s not a daily anymore I can probably get away with some good coilovers. Thanks to Tom & others, I have every real option under my nose!

- Repaint s/w plastic – this weekend’s job. I've touched it up, but not 100% happy. Really needs a respray. I've been putting off removing the air bag, mainly because I’m a sook. I had thought about replacing the entire wheel, but once I cleaned it up with Lux flakes it came up like new ('M' stitching and all).

GENERAL FIXES:

Rear subframe fixed May12

Starter motor reconditioned Sep12

Spare key remote fixed Nov12

Gear lever play fixed Jun13

Bushes replaced Jul13

Belts replaced Jul13

Oil release value replaced Jul13

[euroriffic 612]

Looking good! Was going to make an airbox box of simillar design for my m3 but using a fram filter as they're not oiled like the KnN ones. Had just the filter on the other week and sounded amaaaiiizing!!! So I know what youl be hearing now haha!

[hybrid 1044]

Those new wheels are going to look brilliant quite a performance upgrade from your rep wheels you have at the mo.

Nice work!

[CSET 592]

Those new wheels are going to look brilliant quite a performance upgrade from your rep wheels you have at the mo.

Nice work!

Thanks mate, they're bloody light, especially in comparison to the original Work 20's!

Edited July 29, 2013 by CSET

[CSET 592]

Looking good! Was going to make an airbox box of simillar design for my m3 but using a fram filter as they're not oiled like the KnN ones. Had just the filter on the other week and sounded amaaaiiizing!!! So I know what youl be hearing now haha!

Fram filter? I was a little concerned about the oiled filter, but figure as long as I don't go mad re-oiling every 10kms it'll be ok. I did pick up a cleaning/re-oiling kit the other day, it was around $50 I think.

[euroriffic 612]

Yea fram do a "air hog" panel and pod filter, ment to be a high flow performance filter. BnT and maybe repco sell them

[Tristan 338]

Awesome!!

So jealous of the wheels

Can't wait to see them fitted up !!

[E30 325i Rag-Top 2963]

I thought the new wheels were for the track, not daily use??

You would certainly feel the benefit of the lighter wheel & less un-sprung weight on the track... ;-)

[Michael. 2313]

Fram filter? I was a little concerned about the oiled filter, but figure as long as I don't go mad re-oiling every 10kms it'll be ok. I did pick up a cleaning/re-oiling kit the other day, it was around $50 I think.

Yeah I wondered about using the oil filter too... but it's only usually an issue with MAF or Kaman Vortex type air flow sensors that can get covered in the oil over time affecting their performances - Not sure this is relevant to the S54 however?

In my case I actually went for an Injen model air filter. They are a dry type and seem very, very well made with what appears to be a high quality filter substrate. They are well reviewed on the web too.

[mrphil 1]

sweet wheels! did you get them from bmw nz or imported them yourself?

[central3 31]

Looking good Christian - IMO - 20+10mm spacers if you want the guards filled out (cosmetics over function though) - P Zero's for entry level bang for buck - how does the intake sound?

[CSET 592]

Yea fram do a "air hog" panel and pod filter, ment to be a high flow performance filter. BnT and maybe repco sell them

OK thank you I’ll have a look. Will keep an eye on the MAF as part of my normal maintenance – it’s only a couple of inches from the filter, so there’s a high possibility of cloggage.

Awesome!!

So jealous of the wheels

Can't wait to see them fitted up !!

Hehe me too mate! It’ll be some time before I can get good tyres though.

I thought the new wheels were for the track, not daily use??

You would certainly feel the benefit of the lighter wheel & less un-sprung weight on the track... ;-)

That was the original plan Jon, we’ll see! Once I put them on there’s the real possibility I won’t want to take them off again. Chances are I’ll keep the LM reps as spares, as I do not have a spare wheel.

Yeah I wondered about using the oil filter too... but it's only usually an issue with MAF or Kaman Vortex type air flow sensors that can get covered in the oil over time affecting their performances - Not sure this is relevant to the S54 however?

In my case I actually went for an Injen model air filter. They are a dry type and seem very, very well made with what appears to be a high quality filter substrate. They are well reviewed on the web too.

Injen sure have a good reputation from what I’ve read, but I honestly didn’t consider them a real option – mainly because I didn’t know where to find ‘em! I’d be keen to have a nosey at yours sometime? The MAF is bloody close to the filter, so it is a real chance of clogging up. I’ll keep an eye on it. After a few spirited runs around the place it seems ok – but time will tell!

Looking good Christian - IMO - 20+10mm spacers if you want the guards filled out (cosmetics over function though) - P Zero's for entry level bang for buck - how does the intake sound?

Thank you mate! I’m a bit anxious on spacers, having come from 10.5’s in the rear that rubbed when cornering hard. That said, I’m also partial to good aesthetics! I’ll mount ‘em up and have a look – do you know where I could find some good 5x120 spacers to try out?

The exhaust is so bloody loud that I haven’t noticed as much difference as I expected. It sounds a bit deeper, if anything? Certainly not the same change in pitch as throwing an aluminium pipe on a b18c! It seems to rev out a bit easier in the higher gears, but this may be a placebo.

[M3_Power 636]

Word of warning on mounting tyres on the CSL rims ... the inner beading catch on the CSL rims is basically like a Runflat rim - i.e. it is bloody high - so if you put steel belted tyres on expect your average tyre shop to scratch the crap out of the rims.

Find a good shop that can mount runflat tyres (preferrably a shop with a Hoffman machine or better).

There's a reason that BMW spec'd the CSL rims with the Michelin Sport Cup tyres as it's Kevlar belt construction and goes on easy (but doesn't come off easy mind you - I actually think they are designed to be cut off the rim LOL given how difficult they are to take off).

But yes expect damage to the rims with your average local tyre shops even with the best skilled tyre fitters!!

Good news is I have the actual paint for these rims - a big 1 litre tin ... LOL

Edited July 30, 2013 by M3_Power

[CSET 592]

Word of warning on mounting tyres on the CSL rims ... the inner beading catch on the CSL rims is basically like a Runflat rim - i.e. it is bloody high - so if you put steel belted tyres on expect your average tyre shop to scratch the crap out of the rims.

Find a good shop that can mount runflat tyres (preferrably a shop with a Hoffman machine or better).

There's a reason that BMW spec'd the CSL rims with the Michelin Sport Cup tyres as it's Kevlar belt construction and goes on easy (but doesn't come off easy mind you - I actually think they are designed to be cut off the rim LOL given how difficult they are to take off).

But yes expect damage to the rims with your average local tyre shops even with the best skilled tyre fitters!!

Good news is I have the actual paint for these rims - a big 1 litre tin ... LOL

This advice is worth it's weight in gold - thank you very much! Any tips on where's good to mount, that have a Hoffman machine? Is there a possibility I could go shares in that 1l tin? Haha!

[Tristan 338]

How much would one be looking at for an intake set up? Would you recommend it after going down that track?

Is it difficult to install?

Apologies for the barrage of questions!

Nice one on pointing that out, Tom! It would be gutting to see your brand new genuine CSL wheels damaged before even driving them

[CSET 592]

How much would one be looking at for an intake set up? Would you recommend it after going down that track?

Is it difficult to install?

Apologies for the barrage of questions!

Nice one on pointing that out, Tom! It would be gutting to see your brand new genuine CSL wheels damaged before even driving them

Hi mate, a bit early in the piece to do a decent review. The kit fits up flush, easy to install with the right tools (2hrs max), and the heatshield with it's rubber surround looks relatively stock. In terms of performance, K&N swear by a horsepower gain of +/- 17hp from memory. This isn't noticeable to my untrained butt-dyno. It does seem to rev out smoother/easier however. I'll have a better feel in a couple of months-worth of driving, so will chat then.

[Michael. 2313]

Injen sure have a good reputation from what I’ve read, but I honestly didn’t consider them a real option – mainly because I didn’t know where to find ‘em! I’d be keen to have a nosey at yours sometime? The MAF is bloody close to the filter, so it is a real chance of clogging up. I’ll keep an eye on it. After a few spirited runs around the place it seems ok – but time will tell!

Yeah, I had a K&N for a while, not being happy with the oil type design I spent a while searching for something suitable that had a fine dry substrate... seems nearly everything is an oil type filter and of course theres bugger all range available in NZ online.

Eventually I found suppliers for Injen on Ebay, Got one shipped in for $120-130 nzd or whereabouts. Definitely recommended!

Ebay - Injen Nano

I guess in your case, see how it goes, any adverse effects to the MAF & I'd stop using it immediately.

[M3_Power 636]

This advice is worth it's weight in gold - thank you very much! Any tips on where's good to mount, that have a Hoffman machine? Is there a possibility I could go shares in that 1l tin? Haha!

The only place I know of that has a working Hoffman machine is in Hamilton (they are apparently over $80K to buy) - the one that was in Auckland is broken now. I have heard a rumor there's a guy with one in a big truck that goes around prestige vehicle places to mount tyres (still trying to find out who he is) - he apparently has a pretty trick machine.

I am lead to believe although have not confirmed that Michelin in Newmarket might have something very similar that can mount without damage. Otherwise ask where the GTR guys are getting their 20 inch runflats mounted.

Edited July 31, 2013 by M3_Power

[Tristan 338]

Road trip