Supercharging E36's or Z3's

[Kass 0]

Has anyone supercharged a Z3 1.9 or E36 equivalent. I've read articles on the Downing Atlanta supercharges which sound impressive but I haven't read about any Z3’s here in NZ being supercharged. Downing Atlanta and KO supercharges are expensive (and I’m not sure if they are compatible with European built cars) are there any good alternatives available locally and who are the best people to get these done here in NZ. I'm just curious. Its probably cheaper to buy a later model but manuals are hard to come by

[Pustis_magee 0]

Havn't heard of those particular brands, i know a guy that turbo'd a 318is with the same engine (m42) and it cost him over $10k but he took everything to the extreme - custom stainless manifold, forged pistons, head work, cams, MoTec ecu etc etc. There was a company from the UK who made turbo kits for BMW called Mossman. They made complete kits and were reasonably priced.

[my_e36 43]

Re-engineer a LHD kit maybe?

[conrod 1]

I've seen an M44 Z3 with a SC conversion,pretty sure we fitted it at a place I was working about 10 years ago.It was a kit that had been imported,I wouldn't recommend trying to get one made locally, always go a kit from a reputable manufacturer, cheaper in the long run, and will enhance rather than detract from the value of your car. It was an Eaton supercharger, and went quite well from memory. Check out this site in OZ, they seem to have a pretty good handle on things.

http://www.bavariacars.com.au/

Edited December 13, 2005 by conrod

[Kass 0]

Thanks for the comments. The Downing Atlanta kit looks the best its around 5K NZD and increases the power from around 140 hp to 215 hp and is supposed to produce a better balanced car than the 2.8 (lighter weight). I have a Z3 and when I have the money I might look at importing it. There is some good info at;

http://downingatlanta.com/da_superchargers_info_new.htm

Including an article in European Car from 1999.

[Dnz 0]

DASC is lame. Why pay so much to S/C a 318? So youd top out the performance at a measly 215hp. You can practically get that with a 325 w/ basic boltons, not to mention a 328.

Engine swap, or buy a faster car. Its just a waste.

Edit: Andrews car is a 323, which is for sale. Excellent condition, plus that would be worth supercharging... OBD2 tho.

Edited December 14, 2005 by Dnz

[conrod 1]

That Downing Atlanta kit looks like the one we fitted, definitely recommend a roots type (Eaton) over a centrifugal blower, as you get good torque increases at the lower end of the rpm scale, which is where you want it with a four cylinder. NZ$5K sounds very reasonable too.

[Kass 0]

Hey, the Z3 is underpowered (everyone knows that) but unless you've got a lot of cash the M's and 3L are too expensive. I'm just after the best options to get the most out of it. I suspect it would cost too much to swap the engine and lead to who knows what problems. So unless you change cars the supercharger seems like an OK option.