E9X M3 Best Upgrades
The E9X M3 has been with us well over a decade now, but if the current used market value is any indication, it’s no less popular among BMW enthusiasts than it was when it was released. Unmolested examples are still fetching surprising prices, but they aren’t skyrocketing like the E36 M3 and E30 M3 before it, which means good, clean, unmodified E9X M3s are waiting to be your next project build or daily driver. Since we’ve had our hands on this generation for quite some time, we’ve managed to gather some excellent information for you E9X M3 owners and prospective buyers, which we’re imparting to you today. This edition of Turner Motorsport Weekly is all about setting up the E9X M3 with a healthy modification list that can retain usability as a daily driver just as well as it can attack a road course. If you have an E9X M3 or are looking at one as your next purchase, this guide is for you. Everything we’d suggest to make a perfect multi-use M3 is right here in the latest weekly read.
| | |  | Engine
Intake
Most folks start their modification journey with an upgraded intake, like aFe Power’s Magnum Force intake system, due to the ease of install and the quick benefits you can experience with a true cold air intake. If you want to read more about intakes in general, we have a helpful article in our old ‘Keys to Performance’ series that can talk more in-depth about why true cold air intakes are important. The short version is cold air intakes both increase the volume of air and decrease restrictions of that airflow to help shove as much of it as possible into the engine. Simultaneously, a well-designed cold air intake separates the hot engine bay air from the intake air to reduce intake air temperatures, thus increasing air density for the greatest air volume possible in each combustion cycle. | | | | |  |
Intake Manifold
Ok, the intake plenum on the individual throttle body setup featured on the S65 V8 is pretty efficient and hard to improve. There are a few existing carbon fiber options on the market that offer cosmetic improvements under the hood, but gaining power here is tough to do. However, we’ve included this upgrade on our list since we’re bringing a brand new carbon fiber intake plenum to market that is currently in testing right now with our R&D team as they try to pull any hidden power from that system. You can expect to see this new plenum on the market in the coming months and, with any luck, we’ll all see some extra performance potential from the S65 with this upgrade.
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Power Pulleys
The accessory pulleys on the S65 drive the water pump, alternator, and A/C compressor effectively, but in doing so, the engine has to spend energy to drive them. This means whatever energy is used to power those accessories is energy not going to your wheels. Turner Motorsport Power Pulleys underdrive those accessories so they continue to work as designed, but the different pulley ratios will allow the engine to spend less energy driving them than the factory pulleys do. With naturally aspirated engines like the S65, every little ounce of wasted energy needs to be gathered to make the most out of the available power, which is exactly what our underdrive pulleys accomplish. | | | | |  |
WPC Treated Rod Bearings
While they aren’t a true ‘performance’ modification, you can’t neglect your S65’s rod bearings, especially if you plan on driving the car hard or upgrading for more power. Like the S54 before it, the S65 has notoriously short-lived rod bearings which can spell disaster for an otherwise perfect car. To protect your engine, proactively upgrade to our WPC Treated Rod Bearings. These bearings improve on the OEM BMW design and are treated to decrease wear and increase the lifespan so you’ll know everything is healthy inside your engine. | | | | |  |
LIQUI MOLY engine flush
We said it before; when it comes to naturally aspirated engine performance, it’s more about being as efficient as you can be with what’s already there rather than easy bolt-on upgrades that add gobs of power. To ensure your aging S65 is pushing all the power it should be, regular oil service and engine cleaning are critical. LIQUI MOLY’s ProLine Engine Flush is hands-down our favorite for easily knocking any potential carbon buildup loose and leaving you with a more efficient engine once it’s all drained out. Simply add a bottle in with your old oil before you drain it for your next oil service, let the engine idle for about fifteen minutes, and most of the gunk and buildup that can rob performance will wash right out with the old oil. | | |  |
Baffled Oil Catch Can
Speaking of oil, it’s important that you keep it in the engine rather than passing through the intake. Particulates from the crankcase can and are sent through the PCV system during normal crankcase pressure relief, where that air and anything carried with it is sent to the intake to be burned off during combustion. Anything that’s in your intake air that isn’t air or fuel takes up space that could be better used by things that go boom. Effectively, you’re missing out on power and potentially dirtying up your intake, throttle bodies, and valves with carbon. Our Baffled Oil Catch Can System intercepts that relief air before it re-enters the intake, where it traps anything that isn’t air, like condensation and oil particulates. This allows your S65 to cram as much air and fuel into the combustion chamber as possible for efficient engine performance. | | |  |
Turner Motorsport Software
Lastly, for engine performance, our tuning software upgrade for the S65 helps maximize power from the engine with optimized mapping and some key benefits that let you take full advantage of all the M3’s potential. With a raised rev limit, unrestricted top speed, and snappier responsiveness, you’ll be able to take your M3 to the limit of what it can do. Paired with the basic upgrades on this list, your S65 will be performing its best in naturally aspirated form. | | | | |  | Suspension
Coilovers
To help handle the extra power, and provide a much-needed visual improvement to your M3, coilovers offer the best all-around handling upgrade for the money. Coilovers allow you to adjust the height and often camber, caster, and damper settings so you can fine-tune your suspension characteristics down to your precise needs. There are tons of options on the market ranging from inexpensive coilovers good for street use and mild performance driving to extremely competitive options for dedicated performance on the track, it all depends on what your needs from the car will be. If you never intend to track your M3, there’s no reason to spend thousands on suspension with capabilities you won’t need. Similarly, if you do plan to track it, you don’t want to skimp out on coilovers just because you think you’ll save a few hundred bucks. You get what you pay for, in terms of ride quality and performance, from coilovers. That said, there’s nothing wrong with a set of ECS coilovers or BC Racing coilovers if you’re on a budget, just don’t expect them to be on par with Ohlins or TC Kline in terms of capability on a road course. | | |  |
Sway Bars
Perhaps even more critical than coilovers, sway bar upgrades are some of the most noticeable improvements you can make to your suspension. Bigger sway bars with adjustable settings drastically reduce the body roll of your M3 through the corners, which translates to more traction and better performance. With adjustable settings, you can tune out under or oversteer to your liking, which adds an extremely high level of control to your car. Paired with adjustable end links and the stiffer sway bar bushings included in our Turner Motorsport Sway Bar kits, you can eliminate preload and deflection in the sway bar for optimal handling benefits.
| | | | |  | Brakes
Pads
The M3’s brakes are extremely beefy for a factory car, but braking performance is dependent on your pad and rotor combination just as much as it is the size of your brakes. It’s a common misconception that you need bigger brakes for better brake performance, shorter stopping distances, and more efficient heat expulsion. The reality is, pads that are designed for how you intend to use them are incredibly effective. It’s all about heat ranges, initial bite, and fade. HAWK Performance makes it easy to pick the right pad compound for your needs with their heat range chart, which shows how much braking force you have over the range of operating temperatures for each of their pads. For more information on brake pads and upgrades, check out our Keys to Performance Braking article. | | | | |  |
Rotors
Much like the pads, your rotors also affect how well your brakes perform. Effectively, brakes use friction to turn forward momentum into heat, the by-product of this process is that your car slows or stops. The better your brakes can shed heat, the more efficiently they’ll work and the longer they will resist brake fade or boiling fluid. Brakes featuring slotted rotors with directional internal vanes are extremely good at shedding that heat, just remember you’re sacrificing brake rotor surface area for better cooling efficiency. Performance is a trade-off, after all. Again, check out our Keys to Performance Braking article for more in-depth information about brake system upgrades and the science behind brakes.
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Lines
The final part of your brake system is the hydraulic part of that equation. Your brake calipers operate hydraulically at the touch of your brake pedal. That brake fluid, which should be flushed and replaced every two years, is pushed through the lines to depress the caliper pistons, which push the pads into your rotor. When you press the pedal, that fluid is pressurized and wants to move away from where it’s being pushed. That is ideally straight to the calipers, but with the factory rubber brake hoses, it’s also outward as those hoses expand under the pressure. This causes a mushy brake pedal feel, even with brand-new hoses. Our Stainless Steel Braided Lines resist that expansion with a stainless steel sheath around a Teflon line so there’s no wasted energy when you press the brake pedal. All that pressure goes exactly where it should: to your brakes. When you replace the fluid, go ahead and upgrade to these lines for an engaging and precise brake feel.
| | | | |  | Drivetrain
Drivetrain Bushings
Upgrading your drivetrain bushings is another way to maximize the power from your E9X M3. Remember, it’s all about efficiently using what you already have when naturally aspirated engines are what you’re working with. Drivetrain bushings, like our Polyurethane Engine Mounts, Revshift’s Poly transmission mounts, and ECS Tuning’s Poly Diff Bushing Set all tighten up the driveline and reduce deflection so energy isn’t wasted in motion that isn’t directed to the wheels. These drivetrain bushing upgrades will offer snappy, responsive, and immediate engagement from the engine rather than letting some of that power be lost in the softness of factory rubber mounts. Now, there will be some added noise, vibration, and harshness from poly mounts, but for a daily driven car, it won’t be so much that you’ll feel uncomfortable on a normal drive.
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Shifter
The shifter in manual transmission cars is one of the most common sources of vagueness in terms of driving experience. The factory shifter has long, soft, and uninspiring shifts that can detract from your feel of the car. Our adjustable short shift kit brings crisper, snappier, more precise shifts to your driving experience for a sporty feel. You will have a faster shift and more confidence with each gear change from this simple upgrade, as well as the option to adjust both the height and throw of your shifter for the perfect feel tuned to your liking.
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UCP Ultimate Clutch Pedal
The other part of your manual transmission shifting experience is the clutch pedal. There’s nothing wrong with the factory pedal in the E9X M3, but it can be described as a long travel with lots of wasted space. In performance driving, it’s all about efficiency. The less time you spend doing something, the faster you can move on to something else. In this case, the less time you spend shifting gears, the more time you can spend on the throttle picking up the pace. UCP’s Ultimate Clutch Pedal is a simple modification that reduces the pedal travel and improves the feel of your clutch pedal for an efficient and quick shift. With billet aluminum construction and a bronze self-lubricated pedal bushing, the UCP Ultimate Clutch Pedal provides an extremely engaging feel, eliminates play in the clutch pedal, and offers the fastest shift possible in your 6-speed M3.
| | | |  | Wheels
Wheels
Just go with a set of APEX wheels. Trust us. They’re attractive, designed specifically with BMW fitment in mind, lightweight, and made by enthusiasts like us. Enough said. | | |  |
Turner Motorsport Stud Conversion
If you’ve ever had to remove or install wheels on a BMW, you know the lug bolts used from the factory make wheel removal and installation a complete pain. Not only that, but you might have to swap them out if you choose to add spacers or run aftermarket wheels, which means you’ll end up with hundreds of different lug bolts likely in a bag floating around your garage somewhere. Take our advice and make your life easier: just upgrade to wheel studs. They’re safer, more convenient, and often required by racing bodies anyway. For more information about spacers and stud kits, check out our ‘Myths and Facts’ article. | | | | | | |  | Exterior
Turner Motorsport Skid Plate
The E9X M3 has one of the most beautiful bodies BMW ever designed. It’s to this day my favorite looking M3 generation and doesn’t need a lot to look better. With the variety of body styles and bumper options out there, we won’t go into all the front lips, bumpers, rear spoilers, and side skirts you can choose from. Those are up to your individual taste. However, what every M3 should have, especially if they’re lowered, is a Turner Motorsport Skid Plate. Our skid plate mounts to the frame rails for maximum rigidity and protection while it’s designed to mimic the factory plastic belly pan’s aerodynamics and airflow to the oil cooler. This kit completely protects your fragile underbody bits, like that oil cooler and your oil pan, from damage on the street or track without adding too much weight or compromising the aerodynamic properties of your E9X. | | | | | Wrapping Up
We think this fairly comprehensive list is a foundation upon which any great E9X M3 can be built. It isn’t as in-depth as some of our other upgrade guides, but that’s just due to the E9X M3’s near perfection out of the box. With these simple improvements, you can add well-rounded performance increases to every corner of your M3 for the best driving experience on the street, track, or wherever you drive your M3. As always, let us know what you think, give us your suggestions, and tell your BMW story for a chance to be in an upcoming edition of Turner Motorsport Weekly at [email protected]. We’ll see you next week, everyone! Happy Labor Day! | | | | | |
