Just dropped a deposit on some M Power - Trackday Project Car

~>Dg<~ said:
why did you get rid of your csl in first place if it was so good ?
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Never really fell in love with it, did one track day in it and it was terrible, stock brakes with warped disc made the whole experience not so great. Instead of sorting it I swapped it back for my old Mustang and went on a quest for power, 600 horsepower to be exact. Since then my cars seem to be getting progressively less powerful, 400BHP EVO and now 911 and M3. The 911 is the class event it is in its own league of ability and feel on the road and is no slouch on track either. The M3 is a great laugh and very capable on track and now with the CF air box it really is beginning to tick all boxes, it will never offer 911 dynamics and feedback, but which car does, but its nearly as capable on road and more capable on track. :)
 
A video :D


Not the full RPM's about 6500-7000rpm, will get more video's done at a later date. :)


TURN UP THE VOLUME! :D
 
What is the best forum for M3 advice, sales etc?

Me and my brother are thinking about getting an M3 to build into a track car, similar to yours Andy.

Cheers

Sam
 
Sam said:
What is the best forum for M3 advice, sales etc?

Me and my brother are thinking about getting an M3 to build into a track car, similar to yours Andy.

Cheers

Sam
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If you have 20k spare, Graham Automotive are selling their E46 Track M3, very similar to mine, its a quick car 1:55 at Outlon.
http://grahammartinautomotive.co.uk/what-we-do-at-gma-ltd-gallery/m3-track-car-project-2/


To answer your questions best UK forums are:-
CSL Register
M3Cutters

Pretty much everything you need will be on those two, then you have the US forums which are good as well.

Good choice. :)
 
Hi there

Here is a video from a track day I recently did few weeks ago, just not bother uploading video, shall upload a few more, including one against an slightly track fettled R8 as I get time:-



To give you an idea of how well balanced my car is now, I am doing 1:23-1:24 in traffic and 1:21-1:22 on open track but at same time I am not pushing it. The cars balance is pretty much perfect now, no understeer or oversteer, very neutral, at the limit oversteer is very progressive in the dry, the chassis at the limit is very benign, never driven a car like it.

In the video you can see I am not pushing the car or tyres (Michelin cups) and am not taking curbs, yet it is hugely quick, the Caterham guys who were handy in the R300's were asking me what I'd done to it and the guy in the green Exige was shocked how I kept up with him as he is on slicks and its a tuned 2.0l Turbo unit.

I've now got another set of wheels with slicks, will put those to the test at some point, but first I need to install a new clutch, so am giving the entire gearbox an overhaul, flywheel, clutch kit, guilbo, fork, springs, engine mounts, gearbox mounts, full service etc. I've also got some stunning Eibach aluminium lightweight rear lower camber arms which give upto -4 rear camber and make adjustment mega easy, they are stunning. I need to take some pics of all the new stuff I've being collecting up for it and post them here. I also have an H&R rear adjustable bar, but in all honesty do not think I need it so will just leave the CSL bars on. :)

Can't wait to get it back on track as on the cups in my hands its good for a 1:20-1:21 lap now, my mate who is a better driver than me but also ruthless in mechanical sympathy reckons he could extract a 1:17ish from it on the cups. :eek:



The only issue I have with my M3 is this track project will likely also become my daily as it is so nice to drive on the road now with the interior and setup I have, its still not a 911 but the 911 is a huge chunk of cash I would like to free up soon for a house deposit or better cash in the bank than depreciating in a car. Will miss the 911 like crazy because on the road nothing compares to it, love driving it so much.
 
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Hi there

Any suspension experts able to answer this question for me:-


Normally for track I set my KW's to Ring dry settings which is:-

0.75 turn from hard front compression
0.50 turn from hard rear compression
6 clicks from hard front rebound
9 clicks from hard rear rebound

But on last event I did not adjust compression as hard to get too so left in softer road settings:-
1.25 turn from hard front compression
1.00 turn from hard rear compression
6 clicks from hard front rebound
9 click from hard rear rebound


The car felt absolutely fine with absolutely tons of grip, now to my knowledge normally harder is better on track, but with the compression set softer the car felt more confidence inspiring and felt like it had more mechanical grip.

Am I just imagining it or is it essentially less on the edge with the softer settings, giving me more confidence and as such suiting my smoother driving style more do you guys think?

I am no suspension expert, but one of the guys at track said suspension setup is more driver preference and some drivers want a sharp edgy car which feels like it will kill you and others want a more benign car that feels safe to push in. Is this what I am experiencing with softer compression settings do you think?
 
Freefaller said:
You need to brake harder and later :p
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Dude I am out breaking some of the caterhams and race machinery in something twice as heavy. ;)

I am now not braking until the end of the blue chevrons on the pit straight, also remember when I go for the brakes I am travelling at 130mph and aiming to slow down to 60-70mph at the turn in point, its like 100 yards. You can see this easily 4 minutes onwards in the video where I am catching the Radical type thing under braking. :D

The video does not portray the speed or braking effort so well, you should come on a Donny track day with me and you will see m8.

Also there was a guy in an M3 on slicks and I caught and passed him eventually. :D
 
ScoobyDoo69 said:
It would be easy if the car wasn't yours I'm sure :D
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Yup, then id not care about crashing and would be a kamekazi pilot behind the wheel. :D

Drove like that once in my old 525i SE round Donnington with 250,000 miles on the clock, was passing 911's, Aston Martins in something with 170BHP and 1600kg, I simply did not car if I chucked it at the scenary, I was DK that day! :D
 
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That's a great price, yes it has 202k miles but as long as the suspension has been kept correctly I imagine the engine will go for another 200k. Looks in good condition
 
acemastr said:
That's a great price, yes it has 202k miles but as long as the suspension has been kept correctly I imagine the engine will go for another 200k. Looks in good condition
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If they are really motorway miles engine and box be fine.
Suspension all gets replaced on a track car anyway. :)
 
Gibbo said:
If they are really motorway miles engine and box be fine.
Suspension all gets replaced on a track car anyway. :)
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Indeed. You'd probably make a fair bit back selling the dash/door cards/seats etc.

For a track hack you don't really want to spend the extra on a low mileage example for twice the price.

How much is a second-hand engine?

Tempted myself. :)
 
AndrewNR said:
Indeed. You'd probably make a fair bit back selling the dash/door cards/seats etc.

For a track hack you don't really want to spend the extra on a low mileage example for twice the price.

How much is a second-hand engine?

Tempted myself. :)
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Normally 1.5-2k including all ancillaries.

On an SMG gearbox and flywheel tend to not wear, just clutch, which is £150 for clutch kit plus labour.

On that car you could sell:-
Interior: £400
Hi-FI: £250
Satnav: additional £200
Stock brakes and suspension: £200

You can normally get 1k back from stock parts. :)

Then you need what I've done, suspension bush refresh, coilovers, big brakes, buckets and harnesses along with a full inspection 2 service.

Or just buy it, fit uprated pads, take out what you don't need, fit buckets and enjoy as is, you'd be all in for 5k then with a decent road and track car.
 
Gibbo said:
If you have 20k spare, Graham Automotive are selling their E46 Track M3, very similar to mine, its a quick car 1:55 at Outlon.
http://grahammartinautomotive.co.uk/what-we-do-at-gma-ltd-gallery/m3-track-car-project-2/


To answer your questions best UK forums are:-
CSL Register
M3Cutters

Pretty much everything you need will be on those two, then you have the US forums which are good as well.

Good choice. :)
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Thanks Andy

Gibbo said:
If that 20k track prepared one is too much, check this out:-
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...ynew,new/page/1/make/bmw/radius/100?logcode=p

Get that for 3.5k-4k could be a perfect track car base. :)
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We want a manual and also would like to aim for around 90-100k miles - i just think over 200k is a little risky for such an engine ...

Regards
 
I love threads like this. It really tells the car's story. Fantastic looking car mate, I was never really a fan of BMW's (I don't know why it was just something about them) but your car looks awesome. Looking forward to reading more about the car in future updates :)
 
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