Mod the hell out of the 335i or C6?

[EightySix Four]

So the mod bug has bit me insanely hard on the 335i. There is a massive list of options available which would allow me to retain nearly stock drivability while drastically increasing performance in every aspect. It's bitten me hard enough that I'm considering not purchasing the Corvette and going a little crazy with the BMW.

M3 Suspension conversion: $2,931 (or maybe KW coilovers, sways, etc)
Oil Cooler (+retrofit kit): $1,428 (unless RPi releases one soon *Apex!*)
Catless downpipe: $729
LED Angel Eyes: $99
Meth elbow: $129
Integrated meth kit: $699
RPi FMIC: $1,350
19 inch wheels/tires: $2175
LSD : $600-$2100 (I don't know if mine is welded or not)

Assuming the LSD is welded, that's $11,640. To be more realistic, lets say $15,000 and many hours of wrenching. That's at least $20k cheaper than buying the Corvette... I'll be somewhere over 400whp with the meth and somewhere near it without (16psi ftw). The suspension should be pretty tight. The car will look good sitting low on VMR wheels. So far the stock brakes have been impressive, not sure how they'll do on the track...

Decisions decisions.

 

[Howard]

You going to track this baby?

 

[EightySix Four]

You going to track this baby?

If I go this route, yes. I'll join BMW CCA. Otherwise, C6 for the track.

 

[helpme]

How wide of a tire can you fit under the 335's fenders?

Back seat or no back seat...

If you are going to use it on the road course, upkeep is probably cheaper on the C6 (rotors, wheel bearings, etc...)

 

[EightySix Four]

How wide of a tire can you fit under the 335's fenders?

Back seat or no back seat...

If you are going to use it on the road course, upkeep is probably cheaper on the C6 (rotors, wheel bearings, etc...)

Can go up to 8.5/9.5in (front/rear) without any modifications.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

BMW CCA has a lot of fun events whether you end up driving the 335i or the C6 on the track. If you end up sticking with the 335i, I think you'll find the stock sport suspension does really well on a track, but if you're replacing it I would probably get a TC Kline setup. I have Bilstein adjustable coilovers on my E46 M3 and really like them, but the consensus on the forums seems to be that KWs or TC Kline are better.

If finances are a consideration, you will definitely not be able to recoup most of what you put into the 335i in mods.

 

[exdeath]

Look at it this way. You can have two sedate jack of all trades master of none cars and split your wallet, or one super BEAST of a car. Which do you want?

 

[helpme]

Can go up to 8.5/9.5in (front/rear) without any modifications.

I wonder if you'll be severely traction limited with 400+ whp with 9.5" rears. I've never driven a stock one, so I have no reference point.

The C6 is a bit lighter, which is nice. I would guess that it will probably have better on-track braking performance (fade resistance and distance) out of the box as well. I think the stock wheels are only 10" in the rear, so not much better there.

 

[exdeath]

I wonder if you'll be severely traction limited with 400+ whp with 9.5" rears. I've never driven a stock one, so I have no reference point.

The C6 is a bit lighter, which is nice. I would guess that it will probably have better on-track braking performance (fade resistance and distance) out of the box as well. I think the stock wheels are only 10" in the rear, so not much better there.

No. 9.5" is enough for 275-315 and there are a variety of popular R compound tires in that size range. 275 Nitto 555Rs will handle 400 RWHP no problem, as will Toyo Proxes R888s for the auto X.

 

[exdeath]

There is a catch-22 here... if you give up a second car to mod the 335i crazy, you end up with the 335i being... well... too crazy... and end up needing a beater as a DD anyway.

Having to pedal a 500+ RWHP car around on crappy streets with a clutch only Hercules could love with a rock hard suspension that can't go over speed bumps without scraping exhaust flanges and chunking the shit out of your soft 10,000 mile tires gets old after a while, not to mention 9 mpg :awe:

And don't give me the "only 9 mpg when in boost and 30 mpg when I'm not" BS. Even if that is the case you WILL get 9 mpg

And when you start talking meth, nitrous, race gas, E85, etc, or what I collectively refer to as "unicorn blood" you start having logistics and streetability issues with something as simple as refueling and start boarderlining on "race car" instead of "street car".

 

[EightySix Four]

There is a catch-22 here... if you give up a second car to mod the 335i crazy, you end up with the 335i being... well... too crazy... and end up needing a beater as a DD anyway.

Having to pedal a 500+ RWHP car around on crappy streets with a clutch only Hercules could love with a rock hard suspension that can't go over speed bumps without scraping exhaust flanges and chunking the shit out of your soft 10,000 mile tires gets old after a while, not to mention 9 mpg

And don't give me the "only 9 mpg when in boost and 30 mpg when I'm not" BS. Even if that is the case you WILL get 9 mpg

And when you start talking meth, nitrous, race gas, E85, etc, or what I collectively refer to as "unicorn blood" you start having logistics and streetability issues with something as simple as refueling and start boarderlining on "race car" instead of "street car".

I can swap tunes on the fly which will control boost, meth, and timing. The meth system is progressive and has a sensor to determing whether or not it is spraying and will cut boost if not. So I'm not worried about the performance or gas mileage on the street. Staying at 14-15psi is more than enough for the street, should put me around 400whp and doesn't require unicorn blood to run. In fact, I'd probably be pretty controlling of the amount of boost I run at low/mid RPM on the track for clutch life and to ease coming out of the conrners and rolling into the power.

TC Kline coilovers are $2500, would need to add swaybars as well. This would allow for raising and lowering the car for track days. Tires would be my big concern, so I may end up with two sets of wheels/tires. Would still be cheaper than the Corvette.

I'm not arguing that this way will be better than having a car dedicated for two different things, but I wonder if it's worth it to have a monster jack of all trades car and save the cash for something else (or repairs ).

Don Vito makes a good point that I'll most likely lose money on the mods, while the Corvette I probably wouldn't get hammered for so badly (since I could resell it, I won't make a dime from all the modifications). Although at the cost I bought the 335i, I'm going to make money selling it anyways

 

[DougoMan]

you have way too much money

 

[ballmode]

mod the C6

 

[EightySix Four]

you have way too much money

I'm upper middle class , I just live cheaply and spend money on things I enjoy. Cars are something I enjoy. Home theater gear is something I enjoy.

 

[Tristicus]

I'm upper middle class, I just live cheaply and spend money on things I enjoy. Cars are something I enjoy.

This is what I plan to do. Except that I'll probably be poor either way. :awe:

IMO, get the C6. Keep the BMW as a driver car, or as you said in another thread, client car. Do mods to it as you go, just keeping it fun. That way you have something to fall back on if one breaks down or is in the shop for something.

 

[sjwaste]

Is the 335 your daily driver? If so, get the C6 and mod it. As soon as you start talking alcohol injection, you might want to start considering making that the 2nd car.

 

[Vette73]

C6

Fast bone stock and crazy fast with light mods.

 

[Doppel]

C6

Fast bone stock and crazy fast with light mods.

Also then you have two cars and also then when you sell the 335i you're not having the world's greatest idiots calling about your car all hours of the day asking if you'll let them finance on their best buy sales associate salaries. Both of the cars you want are obviously throwing money in the toilet vs a practical (and very boring) commuter car, but those mod returns will be really low when/if you sell it.

 

[JCH13]

There is a catch-22 here... if you give up a second car to mod the 335i crazy, you end up with the 335i being... well... too crazy... and end up needing a beater as a DD anyway.

Having to pedal a 500+ RWHP car around on crappy streets with a clutch only Hercules could love with a rock hard suspension that can't go over speed bumps without scraping exhaust flanges and chunking the shit out of your soft 10,000 mile tires gets old after a while, not to mention 9 mpg :awe:

And don't give me the "only 9 mpg when in boost and 30 mpg when I'm not" BS. Even if that is the case you WILL get 9 mpg

And when you start talking meth, nitrous, race gas, E85, etc, or what I collectively refer to as "unicorn blood" you start having logistics and streetability issues with something as simple as refueling and start boarderlining on "race car" instead of "street car".

This. You're going to despise your race ready suspension on anything but the smoothest roads. You're going to hate having anyone else drive it if the need should arise. Every wear item will need to be changed more frequently with the extra power you're putting down.

I once thought as you did, that putting a ton of money into one car so that it could be streetable as a DD and do well at the track was a good way to go.

What happens when your DD blows a transmission and is out of commission for a week? Are you willing to deal with brakes that are marginal at the track or that make a ton of noise and dust on the street? Do you want to be hauling around all the extra weight of street-required things when you're racing?

My point is just that $15k will buy you a hell of a track car, C6 'vette or not. Hell, $15k is probably enough to get you into a V8 Miata, a Lotus kit car or Locost7, a very serious spec Miata+trailer+tires+etc, a really nice turbo MR2, or any number of other track-appropriate cars that will be much less expensive to race than a 335i (or a Corvette for that matter). You wouldn't worry about breaking something so much, hitting cones, pushing the car to its limits, etc.

 

[Imported]

C6. This coming from someone who tried to daily drive and track/autox a G35.. I gave up and went with a Miata for the track/autox. I don't believe you can have a great dual purpose car without sacrificing many things in both (safety/comfort).

 

[HAL9000]

Thought you were talking about a Citroen C6... LOL!

 

[Saint Nick]

Do you guys who drive track cars usually keep them for a few years, or do you sell them/part them after a while? I always wondered that...

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

C6. This coming from someone who tried to daily drive and track/autox a G35.. I gave up and went with a Miata for the track/autox. I don't believe you can have a great dual purpose car without sacrificing many things in both (safety/comfort).

In fairness the mods he is proposing (with the possible exception of the turbo/meth mods) shouldn't really affect daily drivability or reliability. The 335i is not one of history's most reliable cars anyway. Some combinations of brake discs/pads will allow for swapping between road and track pads without swapping discs (I've heard the Performance Friction offerings are good in that respect), so really all he'd need to do is change wheels/tires/pads to make the car a track beast. It would help if Schroth made a Quick-Fit harness for the E90 - I don't think they do at this point - so you'd have better retention than a mere seatbelt.

 

[ayabe]

I'd be a little concerned about your CPO with those mods, even with a friendly dealership, they're going to balk with all that crap.

 

[JCH13]

Do you guys who drive track cars usually keep them for a few years, or do you sell them/part them after a while? I always wondered that...

The people I know who track cars usually keep them for quite a while. It's nice to know that (for example) your whole suspension system will come apart easily because you anti-seized everything the last time you tore it all apart.