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Anonymous
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Passed my local garage again yesterday and couldn't resist taking his SI out for a spin. I'm still surprised at how different the car feels to my m54 3.0, which in itself is a very sorted car!
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Anonymous
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The SI revved better and felt smoother. The car felt more solid and planted and the gear change was far less jerky than on some 3.0's.
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Anonymous
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Best I add some to mine - don't fancy a bucket load of cash and my car to get into an SI
markplant said:
Which is exactly why I have 2 rolls of this stuff wending it's way to me - I hate the tinny sound of the doors closing...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/112193279967?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Mike
The Si does come across as a lithe machine & a different performer to its predecessor regardless of sound deadening , they do rev easy & freely to the top. Feels very punchy with sport button & accelerator both pushed down 
Overall they are hard to beat £ for £ across the whole E85 E86 range imo & i would happily have another then another .
Lost its sharpness in the bigger 89s though
Overall they are hard to beat £ for £ across the whole E85 E86 range imo & i would happily have another then another .
Lost its sharpness in the bigger 89s though
Simon Blythe said:
Has your car had the vanos seals replaced? That helps a bit in terms of torque/smoothness. A remap or sprintbooster etc would help it rev better/quicker and an oil change to the gearbox would improve the shift. (Assuming you haven't done these things already). Ultimately you would expect the new engine/box to be a bit better/smoother and 30 extra horsepower can't be hurting, onn the flip side the older engine is typically more reliable and certainly usually cheaper to fix.
What was the mileage on the one you tried vs yours. If yours hasn't had a suspension refresh and has done more miles that could explain the solid/plant feel as I believe all M Sport suspension equiped 3.0 car (both pre and post facelift) have exactly the same shocks. I did ask about the extra sound deadening on here many moons ago and the ever helpful forumites recon the extra stuff is limited to the doors only on post face lift cars. Could yours also need an alignment check?
Like you say it would seem a shame to sell a well sorted pre facelift to hand over a chunk of change to get into a post car and possibly have to start the sorting all over again.
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Anonymous
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Hi Mack, thanks for the input. All the points you have mentioned, I have thought - not sure where I would get and how much it would cost to get the vanos rebuilt. I'm assuming replacing the seals and removing the unit isn't an easy job? The mileage on the 2 cars is the same, the difference is the 4yrs in age so that's 4yrs on the suspension. Don't get me wrong my car isn't bad by a very long shot but I know what I want from my car and how I want it. That basically means my car will be having new shocks all round at some point (if it doesn't sell) along with the associated bushes.
I'm in nomansland at the moment, do I put the money into finishing / refreshing my car or stop, save the money and put it towards an SI. I'm assuming shocks, bushes and vanos won't leave much change from £1000? Also in an ideal world a set of sports seats and the 10 speaker system would be the icing on the cake.
I'm in nomansland at the moment, do I put the money into finishing / refreshing my car or stop, save the money and put it towards an SI. I'm assuming shocks, bushes and vanos won't leave much change from £1000? Also in an ideal world a set of sports seats and the 10 speaker system would be the icing on the cake.
Its a bit of a dilemma especially as the price difference becomes closer between an Si and a pre facelift car.
Shocks wise you would probably only end up refreshing an Si suspension as well so it could become a cost neutral thing. If you went B4 bilstein and eibachs your probably looking at circa £500, a B12 kit would run to circa £800 with new top mounts etc and fitting it yourself. Of course there's an alignment on top of that. But like I say any 3.0i/Si E85 will be at least 10 years old these days so a refresh is probably on the cards whatever.
Vanos wise its not the hardest job to do a home, probably 3-4 hours if you take your time and all in with the vanos kit and new rocker gasket etc circa £100 of a job.
When I bought mine I quickly bought the M sport seats for just over £500 and recently added a M sport wheel at £200. Both of which I suppose I could sell on separably when I sell up to recoup most if not all of the outlay. 2 years ago when I got my 3.0i 05 the gap from what i paid to even a similar mileage 06 3.0si was huge, at least £2,500. These days with prices that bit closer and seats/wheels rarely coming up I'm not sure I would make the same decision.
Shocks wise you would probably only end up refreshing an Si suspension as well so it could become a cost neutral thing. If you went B4 bilstein and eibachs your probably looking at circa £500, a B12 kit would run to circa £800 with new top mounts etc and fitting it yourself. Of course there's an alignment on top of that. But like I say any 3.0i/Si E85 will be at least 10 years old these days so a refresh is probably on the cards whatever.
Vanos wise its not the hardest job to do a home, probably 3-4 hours if you take your time and all in with the vanos kit and new rocker gasket etc circa £100 of a job.
When I bought mine I quickly bought the M sport seats for just over £500 and recently added a M sport wheel at £200. Both of which I suppose I could sell on separably when I sell up to recoup most if not all of the outlay. 2 years ago when I got my 3.0i 05 the gap from what i paid to even a similar mileage 06 3.0si was huge, at least £2,500. These days with prices that bit closer and seats/wheels rarely coming up I'm not sure I would make the same decision.
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Anonymous
Guest
That's an interesting point of view and the £100 all in for the vanos kit is good news although I've just changed my rocker gasket. Do you have a link to the vanos kit?
The SI feels as though it's had a suspension refresh to be fair and if I was to do mine I'd replace the shocks with OEM as the ride is good enough for me.
The SI feels as though it's had a suspension refresh to be fair and if I was to do mine I'd replace the shocks with OEM as the ride is good enough for me.
I used the i6automotive kit. They have a direct website but its cheaper to buy from them through ebay, heres a link.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-Double-Dual-Vanos-Seals-Kit-Including-Rattle-Rings-M54-M52-M56-Viton-/151300783761?hash=item233a3abe91
You could get away with this kit that doesn't have the rattle rings
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-DOUBLE-TWIN-DUAL-VANOS-SEALS-UPGRADE-REPAIR-SET-KIT-M52-M54-M56-11361440142-/151256577062?hash=item2337983426
I fitted the rattle ring kit but in truth you dont really need to to as its rare for most cars to develop the rattle. Its seems to be more prevalent on the USA only ZHP model which had more aggressive cams in it. If you've already got a fresh rocker gasket etc you should be able to reuse this without issue. You dont get any instructions with the i6 kit if i remember correctly but they're available here
http://www.beisansystems.com/procedures/index.html
Suspension wise I would definitely consider the Bilstein B4 shocks, they're supposed to be an improvement over standard and similar money to what you can get the oem stuff in the aftermarket. Miles cheaper than sourcing from a main dealers. I would pair these with eibach springs which are also supposed to give a more comfortable/compliant ride. I'm in this dilemma myself at the moment. I've ruled out the oem shocks/springs as the rides terrible and they really are a weak point of the zeds design/setup from the factory. I just can't make my mind up if I want or indeed need the full beans Bilstein B12 kit or if the B4 with eibach springs is really what I need for a combo of good/decent ride and handling.
Perhaps others who have gone done the B4 or B12 route could comment to better advise you. But I would defintely consider making a move away from OEM.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-Double-Dual-Vanos-Seals-Kit-Including-Rattle-Rings-M54-M52-M56-Viton-/151300783761?hash=item233a3abe91
You could get away with this kit that doesn't have the rattle rings
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-DOUBLE-TWIN-DUAL-VANOS-SEALS-UPGRADE-REPAIR-SET-KIT-M52-M54-M56-11361440142-/151256577062?hash=item2337983426
I fitted the rattle ring kit but in truth you dont really need to to as its rare for most cars to develop the rattle. Its seems to be more prevalent on the USA only ZHP model which had more aggressive cams in it. If you've already got a fresh rocker gasket etc you should be able to reuse this without issue. You dont get any instructions with the i6 kit if i remember correctly but they're available here
http://www.beisansystems.com/procedures/index.html
Suspension wise I would definitely consider the Bilstein B4 shocks, they're supposed to be an improvement over standard and similar money to what you can get the oem stuff in the aftermarket. Miles cheaper than sourcing from a main dealers. I would pair these with eibach springs which are also supposed to give a more comfortable/compliant ride. I'm in this dilemma myself at the moment. I've ruled out the oem shocks/springs as the rides terrible and they really are a weak point of the zeds design/setup from the factory. I just can't make my mind up if I want or indeed need the full beans Bilstein B12 kit or if the B4 with eibach springs is really what I need for a combo of good/decent ride and handling.
Perhaps others who have gone done the B4 or B12 route could comment to better advise you. But I would defintely consider making a move away from OEM.
MACK said:
Im in a similar situation. I have the N52 but had the SE, so the car sat higher than the Sport. Lowered it using Eibach springs as it never looked right with 19" wheels, and it felt good to start with, but over the slower, broken road surfaces, its got worse ! So moved to 18"s, and that offered some improvement, but next port of call is replacing the shocks. Car is just over 10 years old and plenty of miles on the clock, so time for a refresh, but i liked the ride and handling of the standard SE setup, and my fear is that going down the B8/B12 route will result in something quite harsh. The price of the B4 shocks is very tempting, but just slightly put off by other posts that they aren't best suited for lowered springs (even though they are sold by many places with the Eibachs!!!)
Has anyone got the B4s with the Eibachs, and what is there opinion ? My car does very few miles, so will I notice the improved performance of the B8 shocks, or will it simply make the car feel harsh and undriveable? Roads around my area are terrible to put it kindly...