Atacama Yellow 35is build thread

[B21]

I assume the final setup occurs once in the car with the engine running.

Sound is very personal thing.

My aviation doctor could tell what type of aircraft you have flown doing the hearing audio test, by what frequencies your hearing lost.
Personally i have tinnitus from 40+ years in light aircraft, so quite happy with the standard set up with a few extra tweeters.

Hello, yes you can’t set up the speaker corrections until they are in the intended acoustic environment, with this set up I can set up multiple environments, top up, top down windows up, top down windows down. The interference effects vary depending on the internal structures, I could even do versions for driver and driver plus passenger

Psycho acoustics is a complex area hence so many overlapping and contradictory views and advice. As I keep saying if your happy then that’s all that matters.

I have both age derived and environmental audio degradation…40+ years of very high speed motorcycling without ear plugs has taken its toll.

So I have tinnitus and can’t hear above 10 kHz.

So it does mean that audio signals that are above say 15khz and any systems that deliver frequencies above that are wasted on me.

However despite those issues I can easily assess limitations in audio systems. I can easily spot the limitations in the the 676 and 677 audio systems for example. I can hear that the Volvo XC70 audio system is markedly better than either the 676 or 677 systems. Ditto I could hear what a fabulous improvement the Match 7 audio upgrade to the 20i was. Even swapping a few 4” door speakers on the 35is to Etons was obvious.

So the conclusion is just because your hearing is impaired or the the environment in which music is being played is less than perfect it’s definitely not the case that you can’t do something about it.

But if you’re happy then that’s great.

 

[B21]

For completeness of this thread here's the discussion on low pressure fuel pumps and why I need one for my TTE500 turbo upgrade..

s you push the power on the N54 engines up past 400 bhp one of the design limitations that rears its head is the low pressure fuel pump.

All E89s from the 23i through the N20 powered cars to the 35is all use teh same low pressure fuel pump.

FWIW it seems that it looks to be a pretty reliable unit.

If it fails then the car goes into limp mode, some people assert that the HPFP can suck enough fuel through to keep the car running after a fashion, not sure on this?

It seems that around 450 bhp (crank) on normal petrol the pump runs out of pumping capacity.

I've deferred fitting my TTE500 turbo upgrade till the autumn, but at a predicted 550 bhp its certain to require more fuel than the existing pump can supply.

There are two options..one is to add a secondary pump, in parallel operated by a switch in the cockpit to boost it.

The other is an upgraded unit. Compounding the decision is that these pumps come bucketed and no-bucketed.

The bucket as the pictures show is a resevoir that the pump sits in that holds enough fuel to cope with the car movinga round under acceleration loads that with a less than full fuel tank could cause a pick-up to suck air rather than fuel.

There is a debate as to how mcuh of an issue this is.

For the E89, there's only one bucketed solution (AFAIK) and that's the Fuel-it pump upgrade

https://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-4034 ... de/?pdk=AQ

It's referred to as a stage 2 as there is a stage 3 for those running ethanol and /or really big bhp numbers (650 bhp+).

I discovered this a while back and it looks I can only get one through US import..given that it took 3 months for my last set on US imports to arrive, its part of the deferral plans on the big turbos.

These pumps are variable speed and controlled by the EKP fuel pump controller which is told by the DME how much fuel is required and adjusts the pump speed to suit, just like the wate pump and oil pump control on the N20 engines.

But that's another story!

Pictures show the full pump and float level of stock system and the other the bucket /pump upgrade.

 

[B21]

Related to the new LPFP upgrade is the extra strain that it places on the fuel pump controller..write up here...

Following on in the classical law of unintended consequences, I discovered that to use the potential of the TTE500 turbos (circa 550 BHP crank) that the low pressure fuel pump would have to be upgraded, probably to a Fuel-it version with a walboro 450 pump.

The LPFP is controlled by a box 'EKP' which receives signals from the DME and alters the speed of the pump to provide more fuel as the demand for power increases.

The EKP box is a simple device, and the same version fitted to all E89s is widely used on over 15 other BMW models.

FWIW it seems that generally, and especially in E89s its a reliable device. Its been iterated over 15 times in its life, mostly due to its internal parts becoming redundant, reducing costs and due to environmental issues.

On the E89 its fitted in the rear luggage bay on the RH wall.

The issues are that the EKPs do fail, total failure results in car stopping, overheating (uncommon in E89s but happens in other models in warmer climates) results in a shut down then a magical restart about an hour later.

Cost of a new version 16147407513 is around £275..ebay 2nd user versions are £10-£40 and OE versions are £120-£240.

Given how widely they were used , second hand supply is plentiful and it appears that most versions will work in most cars, at the worst a modest bit of coding is called for with ISAP or Protool (other tools are avalable)

The possible issue is that if you use an uprated LPFP the electrical demand rises from around 17 amp peak to 27 amp peak.

The box then overheats and can fail in one of the ways described.

There is a 3rd party box for about £800 that is uprated but its out of production at the moment.

So to get ahead of the game, I've reseached the subject and plan to have a solution ready when I intsall the uprated LPFP and TTE500 turbos in the autumn.

The plan is quite modest..to improve the cooling and to avoid the failures.

To that end I bought 3 yes 3 ebay 2nd user versions and stripped them down.

Not sure which version is in my 2011 35is but I got hold of the latest version, version 7 and its predecessor 16147276046, version 6.

Turns out that apart from firmware revisions version 7 looks physically just like version 6.

You can see that the board is mounted onto a large aluminium plate which is what is bolted to the car..the pink piece of what looks like paper is heat conductive material, taking heat from the back of the circuit board and directing it to the backing plate.

The two heat producing components on the board are the Infineon BTN7960 main controller circled in yellow and a choke circled in blue.

The plan is to put baby heatsinks on these two components. The pink heat transfer 'paper' is rated at 6w/mk and I'm sourcing some at 15-17 w/mk so about 2-3 times the heat transfer.

I'm going to also add some heat transfer material between the unit and where it mounts to further improve cooling and finally a few holes in the case for good measure.

There is a picture of a board where you can see heat distress caused by overheating..circled in red..

 

[Miyli]

I upgraded the Walbron 450 to the original bucket, which was easy, there have been no problems.

 

[B21]

I upgraded the Walbron 450 to the original bucket, which was easy, there have been no problems.

82DED88A-3B69-4AF0-9CA8-1CD02C32E248.jpeg

Oh that’s good, so you got the pump and just plugged it in?

No issues?

Where did you source the pump from ?

 

[Miyli]

The Walbro 450 fits directly into the original pump. Very easy to change yourself.

No issues.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/122557799525?epid=782641816&hash=item1c89039c65:g:hk4AAOSwVeJbUNn5

Sorry for my bad English

 

[Miyli]

The Walbro 450 fits directly into the original pump. Very easy to change yourself.

No issues.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/122557799525?epid=782641816&hash=item1c89039c65:g:hk4AAOSwVeJbUNn5

Sorry for my bad English

 

[B21]

The Walbro 450 fits directly into the original pump. Very easy to change yourself.

No issues.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/122557799525?epid=782641816&hash=item1c89039c65:g:hk4AAOSwVeJbUNn5

Sorry for my bad English

The money you’ve saved me means you could have spoken in your own language

Thank you ..

 

[Beeacon]

Hello, yes saw these guys before, wonder why they only do front 35is suspenders?

Alledgedley there are some folks in Notts that can re-furb them so now they are off, will investigate that, prior to selling them as 'good to go' for those you stick with 35is adapative suspension.

Starting to have a small amount of oil misting on mine now. Did you ever find the company that refurbs in Nottingham? Would be interested to give them a call if you can post their details please. Refurbished ones from Nagengast are actually more expensive than they first appear when tax/customs/shipping is added on.

HI, yes I spoke to the chap, 07877 453936

He wanted £280 each or £260 for 4 at the same time, but he couldn't do the rears anyway..my two rear 35is dampers appear to be non misting / non leaking if you wanted to buy them, Im about to put a lot of old N20 /20i /redundany 35is bits on eBay..

Just to update on the refurbished active front struts. It only went and bloody worked! The chap was great, had them made and sorted in 2 weeks, and at £170 a corner I nearly bit his arm off. Had my local garage fit them with no issues, no errors; just a straight plug-n-play. Returned the old ones to him in the same packaging they came in.

Thanks again!
Beeacon.

 

[B21]

Starting to have a small amount of oil misting on mine now. Did you ever find the company that refurbs in Nottingham? Would be interested to give them a call if you can post their details please. Refurbished ones from Nagengast are actually more expensive than they first appear when tax/customs/shipping is added on.

HI, yes I spoke to the chap, 07877 453936

He wanted £280 each or £260 for 4 at the same time, but he couldn't do the rears anyway..my two rear 35is dampers appear to be non misting / non leaking if you wanted to buy them, Im about to put a lot of old N20 /20i /redundany 35is bits on eBay..

Just to update on the refurbished active front struts. It only went and bloody worked! The chap was great, had them made and sorted in 2 weeks, and at £170 a corner I nearly bit his arm off. Had my local garage fit them with no issues, no errors; just a straight plug-n-play. Returned the old ones to him in the same packaging they came in.

Thanks again!
Beeacon.

Good result..pleased it worked out

 

[B21]

Fresh engine oil and filter, Redline 5-30, an ester based oil..simply the best, plus Fuchs DCT gearbox oil, again a quality product.

Interestingly the DCT fluid, 50k old miles was remarkably clean and lacking any obvious deterioration or contamination.

New Mosselman oil thermostat plus bling oil filter cap in alloy fitted. Plus deeper DCT alloy sump fitted. Hi

Pretty cold today and short journey so no obvious comments to it’s impact.

Suspension wise 2 clicks more damping on rear plus 1 turn on the preload, one more click on front tweaked.

Ride is definitely harsher / firmer at slower speeds from garage to home as a result.

Looking forward to Friday for a high speed positioning check ride prior to this weekends meet.

I’ve ordered sunshine and dry roads so should be a good test of the changes..

 

[Nanu]

You mention that you have changed the DCT fluid after 50K miles. Is that recommended or just a preference?
Mine is just coming up to 48K and wondered if I should ask my Indy to change it come MOT time in September.

 

[B21]

You mention that you have changed the DCT fluid after 50K miles. Is that recommended or just a preference?
Mine is just coming up to 48K and wondered if I should ask my Indy to change it come MOT time in September.

BMW says all gearboxes and rear axles are filled for life…

Generally the advise is to change these fluids somewhere between 50k and 80k miles

Given in my case the unknown usage history of the car and poor service record and a big increase in power it seemed prudent to preemptively change all the oils throughout the car..

As I said pleased that the oil was not distressed…given the two clutches abuse could have resulted in more deterioration of the oil..

Yours probably has had a good life..I’d still change by 75k…

You can never change oils too often ..and filters..

 

[Nanu]

You mention that you have changed the DCT fluid after 50K miles. Is that recommended or just a preference?
Mine is just coming up to 48K and wondered if I should ask my Indy to change it come MOT time in September.

BMW says all gearboxes and rear axles are filled for life…

Generally the advise is to change these fluids somewhere between 50k and 80k miles

Given in my case the unknown usage history of the car and poor service record and a big increase in power it seemed prudent to preemptively change all the oils throughout the car..

As I said pleased that the oil was not distressed…given the two clutches abuse could have resulted in more deterioration of the oil..

Yours probably has had a good life..I’d still change by 75k…

You can never change oils too often ..and filters..

Thanks, she like the wife has been well pampered

 

[B21]

An update after a good weekend of pottering and hooning..

The Mosselman oil thermostat certainly reduces oil temps..I was running an indicated 95-100c rather than 110-125c..

2 extra clicks on rear damping, 1 click more front and 1 turn extra pre-load resulted in a slighly firmer ride but on routes like Alston to Middleton in Teesdale the car's composure at speed given the severity of the bumps in places and very mixed road surfaces were pretty good.

Running 2.4 and 2.8 bar on the 235/35 and 275/30 MPS4S s

Pretty stable under severe provocation.

A fair degree of NVH from the steering and suspension on poor surfaces..aka 'feeling' the texture of the road.

Little feedback from the MPS4S.. but sticky and took abuse without any obvious stress.

Very flat cornering, no obvious pitch under braking and little squat under hard acceleration.

Think I've got about as far as its obvious to go at this time.

Certainly can now reign in most cars, out run most and not be ashamed in the corners..

Coped with more than adequate speed just in comfort mode all weekend..

Time to spend driving now and just see how things go..

 

[B21]

An update on a few things..

The clunking from the front Ohlins got slightly worse..in the end the tech guy pulled the front coilovers apart..rebuilt them as they had been done before and voila the clunk has now gone.

https://www.ohlins.eu/download/db/Ohlins_DTC_mounting-instruction-oehlins-automotive-bms--00001406.pdf

A clunk from the rear was traced to a lack of pre-load especially with SWMBO and luggage causing a bit of a clunk from the roof assemby on shart edge bumps.

A sand bag weighted test showed that up..tech guy suggested two more turns pre-load..on the run to Bute I played around with the damping on the rears (fronts not really accessble unless up on ramps)..for some reason it had been set out as 16 clicks from full in.. standard setting is 10...I've currently got it set at 9.. moving it to 7 made it overdamped for road use..ok on a smooth track..I'll check the front settings when I get a chance.

So we are getting there on the handling front..my handling test track the A708 from Moffat to Selkirk showed good control with pretty good ride comfort (solo)..

I plan to ditch the 437Ms for cosmetic reasons..I've ordered some Apex Arc-8s in 19" 8.5" and 9.5" and hope I can live with the rear offset of 33 vs 40 with some new 275/30 Conti Sports 7 on the rear (part of the mudguard was rubbed away with 265/35 18 and the under performing adapative suspension.

They only come in a satin black..if necessary I'l get them powder coated gloss black prior to the new boots going on.

 

[B21]

For deep operations into European airspace the much discussed roof down luggage limitations may prove too much..SWMBO decided post Pyrenees trip initial design that she would like to attend..

To that end I've purchased a Revo boot rack.

Initial test was OK but what appears a slow leak from one of the suction caps merits a check and probably a spacer as the centre sucker is under a pull load due to the curvature of the boot.

Also cosmetically a wider , deeper and lower bag look better.

So a bit of work required...

 

[Pondrew]

For deep operations into European airspace the much discussed roof down luggage limitations may prove too much..SWMBO decided post Pyrenees trip initial design that she would like to attend..

To that end I've purchased a Revo boot rack.

Initial test was OK but what appears a slow leak from one of the suction caps merits a check and probably a spacer as the centre sucker is under a pull load due to the curvature of the boot.

Also cosmetically a wider , deeper and lower bag look better.

So a bit of work required...

The rear suction cup impedes visibility of the third brake light. Is that legal?
PS I never get tired of seeing the view from your drive. It is spectacular.

 

[B21]

For deep operations into European airspace the much discussed roof down luggage limitations may prove too much..SWMBO decided post Pyrenees trip initial design that she would like to attend..

To that end I've purchased a Revo boot rack.

Initial test was OK but what appears a slow leak from one of the suction caps merits a check and probably a spacer as the centre sucker is under a pull load due to the curvature of the boot.

Also cosmetically a wider , deeper and lower bag look better.

So a bit of work required...

The rear suction cup impedes visibility of the third brake light. Is that legal?
PS I never get tired of seeing the view from your drive. It is spectacular.

We are very fortunate to have such a view...

I think of the 10"-12" wide rear brake light you only lose about 1"....I'll take a chance on it...you can reverse the rack so that the hoop is at the back for those who think more G is arising from acceleration rather than slowing down..

 

[ronk]

For me, the boot rack idea falls flat when the sudden need to raise the roof crops up!

Roadster Bags and some careful packing have been ok for us on a 14/21 day European trip.