Gruppe M Induction and Tune?

R

RankBajin

Member
Since getting my latest Z4MC I've done a lot of the usual modding things, mainly cosmetic stuff (CSL's with Micheline SS's, ZHP gear knob, rear window tints, stubby, Intravee II and toying with a de-chromed grill). Finally, the car is going in for a detail and machine polish to get it up to a really good standard in a couple of weeks (which I hope to be able to maintain) so pics will be forthcoming very soon...

With most of the cosmetic work done I'm thinking of something for a bit more stop and go. Brakewise I'll probably take the cheapest route and go for new pads with braided hoses and see how that goes but from a power point of view I'm pretty stumped. I love the sound and sharper response of the CSL engine and fancied doing something similar on my Z but some research at Zpost shows that practically speaking it's very, very expensive (much more so than I thought!) so I won't be going down that route. The alternative is supercharging but again expensive (although a lot more power) and apparently a total pig to insure (I could only get two quotes and the cheapest was 3x what I pay at the moment).

Anyway, enough wittering on... I was thinking of going down a slightly cheaper route, a Gruppe M induction kit with an Evolve tune. From what I've read the Gruppe M will give me the noise I want but no power gain (or even a loss). The tune will, apparently if the US reviews for E46 M3's are to be believed, yield about 12 bhp and 10lbs of torque. I was wondering if a tune after the Gruppe M mod would perhaps achieve even more? Having said all that I'm pretty sceptical of chip tuning power gains on NA cars... has anyone heard of, or have, any experience with our engines?

Sorry for the long post!

Thanks,

Rank
 
Evolve are highly respected on m3cutters with their remaps on S54 E46 M3s. They're the only people I'd go to if I wanted a remap, and they get very good reviews from those that have had it done. Massively contentious issue though on that forum, there's been several very heated debates on which tuner to use, but Evolve would get my £400...
 
As it happens, yesterday I did some datalogging (from the ECU whilst the car was being driven) on a friends Z4MC fitted with a Gruppe M intake. It definitely improves the sound but it causes a small loss (approx 4%) in the volumetric efficiency of the engine, in comparison to my Z3 M Coupe which has the same S54 engine. By removing the enclosed air-filter box, you are reducing the pressure of air entering the plenum.

If you want to increase the Volumetric Efficiency (i.e performance) you should retain the OEM air intake and devise ways of feeding more air towards the inlet. I've just been reading the website of some guy in the US who's spent $$$$$s on modding his Z4 MC, logging all the weight losses and power increases, and then I got to the bit where he's removed the partial blanking from inside his brake ducts and I just laughed! He's only gone and removed an essential part which generates pressure inside the air-intake system. :headbang:
 
Isn't the US M3 only 330bhp to start with, so the remap only gets it on par with a Euro one?
 
Good point... I was assuming that the difference was due to emissions equipment rather than the actual map, food for thought.
 
exdos said:
As it happens, yesterday I did some datalogging (from the ECU whilst the car was being driven) on a friends Z4MC fitted with a Gruppe M intake. It definitely improves the sound but it causes a small loss (approx 4%) in the volumetric efficiency of the engine, in comparison to my Z3 M Coupe which has the same S54 engine. By removing the enclosed air-filter box, you are reducing the pressure of air entering the plenum.
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Any data comparing the same car with and without the Gruppe M fitted.

Does the S54 Z3MC have the same intake system as the 4?
 
daz05 said:
Any data comparing the same car with and without the Gruppe M fitted.
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It was the first time that I've datalogged that Z4 MC so I have no before/after data, only "as is"

daz05 said:
Does the S54 Z3MC have the same intake system as the 4?
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It's very similar, but the air-filter box is smaller. The air is picked up from the NS "brake duct" and besides/behind the N/S headlamp cluster, as in the diagram below. The engine performance can be improved by slightly modifying the air filter box and by directing more air into the system in various ways. I would say that the Z4 MC air-intake system is an improvement on the Z3 MC system but they both work on the same principle of the ram effect. I have a wealth of data from the datalogging of my Z3MC with various air-intake mods, and I think the OEM system is superb, but it can be improved some more :D

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Thanks, good knowledge. :thumbsup:

Would be great if you could persuade your mate to go back to standard to compare to see the effect of the Gruppe M. Don't expect much difference either way but would be good to see.
 
RankBajin, which companies were prepared to insure you with a supercharger? I've tried several and all absolutely refused to cover any form of forced induction. This is the biggest reason I haven't gone down that road yet (the cost is the other, but I'm sure I could persuade myself it's worth it :lol: )
 
Normally, I can get 30+ quotes online but the number was down to 3 with supercharging listed as a modification... I didn't take it any further with any of them so didn't have to supply exact details re power etc. = Whether they will insure in reality is another matter as that was all done online. Those that quoted were AIM, RCIB and Flux direct. The cheapest was still nearly 3 times what I pay now.
 
Interesting... I've not tried any of those (or even heard of them). Looking at their repective websites, I wonder if they would reject the quote once it was discussed with a broker and they realised what a supercharger acually is! I came across Adrian Flux when I googled Flux direct, and they look more promising as they seem to be specifically targeting modified cars amongst other things.
 
Yeah, I'd heard of AIM and Flux but not the other. I'm sceptical but I'd say they're worth a call.... certainly I think specialist brokers are the way to go rather than direct insurers such as Admiral etc. (who were far and away the cheapest for my Z4MC).
 
Maybe the figures don't back it up, but I definitely felt a slight 2-3k performance benefit with the Gruppe m.. I was more disappointed with the noise as my exhaust still drowns out most of it.

surely with a good exhaust and a remap you'd get a gain overall with the gruppe m. i still have all the bits to swap back too but not a chance id make the effort.

Tempted to try and get some SC quotes now, just had my clean licence back & yet another birthday, maybe I'd get away with it..
 
daz05 said:
Thanks, good knowledge. :thumbsup:

Would be great if you could persuade your mate to go back to standard to compare to see the effect of the Gruppe M. Don't expect much difference either way but would be good to see.
Click to expand...

This is me... For the record, there is absolutely no question of me going back to using the standard airbox, although this has nothing to do with performance....

I had the car for 6 months before making the change, which was specifically to improve the noise rather than performance. The improvement was incredible - not in-your-face like some exhaust mods, but a massive improvement in character. It also "feels" like you are going faster as a result ... in reality I expect the change in power output and acceleration times is negligible whether it is better or worse - for example if I stuff my face with KFC before going for a drive, this is probably gonig to to have a bigger impact! :)

So big thumbs up for the GruppeM from me :thumbsup:
 
Gruppe M was the first mod (and best) that I've done to my Z4MC. The noise on acceleration makes it feel and sound like a much much more powerful car. Always brings a smile to my face! :evil: Didn't really care how much more or less power it was making as it wasn't something I could pick up on anyway.

I have noticed that modding the Z4 is quite limited in terms of the accessible options available if you want good gains but don't want to supercharge. I know there is a guy on this forum who has decided to go down the NA route but his name escapes me so might be worth contacting him. Maybe other members of the forum will know who I'm talking about. 8)
 
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