328i Track Car

[Stokesy]

Hi guys, I've got a 98' BMW 328i that Im looking to turn into a track car but Im abit of an amatuer tuner so I was wondering If you could give me any tips and tricks. All help appreciated.

Thanks, Wozz

 

[obi_waynne]

If I remember rightly on these engines the intake is rather restricted based on the 325 (apparently the aim was for mid range torque rather than top end power)and I seem to recall tuners adding the better flowing M3 intake to this block gives a good power gain for a cheapish mod.

The best mods for a car engine are as follows.
Internal work yields the biggest gains, head work like porting polishing and 3 angle valve jobs will maximise the airflow and raise the power.

If you want to go to the max then cryo treat the block, get it rebored and look into blueprinting and balancing as well.

Bigger valves are an obvious addon but not all engines are suitable as it depends how close together the OEM valves are.

A fast road cam (look into the Eurosport 325i cam kit) will yield good power gains, especially in the top end of the rev range. Don't go mad though a profile of up to 270 degrees will give the best gains without the engine becoming cammy.

The most popular power mods are induction kits (which are questionable as power mods but they can sound nice if that is your sort of thing) and sports exhausts with sports catalysts or decats.

To keep the car legal I'd recommend a sports catalyst rather than a decat.
The last mod should always be a remap as this will allow you to fully realise the power gains on offer from your mods.

Adding a supercharger will yield power increases to around 260bhp but this is likely to cost big money.

It's worth having a read of the articles on www.torquecars.com/tuning/ for more information on these mods and what the terms mean.

Oh and a warm welcome to TorqueCars, nice to have you with us.

 

[pgarner]

Hello and welcome to the site mate

one thing that waynne has missed out is weight loss.

lose everything that you dont need, rear seats, sound proofing, the super heavy drivers seat, passengers seat, radio etc

 

[turbonutter69]

Hello and Welcome to Torquecars.:bigsmile:
Hope you enjoy your time with us.

 

[Stokesy]

Thanks for the help guys and welcomes.

 

[T9 man]

Greetings and Welcome!

 

[Stokesy]

Thank you matey.

 

[Loz]

 

[Prince]

Try the following to start with:

For better handling:
- Coilovers
- Poly bushes

Extra Power:
- Cat-back exhaust
- De-cat
- Induction kit (try looking for either a 'Dave F Kit' or a Simota c/f one).
- M50 manifold conversion

Better Braking:
- Stainless steal brake lines
- Better brake pads all round. I've heard good things about EBCs range but haven't tried them myself.

Extras:
- A bucket seat (recliner or non-recliner is up to you)
- Strip out all un-needed weight.

That would be a good start.

 

[stamford]

Most has been covered already but I would start out with getting the car ready for track days. If you are wanting it as a track only car that is still road legal then ditch what you can get away with.


Remove:

• Carpets.
• Seats and seatbelts.
• Door cards where possible, you always leave the front ones in place.
• Interior trim.
• Soundproofing.
• Speakers and stereo if you can put up with the noise!
• Under bonnet soundproofing.
• Any useless plastic engine covers etc.
• Boot carpet.

Mods:

• x2 bucket seats to replace standard ones.
• x2 3 or 4 point harness seatbelts.
• Coilover suspension.
• LSD or ATB.
• Track day spec tyres, but otherwise a good quality tyre will be okay as long as it doesn't have too much tread. Too much tread will de-laminate in no time once heated up.
• Good quality brake pads.
• DOT 5.1 brake fluid change.
• Goodrich brakes hoses.
• Can always replace side glass with polycarbonate.
• Polybush will tighten it up, anti-roll bar bushes are a good place to start.
• quickshift kit.

If you are a novice then a few tracks and track day clubs offer novice only sessions. Take your car on a couple of these to learn the craft before modifying. Once you have got used to the car and are capable of handling it around a track without too much drama then start lightening the car, you will see a big change! Do it in stages so you can feel the changes, then start doing performance mods when you feel it is time to go quicker!

There are no rules in what you must do with a car on track days, as long as it is road legal, have a current MOT and you have a full driving licence. What you do after is down to personal preference and having the ability to pass the noise test for any given circuit, be it static or drive by test.

Always go for the cheaper mods first and get the car to steer and stop safely before the loud pedal mods :blink1:

 

[jarrus]

Some circuits say the car doesn't have to have an MOT. It is up to the driver to make sure the car is safe and if the event (people at the track) organisers think it is unsafe then they will stop you. People do toe there track car to tracks to rag them about.

I would say what has been given is sound advise, and something that I would follow in the future when I get a car for doing track days in