[epiphone3]

As some of you may have seen on the General forum, I have been in a quest to see if it is possible to upgrade my Canadian 174hp 2.5 liter 2006 E90 323i to the 218hp Euro-spec 325i level.

What have I found? I went on realoem.com and found that:
- The CDN 323i and Euro 325i have the same intake manifold... the 3-stage intake manifold... the part number is the same.
- Driving my 323i from 2000 rpm to edge of red-zone, it seems that at wide open throttle there is a distinct change in engine performance at 3100 rpm and another change in performance around 4300 rpm. This would support that the intake is in fact the 3-stage version.
- The engines have the same part number
- The intake and exhaust cams and valves are the same
- The exhausts are different in that the Euro 325i has straight pipes to downstream of the header-catalyst whereas the CDN 323i has a second set of catalysts downstream of the header-catalyst and upstream of the muffler.
- The oil filter housings are different in that the Euro 325i has a heat exchanger and the CDN 323i does not.
- The SOFTWARE is obviously very different!

My idea from all of this was that one must be able to reflash a 2006 CDN 323i with 2006 Euro 325i software and get very close to 218 hp.

Working with my buddy who owns www.factorypartsonline.ca, we have found someone who can re-flash me with Euro 325i software.

my plan going forward is first and foremost to try and convince my fiancee to let me do this considering that our wedding is coming up in September and this will likely cost me a grand. Could be a financial issue between us! So making it cheap would definately make a HUGE difference in getting this done!

My buddy owns www.factorypartsonline.ca which is a OEM and performance part site here in Canada... he is a huge BMW guy and owns an Alpine white on imola red leather Competition Package E46 M3... if I can get this to work, he will likely be selling the reflash so that it will be available to other Canadian 323i 174hp owners.

The other thing is that I will have to try and find a place that will do a cheap dyno run for me here in Calgary so that I can get a "before" and "after" dyno graph of this.

May take some time...... considering my future wife will be keeping the strings tight with the wedding coming up!!!

I don't know if such upgrades can be done on 200hp 323i... sorry to you guys!

My car isn't packed with electronics... no i-drive, no bluetooth, no sat-radio, no auto-climate control... just basics so the chance of something electrical requiring a future reflash are quite low. However, if ever the dealer has to reflash my computer for some reason, I believe that if I had the Euro 325i mapping, it would get replaced with CDN 323i mapping. This would suck as I assume that I would have to pay AGAIN to get the reflash done... do people reflash for free if this happens? I doubt it!

[spacedogg]

Good luck with this! I would be interested in hearing how this turns out...keep us updated.

People may want to snap up an old 323i in a few years and do this mod.

[ctgazer]

in most cases, re-flashes are done free of charge. you just have to send the chip back to the flashing company

[epiphone3]

Originally Posted by ctgazer

in most cases, re-flashes are done free of charge. you just have to send the chip back to the flashing company

interesting... if this is the case then it is a lot better as it avoids one of the bigger negatives of this! Anyone confirm this?

[canucklion]

that's the general practice of most tuners, BUT you will only know for sure when you ask YOUR tuner, we can't assume that just because it's the common practice, your particular tuner would do the same

Originally Posted by epiphone3

interesting... if this is the case then it is a lot better as it avoids one of the bigger negatives of this! Anyone confirm this?

[ctgazer]

yea, ^^what he said. also, im sure there will be a BIG market if your buddy can provide flashes for e9x. currently, there arent really anyone tuners with reliable flashes. there was thought to be one which gave 325's the ability to have 330's hp's...needless to say, the HP increase was not substantial enough to warrant its $700+ price

[epiphone3]

Originally Posted by ctgazer

yea, ^^what he said. also, im sure there will be a BIG market if your buddy can provide flashes for e9x. currently, there arent really anyone tuners with reliable flashes. there was thought to be one which gave 325's the ability to have 330's hp's...needless to say, the HP increase was not substantial enough to warrant its $700+ price

yeah... the US 325i reflash is done by Turner motorsports... it is only "stage 1" though as the 325i also needs the 3 stage intake manifold to get the 330i power. I am sure that Turner is working on a way to source the manifolds in order to make a "Stage 2."

With my 323i, however, it should be just software required as my 323i apparently already has the 3-stage intake manifold!

Stay tuned... this may take me some time... maybe we can come across someone who can be a guinea pig who doesn't have to justify every penny he spends right now to a soon-to-be-married fiancee! I AM WORKING ON HER THOUGH!

Another good thing is that my buddy offered to help me cover the dyno costs if he can use the graphs for his site assuming I can go thru with it soon! Stay tuned, this could be huge...

[canucklion]

^ that's good deal, you should for it, have it in your 'contract' that if you're not satisfied with the gain, you should be able to get a refund and return to stock, OR keep the reflash but at a discounted price, this is usually the 'benefits' of being a guinea pig, because if effect, the tuner is using you as a free advertisement if/when the reflash goes well

[epiphone3]

Yeah... I think I am getting a bit of movement out of these guys.... now I just need to get some movement out of my future wife!

[epiphone3]

I looked at my intake manifold and compared it to the pictures seen in the "Tech Info: E90 330i N52 Three-Stage Intake Manifold " thread. My car definately has two DISA adjusters with wires hooked up to them. This should confirm without doubt that my car does have the 3-stage intake manifold. Euro 325i software should work here, then!

[ctgazer]

Originally Posted by epiphone3

I looked at my intake manifold and compared it to the pictures seen in the "Tech Info: E90 330i N52 Three-Stage Intake Manifold " thread. My car definately has two DISA adjusters with wires hooked up to them. This should confirm without doubt that my car does have the 3-stage intake manifold. Euro 325i software should work here, then!

not that i doubt you by why would a canadian 323i have a 3 stage intake manifold? i just find it strange when the 320i nor the 325i have it...

[epiphone3]

Originally Posted by ctgazer

not that i doubt you by why would a canadian 323i have a 3 stage intake manifold? i just find it strange when the 320i nor the 325i have it...

well, my guess is that BMW targetted a certain level of power and determined that using the 3-stage intake manifold combined with different software would give the engine of the targetted power (175hp) the best drivability and fuel economy.

Who knows why, though, really? I am just speculating. All I know is that the part number for the intake manifold is the same as that for the Euro 325i which has a three-stage intake manifold. It seems from driving the car that there are two distinct changes in engine performance thru the rev range (indicating 3 stages). Finally, as I said above, I see two DISA adjusters with wires hooked up to them... again indicating 3-stage intake manifold.

[Excellence]

I have a 210 on my 323i. Intake + exhaust. 2007 323i comes base with 200.

[epiphone3]

Originally Posted by vincmo

Any news here? Can we upgrade 174HP to 218?

I have been trying to revive this with my buddy recently but it is tough because he isn't in town much... we do have a potential lead though. Will have to see if we can get it put into a contract that if I am not satisfied with the gains that we can get money back and return to stock for free or something... no one else has ran with this ball, I take it?

[Slke46]

Probably not... but there are tuners that say they can squeeze another 20hp out of my 2007 323i... no proof though, which means no go for me. Also their located in Cali?

[clairvoyant]

Here is what I get from that Fireblade Automotive guy yesterday:
Yes we do, It would be a program from Europe. It's
$1000, and you would need to ship us the ECU.
It would boost HP and TQ to more then a stock 325, so it's pretty great bang for the buck
Regards
MS
Fireblade Automotive www.factorypartsonline.ca

Is this real??? IMHO, It sounds too good to be true.

[epiphone3]

Originally Posted by clairvoyant

Here is what I get from that Fireblade Automotive guy yesterday:
Yes we do, It would be a program from Europe. It's
$1000, and you would need to ship us the ECU.
It would boost HP and TQ to more then a stock 325, so it's pretty great bang for the buck
Regards
MS
Fireblade Automotive www.factorypartsonline.ca

Is this real??? IMHO, It sounds too good to be true.

He would work with G-Power (apparently the are quite good) and they would likely flash your ECU with the Euro 325i performance software that they developed (adds some ponies to the Euro 325i... like 13 or something...).

I would have tried this by now, but it just hasn't been in the budget (my wife and I both have say ) It seems to me like it should work for a Canadian 323i (174hp version) as it does, according to realoem.com, have the 3-stage intake and it looks and feels like it has the 3-stage intake.

If you do this, make sure you document it well for the rest of us!

The guy from Fireblade Automotive is a good guy... I use him to get tonnes of OEM parts for my cars and for my buddies and my family and stuff (I take care of a lot of peoples cars) and he always has stuff on time and for a decent price.

[Jaws]

Originally Posted by Excellence

I have a 210 on my 323i. Intake + exhaust. 2007 323i comes base with 200.

210? Says who?

[epiphone3]

ok... from what I've heard, you do get refunded if the flash doesn't work and they return you to OEM... I guess there is some protection for the guinea pigs! I am going to try to get this in the budget with the wife for early next year me thinks...

[clairvoyant]

You said your 323i apparently already has the 3-stage intake manifold. Is this true?
That means theoretically mine should have the same 3-stage intake manifold.
According to the Turner Motorsport, they can't guarantee the results of the flash. They say it should work but they don't know for sure.

[Slke46]

I believe the 330 only has the 3-stage manifold... I would double check this.

[epiphone3]

Originally Posted by clairvoyant

You said your 323i apparently already has the 3-stage intake manifold. Is this true?
That means theoretically mine should have the same 3-stage intake manifold.
According to the Turner Motorsport, they can't guarantee the results of the flash. They say it should work but they don't know for sure.

The Canadian 323i does appear to have the 3-stage intake manifold.

Evidence I have accrued so far:

1. The intake manifold part number for the Canadian 323i (MY2006) is the same part number as that from the Euro 325i. Check www.realoem.com .

2. When I look under the hood, there appears to be 1 DISA actuator on either side of the manifold (total of 2 DISA) and they both appear to have a wire connected to them which runs into the wiring harness. This means that the 2 DISA adjusters should be functional... meaning you have a low stage (both DISA flaps closed), medium stage (1 DISA flap open), and a high stage (both DISA flaps open)... hence 3-stages.

3. Get your 2006 Canadian 323i up to operating temperature and floor the gas in 2nd gear or 3rd gear... you should feel a jump in power at ~3100 rpm (1st DISA flap opens) and you should feel another change in the power at about 4400rpm (2nd flap opens). I have observed this behaviour with my car.

I am sure that whoever is the first to do this will be able to get Turner Motorsports to agree that if the flash doesn't work that they will return you to OEM and refund your cash minus shipping expenses. Since this person would be the guinea pig and all. The thing is that whoever would do this would have to do a pull on the Dyno before the flash and after to prove whether it worked or not.

To understand the 3-stage intake you can view the sticky at the top of this thread on the NA 3-stage intake: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=37444