[BM3Rrrr]

Originally Posted by GEOS07335i

Cost to install Down Pipes?
Cost to install Charge Pipe?
Cost to install FMIC?
Cost to get a custom Tune?

The Charge Pipe and FMIC can be done quite easily with minimal amount of tools. I wouldn't get a shop to do it....waste of money.
Depending how mechanically inclined you are Down Pipes can be done as well, though I hear they can be a PITA.
Custom tunes will run you around $200

[GEOS07335i]

Originally Posted by BM3Rrrr

The Charge Pipe and FMIC can be done quite easily with minimal amount of tools. I wouldn't get a shop to do it....waste of money.
Depending how mechanically inclined you are Down Pipes can be done as well, though I hear they can be a PITA.
Custom tunes will run you around $200

Yeah the plan is to do all of it myself maybe get a buddy to help out. Even the MHD tune can be done with out help although I'm thinking after I put all this stuff on it would be better to get a custom tune.

I was just more curious than anything on what it would cost to install. I was also going to do DCI. I've heard to many stories about inlets would like to do the stock location inlets but cant find a lot of good info on that. If it's anything like the relocation inlets it could take 4-6hrs and for me that sounds like an entire weekend lol.

[BM3Rrrr]

Originally Posted by GEOS07335i

Yeah the plan is to do all of it myself maybe get a buddy to help out. Even the MHD tune can be done with out help although I'm thinking after I put all this stuff on it would be better to get a custom tune.

I was just more curious than anything on what it would cost to install. I was also going to do DCI. I've heard to many stories about inlets would like to do the stock location inlets but cant find a lot of good info on that. If it's anything like the relocation inlets it could take 4-6hrs and for me that sounds like an entire weekend lol.

MHD is easy to install, just follow the instructions exactly as one wrong step can result in it not loading properly. I wouldn't say you need a custom tune as the OTS maps (Stage 2+) would be sufficient or E maps if you plan to run E30 or more. But hey if you happy to spend the extra $$ for one by all means go for it.

If you ask me DCI would be a DIY.
Personally I would get a shop to install the Down Pipes but that's cause I'm a bit lazy.

For cost it would depend on where you live and what shop you go to as most will give you different quotes. A quick few phone calls can sort that out though.

[themyst]

I've owned an N54 back in 2008 so perhaps a lot of what I suggest may not be applicable anymore, however:

425 whp with today's advances in tuning and E85 can net your power goals easily with a tune, DCI, downpipes, and FMIC. Consider sourcing used parts, I personally ran a stock upper charge pipe with RB turbos and never had any leaks or the thing pop off once. Your total cost should not exceed $1500 for these parts before labor, and that's not even purchasing low-quality items.

Also consider having backup funds for new plugs and/or injectors as many cars issues only crop up when tuned. Turning misfire detection off is an option (it is EXTREMELY sensitive on this platform)

If you plan on upgrading the turbos, inlets are a no-brainer, but that may go beyond the scope of your budgetary goals.

However, peak power numbers are misleading. 425 whp on stock turbos are will not outperform 425whp on upgraded twins, for example.

[langsbr]

Are you looking for a solid 425 whp or just to hit it on the dyno once? Those are different goals, and have different requirements. Here's my recommended combo for a solid 425whp:

downpipes
FMIC - I dont recommend skimping here - do it once and get it done- VRSF Race. Only downside is heft. Your motor will thank you for keeping IATs in check
ARM motorsports chargepipe
ebay BOV - I have one, works great. MMP even recommends them, and he sells turbos that he has to warranty, so...
hot side inlets - Your turbos will thank you and you will be able to run more boost at lower DC
Precision Raceworks stage2 fuel pump - I like keeping the bucket on a street/daily - plus its modular and can be upgraded if you go for big power ever
MHD with custom tune
New plugs
new coils


Ancillaries
Diff lockdown - when I was just FBO, at WOT it would get really "wavy" and the lockdown held that a ton
motor mounts - lots of negativity on the 034 motorsports ones, but i have no issues
034 trans mount

With a good custom tune, that should net you a solid REAL 425+ WHP on stockers. If you are willing to sacrifice the life of the turbos, you could possibly get to 475 with enough boost, but just know they will go out quicker.

[GEOS07335i]

I think I may have a replace my motor. I have a Miss fire on cly 4 . Need to do a compression test at this point. This is holding me back from doing any mods at this point.

[BM3Rrrr]

Originally Posted by GEOS07335i

I think I may have a replace my motor. I have a Miss fire on cly 4 . Need to do a compression test at this point. This is holding me back from doing any mods at this point.

Try replacing your spark plugs first, if you still have the misfire replace your coils.

[langsbr]

Are there any other issues? Seems pretty drastic to suggest engine replacement with just a misfire. You may swap the coil and see if it moves.

[feuer]

Originally Posted by BM3Rrrr

Try replacing your spark plugs first, if you still have the misfire replace your coils.

Originally Posted by langsbr

Are there any other issues? Seems pretty drastic to suggest engine replacement with just a misfire. You may swap the coil and see if it moves.

Both of you need to re read his threads.

[GEOS07335i]

Replaced plugs and coils fuel injectors, walnut blast, cleaned VANOS solinoids, tested drivers on DME. just waiting on doing a compression test to rule out the motor. But it's not looking good. Should have it done in the next day or so.

[GEOS07335i]

I think I got it all figured out. Compression was fine. It was the precat o2 sensors. Anyway car runs much better. I'm going to put a few more miles through it before I start considering any FBO's.

Going the FBO route. I was going to start with the FMIC, CP and DCI. DP's look like a bear to install and looking at my exhaust it looks like the bolts are rusted on. 124k

[DCook]

Not sure if you picked anything up yet, i went with xs power cp/bov and their catless downpipes. Fitment was great, no issues at all. Havent seen any reviews on either, but im satisfied with them completely. Me personally, I didnt see a point in spending a ton of money on the catless dpz, when just going big single. My downpipes bolts snapped all 4 off, but didnt matter anyway, comes with new bolts and gaskets. And later on if its an issue with the bov, just toss in the stiffer spring provided or buy a tial and throw it on. Id say while youre there doing the dci, tap the intake for a 1/4" bov line. You could also diy a dci for about 30 bucks. Just my take on it to save a few bucks.

[GEOS07335i]

Originally Posted by GEOS07335i

I think I got it all figured out. Compression was fine. It was the precat o2 sensors. Anyway car runs much better. I'm going to put a few more miles through it before I start considering any FBO's.

Going the FBO route. I was going to start with the FMIC, CP and DCI. DP's look like a bear to install and looking at my exhaust it looks like the bolts are rusted on. 124k

I spoke too soon today when I went to drive it again I got misfires on cyl 1 4 and 6 lol taking it to a professional.

[Basedtiger]

Look for quality parts that people resell on Craigslist. Go for parts that are okay to buy used like FMIC, DP, and inlets.

[Jmore92]

I'm having very similar issues. I'm having miss firing issues with my setup. I'm showing an o2 sensor code, I'm gona swap them out and do a adaptation reset and hope it fixes it

[GEOS07335i]

UPDATE: I was about to take to an INDY but my buddy convinced me to hold off for another day or two so I decided to hold off. I hooked up to INPA and ran the live data noticed cly 5 was in the red although cyl 1 &6 were well with in the green. So I swapped it out with another fuel injector and coded it. ( All index 9 supposed to be the worst of the bunch) I then reset all the adaptations again. I still got DSC, Brake, and ABS lights but reset codes and turned car off and on again and they all cleared. The car has been running perfectly for the last day and a half. I've taken the car out 5 times now. Tomorrow I'm going to put the hammer down and see if she throws any other codes. So assuming she holds up for the next week or two I'll be back on track.

[GEOS07335i]

Originally Posted by Basedtiger

Look for quality parts that people resell on Craigslist. Go for parts that are okay to buy used like FMIC, DP, and inlets.

Yes i have been keeping an eye out as im in a pretty big market and also on some FB groups but have not really found any good deals.

[GEOS07335i]

Originally Posted by langsbr

Are you looking for a solid 425 whp or just to hit it on the dyno once? Those are different goals, and have different requirements. Here's my recommended combo for a solid 425whp:

downpipes
FMIC - I dont recommend skimping here - do it once and get it done- VRSF Race. Only downside is heft. Your motor will thank you for keeping IATs in check
ARM motorsports chargepipe
ebay BOV - I have one, works great. MMP even recommends them, and he sells turbos that he has to warranty, so...
hot side inlets - Your turbos will thank you and you will be able to run more boost at lower DC
Precision Raceworks stage2 fuel pump - I like keeping the bucket on a street/daily - plus its modular and can be upgraded if you go for big power ever
MHD with custom tune
New plugs
new coils


Ancillaries
Diff lockdown - when I was just FBO, at WOT it would get really "wavy" and the lockdown held that a ton
motor mounts - lots of negativity on the 034 motorsports ones, but i have no issues
034 trans mount

With a good custom tune, that should net you a solid REAL 425+ WHP on stockers. If you are willing to sacrifice the life of the turbos, you could possibly get to 475 with enough boost, but just know they will go out quicker.

Did you go to a colder plug?

Here is my plan. 7" FMIC, DP, CP with cheapie China BOV and real 10lbs TIAL spring. MHD 2+ tune.



Still don't have a clear idea about if I get engine check light with catless DP's and how to pass emissions.

[Jerain]

I'm currently on stepped FMIC, OEM empty DP's, Airscoops, OS Giken LSD and MHD stage 2+ 98RON. Car is running really strong, turbolag is absent and mountains of torque and power. Keep pulling black stripes on the road even in the dry with 265 rear tyres.

I've tested DCI's and didn't like them, with the MHD monitoring menu and IATs were higher, more difficult to lower between pulls, throttle response was worse so I converted back to stock intake with airscoops and the car has been brilliant!

Also the sound with full OEM exhaust except the empty DP's is brilliant, reminds me of my euro E36 M3 with sport muffler. Also have no CEL and the smell isn't too bad. Should be OK for emission test as long as the rest from the exhaust is OEM.

[GEOS07335i]

Originally Posted by Jerain

I'm currently on stepped FMIC, OEM empty DP's, Airscoops, OS Giken LSD and MHD stage 2+ 98RON. Car is running really strong, turbolag is absent and mountains of torque and power. Keep pulling black stripes on the road even in the dry with 265 rear tyres.

I've tested DCI's and didn't like them, with the MHD monitoring menu and IATs were higher, more difficult to lower between pulls, throttle response was worse so I converted back to stock intake with airscoops and the car has been brilliant!

Also the sound with full OEM exhaust except the empty DP's is brilliant, reminds me of my euro E36 M3 with sport muffler. Also have no CEL and the smell isn't too bad. Should be OK for emission test as long as the rest from the exhaust is OEM.

Not sure what you mean as long as the rest from the exhaust is OEM. I plan on leaving the stock exhaust on. Is there something I need to monitor in MHD that tells me something should be at "rest" or are you saying as long as I have the regular exhaust mounted and not something like muffler delete or something to that effect.

Also from what your saying your IAT temps are higher with DCI's? Does the car then make less power with the DCI's? Do you have a high performance filter in the stock air box?

[Jeff@TopGearSolutions]

Originally Posted by GEOS07335i

UPDATE: I was about to take to an INDY but my buddy convinced me to hold off for another day or two so I decided to hold off. I hooked up to INPA and ran the live data noticed cly 5 was in the red although cyl 1 &6 were well with in the green. So I swapped it out with another fuel injector and coded it. ( All index 9 supposed to be the worst of the bunch) I then reset all the adaptations again. I still got DSC, Brake, and ABS lights but reset codes and turned car off and on again and they all cleared. The car has been running perfectly for the last day and a half. I've taken the car out 5 times now. Tomorrow I'm going to put the hammer down and see if she throws any other codes. So assuming she holds up for the next week or two I'll be back on track.

Index 9 are one of the worst sets of injectors this platform had. Do yourself a favor and look into replacing them soon. You are going to be plagued with issues otherwise.

[GEOS07335i]

Originally Posted by Jeff@TopGearSolutions

Index 9 are one of the worst sets of injectors this platform had. Do yourself a favor and look into replacing them soon. You are going to be plagued with issues otherwise.

Thats what everyone keeps telling me. Yes it's on the too do list. Right now after 3 months sitting in my garage it looks like I had bad O2 sensors lol. I'm just happy that it's running. I'm just going to go out and enjoy it for a bit.

Here is a quick list of what I've done since I bought the car in Dec and it's just been sitting in my garage: Most of the time was spent trying to figure out why I was getting multiple misfire issues.

1) Front brakes and rotors with new brake sensor.
2) Flushed brake fluid
3) Replaced one of the heater hoses
4) Replaced both hood support struts
5) replaced power steering reservoir
6) flushed power steering fluid
7) replaced all six coils new Bosch
8) replaced all six spark plugs (OEM)
9) replaced all six spark plugs NGK (colder plugs in anticipation of going FBO) pulled them out for now.
10) Bought cheapie EBAY Fuel Injectors of course they shipped me INDEX 9. Had a leaky one and they replaced it with another INDEX 9 :-) lol.
11) Rear brake sensor
12) Compression test
13) cleaned VANOS Solenoids probably need to be changed out as I'm hearing what sounds like loud lifter tick.
14) Cleaned PCV valve (behind fuel rail on top of valve cover)
15) Troubleshooted MOST gateway issue as radio would not work. Turned out I had a bad SAT unit so I just bypassed it with by pass adapter.
16) Replaced TCU and MULF2 units as apparently one of the drainage plugs were clogged up and got water into the trunk of the car. Now I have bluetooth working :-).
17) Upgraded NAV Maps (Free upgrade) some website and guy sent me links to 2016 map update. Had to download and burn some DVD's. I guess they discontinued the maps some time ago.
18) bought BimmerGeeks cable had to get it installed in working. Using Bimmer geeks download website it was pretty easy to do and setup.
19) Limped it over to my buddies and got a walnut blast on the intake valves. (Only job that I have not done on my own) $250 NICE!
20) Replaced both precat O2 sensors and reset all adaptations. (I think this is what I should have done first knowing when I first got started.) I had multiple misfires on 4 5 and 6 BANK2 although at different stages of troubleshooting. Ultimately this is got the car back to running in TIP TOP SHAPE. Im sure the walnut blast, new plugs and coils contribute to why it's running so smooth now.


To do list:
1) Battery at rest is at 12.4 I think it needs to be at 12.5-12.7 or good indication battery is going out. While the car is running little hidden menu says voltage is at 13.9 to 14.0 I think that's a little low I've heard this should be at 14.5 or so. It's 10 years old so yeah this is on the too do list.
2) loud ticking sounds like lifter tick- could be any number of things but I need to get this checked out too. Cleaned VANOS solenoids not sure anymore if it made a difference at this point.
3) Fuel Rail pressure according to my Torque app is reading at 719 I though that I read somewhere if this is below 750 it's an indication that my HPFP is going out. Need to check that out. Need to stomp on the gas and see if I throw any codes :-) I do not have long cranks. It starts right up.
4) Replace all fuel injectors with INDEX 12 not really looking forward to this as INDEX 12 injectors are $840 from FCP Euro :-(

FBO- Will I ever get to the fun stuff. This car is starting to be a real fun sucker!

What I'm really thinking of doing is doing the FMIC, DP, CP and Stage 2+ and blow it up :-) All of my buddies think I'm crazy and would have dumped the car already. I've enjoyed getting her back into shape but all this is starting to weigh on me a bit.

Ultimately I started out wanting to build a car with "super car" performance for under 10K as a weekend toy. My goals are 450hp (crank) for under 10K. I paid 7K for my E93 with 124K miles I have about $1100 in "maintenance" cost so far all done by me in the garage. I still need to buy about $1200 in FBO parts and I'm getting really close to my final budget. So I'm still in pretty good shape but I'm cutting it much closer than I would like. Anyway sorry to get off on a tangent but that's the story for anyone interested.

Lesson's Learned so Far:
1) Dont buy a car that has been completely neglected thinking that your superman and can fix anything.
2) I know now that I dont know SH&% about the N54! Just a weekend warrior that likes to wrench. Wish I found a table that told me what every sensor should be reading so I could better diagnose what's going on with this car.
3) No I'm not totally convinced that I need INDEX 12 lol. I'm stubborn that way. Yes just about everyone on this forum has told me to replace my injectors with INDEX 12 but I'm out to prove you all wrong or at least for the next hundred or so miles.
4) I'm going to be really pissed if I went though all this trouble and go the FBO route to find out it's still slower than what I was expecting. Have not learned this lesson yet and hopefully I wont.