[aeromarknyc]

So im about 6 months into my new to me ride...2011 335i e90 m sport w/ PPK. Im coming from the Jeep world so the performance was night and day as you can imagine. but now im use to it and want more! my goal initially was to get a more baby friendly ride and its primarily used as a daily commuter...short ride to and from work.

after some research(this site mostly - https://bmwtuning.co/build-400whp-n55/ ), I wanted to get the community's opinion on if this is worth the investment and potential aggravation. Here is what i plan to install and comments/concerns about it.

JB4 tune - as i have the PPK, is it still plug and play or do i have to deactivate it somehow and if I want to go back to PPK is that a PIA?

BMS intake - mostly to hear that turbo!

5" FMIC - worth the $$$ over stock and this setup?

One thing im 99% sure i dont want is the catless downpipe. mostly due to noise and PIA DIY.

I guess my main questions are:
without the catless downpipe, am i really handcuffing my goal?
would this setup only be a marginal bump in power compared to what i have?

fyi - i have the bmw m sport mufflers.

[jwalker87]

Just the JB4 will get you what you're looking for, I think. There are additional gains to be had with the downpipe and FMIC (I would do them in that order), but they are small compared to the initial tune, so go ahead and do that, and go from there. No changes to the PPK required - the JB4 is fully piggy-back, so the car doesn't even know it's there.

I wouldn't do the BMS intake, personally. I installed one in my 2011 and it was just annoying noises, so I removed it. I think I still have it sitting in a box somewhere, actually, if you want one for super-cheap.

Speaking from my experience with an N55 with JB4 and catless DP, as well as an N54 with pretty much everything done to it except meth and upgraded turbos.

[NoGuru]

I am N54 but I would do MHD over JB4. It's a true flash tune and does loads more then JB4 but this is just my opinion. Also I would do Downpipes if you don't have to mess with emissions. That is going to give you the biggest bolt on power. Then FMIC. I have a 5" ETS for sale I can throw you a good price. PM me if you want. And as said before, DCI is more useful of you are always wrenching so you don't have to remove the box but it's not that important.

[iqraceworks]

Originally Posted by NoGuru

I am N54 but I would do MHD over JB4. It's a true flash tune and does loads more then JB4 but this is just my opinion. Also I would do Downpipes if you don't have to mess with emissions. That is going to give you the biggest bolt on power. Then FMIC. I have a 5" ETS for sale I can throw you a good price. PM me if you want. And as said before, DCI is more useful of you are always wrenching so you don't have to remove the box but it's not that important.

...and MHD is a hell of a lot cheaper, and you don't have to mess with all of the wiring like with the JB4.

[marvinstockman]

You can probably do almost as much for performance by staying in a lower gear. Also, increasing hp does not increase performance by as much as you think, as doubling hp might decrease 0-60 times by 0.707. Now, removing weight is directly proportional to reducing 0-60 times.

[iqraceworks]

Originally Posted by marvinstockman

You can probably do almost as much for performance by staying in a lower gear. Also, increasing hp does not increase performance by as much as you think, as doubling hp might decrease 0-60 times by 0.707. Now, removing weight is directly proportional to reducing 0-60 times.

...... Not sure where you got your info from, but it's dead wrong.

[dpaul]

Originally Posted by NoGuru

I am N54 but I would do MHD over JB4. It's a true flash tune and does loads more then JB4 but this is just my opinion. Also I would do Downpipes if you don't have to mess with emissions. That is going to give you the biggest bolt on power. Then FMIC. I have a 5" ETS for sale I can throw you a good price. PM me if you want. And as said before, DCI is more useful of you are always wrenching so you don't have to remove the box but it's not that important.

It's not just your opinion - it's a plain and simple fact.

OP - JB4 can only regulate boost - it cannot affect ignition timing and fueling. Thus, the standalone JB4 depends on the ability of the DME to adjust those critical parameters within its modest ability to do so.

You leave a ton of power on the table if you do not flash a tune that sets timing and fuel delivery parameters appropriately. True, Burger makes freely available what they call "back-end" flashes that provide the missing functionality but you'll need to buy the MHD anyway to flash them!

That said, JB4 has some nice features, for example, the ability to rapidly adjust boost parameters, set custom parameters for meth injection and "hijack" dash gauges for other purposes like real-time boost readout.

Also, to echo NoGurus assertion, removing the cat is the single most effective hardware modification of the FBO variety you can make. You'll get far more out of that then from intake or muffler mods. And in the N55, it's a very pleasant DIY.

And finally, to address your concern about noise, removing the cat has relatively little impact on idle and part-throttle sound levels as long as you delete or minimize cold start enrichment (a routine put in place to warm up the cats). That's easy done by checking a box in the MHD app. You'll make noise when you floor it but you're not going to attract any attention otherwise.

[marvinstockman]

For lqrace, from the basic laws of physics, as force = mass x acceleration, with an increase in acceleration being directly proportional to a reduction in mass, assuming force stays the same.

[marvinstockman]

Also, if you look at cars such as the 328 and 335, the increase or decrease in acceleration times is approximately equal to the square root of the ratio of the change in horsepower.

Of note, braking distances go up by the square of the change in speed, such that a doubling in speed, say from 30 to 60 mph, causes the stopping distance to go up by a factor of 4.

[iqraceworks]

Did you factor in wheel hop (or lack of), weight transfer, gear ratios, torque curves, at or Mt transmission, hp curves, etc, etc ...

It's not as easy as a simple physics equation.....

You lost all credibility when you said "You can probably do almost as much for performance by staying in a lower gear" in your post above.

Try telling that to a guy in a stock 335i that just got outran by a FBO 335i......"you should have just stayed in a lower gear". What are you talking about.??

Haha...... whatever you say.

[rsyed07]

Go with a flash tune like MHD and buy the monitor logging feature while your at it. Then you can have live gauges and readouts (boost psi, inlet air temps, coolant temp, transmission temp, fuel pressure readout etc. Tons of stuff!) With MHD you'll have tunes with the mods you have listed beginning with stage 1 all the way to stage 2 + and e85 mix tunes. So for example, lets say you stay stock you can safely run the stage 1 tune and notice a nice bump. Decide to get catless downpipes couple months later now you can enjoy stage 1+. Each stage has description of what mods are recommended to properly use the tune. Initial flash takes about 40-50 minutes and then any other flash or changes in between takes 2 mins or less. You also have the ability to delete cold starts, play with the burble settings, and other small customize able options.

All you'll need is an android tablet or phone that supports OTG and a pre-tested cable.

And also, as a bonus MHD is a great check engine light reader for advanced BMW and generic codes.

[marvinstockman]

LQ, I said approximately.

[marvinstockman]

Also, are we talking around town power, race course power, or stoplight grand prix power.

And again, for around town, it most certainly does depend on where you are on the torque and power curve, which is why I suggested saving the money and staying in a lower gear. Even my Honda Ody van feels peppy when I stay in third gear!

[NoGuru]

Originally Posted by marvinstockman

Also, are we talking around town power, race course power, or stoplight grand prix power.

And again, for around town, it most certainly does depend on where you are on the torque and power curve, which is why I suggested saving the money and staying in a lower gear. Even my Honda Ody van feels peppy when I stay in third gear!

I think you are way over thinking this. More power to 99.9% of car guys is HP and torque. Bolt on some new hardware = more HP/TQ.

Doesn't matter where or how you use it.

[iqraceworks]

Originally Posted by marvinstockman

Also, are we talking around town power, race course power, or stoplight grand prix power.

And again, for around town, it most certainly does depend on where you are on the torque and power curve, which is why I suggested saving the money and staying in a lower gear. Even my Honda Ody van feels peppy when I stay in third gear!

I don't understand what you are meaning by "stay in a lower gear". When you are starting out from a dead stop...how do you "stay in a lower gear"??

Your Honda van seems "peppy"? Now you've really lost me....

Have you ever driven a stock (or modded) 335i ???

[marvinstockman]

LQ, my previous driver was a '98 M3, which I just gave to my son. My current car is 2011 328i, with both cars having plenty of power for me.

That said, when I lived in NYC as a kid, I did stop light Grand Prix's, with my father's 6 cylinder, 1963, Ford Galaxie 500. Never won though!

Again, the best, most efficient, and easiest way to increase performance is to lose weight.

In conclusion, I'll keep my reality, and you certainly are entitled to your reality.

[iqraceworks]

Originally Posted by marvinstockman

LQ, my previous driver was a '98 M3, which I just gave to my son. My current car is 2011 328i, with both cars having plenty of power for me.

That said, when I lived in NYC as a kid, I did stop light Grand Prix's, with my father's 6 cylinder, 1963, Ford Galaxie 500. Never won though!

Again, the best, most efficient, and easiest way to increase performance is to lose weight.

In conclusion, I'll keep my reality, and you certainly are entitled to your reality.

OK...so lets test this out.

Lets say you have a 300hp car that weights 3,500lbs (a stock 355i)...that's 11.6 lbs per hp).

You can do a stage1 MHD flash tune, and gain 80hp roughly. So now you have a 380hp car that's 3,500lbs (9.2 lbs per hp).....and it cost around $200 and took 40min.

If you had the 300hp and wanted to gain the same advantage by only reducing weight to obtain the 9.2 lbs per hp.....you would need to lose 720lbs. 300hp in a 2,780lb car is 9.2 lb per hp.

So tell me how you are going to lose 720lbs faster than 40min, and cheaper than $200.....

But maybe I'm doing the math wrong here.....

[marvinstockman]

Well, I may have to say 'uncle', as I did some calcs for 0 - 60 times, using this website:

https://www.carspecs.us/calculator/0-60

And you're right, all things being equal, I would have to lose about 700 lbs.

[nsjames]

MHD as stated.

is you car auto?
XHP will make a profound difference in driveability without adding any horsepower.

and yes, you will be seriously handicapping your power gains if you stay with the catted downpipes.
a lot of the factory conservativeness in the tune is to keep the cats from melting down.

[iqraceworks]

I have xHP stage 3.....and it's a huge improvement over the stock transmission tune. Feels like a totally different car. Well worth the money.

[Wingnutts]

Maintenance before mods or you'll most likely be chasing problems. Go MHD and be done with it. Use common sense. If a map in MHD says you should have certain things, then don't use that map until you have those things. There is a reason for those lists even if you have someone telling you that don't follow them. Use the search function here. These cars are 10+ years old. Any question you have will not be first time it's been asked.

[iqraceworks]

Originally Posted by Wingnutts

Maintenance before mods or you'll most likely be chasing problems. Go MHD and be done with it. Use common sense. If a map in MHD says you should have certain things, then don't use that map until you have those things. There is a reason for those lists even if you have someone telling you that don't follow them. Use the search function here. These cars are 10+ years old. Any question you have will not be first time it's been asked.

Everything this guys said