[ranthum]

List of past maintenance items done to car
After purchasing the car, I have done a number of maintenance items. I have done all of the normal maintenance things such as replacing all filters (engine, cabin, fuel, and oil) and have changed the engine oil at about 7500 mi intervals. As for other maintenance, I have replaced the valve cover gasket, transmission service including sleeves and seals, MAF, power steering filter and fluid, front and rear windshield rubber, top turbo oil lines, swirl flap delete, and replaced all vacuum lines.

List of past upgrades done to car
Bilstein B8 shocks/struts, M3 front control arms, M3 rear upper guide rod, upgraded sway bar end links, upgraded transmission mounts, afe air filter, diff brace, 2 stage methanol injection, single stage dry nitrous, Torqbyte controller, nitrous purge, nitrous auto bottle heater, Malone tune, SWS subwoofers, lux angel eyes, Aarod charge pipe, Generic DieselOps IC, DieselOps EGR/ASV delete, Turbosmart UP EWG, Orion downpipe, Orion exhaust, R1 slotted rotors, Stoptech Sport pads, Upgraded brake fluid, and xHP stage 3 tune.

List of current projects yet to be done
I have the parts sitting around to upgrade air filter, replace both engine mounts, upgrade subframe bushings, upgrade differential bushings, harmonic balancer, belts and pulleys, R90, 550d rail pressure sensor, belts and pulleys, E93 M3 sway bars, Energy sway bar bushings, UUC stainless brake lines, brake setup for 15” wheels,

Future upgrades
LSD, 15” drag slicks

 
As I’ve seen more comments on here and facebook regarding nitrous, I have been meaning to post about my car. I am currently running a 100 dry shot of nitrous and a 2 stage methanol with the first stage being progressive 1000 cc and the second stage being 440 cc. Currently using about a 60/40 meth to water ratio. I have a local guy I buy 100% meth from at $3/gal. I am waiting to hear back from torqbyte to get a custom firmware to make the nitrous and second stage of meth progressive. At that point I will also be able to tune the external wastegate better to allow for partial opening (through pwm). Also looking to get on a dyno sometime soon to show some gains with tune only, meth alone, nitrous alone, and everything on.

My meth and nitrous setup currently consists of the following:
Malone custom tune based on 2.9
Torqbyte CM5-LT w/ upgraded MAP sensor
Nitrous Express dry kit
NX Nitrous solenoid (solenoid included in kit used for purge)
NX Fuel Solenoid (used for second stage of meth)
Turbosmart 38mm HP external wastegate (optional for small shots)
Bottle heater (optional)
Dyno Tune pressure switch for bottle heater (optional)
Devil’s Own pump, nozzles, nylon lines, and fittings
US Plastics tank
Various switches and wiring

Other upgrades:
Afe air filter
DieselOps generic intercooler
TuneMyEuro boost pipe
DieselOps EGR/ASV delete
Orion downpipe
Orion exhaust
xHP Stage 3 transmission tune
M3 front control arms
M3 rear guide arms
Differential brace
Bilstein B8 shock/struts with BMW sport springs
R1 slotted brake rotors
Stoptech sport brake pads
UUC transmission mounts

Stuff in hand to be installed soon:
R90 fuel pump
E93 M3 front and rear sway bars
Energy sway bar bushings
Differential bushings
Subframe bushings
Stainless brake lines
Also have small rear brakes and quick connects to swap if I get 15” slicks

First, some basics about nitrous on diesel. I’m not an expert by any means, so please let me know if anything posted is wrong or if it differs from your experience. Nitrous is essentially artificial oxygen. It would be similar to adding additional boost. In diesel engines it will not produce additional power unless you add additional fuel. Unlike gasoline cars, adding extra air without extra fuel will not result in engine damage. Also, adding additional fuel without extra air will not produce extra power (just black smoke). As such, there is a lot more room for error when dealing with nitrous. Meth is also pretty forgiving as the engine can handle a lot before quench. Higher water content will lead to quench earlier. If you’re running windshield washer fluid (30% meth) you can’t run as much without getting quench. Due to flammability, I wouldn’t run much more than 60% through poly lines. I’m sure you could run 100% meth through braided ptfe without worrying about it.

On my setup, I have installed the torqbyte under the driver’s side dash behind the paneling so it is completely out of view. It’s a pretty good location, but it is tight and running the wires is somewhat difficult. I ran wires to the trunk down the driver’s side floor. The wires to go under the hood are run through the existing wiring grommet. Nitrous and meth lines were run under the car on the driver’s side. Running those lines was pretty easy. The meth pump is mounted under the trunk (I purchased one of the rubber boots for it). I had looked into doing a 328i trunk panel and placing the tank and pump in there, but I decided against it. It could look really clean if done well, but because of where I put my nitrous bottle, I can no longer lift the floor carpet in the trunk so I would have to have installed the meth filler above the trunk carpet. Both the meth tank and nitrous bottle are in the trunk.

Under the hood, the solenoids are all mounted on the driver’s side and the nitrous and meth nozzles are installed in the EGR/ASV delete. As a side note, don’t use the 2 already drilled and tapped ports for the Orion EGR/ASV delete for meth (and I couldn’t use for nitrous based on fitting size). When I had installed the meth nozzles there, they would not thread in far enough to allow the meth to spray without making contact with the port and turning the mist into a stream. The existing ports do work fine for boost readings and to go to the EWG. I had a custom piece made to use the EGR port on the exhaust manifold for the EWG. I have it dump straight down under the car. You do need to reroute the coolant line to be able to dump straight down. I used rubber hose to run that line on top of the radiator. It seems another member deleted this aux radiator with no ill effects. That would be another option. Also, even though it has 35 psi springs pre installed, my wastegate started to crack open under 25 psi and wouldn’t hold over 30 psi boost when I ran a boost line straight to the bottom port of the EWG (due to combined boost and exhaust pressure pressing on valve). I have since installed a solenoid on the boost line running to the EWG that is controlled by the torqbyte. I had originally used one of the GPO outlets on the torqbyte to control a LED that would flash faster or slower based on the amount of meth that was being sprayed, but I have since changed that LED to only flash based on the pump percentage so it doesn’t take into account the second stage. I have the solenoid open at 35psi currently. I may tweak that slightly in the future as I have a chance to collect more data. Additionally, I need to do some data logging with the solenoid off and see what EMP will open the EWG. The wastegate was opening before the 35 psi rated pressure due to the combination of boost and the EMP, but based on initial testing EMP would not open the 35 psi spring on its own. I may lower to a 25psi spring to see if EMP will be able to open this level by itself at a level that would be at or higher than the level achievedd with desired boost. This would allow the EWG to open at very high EMP levels as a safety measure in case there would be a malfunction of the solenoid or controller. At this point I’m still experimenting with the correct springs for limiting EMP to roughly 60 psi.

As for the torqbyte, it’s a great piece of hardware. They are coming out with a newer version in the future that adds additional functionality including the ability to adjust the GPO frequency. I have requested a custom firmware to lower the frequency of the GPOs from 30 hz to 10 hz as 30 hz is too fast for the solenoids I’m using (nitrous is NX lightning and meth is NX fuel from Iceman kit). I have been told that a new firmware will be available in another week or so. Really looking forward to it. They have been very good to work with. I was having some difficulty with the stock map sensor, but the upgraded sensor seems to be working very well.

My settings as they currently stand are the first stage of meth at 40% at 2100 RPM and 20 psi of boost. That increases to 100% at 2800 rpm and 30 psi of boost. The second stage comes in at 100% at 3100 rpm and 30 psi. The nitrous is set to come on at the same level as the second stage of meth. Both the meth pump and nitrous are on switches (torqbyte inputs) so that either can be turned off if desired. I currently do not have the control line hooked up for the torqbyte so it only comes on if I have a device connected to the usb port. I have a usb type c adapter hooked up so I plug in a phone to that if I want the torqbyte to come on. I have a personal and work cell that both use usb c so it’s easy to hook one of them up and when my wife drives (or a valet or guest) I can just unplug the usb c and then the system will not come on even with the switches turned on. I may change this to a hidden switch somewhere, but it’s a low priority as I am happy enough with the current setup.

I also have switches for the bottle heater, purge, and a switch for a bottle opener (I have an opener but I bought it second hand and it didn’t come with the adapters). If you have adapters for the older style NX opener (or have the ability to 3d print some new ones) I would be very interested. They are ridiculously overpriced through NX.

A limitation of the torqbyte (as I currently have it set up) is that nitrous is not locked out by gear. I’m using both inputs for the switches for the meth and nitrous, so I don’t have an input for a transmission gear and I don’t know how I would set it up. Also, the switch I currently have won’t work inline for the power to the meth pump without a relay (I have a few extra, but it would a hassle to rewire). Also, I don’t know where I would get a signal that would active only after third gear.

I would like to add a momentary switch to the steering wheel so that I have to hold it for the nitrous in addition to the arming switch. I’m concerned about using the nitrous in second gear as there is already enough power that nitrous is not needed. As it’s currently set up I can flip the switch after shift to third, but then I cannot use the manual gear selection due to not having enough hands. If anybody has a mount that works with stock m sport wheel with paddles I would be interested. I may end up trying to place a small momentary switch in the trim piece around the airbag. Another option would be to repurpose the Bluetooth speak button as I don’t use it.

Malone has been awesome to work with. If anybody is considering what tune to get, I would highly recommend them. If you need something custom, especially with nitrous, they are the experts here. I’m sure Dmitry or Jarek would be capable, but Malone has the most experience with nitrous and they have a lot of time with upgraded turbos as well. They are extremely responsive and work super hard to make you happy. I look forward to continuing pushing the stock turbos to their max, both on stock fuel pump and a R90 with some DIY mods. I also recently purchased a spare engine, so I will be playing with a lot of other stuff starting with some head modifications and longer term I’d like to do a full build with Matt’s steel pistons. I also plan on modifying the stock exhaust manifold to accept other turbos. I think you can get 2 new turbos for much cheaper than hybrid offerings and make higher power with less compromises. Even hybrids are a little undersized for pushing the M57 to it’s limit.

For those that are looking into nitrous and/or meth, I would be happy to provide additional advice or feedback on setup and options. It’s a great option for more power that’s much cheaper than hybrids. Also, for those of you already running meth or nitrous, I would be happy to hear what has been working well for you as well. I will provide updates as I continue to tweak my setup.

[ranthum]

Trunk (remote opener missing adapter)


Purge tube


Nitrous and Purge solenoid


Meth second stage solenoid and nozzles


EWG and boost solenoid (currently opening early with exhaust pressure only, ordered stronger spring)


EWG piping dumps straight down

[ranthum]

Reserved for eventual dyno results and time slips.

[32valves]

Nice run down on the car...

[ranthum]

For anybody running the turbosmart ewg, did you have trouble with backpressure only opening the wastegate around 30 psig boost (60ish psi exhaust pressure)? Also, does anybody know if the extended torque exhaust pressure is PSIa or psig?

[335stoner]

-What size spring is in the external WG?
-Are you still using the internal WG on the factory turbos?
-How much boost are you trying to run?
-how much boost is the DDE tuned for?

[ranthum]

Originally Posted by 335stoner

-What size spring is in the external WG?
-Are you still using the internal WG on the factory turbos?
-How much boost are you trying to run?
-how much boost is the DDE tuned for?

Right now it's the 35 psi spring. I pressurized the intake side and couldn't hear any boost leaks. I used to get 35-36 psi with very little smoke, now I'm getting less than 32 with much more smoke. I'm still running the internal wastegate, but the external is to control creep on nitrous. Next step is to run the boost line without solenoid to top port to hold it closed and see if the issue persists. If it does not, it will confirm that the exhaust pressure is opening the wastegate. The 40 psi springs may be perfect as I wouldn't mind it opening on backpressure only above 35 psi. That way it would still open even with a complete failure of the controller. I did test the EWG with an air line prior to install and it operates as expected.

[335stoner]

so you aren't running a boost line to the WG? its supposed to have a boost line reference line running to it.

[ranthum]

Originally Posted by 335stoner

so you aren't running a boost line to the WG? its supposed to have a boost line reference line running to it.

I'm running a boost line to the bottom port, but it's controlled by an actuator. I had originally run the line to the bottom port without an actuator and it was cracking at just over 20psi. The combo of boost and exhaust pressure is my guess. I don't want it to crack until 35 psi so the actuator never opens. There are some configurations that use both the top and bottom port, but I have not played around with them yet.

[dakine_surf]

Cool shit dude, totally subbed for more!!!

What state are you in? I would love to have a diesel project but I fear CA hates modified diesels unless they are exempt trucks

[335stoner]

Your are on a fast track to blowing up your motor with your entire setup! I'm not sure who is telling you to hook up the wastwgate this way, but its wrong.

I'm haveing trouble posting a pic from my phone, but you are going about this all wrong.
For a basic set up the bottom port is your boost reference from your turbo. The top port is vent to atmosphere (not plugged). If its plugged the valve won't move properly.

Google "wastegate boost control solenoid diagram"
You will see the correct pic based on my description.
You want a line coming off the turbo that goes into a "T" then one line will run to the bottom port and the other line will run to your solenoid them that goes to the top port.

You should reconsider how you are going about your nitrous build.

[ranthum]

Originally Posted by 335stoner

Your are on a fast track to blowing up your motor with your entire setup! I'm not sure who is telling you to hook up the wastwgate this way, but its wrong.

I'm haveing trouble posting a pic from my phone, but you are going about this all wrong.
For a basic set up the bottom port is your boost reference from your turbo. The top port is vent to atmosphere (not plugged). If its plugged the valve won't move properly.

Google "wastegate boost control solenoid diagram"
You will see the correct pic based on my description.
You want a line coming off the turbo that goes into a "T" then one line will run to the bottom port and the other line will run to your solenoid them that goes to the top port.

You should reconsider how you are going about your nitrous build.

It is run to the bottom line with an actuator (boost controller). It's opening without any boost. To test only, I am going to run the line to the top port to force the wastegate closed so I can ensure that it is the wastegate. I checked for boost leaks already, but this will rule out exhaust manifold leaks.

To normally run I will have a 40 psi wastegate spring instead of the 35 and run the boost to the bottom port with an actuator (boost controller).

Many high exhaust pressure wastegate setups run a 3 way solenoid or boost controller so the boost helps keep the wastegate shut when in the closed state and then switches the boost to the bottom port to open.

And even without a wastegate engine damage is unlikely. Nitrous will only help if there is excess fuel to burn. The r70 and a reasonable amount of meth is unlikely to have enough fuel to damage the engine. Many others who run nitrous on the m57 don't have a wastegate and don't have issues.

[robnitro]

Originally Posted by ranthum

For anybody running the turbosmart ewg, did you have trouble with backpressure only opening the wastegate around 30 psig boost (60ish psi exhaust pressure)? Also, does anybody know if the extended torque exhaust pressure is PSIa or psig?

You can tell if it's psig if it reads less than 14.7psi at idle or engine off. Your pids may be different than mine but I get around 1.5 psig at idle for exhaust in torque but I customized some of my pids to stay in psi while the rest is metric C,kg/s, bar rail etc.

[335stoner]

Where are you tapping your bottom port boost line from? the basic setup for an external WG is to run a straight line from a boost source (without an actuator) to the bottom port and vent the top port open. that should give your 35psi spring that you are looking for. Honestly if you don't have an issue with boost creep i wouldn't mess with this until you actually do.

You have a LOT going on in that small section of tube. You are going for a big boy setup with an intermediate execution, your setup needs more space between everything. You should look into port injection for the nitrous and bringing your meth spray more towards the intercooler in the charge pipe to allow for better atomization. Your current setup isn't going to mix very well with the short path to the intake, you wont get an even distribution in that amount of time. Your front cylinders are going to take most of the spray and your rear will not get as much.

With everything being setup like it is and not having a programmed setup to properly engage everything at the right time is why i stated you are on a fast track to messing things up not so much the EWG.

[ranthum]

Originally Posted by 335stoner

Where are you tapping your bottom port boost line from? the basic setup for an external WG is to run a straight line from a boost source (without an actuator) to the bottom port and vent the top port open. that should give your 35psi spring that you are looking for. Honestly if you don't have an issue with boost creep i wouldn't mess with this until you actually do.

You have a LOT going on in that small section of tube. You are going for a big boy setup with an intermediate execution, your setup needs more space between everything. You should look into port injection for the nitrous and bringing your meth spray more towards the intercooler in the charge pipe to allow for better atomization. Your current setup isn't going to mix very well with the short path to the intake, you wont get an even distribution in that amount of time. Your front cylinders are going to take most of the spray and your rear will not get as much.

With everything being setup like it is and not having a programmed setup to properly engage everything at the right time is why i stated you are on a fast track to messing things up not so much the EWG.

There are 2 forces acting to open a wastegate: exhaust pressure is always acting on the valve and positive pressure in the bottom port (or vacuum on the top port). With a straight line to the bottom port the wastegate was cracking in the low 20s even with a 35 psi spring. A 35 psi spring means that it takes 35 psi on the diaphragm to open with no exhaust pressure. Because of the high exhaust pressure of these engines (due in part because diesel and in part because we are running the turbos at or beyond the edge of their range), the backpressure force is significant. The surface area of the valve is smaller than the diaphragm, so it does take more than 35 psi of backpressure to open the wastegate, but once it gets over 50 psi (close to 60), the exhaust pressure is enough to open the wastegate without any boost pressure. That's what I'm seeing now. I think going to a 40 psi spring will keep it closed to 35 psi of boost (probably around 65 psi exhaust pressure).

In a gas setup, a wastegate can normally hold about twice the boost the wastegate springs are rated for. That is when the exhaust pressure will by itself force the wastegate open. If this were not the case, everybody would only run 5 psi springs with a boost controller or solenoid.

Turbosmarts instructions for high exhaust pressure applications recommend running a boost controller with 2 ports or switching solenoid. This puts boost in the top port to resist the exhaust pressure until the desired boost is reached, at that time the boost controller or solenoid switches the boost to the bottom port and opens the wastegate.

Running boost only to the top port would be the same as people wiring it shut or running no wastegate. As I've stated, this is only for testing to ensure that there are not other variables (such as an exhaust manifold leak) that would be causing my boost drop.

Honestly if you have the springs set up exactly right, you could safely run it without a boost reference and it would open at the correct exhaust pressure. In our case, that may actually be desirable. We are not so much looking to limit boost as we are looking to limit exhaust pressure. It's the excessive exhaust pressure that overspins the turbos and makes them inefficient to the point that additional boost may decrease power (the heat added to the cold side may mean that the boost at a constant temperature is lower).

As for the port injection, it's something that I'm considering. I've got an extra intake manifold sitting around, but I don't know if it will work for other reasons. The distribution between cylinders will not be perfect with the current setup, but shouldn't be too bad. As long as there is approximately the same amount of air entering each cylinder (which is what the engineers would have designed the intake manifold to do), the amount of meth and nitrous going to each should also be pretty even. Without a way to measure individual cylinder temperatures I can't really say for sure how inefficient the system is.

[335stoner]

this intake is designed to distribute air only. not air and liquid.

**where are you getting your boost from for the WG?**

your statement about the springs makes no since.

if you run a 5# spring you get 5# of boost at the turbo.. if you want more than 5# you change the spring or add a boost controller.

[335stoner]

you use boost to help open the gate at the desired intake PSI not hold it shut. if you are seeing 60# in the exhaust and 30# in the intake the you should probably run a boost controller at 60# if it stays closed then back it down until it starts to open too soon then bump it back up a tad until it works how you want it to.

[335stoner]

you are currently fixated on trying to maintain intake psi when exhaust psi is the issue.

[335stoner]

please stop trying to over explain to me

[ranthum]

Originally Posted by 335stoner

this intake is designed to distribute air only. not air and liquid.

**where are you getting your boost from for the WG?**

your statement about the springs makes no since.

if you run a 5# spring you get 5# of boost at the turbo.. if you want more than 5# you change the spring or add a boost controller.

From turbosmarts website:

The spring is designed to include elements of back pressure / airflow – if bench testing a waste-gate you will expect a higher crack pressure.

Additionally you can read more here.

A 5# spring may or may not open at 5# depending on whether the manufacturer factored in the correct amount of exhaust pressure.

I currently have the boost pressure from one of the connections coming out of the EGR/ASV delete. This is post intercooler so it will be a little lower than pre intercooler due to the temperature change. The boost reference is also taken from the same area. While it's a lot of lines in a small area, 2 are meth and 1 is nitrous.

[335stoner]

ok thanks for the clarification on the lines..

are you running a screamer pipe on the EWG?

on a simple boost controller you run a unblocked line to the bottom port on the gate (that controls intake psi) then you run your controller to the top port. you use the controller to add 1,2 or 3 psi to the top of the gate to make your (example) 5# spring act like a 5,7 or 8 psi spring.

but in your case you are not interested maintaining intake psi (not the issue) as much as you are trying to control your exhaust psi (the issue).

start with this
-currently your intake boost is maintained by your IWG.
-your EWG is opening too soon because your exhaust pressure is too high.

you need to spring up or get your boost controller operating properly and don't focus on intake boost. If you have a 30# spring you need to get 30# of boost on the top port using your controller to make for 60# of close force.