BMW 330 ZHP vs non-BMW ZHP power delivery

[nk_zhp]

Yesterday I had a friendly game of full throttling with another non ZHP 330Ci (pre-facelift). I was actually surprised in the difference. Mid range, 3rd gear, I was behind him. At the top of the rev range still in the 3rd gear I have already switched lanes, passed and was getting ready to tuck back in.

Professional drivers on closed course of course.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

I like your last line. Hehe.

[az3579]

Mods make a difference. You didn't mention the modded status of either...

[Kudos]

So your saying that a zhp was slower than a non zhp until 3rd gear?? nvm, so it was a 3rd gear race then?

[MasterC17]

This actually could make some sense. In third gear you will be running different RPM's (5-speed vs. 6-speed, etc., etc.). He may have started at higher RPM's and you at lower so he was making more power initially. Any guess at the speed and rpm you started at; if he had a factory differential we could figure out the RPM's he started at. Mods on his car may have also contributed.

[M0nk3y]

330s are 6-speeds

[ZSP-Mafia]

330s are 6-speeds

? Mine isn't. 03' and up only. One thing I've never understood is, why did they put a 6 spd in the non-specials with the 2.93 diff? It just seems to me that the 6th gear would be useless.

[nk_zhp]

After reading back what I wrote I realized that the story would only make sense if you all were in my back seat.

I was leisurely driving behind a 330Ci in 3rd gear somewhere in the middle of the rev range. At one point I noticed the gap between me and him was increasing rapidly. It was clearly that we were playing a game of cat and mouse. As the gap was about 2 cars I went into full throttle. The gap decreased as I had the drafting advantage then a rapid lane change. By the time I was at the red line in the same gear I was entirely ahead of him.

By the way the gearing as far as I know on 5 vs 6 speeds is essentially the same. The difference is the overdrive 6th gear which isn't present on the 5 geared transmission. In both cases the 5th gear is the 1:1 ratio.

[MasterC17]

After reading back what I wrote I realized that the story would only make sense if you all were in my back seat.

I was leisurely driving behind a 330Ci in 3rd gear somewhere in the middle of the rev range. At one point I noticed the gap between me and him was increasing rapidly. It was clearly that we were playing a game of cat and mouse. As the gap was about 2 cars I went into full throttle. The gap decreased as I had the drafting advantage then a rapid lane change. By the time I was at the red line in the same gear I was entirely ahead of him.

By the way the gearing as far as I know on 5 vs 6 speeds is essentially the same. The difference is the overdrive 6th gear which isn't present on the 5 geared transmission. In both cases the 5th gear is the 1:1 ratio.

Ahah, it makes a lot more sense now. I guess the draft and the ZHP Awesome factor is why you won :). The gear ratio differences between the 5 and 6 speed are close, but the 6 is slightly closer together than the 5. In third gear at the same speed, you would actually have the advantage - unless of course he was in second which I highly doubt. I don't think the 6-Speed came to the Coupes until they were facelifted in 04.

[terraphantm]

Makes sense... The ZHP engine always felt a good bit stronger than the non-ZHP M54B30s to me. Now it might lose a little bit of torque in the low-end since hotter cams tend to do that, but the high-end advantage is definitely there. The standard M54B30 feels like it runs out of steam a good bit earlier.

Also fwiw, gear ratios are nearly identical between 5-speed and 6-speed... I think the only difference is that 1st is a little shorter (4.35 vs 4.23). Non-ZHPs come with a longer ratio diff, but the top-speed advantage is negated by the lower redline. The two-cars should be topping out the gears at the same speeds, with the ZHP reaching the top-speeds slightly quicker in each gear thanks to the little bit of extra power.

[Rovert]

My friend had an 01 330 coupe. All he had was intake and exhaust but we were always very close. I might be slightly ahead but I'd hardly call that an honorable win due to driving factors from stop to the top of third. Maybe he had a stronger engine than most. I know he is a very quick shifter and launcher which may have helped. I can shift fast and launch hard but when he shifts there is a slight surge of power upon each clutch engagement. That's always felt like a bit of clutch wear to me. LOL. That's why I don't do it that way. I'm at 137K miles with a healthy grabbing clutch!

[nk_zhp]

^ BTW, I wasn't really attempting to label this as a "win", simply stating that I though that a ZHP has a considerable advantage between its slight power band difference due to the cams and the more aggressive rear end gearing. Not a fan of standstill drag racing.

[Rovert]

I totally understand. I've been on rolls too but his 330 seems to be a quicker one than the average. I know my best friend who was a BMW tech during the E46 days said that my car always felt stronger and quicker than most non ZHP 330's. He even went as far to say he's felt it different even driving other ZHP's. At least he noticed! LOL