Bmw performance intake

[Mtnman]

I am really thinking about giving my girl an intake for xmas. Have any of you guys run the bmw intake? How is the improvement in sound and throttle response?
David

[Marcus-SanDiego]

David, I can only tell you that it looks good. I went from aftermarket intake to BMW performance intake, so I'm not a good person for the rest of your question.

[danewilson77]

I think there is a bit of info in the perf thread...

OEM BMW Performance Accessories Questions (http://www.zhpmafia.com/forums/showthread.php?95-BMW-OEM-Performance-Accessories-questions).

[Jon D]

I was looking at the price and thinking, hmm maybe this is worth doing so I called my contact at Active Autowerke. I have already replaced the stock filter with a K&N drop in and asked how much performance difference with the BMW intake? Answer, maybe 1 or 2...so if buying for the performance aspect, which I was, recommendation save your money.

FWIW.

[danewilson77]

Mainly for looks as stated.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Yep. I did it strictly for looks.

[Mtnman]

i am hoping to get sound and some improved throttle response... but im sure the placebo effect will make sure i have both those after install.....

[pyreguy]

I think mine sounds better with my intake even though its not a BMW Performance one. I imagine its similar in result.
http://i986.photobucket.com/albums/ae342/pyreguy/ZHP/DSC00052.jpg

[Jon D]

Mainly for looks as stated.

Worth every penny then.

[az3579]

Mainly for looks as stated.


Worth every penny then.


I dunno, I must be one of the few that appreciate the look of a stock unit a lot more... but meh.
The one that says Dinan on it sure looks good though, but it looks almost the same as a stock one. lol

[Marcus-SanDiego]

I kind of had a unique situation when I got mine.

My car originally had an aFe intake on it when I bought it from previous owner. I wanted everything to be OEM on the car, so I was looking for a BMW intake. That BMW Performance intake popped up, at a great price, so I snagged it. I didn't price the stock intake but I imagine it would have been in the ballpark of what I paid for the BMW Performance intake.

The new intake matches my BMW Performance CF strut brace.

So that's mostly why I went with the CF intake instead of the basic BMW intake.

I sold my AFe intake along with the Active Autowerke strut brace that was originally on my car. I used that money to fund part of the purchase of my BMW Performance parts. Worked out well.

[Mtnman]

I Bit the bullet and went ahead and ordered this sunday. It should be shipping today. If all goes well, i may have it before the holiday weekend. If so, ill try to post some pics and a sound clip before and after.... Ill also give a report. Normally, "that thing looks so cool" adds 7+ horsepower....so if it sounds better too, im thinking ill end up with 300+ rwhp. :headbang

[danewilson77]

I Bit the bullet and went ahead and ordered this sunday. It should be shipping today. If all goes well, i may have it before the holiday weekend. If so, ill try to post some pics and a sound clip before and after.... Ill also give a report. Normally, "that thing looks so cool" adds 7+ horsepower....so if it sounds better too, im thinking ill end up with 300+ rwhp. :headbang

Don't forget the "ZHP MAFIA" sticker adds 5 HP........

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Don't forget the "ZHP MAFIA" sticker adds 5 HP........

Good call, DW. But we dynoed the car with the sticker on -- added 8 HP.

[Jon D]

I sold my AFe intake along with the Active Autowerke strut brace that was originally on my car. I used that money to fund part of the purchase of my BMW Performance parts. Worked out well.

I'm debating about the strut brace.. and was leaning towards the AA one after my conversation with them yesterday. The other choice is the BMW performance one. My issue is buying it for what it does more than how it looks. If it was looks BMW performance hands down. For the same money... what to do?? Now if you still had yours and saved me dollars that would have made life easy.

BTW could you tell a driving difference between the two strut braces??

[Marcus-SanDiego]

I do not drive the car aggressively enough, Jon. Therefore, I cannot tell you the difference between the two braces. The only difference is in looks, I imagine.

I sold that aFe and strut brace, by the way, to ZSP-Mafia (Jim). He bought it from me when ZHP Mafia was only available on Facebook. Seems like a long time ago.

The important thing for me is that the brace and the intake now match. I would not want a mismatched set -- especially when I cannot tell the difference from a performance standpoint. I like symmetry. The fact that both parts are BMW Performance parts makes me feel that the world is right. LOL.

[Mtnman]

Delivery date for the new intake, 12/30. Weekend fun Ftw!

[FullyBalanced]

I've got one... I spoke with the Dinan expert at Flow BMW in Winston Salem and he said it was basically the same as the new style Dinan. Good for 1-3 horse by itself. He recomended the Dinan TB and exhaust to go with it (of course). I'd say the only psuedo-notable thing is the sound. It may be a little lower of a grunt now.

[PKR]

If you're looking at strut bars and aren't into the bling thing then look at the OEM M3 bar. I just picked one up used and saved some real $$$ compared to the Performance CF piece.

[Tampa330i]

The only thing holding me back from the bmw strut bar is the shape. Shouldn't a strut bar be as straight as possible? Or is the carbon fiber solid enough so as not to flex at all under stress?

[danewilson77]

It is also, mainly for looks.....really.

[AAZHP]

It is also, mainly for looks.....really.

I completely agree. :hi You will get more performance just replacing the factory paper filter with a K&N Drop In. Speaking from personal experience.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

The only thing holding me back from the bmw strut bar is the shape. Shouldn't a strut bar be as straight as possible? Or is the carbon fiber solid enough so as not to flex at all under stress?

JB, I trusted that BMW knew what it was doing when it designed that brace. The brace is very well made. It's solid. I have it.

[kayger12]

The only thing holding me back from the bmw strut bar is the shape. Shouldn't a strut bar be as straight as possible? Or is the carbon fiber solid enough so as not to flex at all under stress?

CF is generally twice as rigid as steel-- I don't think rigidity would be an issue.

Also, CF does not expand due to engine compartment heating like aluminum and, to a lesser degree, steel.

I don't think it would be a bad purchase.

[Tampa330i]

CF is the way to go, no doubt. I love the look of the bmw one, too. Just about every bar I've looked at is completely straight, I wonder why this one is not.

[danewilson77]

Definetely built to a nice pedigree....but I doubt we notice a diff in daily driving is what I meant.

[Mtnman]

Follow up post after install:
Sound is a little better. I like it.
Throttle response may be a little better, but may be just me wanting it to be.
Did not notice a performance difference.
However..... Gas mileage may have been increased substantially! I normally average 17.5 to 18.5. I reset and calculate mileage every time i get gas. My last 4 tanks were all between 17.5 and 17.9. I filled up right after install, and just filled up again today and got 19.5mpg!!!!! That is a large increase for all city driving. I drive for work half the day all in the city, and in neighborhoods driving slowly and also idling a lot. 2 mpg city increase would be huge, and it would pay for the intake in less than a year. :fistpump Given, this is only one tank, and it could easily be an anomoly. I will post again after this tank in about 4 to 5 days.

[billschusteriv]

Thanks for the follow up. Looking forward to numbers from the next tank.

[pyreguy]

I thought I was getting bad mileage at 25. I guess the 26 miles of interstate I drive for work everyday make a HUGE difference. I had no idea. Mileage is an interesting thing...

[az3579]

I thought I was getting bad mileage at 25. I guess the 26 miles of interstate I drive for work everyday make a HUGE difference. I had no idea. Mileage is an interesting thing...

25 is actually a very good average if you drive any sort of city driving at all, even if it is just a mile of traffic lights. Once you get off the highway and into an urban environment, your mileage always goes DOWN. I average about 23 mpg on my daily ~7 mile work commute, mainly because 1) there are city parts involved and multiple traffic lights despite totaling less than 1 mile of my commute, 2) my engine is COLD by the time I get on the highway and doesn't settle in for good mpg 'till I'm halfway there, 3) from the time I start the car to the halfway point, I'm battling non-ideal road inclines on the highway and on the road leading up to it, and finally 4) the good mpg section of my journey only lasts maybe 2 miles. Maybe.

It's very, very difficult to get anything above 23mpg in my commute. The road/surface/traffic conditions make ALL the difference in average mileage. If you're averaging 25mpg in your daily commute, that's actually pretty darned good in my book.

Betcha if my commute was 40 or so miles each way opposing traffic on the highway, I'd be averaging over 27-28.

[pyreguy]

I got 29 when I drove up to see David a few weeks ago. That was like 800 miles one way.

[danewilson77]

^Agree. I am getting 25.......with an average speed of 47mph......about 100 miles of interstate/day...with a lil traffic.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

I saw the OBC stats yesterday. My car is doing about 25 miles per gallon.

[danewilson77]

But you've only driven your car 25 miles since you got eeeeeeeeeeeet......:rofl

[Marcus-SanDiego]

LOL.

[Tampa330i]

I get pretty terrible mileage. I drive 1.5 miles each way to work, 4 days a week with occasional trips to various stores no more than 10 miles or so away. I haven't gone above 65 yet, and I've only driven on a highway once since November. My mileage almost always shows about 15mpg. Probably 1/2 the time the car is running, it's idling. I warm it up for a few minutes before I drive to and from work, at least 2-3 minutes every time. I thought I would be getting better mileage, but I don't really care since I fill up about once a month. Anything I can do to improve it?

[az3579]

I get pretty terrible mileage. I drive 1.5 miles each way to work, 4 days a week with occasional trips to various stores no more than 10 miles or so away. I haven't gone above 65 yet, and I've only driven on a highway once since November. My mileage almost always shows about 15mpg. Probably 1/2 the time the car is running, it's idling. I warm it up for a few minutes before I drive to and from work, at least 2-3 minutes every time. I thought I would be getting better mileage, but I don't really care since I fill up about once a month. Anything I can do to improve it?

There isn't much you can do to improve it given your current driving situation. 15mpg doesn't surprise me at all since you drive exclusively urban. If you want to help the numbers a little, do not let the car idle to warm it up. The best way to warm it up is to drive it. Letting it idle for a couple of minutes is exactly the same as driving it just down the block, so by idling all you are doing is getting 0mpg and wasting fuel, bringing your average way down.

[Tampa330i]

In a month or two, or whenever it decides to not be 30 degrees here, I won't need to warm it up. Sometimes I don't bother, it's a 5 minute drive. I just happened to buy the car when it started getting abnormally cold here.

[az3579]

In a month or two, or whenever it decides to not be 30 degrees here, I won't need to warm it up. Sometimes I don't bother, it's a 5 minute drive. I just happened to buy the car when it started getting abnormally cold here.

I don't warm it up and it was 0 degrees this morning...

[danewilson77]

In a month or two, or whenever it decides to not be 30 degrees here, I won't need to warm it up. Sometimes I don't bother, it's a 5 minute drive. I just happened to buy the car when it started getting abnormally cold here.


So....you consistently make short travel trips with your car?

[Marcus-SanDiego]

I was always told to never warm my BMWs up. Just drive them conservatively (under 3000 RPM) until the car is warmed up. That's because fuel is richest (supposedly) at start up. The ring seal has not expanded (too cold), so it allows moisture (fuel) to get into the oil.

Also, short trips make for other, possible oil issues. Something about oil and water evaporation (not taking place).

I understand why short trips suck. The car never really does get enough time to burn off any moisture that may have been left in the system since your last drive. That goes for exhaust moisture too.

If you can take longer trips to work that might be a good idea, JB. Also, be sure the car does get some longer trips -- perhaps on the weekend. Finally, be sure to change your oil more often if you're doing all of these short trips.

Hopefully my post will spawn some chatter on the subject. I know enough to be dangerous. The more mechanically inclined will likely clean up my explanation.

[danewilson77]

Yeah...short trips are bad. Go outta your way to make the trip just bit longer.

Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk

[pyreguy]

My owners manual specifically says to NOT let the car warm up at an idle, but to drive it at a reasonable speed immediately after starting. I haven't warmed it up a moment since then.

[Tampa330i]

A good excuse to drive a little more. I almost never get to drive because it's such a short ride to work and everything is so close. I wouldn't mind taking a slightly longer route.

[Mtnman]

Update number two. Fillup number two yielded 19.17mpg. Still over 19, which is still 1.5mpg better than i was getting. Sweet. Ill post again soon.

[kayger12]

Some interesting info on intake hp increase here. (http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=507315&highlight=BMW+performance+intake)

Seems maybe it gives you just a lil more than we thought...

[Marcus-SanDiego]

I ran across that thread this morning, Keith.

[kayger12]

I was pretty surprised. If someone was sitting on the purchase fence, 6.5 horse might push them over...

[mr hish]

my friend has installed on his e46 a k&n air intake it sounds really nice and has an atractive look once u open the hood!