This was one of my sessions I did at COTA and I’m glad I was able to race in a world famous course.

Hope you enjoy!

If you had an opportunity to race at a world famous race track, would you do it? I sure did. Bucket list checked off. I gained a lot of knowledge from it and was able to really stretch the legs of the M3 in a safe manner. Yeah autocross kinda same (another type of auto racing) but its nothing like racing a legitimate track.

This was my first track experience and I was excited. I even counted down the days for the big event, like when you look forward going to vacation. I think any car person would be just as excited as me. The Circuit of the Americas is located in Austin, Tx and host many racing events including Formula One and Le Mans. The track is very technical with 20 turns and late apex. The corners are “rhythmic,” where if you get one corner wrong then you wont be able to properly set for the following corners. It’s a track you cannot master in one track day, but fun to race in.

The event was hosted by Edge Addicts. The price to race at COTA is well worth the money. I paid $745 for one track day at COTA. This included a garage in the pit lane, 5 track sessions lasting 20mins, and a driving instructor, which a must for novice drivers. I also rented a truck and car trailer too. I didn’t have to do that, since my car is street legal and registered, but I wanted to have space were I can load my spares and tools.

I was talking to some people who often do track racing and they said this is one of the longest tracks they have been to. The track is very demanding with long high-speed corners to long 140mph plus straight that goes to a sharp 2nd gear corners. Faster cars can reach 200mph plus. It place where you can find the limits of your car and driving skills.

The two things I noticed that was kind of the weak link of my M3 was first: The OEM seats are nice but it didn’t hold me snugly like a full bucket seat would. I  would have to fight against gravity when going through the long high-speed corners.

The second weak link was the factory brakes. I did change the pads to Akebono carbon ceramic pads, with SS brake lines and Motul dot 5.1 brake fluid. But even with those changes I was starting to feel the brakes get mushy after 15mins on the track during each session. I would have to tap my brakes a bit on the 140 plus mph straight before a sharp left corner to get my brakes to bite harder. The stock single piston caliper is massive (my VOLK TE37RT barely fits) and is more than adequate on the street but if you plan on going to the track frequently, then would recommend upgrading to the 4-6 piston big brake kits. Other than that the M3 is a great track car that is perfectly balanced. The chassis is so well-balanced that all you need to do is turn the steering wheel into the apex and it will hit the apex. If you haven’t really driven a M3, you are missing out on one of the best driving cars out there. No wonder automotive reviews give this car high praise. The M3, all generations are really great driving machines. You could daily this car and take it to the track on the weekends.

On my first run I ran without M mode on, just to get a baseline. In my opinion,  the car felt great and capable on the track without M mode. The remainder of the sessions I ran with M mode because it was like icing on the cake. The car felt more planted and responsive on the track. The M3 has MDM mode, which is a more relaxed stability control. But the US MDM mode doesn’t give you much leeway like the Euro MDM mode. I always felt like the traction control kicks in way too early even in MDM mode. I was told the Euro MDM is 80% less intrusive than the US MDM mode. I guess BMW thinks US drivers can’t drive. But you can always fully turn off traction control to exploit the M3 capabilities. Just be careful, because if you get it wrong you don’t have electronics to save you.

I did end up getting track insurance for a piece of mind, but there are loop holes and not everything is covered. With that in mind, I didn’t push the car too hard. I came to understand the limits of my car in a closed course and learn proper driving techniques. I mainly used 3rd through 6th gear. Some of the corners are 2nd gear corners but I didn’t want to push the motor too hard. Don’t get wrong though, the S65 motor has plenty of power in the power band to get me out the corners using 3rd gear.

The S65 engine is soo well made from the factory, I didn’t feel the need for more power. The upgrades done to the m3 was minimal and mainly focusing on the handling. So far I did was a wheel stud conversion, VOLK TE37RT, Akebono pads, SS lines and Swift Spec R springs. Oh and you can’t forget about the tires… Nitto NT-05 rears and Michelin Pilot Super Sports in the front. My cold tire pressure was at 32 psi, but after one session the pressure went up to 38-40psi with hot tires. I would say that is the sweet spot for maximum grip, anything higher and the tires would get greasy. After each track session the tires stayed at a constant 38-40 psi. Which told me I had some good brand tires and they where able to take the abuse even in the 100 degree weather. They held up very well, and only had 2,000 miles put on them before my track day. These tires could probably do 3 more track sessions at COTA before I have to replace the tires. Nitto and Michelins have the same grip characteristics but if I had to choose… Then I would get the Nitto NT-05 over the Michelin Pilot Super Sports just because it’s a cheaper tire and a higher grip rating.

The M3 really exceeded my expectation and no hick ups in the hot Texas heat. I was just having fun. I was catching up to 911 GT3, and Ferraris 458 Itallas. It’s not about horsepower but balance.

Racing at COTA is really something any car guy should do at least once. This track is addicting and has many great features. If I could do this for a living I would in a heart beat. Racing has always been my passion and I’m thankful I was able to do this at a young age. Till next time…

For my 11 min video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMcXnDjVE0U

While browsing Yahoo Japan, I came across a unique find… Car Shop Glow X pipe for the E9x M3. If you don’t know what Car Shop Glow is; they are high end Japanese brand known for their unique style LED lights in the RX-7, Supra, NSX and other 90s and early 2000 Japanese cars . Car Shop Glow is now more known in the USA, thanks to Mayday Garage. I first saw Car Shop Glow LED lights at StanceNation Dallas last year. The Mayday Garage booth broke everyone necks and seemed like if you were a somebody you had to have it. Nice marketing.

High quality custom car & parts.

I’m probably sure they make one off LED lights for customers who want to stand out from the rest, because my friend had a set made for his TSX. It like that saying, “if you can imagine it, they can build it,” or something in that context.

Now back to the x-pipe.

Seeing the hand made quality from Car Shop Glow LEDs, I knew any product they make will be just as good. The problem was the information is in Japanese, and yes Google translate helped me piece together the English translation, but I wouldn’t trust it too much. With that dilemma, I contacted David from Final From USA and Mayday Garage, which are the distributors for Car Shop Glow in the USA, to inquire about the x pipe. David was pretty fast on replying and great customer service. Within a week of ordering, I received my X-pipe from Japan!

During the unboxing, the package was well wrapped with layers of bubble wrap, ensuring nothing was damaged during its flight over seas. The Car Shop Glow x-pipe is hand made which adds a personal touch. I’ve noticed Japanese people are striving for perfection and take pride in their craft, its just the culture. Have seen “Jiro Dreams of Sushi” on Netflix? If not, you need to watch it now to understand what Im talking about.

The handmade welds are clean and neat. No eBay cheapness here, or robots doing the work.

The Car Shop Glow x pipe is unresonated for better flow. Yeah there are companies that offers x pipe with resonators to alter the sound, but I like the untamed sound of straight pipe especially with V8 motors. Besides why add resonotors when its just going to add weight, and speaking of weight….

If you ignore my girly design of my analog weighing scale, it only weights 10lbs!! Every ounce counts when dieting.

Another thing thats different from most other x-pipes is the design. The crossover pipe (center part) is longer than most crossover pipes for the E9x M3.

As you can see the Car Shop Glow cross over section is longer than the Macht Schinell crossover section.

Im not a engineer or have extensive knowledge with exhaust systems. But I do know with V8 motors, the design of x-pipe you get changes the sound frequency. Now, I don’t know how a longer cross over section will sound but Im interested to find out…. You just have to stay tuned.

Check out:

http://maydaygarage.com/

https://finalformusa.com/

http://carshop-glow.com/

Recently I was able to score a great deal on the M3 forum for some 2nd hand LED angle eyes for the e92 m3. The seller gave me a great hook up price and the shipping was fast! The installation of the LED wasn’t too bad and its something a novice can do. The whole unit is plug and play, and wont throw a code. The only hard part was trying to insert the LED light into the headlight housing since space is limited. I actually went on youtube to figure how the install the bulbs. The total install took me 10mins.

You can tell the LED (right) is much brighter and more modern looking then the halogen (left) halos.

More updated look with the 6k LED lights. Yeah its 2nd hand but I paid less then half from retail. Totally worth it for someone trying to refresh the look of there E90s M3. OEM plus style.

My friend Alex from Slammednuff and founder of Cars in Houston wanted to do a little mini shoot of the M3. Im always down for a shoot, if work schedule allows me. Luckily, I was off the next day, and I didn’t sleep for 18hrs (because of night shift), but I love cars and anything car related kept me up for the day. The shoot came out soo well, that Im going to make a print of all these photos. A little remembrance for when I get older.

The real VOLK TE37, I posted about fake VOLKS on my pervious post…. Just sad how people would try to rip you off.

The booty. The M3 lines are already aggressive from the factory, you don’t really need to do much. Maybe a lip and rear diffusor… Its also tucking 265 sized tires. Which I’m upping to 275 sized tires soon.

Few people will notice, but one side has the color match reflector and the other is the stock reflector. When I was installing the color matched reflector, I dropped it inside the bumper and I couldn’t get it out. Im just not mechanically inclined like my other friends.

Im loving these VOLK TE37RT. I think it looks better than the Work KIwamis I had before.

The roller shots was the hardest. First of all we were shooting in the start of the afternoon rush hour traffic and we where not exactly organized. Good thing my other friend Lam, from Proper Garage, came by to help with rollers, and gave some tips like don’t go too fast.

I only had the car for a little over one month, I already lowered it and has gone to two sets of wheels. The M3 is already good from the factory and doesn’t really need much improvement. I still plan on some things like exhaust, lip, upgrade the engine bearings, and other things but I’ll take my time. I like to enjoy the little versions of where the car is at.

Recently my friend sent me a txt about these VOLK wheels for sale: http://houston.craigslist.org/pts/5010044979.html. Looks like a good deal, almost to good to be true. My friend even said the seller would go low as $1500. Now… VOLK TE37 18×9.5 et22 WITH tires selling for $1500 is too good to be true. They are probably 1. Stolen if its real TEs, 2. has a bend or crack, or 3. the rims are fake.

The seller sends these pictures, and there are things that popped to me that where fishy.

The spokes are different than the real deal. The black “TE37” in the CL ad looks like they are more aggressively curved, almost 90 degrees, where the spokes meet the lip.

The REAL TE37 have less of an aggressive curve where the spoke and the lip meet. The RED Volks are the legit wheels.

The top picture ^^^^ is another example of the real TE37 wheels. Notice the stamp placement between the LEGIT VOLK spokes and the the “TE37” on the CL ad. The TE37 on the CL ad are missing some stamps between the spokes. The CL ad shows its has some the stamps between the spokes but the other spokes doesn’t have any markings between them.

The “TE37” on the CL ad shows “Japan” engraved on the wheel. The REAL TE37 has “made in japan” on the wheel NOT “japan.” You also notice the “Rays Eng.” is not on the black “TE37” CL ad.

That is the VOLK TE37 copy ^^^ And the one below it is very similar to the copy.

When I compare the TE37 on the CL ad, they look very similar to JNC wheels. Reference: http://www.car-truck-parts.com/car-detail/wheels/JNC-014-18×85-TE37-STYLE-WHEELS-FIT-ACURA-RSX-TSX_151588640721.html

The “VOLK Racing” on the TE37 CL ad looks very similar to the real deal BUT the seller stated “the rims are 10 years old.” Then that must mean its pre 2010 VOLK. Well as far as I know, ALL OLDER VOLK TE37 didn’t have “Japan.” Volk Racing,” and “Forged” stamped between the spokes. The OLDER VOLKS had the “VOLK” and “Made in Japan” stamped on the back of the wheel hub. Post 2010 VOLKS now have their logos stamped between the spokes and certain TE37 models have it engraved on the spokes. Reference: http://jdmphasis.blogspot.com/2013/04/fake-volk-racing-te37.html.

Here is an example of an older VOLK wheel:

No stamp marks between the spokes and look how the spokes curves near the lip, not as sharp (aggressive) as the black TE37 on the CL ad.

The “made in japan” and “rays eng” are stamped on the back hub. The FAKE VOLKS wont have that.

The counterfeit wheel game is strong is out there and there are people who are willing to trick you into buying “legit” wheels when its actually a fake wheel. This is first I have seen a wheel company, JNC wheels, put a Volk Racing logo on the front rims when apparently its not an authentic Volk rim. People buying reps and slapping Volk stickers is old news now.

The pictue above is original volks. They are just older version than the new TE37s.  If you also notice that the original Volk TE37 valve stems line up with the lug nuts. Most rep wheels wont that feature. If all else fails, just look at the back to wheel hub. Original Volks should have “made in japan” “forged” or “Rays Eng.” stamped on the back of the wheel hub.

I don’t mind replica wheels, I mean I do mind, but what can I do about it. What bothers me the most is when someone tries to sale the fake wheels as the real wheels. That is just wrong morality and tells you a lot about the person’s integrity too. Ripping off the unsuspecting customer thinking they are getting a great deal on some real wheels when instead they overpaid for fake wheels.

To me the wheels are fake. Now I could be wrong, but I have been through many sets of wheels and a avid wheel aficionado, that this “TE37” ad on CL seems fake. There are just too many things that makes wonder if they are real. I wouldn’t buy those rims no matter how cheap it is. Im sure there are many other examples out there too.

Save the wheels, buy legit.

The cool thing about the BMW M3 forums, is there are people with money that sell stuff for great deals! I recently sold my Work wheels and I was itching to get another set of rims. While I was browsing the forums I found a great deal on some Volk TE27RT! The RT means ridged tuned which is stronger than the TE37SL but weighs the same. Better yet the TE37RT come in the red with the VOLK logo stamped and engraved on the rims. Volk is starting to do this to avoid the knock offs just putting “volk” stickers.

The specs are 18×10.5 et21 squared fitment! I saw these online and I had to buy it. When I got the rims I was surprised they were sooo light. I should have used a weighed them but I can assure you it felt lighter than my 18×10 BBS RS (which is 20lbs). I can see the racing development trickle down to the public market. You tell and feel the difference between the knock off and the legit. I don’t really like knock off because they go down in value fast and they just look tacky.

Wheel whoring. The BBS RS are still for sale btw.

The M3 also needed to have a brake service soon. I have Akebono pads on the 335i and it proved to be a good daily with confidence in stopping and less brake dust. Naturally, I bought Akebono carbon ceramic brake pads, ECS tuning stainless steel brake lines, and Motul brake fluid. Thankfully the rotors didn’t need to be replaced, the OEM replacements cost $495 brand new each.

I also got Swift Spec R springs 5kg front and 12kg rears. I wanted to get coilovers but the M3 comes stock with adjustable dampers and I didn’t want to lose that function or have the stupid suspension light on my dash.

You can the Swifts are shorter but have more coils, for a more firmer ride. The drop is roughly 1″ fronts and 0.6″ rears. Very conservative and wasn’t slammed like the GTI and Miata. I guess as you grow older your taste changes but I still respect the slammed car out there. I get it and its a style.

I was still in my scrubs, after a 12hr shift, when I went to Fenando’s shop. His shop is brand new and some of the lifts and alignment rack isn’t up because he is waiting to the permits to finish. But he was able to manage with jacks and array of tools with cordless impacts. I hope his business takes off because he does a good thorough job with his work! He a mechanic that can takes pride in his work and doesn’t rush things just to get the job done.

As you can see the (right) has some life in it but barely. The Akebonos (left) are thicker and produce less brake dust and noise than the OEM units. I honestly didn’t feel a difference in stopping power with the Akebono pads and SS lines. The stopping felt stock but at least I know the pads doesn’t produce much dust and noise compared to OEM. Besides its a M3, the OEM brakes are more than adequate at stopping then most stock cars.  I know SS lines help improve brake feel after repeated abuse but I haven’t taken the M3 to the track to test that. So far, after a month of owning the M3, it has been great and minimal cost to service. I know the dealer will charge a lot but if you find a mechanic or shop that you trust then it will be much cheaper. I didn’t have to get the Volks or Swift springs but wheels and drop didn’t hurt anyone. Plus it looks great more on that later….

Fernado’s shop: 6001 Maple St. Houston Tx, 77074

Shop: http://natsukashigarage.bigcartel.com/

Just before I sold the GTI, I was given an opportunity for a Slammedenuff feature. How I got the feature was interesting actually. I was at the Houston Auto Show, and Alex Fuentes, photographer for Slammedenuff and founder of Cars in Houston, noticed my car at the parking lot. I just saw a car following me and I gunned it leaving the parking haha. Later he actually contacted me through Instagram lol. After several attempts to set up a shoot, we able to set a date that would work for both of us. I was already thinking about selling the GTI and buying an m3, but I figured if I did, at least the GTI was able to get a feature and something to show my future kids and grandkids.

Check out: http://www.slammedenuff.com/vinson-ubalde-gti.html

Instagram @carsinhouston

Well since I parted out my cars to get the M3. I had some Work Kiwiamis that was just lying around, so I slapped them on the M3.

More to come…

Its been a while since I posted here, mainly because there wasn’t much car events that was worth going to, and I’ve been busy with other life endeavors. Recently I got a BMW 335i, as a wedding gift, and ever since I got that car I realized that I messed up. Before I had the BMW 335i, I was glad that I have a GTI and Miata that are fun cars to drive, and paid up too. The problem was after I got married the GTI and a Miata was turning more into garage queens. Things just keep on breaking down and if its not one thing then its another thing. The Miata was having electrical issues and the GTI was starting show its age prematurely.

Since the two cars were garage queens, the BMW 335i was really the only reliable car. I got bored of my GTI and Miata. Yeah they are nice to look at (at least to me) and both has that character that is unique to their own. But the 335i was faster stock than my stage 2 tuned GTI, and of course felt more safer than my Miata. I got used to the bluetooth technology, the sporty but not jarring suspension, and not having to worry if the car will run properly or not.

Maybe Im just getting older (only 26 btw) but I wanted to start over fresh with a better car, then the GTI and Miata. I wanted a more grown up car but not sacrificing performance or fun. I looked at Audi S4, Audi RS4, Audi RS4 Avant, AMG c63, and E90 M3.

After months of searching and thinking if its worth it to get a loan for a car, I narrowed my search for a BMW E90-92 M3. Looking at the BMW forums, and long term road test results, it seem like the E90s M3 owners would complain about problems with the automatic transmission. That wasn’t a problem for me because I was only interested in a 6 speed manual and besides, why would you get a automatic M3 anyways? I bit the buliet and started parting out the Miata and GTI.

Then I found the car I wanted. A 2009 E92 M3 with only 49,000 miles for $31,000. Other dealerships were asking $41,000-45,000 for that much milage. I knew I had to check it out, and I arranged to meet up with the dealer with a possibility of trading my GTI.

When I arrived, I had to keep my emotions down and be wise about it. Good thing I had my wife to snap me out if it did!!! So I did a test drive, I didn’t really push it hard because I already knew the M3 is fast. The BMW iDrive is user friendly, and I like how you can customize the M Drive settings to your preference. I was hooked, on this M3 and I had to get it. But was it, for the better? Well… I ended up getting the M3 hahahaha.

I took the to a BMW dealership for a pre purchase inspection, which cost $260, but money well spent to avoid a potential headache. The car checked out good with no major issues. With the deal I got free oil changes, tire, rim, window, dent protection for next 3 years. The BMW service adviser said the M3 gets serviced once a year and just recently had a service done. The car is rewarding to drive and the instant response from that V8 ITB motor is intoxicating. This car combines practicality of a four seater, thill of a v8 super car when you want it to, and tame enough for daily driving duties. I would say I don’t miss my GTI or Miata. Might sound bad but feels like I got hotter girlfriend lol.