TE37 is like a white shirt…. Goes well on anything.

In a couple of months I would have been tracking the M3 for one year. So far I have been through Michelin Pilot Super Sports (PSS), Nitto NT05 (2 sets) and now Hankook RS3. In terms of grip and track use I would rate Michelin Pilot Super Sports #3, Nitto NT05 #2, and Hankook RS3 #1.

Now the NT05 and RS3 are both in the 200 treadwear category. I was planning to buy my 3rd set of NT05s but I wanted to change things up and see if I could tell a difference with tires of the same treadwear. From what I can tell, it’s a big difference. The RS3 is slightly more expensive then the NT05s but its was something worth trying out at least once.

With my brand new RS3 mounted, I recently had a track day to test them out. The levels of grip on the Hankook surpassed the grip of the NT05. Unfortunately my lap timer wasn’t working properly so I wasn’t able to get any data. Hopefully next month at MSR Cresson I’ll be able to acquire data. Subjectively, once heat cycled, the RS3 griped a lot better than the NT05. I felt more confidence to push the car harder after every lap. The tire warms up quickly usually after a couple of laps and the grip is just constant! I felt more g forces on the corners compared to the NT05. I didn’t have any sidewall scrubbing or overheated tries. The road noise of the RS3 is about the same as the NT05, I didn’t really notice a difference, but then again I do have a loud exhaust. Looks wise the RS3 isn’t aggressive looking as the NT05 but its something I can overlook. After tracking on the RS3s I don’t think I’ll ever go back to the NT05s. Don’t get me wrong though, the NT05 preforms well on the track. Its NOT a terrible tire at all, but if you are looking to upgrade to something better in the same tire category, then the RS3 would be a good tire choice.

It been awhile posting here but there hasn’t been updates to the M3. I’m pretty happy the way it is now and I’ve just been going to track events once or sometimes twice a month.

Recently I installed my 90mm wheel studs for extra strength and it’s nice having the option of running spacers. My Project Kics racing lugs compliment the studs. It about the attention to detail

I found some 15mm FK spacers I had at my parents place when I had my old BMW before I crashed many years ago. I placed it in the rear because I wanted to be more flush to the fenders. The fitment looked good.

Couple weeks ago I went to a autocross and I took off my spacers at the track because I was afraid of rubbing. I noticed it would slightly rub in city driving over bumps and steep inclines but noting severe when I had my GTI or miata. The autocross was my first timed event. The fastest cars was running in the 27 sec range at the track and slowest cars were around 40 sec range. The cars tuned for the autocross really killed it, so I knew I wasn’t going to get to their lap times. My goal was to get below 30 secs and I would be happy. There was a CTS-V and a stock 996 GT3 running 29-28 sec range and I figured that would be a good time to get. Unfortunately 30.8 was the fastest I managed to get. The event ended prematurely after a Shelby Cobra replica took out the timer. I was short by 2 runs but honestly I don’t think I was able to get pass 30.8 because I was really pushing it.

Here is video of me at the autocross but not of the fastest time… I got soo serious in trying to get below 30 sec range that I forgot to turn on the go pro. Feel good to chip away at your times though.

 

 

Between all the things that come up in life (work, school, families, etc), I was starting to feel like I hadn’t really had a weekend with the people I used to kick it with all the time. Wekfest Texas 2015 was a weekend for friends. It was that simple, just a weekend where most of us would gather again and act like fools. This was our first time renting an AirBNB house, and it was worth it. We arrived the day before the event to do a bit of hanging in Houston  as well as go to the pre-meet.

Our first stop was Waffle House. It should be noted that no real road trip is complete without at least one meal consumed at waffle house.

Lets look at Charlie’s silly ass communist face in his integra.

Biss’s new Fried150 transporting Cody’s ruckus and Chris’s grom

Arick’s actually clean car on the way there. He threw some Advan SA3r’s on there (Which I’m obviously partial to as my last car rocked them as well :P)

Our original plan was to see some damn space ships. Aall I wanted was to see some damn space ships and of course, robots. My lazy ass friends got the idea that it was too far, so we ended up at Screwed Up Records where my nerdy ass sure didn’t belong. However, I actually am a fan of Houston rap, grey tapes, SUC, bangin’ screw so I actually was excited when we rolled up.

 

We did do some quality hangs, ended up eating some tastey food truck food, and also wound up at an anime store…. All things that I do in fact enjoy. (As a side note, I was very proud of myself as I wondered into the anime store and did not spend a single dollar. It probably was due to everything that I thought was cool was well over $50 and I turn into a cheap skate unless it comes to motorcycles these days). We went back to the house soon after where we chilled and eventually fell asleep.

 

This says it all.

 

On to the show. I tried to get most of my shots before the public were allowed to enter as I like to avoid the traffic. With such a large event, however, there is never a shortage of people. The Wekfest crew always know how to put together a great show they did not disappoint this round either. The venue was actually double the size of the last two events, which made the show even more of a spectacle. As crazy as amassing enough quality cars to fill the original venue is, Wekfest had the near impossible task of finding enough quality cars to fill a venue double the size of the last one.

I apologize to the owner of this Z as I forgot your name, but I do remember that he was representing for Proper Garage. I spoke to the builder for a good bit and was really excited to hear about everything this car brought to the table. It seems to be harder and harder for me to find car builds that really rile me up, but this one did the trick. Everything from the stance, to the wheel choice, and color combo were on point. I mean, look at the headlights! Mad props

 

 

Taste the rainbow. Flashy is making a comeback, and I can say that as I become more open minded I really begin to dig all sorts of things, this build included!

 

 

 

 

A challenger I really was into. The lines of this model are timeless

 

 

American VIP? Yes, please

 

 

Say it with me now….

 

My buddy Fryer has had this damn car for forever. Each year it gets better, gets the shit beat out of it, and gets another single cam. Keep on keepin on good buddy!

 

 

 

 

 

Reverse stagger is still the tightest shit since sliced bread.

 

 

Lets have a moment of silence for this all Mugen EK4 SIR. Still one of my favorite builds, and it’s evolution from last year did not dissappoint

 

First you gotta line’em up and then attack…. or something

Got Sol?

 

The homie Jon Hansen is always building something sweet. We all look forward to kicking it with him when he makes it down here. It’s a shame he doesn’t live closer or he’d end up at our BBQ’s and other random bullshit we occupy our spare time with. His Merc took a well deserved 1st place in the Mercedes category this round. He always themes his builds and ties them together very well. He doesn’t spend his time throwing pointless money at his cars, but rather takes the time to think out a theme and executes it. Much respect, amigo

 

The 2000’s are back. So much yes here

 

Every angle of this timeless car looks great.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Roy from Annihilator Customs always has to out do himself each year. From green to red, I must say that this color really sets his IS300 off. Keep up the work dude!

 

 

 

 

I remember growing up and thinking that the Honda Primo/Verano banners were a must have to any “real” Honda

 

I hear the scooter game was in fact on FLEEK

 

The resident Texas prelude guy, Chris H. went full Mugen on his BB6. He’s had this car since it was brand new…. jealousy

 

 

This wagovan didn’t run, but it was still styled to my liking. Wheel choice is on point.

 

The home Hong’s food runner. He’s my resident Houston “large Asian”. If you’re going to any city where you have real friends, you’re bound to have that one “Large Asian” friend that will always be down for two things, chillin and food.

Vinson brought his race car to a show 😛

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Within the past month and Wekfest (now over after writing this) coming up, I decided to install my Car Shop Glow (CSG) x pipe and aFe intake. They were pretty much bolt ons and the only cutting required was the CSG x pipe. I didn’t have my camera with me so I used my fancy iPhone 6.

Before I could install my CSG x pipe I had to get another stock OEM x pipe, since this requires you to cut you OEM x pipe. I could have just used my stock one but if I wanted to go back to stock then I would have to source another OEM x pipe. To avoid that hassle I prepared ahead and bought a spare OEM x pipe, for super cheap, and I used that for the CSG x pipe.

The CSG x pipe gets rid of the secondary cats and the resonators which makes the exhaust lighter and more free flowing. The CSG x pipe doesn’t get rid of the primary cats, so you don’t have to worry about getting a CEL. Notice the design of the CSG x pipe, the x section is a lot longer than stock which changes the sound frequency of the V8 motor.

I took my M3 to my friend, Fernando. He opened a shop this year but unfortunately still has no electricity. But people still come to him for car work and has portable power tools to get the job done. Since my exhaust might be a back breaker without a working lift, Fernando took to M3 to his buddy at One Stop Auto.

They removed my old stock x pipe and used my spare OEM x pipe to cut and clamp on my CSG x pipe. The process was pretty straight forward.

After cutting the x pipe they filled down any rough cuts before connecting the CSG x pipe.

Then you match up the holes with the CSG logo facing down towards the ground. CSG x pipe does come with clamps to properly secure your exhaust.

Once everything is aligned you bolt everything back up.

Perfect fit and no hiccups. Looks nice good too.

Closer look look at the clamps and approximately where to cut. Everything lines up perfectly and nothing hitting or rattling.

Soo well built, like a work of art.

The install of the x pipe took about 1 hr. You can do it yourself, if you have the proper tools and longer if you don’t. Next after the x pipe was the aFe stage 2 intake. I manage to pick this one up for a good deal on the M3 forums. Most of the parts I got for the M3 was 2nd hand. Ballin on a budget right?

The kit comes with a bigger air filter and a less restrictive, more free flowing intake tube. The kit is bolt on and very easy to install. Its comes with all the hardware required for the install. The first step was removing the air box which it held on by torx screws.

After opening the intake box, you remove the stock air filter and intake tube. I wish I did a side by side comparison, but I was excited and forgot. But I can tell you that the aFe stage 2 intake is bigger and appears to be less restrictive.

With the stock intake out, I notice how well engineered the M3 is. The stock intake box has two openings: one from the hood and the other comes from the bottom left front bumper. Both channels air into the intake… That came stock! Most cars have non functioning hood scoops or grills, they are just for show. I was also able to see inside of the M3 plenum. I wanted to take a pic of the beautiful ITBs but my iPhone wasn’t able to get a clear view. Another reason why the S65 motor is so good…. it comes stock with ITBs! I would say 10 years ago you were not able to get a stock car that comes with ITBs unless it was a $100k supercar. Talk about progression. Thanks BMW.

Anyways back to the aFe intake… After the stock intake is removed, you slide in the aFe silicone coupling with the clamps.

Next is to install the aFe intake tube. I found it easier to install the intake tube without the air filter attached, to give us more space. The aFe intake is bigger than stock, therefore space is tight once fitting it in.

Next is connect the intake tube to the air filter.

As you can see, the aFe stage 2 intake is bigger than stock but fits perfectly in the intake box. I can see the design is more air flow efficient than stock.

The last step is to put back the intake cover and thats it!

With the the aFe intake and CSG x pipe combined, I didn’t notice a night and day difference with power, like if you did a tune or added a supercharger. Instead the bolt ons made the M3 more responsive, alive and sounds more aggressive especially on WOT. With the aFe intake I can hear a more noticeable induction sound, but its barely noticeable and the radio needs to be off and windows up. People were saying the CSG x pipe will drone but it really didn’t drone at all even on highway speed. Im on a stock rear muffler and I think that is what eliminated the drone. Believe me I know drone, I had a Miata that was basically straight piped to a Apex’i muffler and that droned and a stage 2 tuned MK5 GTI that had 3″ straight pipes. Instead with the CSG x pipe, its a nice 75 decibels on idle and only gets louder when you step on the gas. Thats it for now and maybe for awhile too. The M3 is really good from the factory you don’t really need to much. Maybe just more track day adventures.

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!