Hello from NZ

Discussion in 'Welcome & Introductions' started by savant, Feb 16, 2008.

  1. savant

    savant Member

    Well, time for an official Hello!

    I bought kiwiblokes old RHD converted 1990 M3 in Brilliantrot.

    The car is pretty mint, I am making a few minor changes and have a few things to fix (questions below!). Cheers Wayne for keeping a very tidy car.

    I've got two check lights, one easy and one not so easy apparently.

    Need a new windscreen washer fluid float to get rid of that one (easy!)

    However my headlights seem to not want to be fixed. The car has deleted side markers, would this cause the headlight check light to trigger (as they all come on when you have the headlights on)? If so, would a small resistor do the job? I have cleaned out the connectors to the headlights (which work fine) and this has not solved the problem.

    The car drives very well, has a Turner chip and has been tuned for our fuel, however based on the dyno sheet appears to be down on power. It is currently making 135hp at the wheels (dynojet). I figured it should be closer to 150hp. The car has had a 2 1/4" exhaust put on it (Y into single), which my dodgy calculations suggest is 2/3 the size of stock. Would this be the main cause for the problem? Are there any other basic things I should be checking (throttles?).

    On Monday I am getting a new windscreen fitted (stone chips) and I will have the boot resprayed in the next few weeks (M3 logo was super-glued in the wrong place :( ). I am getting a set of 17" Schnitzer Type II's refinished at the moment to go on the car as well.

    Pics:
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    What is this??? Adjustable suspension indicator?
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  2. savant

    savant Member

    Dyno sheet for reference:
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  3. Revmaster T

    Revmaster T Member Staff Member Forum Supporter

    Hi Savant, congrats on a beautiful car. Your dyno numbers do look low. you may want to check the throttle cable make sure you get WOT. My car made 166 RWHP on a Dyno Jet. With AFM, Super Sprint exhaust from the header on, JC chip LTW flywheel and Euro exhaust cam gear. My engine at the time was a base 2.3 L 195 HP US spec engine.

    Have your mechanic check the basic stuff like valve adjustment. If you are running a catalytic converter make sure it's not partially clogged, sync the TB's, check the fuel quality control switch at the ECU ( located in the glove box ) etc.

    Your exhaust may very well be an issue maybe you could swap exhaust system with Rolland :)

    HTH Thomas

    PS make sure you have the correct bulbs installed in the head lights.
     
  4. M3 Adjuster

    M3 Adjuster Member

    I agree with Revmaster... your plot tapers off and never reaches a peak... it does not seem like the throttles are opening all the way and reaching the Wide Open Throttle maps. Check your throttle cable to make sure that when you depress the throttle all the way, that the throttle linkage is hitting the stop.. This may require a second person as an assistant. Beyond that, the non stock exhaust may be an issue.. Many a setup without the normal X pipe have been known to lose power.

    You could also check compression using a compression tester to make sure the cylinders are all ok.

    BEAUTIFUL CAR by the way! Here's hoping the problem is simple!
     
  5. savant

    savant Member

    Hi Revmaster,

    The valves were done a few years ago I think, but that was probably only 5000km ago. There is not a lot of valve noise. Is this still worth doing? There is no cat, just the small exhaust :). I will have a look at the TB's today. Would the FQS matter as it has an aftermarket chip?

    The throttle opens all the way to the stop when the pedal is depressed, I will have another look at it today though. The car does not smoke at all, though I have not had a compression test done. I will try and get one done this week.

    Cheers guys :)
     
  6. Revmaster T

    Revmaster T Member Staff Member Forum Supporter

    No matter which chip you have the FQS still has a effect on your ignition timing. Also check your connection on your blue temp sensor ( located on the right of the engine on the cooling rail/ tube towards to front.

    Your TB stop could be adjusted wrong too, the only way to check that is to take the intake plenum off and measure the opening of the throttle plates. I'll try to find the spec for that and let you know.

    How does the car feel overall when you drive it ? Does it feel like its tired ?
    What's your engine specs 2.3 L what cams etc. ?

    Thomas
     
  7. savant

    savant Member

    Hey Mate,

    FQS was set to 0. I am pretty sure the temp sensor is newish, but will check it when I pull the plenum off soon.

    The car feels good to drive, it does not feel tired. The only reason I would even say it is down on power is because of the dyno chart. It does not smoke and seems to make good power.

    It is a standard 2.3L US Spec engine.

    Cheers
     
  8. oscar

    oscar Active Member

    I could rig Willie up a couple of vacuum cleaner pipes...hell, we could even have them sticking up through the bonnet like some sorta swamp monster 4WD :D

    Welcome Willie :cool:
    Can't see any big dramas there. Just find a tuner that knows what they are doing. Or...ship it down here and I'll have someone sort that out in a heartbeat. Don't know about your wideboy Auckland tuners :p
    Bur seriously, we can find you one if you don't know. Putting a car on a dyno and getting a read out is one thing. Tuning it for maximum power across the rev range and actually knowing what you are doing is a whole different scenario.Having a Motec or some other engine management system would be a big bonus. Do those afr's look right Thomas ?

    ;)
     
  9. savant

    savant Member

    Hello again guys, I adjusted the throttles to spec, they were about 1mm out. Not sure this would make a huge difference though.

    Hi Velocity did the chip tune for the car, I have plans for an aftermarket EMS in the not so distant future so it is no biggie. I think once I have finished tidying up the few minor cosmetic issues I will organise an exhaust.

    Cheers

    William
     
  10. oscar

    oscar Active Member

    William, those are the guys that tuned Conrad's car are they not ? I'd say that tuner knows his stuff wouldn't you ?
    Does flatten off though ....
     
  11. savant

    savant Member

    Yeah, I think it's fair to say the tuner did a good job with what he had to work with.

    I am led to believe that the standard exhaust is 2x 45mm = 3178mm^2 (forgive me if my maths is dodgy).

    My exhaust is currently 1x 57mm = 2551mm^2 or 20% less than stock. I imagine at approx 5000rpm the engine just starts to have massive flow problems with that - I could be wrong, I am a newbie :)

    Disclaimer - My maths may be shit or I may be a complete spastic.
     
  12. oscar

    oscar Active Member

    hahhaha...don't be so paranoid :D

    Does seem choked somehow. Should have more area under the curve between 5k and say up to 7k. Yours just sits pretty well flat.

    I had a guy once (he claimed to be BMW trained tech) pull my afm apart. This was in earlier times. He claimed that he had worked on a number of E30M3's over the years and that he had experienced a common problem with the 'barn door' or 'flap' . He went on to say (as he pulled my afm apart) that the pivot that the flap stems from often bent over time and caused air flow problems (restricted).

    That was not in fact my problem at the time and I have not heard too many stories that would substantiate his assertions.

    Never know though, as a last resort if all else fails it might be worth a squizz.
    I wouldn't rush into it though...:cool:
     
  13. conrod

    conrod Active Member Forum Supporter

    what, like your guy who fitted the wrong size bearing shells?!!
    Those hp numbers are low, assuming a 20% loss that only equates to 168 flywheel hp.From the number of cars he has run on this dyno 20% seems to be a fairly accurate correction to calculate flywheel hp.Really strange power curve too. Looks more like a torque curve!
    But your car is in good hands, Gavin will sort it for you.And as you already know he has the ability to remap Bosch motronic Ecu's.
     
  14. oscar

    oscar Active Member

    That right Conrad ?
    How about you just pull finger and get on with what you said you would do .
    i.e. front with your vid
     
  15. oscar

    oscar Active Member

    Look Pal...let's be straight about this stuff :

    Tuners have nothing to do with that which you are casting aspersions upon.
    Why would you ?

    Who is Gavin ? Please explain.

    No more bs thank you Conrad.
     
  16. Revmaster T

    Revmaster T Member Staff Member Forum Supporter

    You guys are cracking me up LOL :)

    Thomas
     
  17. Revmaster T

    Revmaster T Member Staff Member Forum Supporter

    I have a spare chip if you like I can send it to Rolland, he's getting a package from me anyway.
    The chip is for a 195 HP US spec. engine, this will tell you if you have a bad tune.
    Are you going with a CF air box ? If not I would not bother buying a standalone ECU.

    Thomas
     
  18. conrod

    conrod Active Member Forum Supporter

    vid is here waiting for your guy to pick it up Rolland! said he would do it weeks ago! I would load it on the site myself, but I have no idea how.
     
  19. oscar

    oscar Active Member

    OK, LOOKS LIKE i HAVE TO KILL HIM AS WELL :cool:
     
  20. savant

    savant Member

    I plan to put in a CF airbox, along with bigger cams (and probably an engine rebuild) at some stage, so I figured starting with an aftermarket EMS was probably the way to go.

    Based on Hi Velocity's experience on M3's, I am reasonably confident its not the tune. This was done for the p/o last year, so I may take it back and get it run again soon.

    Cheers