Upgrades... To keep me happy!

[e34.535i.sport]

Hey guys. Looking to do a few upgrades on the car rather than sell it (as I think I just get bored I have no idea why)and I thought I'd see if you could help me out a bit with certain things. The things I have in mind are:

1. Upgrade to M5 Calipers - I've researched brake upgrades a lot on here and e34.net, but wandering if there's much worth in this particular swap for me? Any details on my brakes versus the m5 brakes would be much aprreciate, and particularly on size and fitment as I would 'assume' they are the same... But we all know what 'assumption' is. :D Also, will the m5 discs etc be 'bigger'? I can get a set of calipers for fairly cheap off the bay now so thought I'd check.

2. Diff swap - Asked about this a while ago so I think I know all there is to know, it's just finding the right diff. Not much luck at the moment :( but I'm determined to do this! Mine is a s3.64 so was hoping to find either a good 3.73 or 3.91 to put in.

3. New bonnet - The bonnet is the only thing that lets the car down really, it's a little hazy. I've tried a few things to remove the haze but without success. Does anyone in the UK happen to know any good salvage yards where I might get one from?! I'm willing to travel!

4. Privacy glass - Any opinions on this would be good... Anyone had it done, happy with it?

5. Shadowline trim (is that what you call it?) - Not sure on the chrome around the windows, sometimes I like it, sometimes I'm not sure. This is a possibility.

Sorry for the essay! Any thoughts/advice/info very much appreciated... :)

[whiskychaser]

Hey guys. Looking to do a few upgrades on the car rather than sell it (as I think I just get bored I have no idea why)and I thought I'd see if you could help me out a bit with certain things. The things I have in mind are:

1. Upgrade to M5 Calipers - I've researched brake upgrades a lot on here and e34.net, but wandering if there's much worth in this particular swap for me? Any details on my brakes versus the m5 brakes would be much aprreciate, and particularly on size and fitment as I would 'assume' they are the same... But we all know what 'assumption' is. :D Also, will the m5 discs etc be 'bigger'? I can get a set of calipers for fairly cheap off the bay now so thought I'd check.

2. Diff swap - Asked about this a while ago so I think I know all there is to know, it's just finding the right diff. Not much luck at the moment :( but I'm determined to do this! Mine is a s3.64 so was hoping to find either a good 3.73 or 3.91 to put in.

3. New bonnet - The bonnet is the only thing that lets the car down really, it's a little hazy. I've tried a few things to remove the haze but without success. Does anyone in the UK happen to know any good salvage yards where I might get one from?! I'm willing to travel!

4. Privacy glass - Any opinions on this would be good... Anyone had it done, happy with it?

5. Shadowline trim (is that what you call it?) - Not sure on the chrome around the windows, sometimes I like it, sometimes I'm not sure. This is a possibility.

Sorry for the essay! Any thoughts/advice/info very much appreciated... :)

1. Dont you have the M sport package anyway? Whats the actual difference between that and what the M5 has?
2. Thats a scrap yard job or 247spares.co.uk? I'd recommend the former as its wysiwyg
3. I think what you have on the bonnet may be 'bloom'. Its often caused by spraying when its damp outside (not unusual for us is it?). There are that many shades of 'black' it will be a bugger to match. Respray by a 'professional outfit'?
4. Thats for drug dealers. (Crap ones at that) You have tints anyway.Behave!
5. I think that involves wet and drying your chrome work and spraying to match item 3?
I think you have to rev yours a lot more than mine to get it moving so I'd be having a look what box you have in there. Maybe a diff change isnt that far out after all?
If you are looking at enhancements, you thought of sat nav? Saves you going through Salford when you dont have to:D

[e34.535i.sport]

1. Dont you have the M sport package anyway? Whats the actual difference between that and what the M5 has?
2. Thats a scrap yard job or 247spares.co.uk? I'd recommend the former as its wysiwyg
3. I think what you have on the bonnet may be 'bloom'. Its often caused by spraying when its damp outside (not unusual for us is it?). There are that many shades of 'black' it will be a bugger to match. Respray by a 'professional outfit'?
4. Thats for drug dealers. (Crap ones at that) You have tints anyway.Behave!
5. I think that involves wet and drying your chrome work and spraying to match item 3?
I think you have to rev yours a lot more than mine to get it moving so I'd be having a look what box you have in there. Maybe a diff change isnt that far out after all?
If you are looking at enhancements, you thought of sat nav? Saves you going through Salford when you dont have to:D


LOL - Thanks! Sat Nav is way down the list... but it's on there! :D

I've searched around for a diff with no luck so far, but narrowed it down to two that I can use easily enough. e23 735i auto/e34 535i auto which are both 3.91... Really wanting to have a bash at it this coming weekend if I can find one in time. I don't suppose anyone on here has one 'lying around?!'

Yeah the bonnet... I considered a respray for it but thought with it being freshly painted it will then look 'shinier' than the rst of the car in an ironic role reversal! :D That's why I wanted a used bonnet that was still in good nick so it had 'aged' like the rest if you like. Might make some enquiries though...

As for the M sport pack I don't beleive brakes were included... Suspension, bodykit and some trim as far as I know but someone here will know more?! I can get four calipers from a good M5 that someone's breaking for £120... What do we think ppl?


Changing the oil on the weekend too, just hit the yellow service light. Going with the usual 10w40 magnatec as I need to follow my new 'if it's not broke, don't fix it' rule. :D

[BigKriss]

m5 (3.5L) are 315x28 front and 300x20 rear. you have 302x22 front and 300x10 rear. look at e32 750 german front brakes. i like these and would find them cheap in europe also.

[e34.535i.sport]

m5 (3.5L) are 315x28 front and 300x20 rear. you have 302x22 front and 300x10 rear. look at e32 750 german front brakes. i like these and would find them cheap in europe also.

Hmmm. So does this suggest there would not be much worth in the swap, or that they wouldn't fit at all?

750i brakes ay, I'll look into it thanks!

[BigKriss]

the m5 ones will fit you just need rotors, pads and calipers also. I'm unsure if it's necessary for normal road use though.


Hmmm. So does this suggest there would not be much worth in the swap, or that they wouldn't fit at all?

750i brakes ay, I'll look into it thanks!

[e34.535i.sport]

the m5 ones will fit you just need rotors, pads and calipers also. I'm unsure if it's necessary for normal road use though.

Thanks Kriss... Like most things I tend to want it's not necessarily driven by practicality :p So am I right in thinking the calipers will bolt straight onto the carriers I have now providing I get the bigger discs/pads?

[e34.535i.sport]

Can someone translate this for me?!

Got a possible diff swap here a guy I've dealt with before is about to pull the diff off this 735i for me... I put the VIN into realoem and the page below shows the rest.

The 735i - I'm not too sure what diff is in it 3.91 or what (?)... Just incase the last 7 digits... DB33673. Here's the REALOEM page...

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=GB42&mospid=47344&btnr=33_0004&hg=33&fg=05

The ''cat=YES'' part is also concerning me, does it make any difference that mine is cat-less?


And here's the REALOEM page for my 535i if it's useful...

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/partgrp.do?model=HD12&mospid=47382&hg=33&fg=10

The good news being the part numbers for input and output flanges match up exactly. Wasn't too sure with the 735i being an AUTO and mine being a 5 speed... ?

Any help on this is MUCH appreciated!

[BigKriss]

the struts for the e32 and e34 are the same width apart and will accept brakes from either model. the calipers will bolt onto the strut no worries. this is what i did http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/showthread.php?t=30516


Thanks Kriss... Like most things I tend to want it's not necessarily driven by practicality :p So am I right in thinking the calipers will bolt straight onto the carriers I have now providing I get the bigger discs/pads?

[e34.535i.sport]

the struts for the e32 and e34 are the same width apart and will accept brakes from either model. the calipers will bolt onto the strut no worries. this is what i did http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/showthread.php?t=30516

Kriss those front calipers look awesome! Some sources suggest that the M5 brakes are a really good upgrade... I also think these look really good: http://www.blackdiamondperformance.com/discs.htm

When you changed them over what instructions did you follow or was it as straight forward as it looks?

[e34.535i.sport]

:D I'm going to help the dude remove the diff from his 735i on Saturday morning if all goes well (mainly so I can learn what to do :))... I'm 99% certain it's a 3.91 diff (open I think) so he's just gonna double check on the plate (he hasn't been able to find it yet but not searched extensively!) before we do all the work. They are a bugger to find.

I'm going to take it for a quick test drive to check for whine on 'slow down' ... Anything else I should look out for?

Getting fairly excited here! :p

[e34.535i.sport]

USEFUL links incase I lose them..

http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/showthread.php?t=39106&highlight=diff+swap

http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/showthread.php?t=39345&highlight=diff+swap

http://www.bimmernut.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38713&highlight=diff+swap

[whiskychaser]

Anything else I should look out for? [/B]


This might be work a look :
http://www.e30eta.com/ecdiff.htm
Hope it turns out to be a 3.91. If not I think the 325i's had a 3.91 though I dont know if they would fit - or be man enough for your motor ;)

[whiskychaser]

If not I think the 325i's had a 3.91
Well thats what I read but elsewhere it says otherwise:
http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk/e30.html
And just out of interest:
http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk/e28.html
http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk/e34.html

[BigKriss]

straight forward - no instructions - but a shop did it anyway


Kriss those front calipers look awesome! Some sources suggest that the M5 brakes are a really good upgrade... I also think these look really good: http://www.blackdiamondperformance.com/discs.htm

When you changed them over what instructions did you follow or was it as straight forward as it looks?

[e34.535i.sport]

Ok so I just had an epiphany whilst out with the dogs on my bicycle :D.

I never really understood how going to a higher numerical diff would increase acceleration but reduce top speed, now I *think* I've figured it out!

As I was riding along shifting through the gears on my bicycle, it hit me. The car transmission must work in a similar fashion! For the sake of your sanity during this *explanation* I will treat my legs (whilst sitting on the bike) as the m30 motor. The front gears on the bicycle which I don't use are the 'gearbox' and the rear gears on the bike are the 'differential'. So... I notice that trying to take off from a standstill in a 'high' gear at the rear (one with few teeth) it is slow to get going and puts strain on my legs when I push hard. However, If I put the rear into a 'low' gear (one with more teeth) and push hard with my legs the bike will leap forward much quicker and with a lot less strain on my legs... The downside being that my cadence will increase quickly and I will need to change up much sooner in order to reach higher speeds! AMAZING ANALOGY! I finally understand the difference it will make when I swap the 3.64 out for the 3.91. :D
Now I also trIed taking off from a stand still in different 'rear gears' (i.e with different diff ratio's) standing up on the bike. My legs then became more powerful, which I likened to the m5 engine. I found it much easier to get going even using a rear cog with fewer teeth due to having more power on hand. When I tried to take off standing using a cog with more teeth at the back I found it would be far TOO easy to get going and my legs would begin spinning much too quickly for it to be useful, and the need to change up was almost immediate. This is, I suppose, why the more 'powerful' versions of our cars have lower (numerically) diffs and the less powerful cars have higher (numerically) diffs! BOO YEAH!

Thinking about it this way got me pondering as I rode along trying different ratio's in different situations, this swap should be beneficial in a variety of ways.

Firstly, by moving to a 3.91 there will be much less 'strain' on the engine and it should be able to put it's power to better use. This can only be a good thing.

Secondly, because the engine will be straining less at the lower end I should, if I choose to drive sensibly and shift at low revs, get BETTER fuel economy around town. I practised this on the bike and having done some 20/30/40mile runs on the bike in the past I can testify to the fact that any stop start is benefitted by dropping to a really easy gear to get going, keeping my cadence higher and moving up the gears accordingly is a good way to conserve energy (in car terms... petrol!) :D

Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly for me ;), is the matter of the increase in acceleration. The variation in engine speed for my particular swap will not be enough to cause concern in terms of changing gears too regularly as I always change at 4000/4500 revs anyway even if I'm driving in a bit of a hurry! Ok, maybe 5000 revs now and again, but I like to take it easy on the old girl. So where I would normally change up at 4000 revs say, I will simply hold out to 4500 and the difference is then negated completely.


I can see that at higher/motorway speeds I will ultimately loose the fuel economy battle as the engine speed will be higher than before for the same road speed. This equates to running at a much higher cadence (higher than is essentially comfortable) on my bike whilst going at speed. This is a price I am willing to pay as I don't use the motorway as often as I do A/B roads (city driving).

Well happy I now have more reasons to enthuse her indoors about the diff swap! LOL! :D

[whiskychaser]

Essentially you are right but the gearing on your car is back to front compared to your bike. 5th gear is 0.81:1 which is overdrive. Like your bike it means you get more turns out of the back end of the gearbox than you put in at the front. BUT you still have to put about 3.6 turns into the diff to get one turn of the wheels:D So the final ratio would be about 3 turns of the pedals for one turn of the wheels. Imagine your legs at 30mph:D

[e34.535i.sport]

Essentially you are right but the gearing on your car is back to front compared to your bike. 5th gear is 0.81:1 which is overdrive. Like your bike it means you get more turns out of the back end of the gearbox than you put in at the front. BUT you still have to put about 3.6 turns into the diff to get one turn of the wheels:D So the final ratio would be about 3 turns of the pedals for one turn of the wheels. Imagine your legs at 30mph:D

LOL - I've hit 26mph on it and my legs were going ten to the dozen I can tell you! :D

Just found this... May be useful in our mission!

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1140084

:)

And even more promising info!!!!

http://www.bmwchannel.com/bb/showthread.php?t=1825

[whiskychaser]

LOL - I've hit 26mph on it and my legs were going ten to the dozen I can tell you! :D

Just found this... May be useful in our mission!

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1140084

:)

And even more promising info!!!!

http://www.bmwchannel.com/bb/showthread.php?t=1825

Anybody who is any good at maths could work out what your best ratio would be ;) Saw this on the second link and thought you may be interested:
installed a EAT chip (Mark D - Dsylvia Tech), which is THE chip to have for the M30.

[e34.535i.sport]

Not me then LOL! ;)

Found this gear calculator and put my gearbox/wheel/diff info into it and swapped between 3.64 and 3.91 to see what effect it would have on drivability... Not thinking it will be too much of a jump.

http://xse.com/leres/bin/gearratio?title=SS+%23670+with+MM6+manual+and+GU6+ 3.42+gears&rpm=5500&mph=80&gear1=3.83&gear2=2.20&gear3=1.40&gear4=1.00&gear5=0.81&reverse=3.46&axle=3.91&diameter=25.33&circumference=79.57&revs=796&tire=wheel&section=235&profile=45&wheel=17

Going to have a look at the possible donor diff today... Fingers crossed it ok!