The Start of the M-Folio w/ Too Many Pictures

[DMW_Evan]

Hey all-
Quick backstory, I've been off forums for a very long time, which is why my username says I haven't done anything here- I had to create a new username and all. That being said, last year I decided to get a whole bunch of money out of the market and put it back into physical assets, so I started the M-Folio. An M-car for every generation, modified as it would have been back in it's day (for the most part- I took some liberties).

I currently own an F80 M3 Comp/Exec in Mineral Pearl White- 6 speed manual. I recently added a 60k mile Alpine White E46 M3 to the group after selling my Daytona over M-Cross E36 M. I've started a bit of a "build," on it, and decided to share here. Hopefully, somebody in here who needs an opinion or has a specific question about the parts used can gain some valuable information, but more importantly, I just took a lot of pictures. So...let's get to it.

[DMW_Evan]

The Car:
a 2002 M3 in Alpine White over black, 6 speed manual. The car had a brand new engine put it in back in 2005 under the rod bearing service action. So, the engine currently in the car has 50k miles on it (roughly), upgraded rod bearings, and some routine maintenance done at the dealer. It only has around 62k on it as it sits right now, but the original owner didn't move the car a whole lot. Even though it's got awesome mileage, it had a few crusty bits underneath, lots of regular wear and tear items from sitting around, and some interior pieces falling off. I saw a blank canvas and in my opinion, got the car right when it needed to be saved. Picture of the F80 for fun as well.

[DMW_Evan]

The Build:
Reinforcement: CMP full RACP kit with bolt-in flush mount support on the front reinforcement. I love this option because you don't lose any trunk space using it. I love the CMP kit, but it is a LOT of welding. If you are not familiar with welding, do NOT attempt this kit. The sheet metal you are welding to is very thin an can easily be blown through if the correct welding wire, amperage, etc. is not used. The last thing you want is to damage the RACP in your car because you thought you could do it with a cheap welder and a buddy. There are other options out there, and this one is incredibly well-done, but you'll need to be prepared for a lot of work.











Suspension: Ohlins Dedicated Track coilovers from 3DM. Probably total overkill for the car, but amazing coilovers nonetheless. The car will see a handful of rallies and probably track days, so I wanted it to be prepared. Seeing as this is the fourth car in my roster, I didn't feel the need to go with a daily driver/weekend warrior setup. 3DM was amazing at helping with options, opinions, and parts. I cannot recommend them enough.







Engine: Active Autowerke Prima Plus (methanol-injected) supercharger. I was on the fence about this one- a non-FMIC intercooled supercharger cooled with methanol? There isn't a lot of information on the kit out there. Active is a vendor of mine, as is ESS, Vortech, etc. I figured I would give this kit a shot in the interest of putting some more information out there that isn't from 15 years ago. It's allegedly good for 500+ rwhp, so we'll see how it goes. The install wasn't all that bad and some of the kit is actually pretty awesome. I'll update more on this as I test and tune.







Brakes, Wheels, Tires: CSL 345mm front rotors with Aston Martin DB9 calipers with EBC pads. This one is tough but I'm excited for it. VBT used to sell the DB9 caliper adapter/bracket for the E46M but will no longer sell to the US due to insurances they have in the UK. No big deal. We 3D printed a prototype at one of my shops and will probably make our own version of them if it's something E46 owners want to continue to do. It's a great mod and doesn't mess up brake bias all that much, but that can be perfected if you're concerned. After a couple track days, I'm sure I'll have more input. The wheels are Signature SV104s in 19" staggered fitment. Yes, they're the same as the F80 wheels that are 20s, it's an inside joke at the shop. I love Signature wheels; they're light, they're strong, and they're beautiful. 245/275 Michelin PS4S for now; we'll see how they hold up...





Supporting Mods: Every. Single. Bushing in this chassis has been changed to polyurethane or solid depending on where it is. Monoball control arm and trailing arm bushings, poly differential pushings and subframe bushings. Sway bar bushings are poly as well. If you're going to drop the entire rear subframe, why not, right?




More updates as the week progresses...

[EthanolTurbo]

The supercharger is a terrible decision especially with no intercooler, absolutely pointless. After 2-3 pulls you will be getting blown past by NA M3s. Methanol is a risky alternative to having an intercooler. The 19" wheels are another bad choice, E46s really work best with 17" or 18" wheels.

Poly bushings are also a pointless, loud, irritating choice with zero performance benefits with this suspension and chassis. For the subframe bushing you want a solid bushing, not poly.

[DMW_Evan]

The supercharger is a terrible decision especially with no intercooler, absolutely pointless. After 2-3 pulls you will be getting blown past by NA M3s. Methanol is a risky alternative to having an intercooler. The 19" wheels are another bad choice, E46s really work best with 17" or 18" wheels.

Poly bushings are also a pointless, loud, irritating choice with zero performance benefits with this suspension and chassis. For the subframe bushing you want a solid bushing, not poly.

WELL, thanks for taking time out of your day for that 😂

First and foremost, it's my 4th E46M, mate. I've done all of it; NA, Turbo, stock, etc. It's a new mod I want to try. I'm not sure what "pulls," you're referring to, as it isn't a drag car and I have no desire to street race some kids who couldn't afford forced induction. I don't think I'll be getting blown past by them at that.

Methanol is super-risky, though. I've never given it a go. My LS3 E30 has some meth-injection, but it's NA with a bunch of Texas Speed goodies, not blown. So I'll be interested to see how it goes on this one. If it sucks, I can reverse all of it. But, I like to try new things and get information out there, so that's what I'm doing here- there's a kill switch in here and the tune defaults back to a base map if detonation is sensed or the meth runs low.

I've done the solid subframe bushing thing. Even though I went with full CMP reinforcement, I don't feel like putting unneccessary fatigue back in those parts of the chassis. I'll keep swapping bushings until I get it right.

The 19s aren't a bad choice- they're beautiful and they'll look really awesome at the Cleveland Auto Show at my booth, not to mention, they weigh less than some 18s out there. Have you ever picked up a Signature wheel? I would highly suggest you do that; huge selling point. When I want to go get rowdy, I'll swap on my Apex 18s or my spare BBS 18s, but I appreciate what you thought would be education.

Is there anything I can do to make your day better? 🤣

[simonnim]

The supercharger is a terrible decision especially with no intercooler, absolutely pointless. After 2-3 pulls you will be getting blown past by NA M3s. Methanol is a risky alternative to having an intercooler. The 19" wheels are another bad choice, E46s really work best with 17" or 18" wheels.

Poly bushings are also a pointless, loud, irritating choice with zero performance benefits with this suspension and chassis. For the subframe bushing you want a solid bushing, not poly.

I disagree with it being pointless. I put poly in my diff so I don't have to replace them unlike rubber.

[DMW_Evan]

I disagree with it being pointless. I put poly in my diff so I don't have to replace them unlike rubber.

Amen- plenty of pros and cons to both. I'm sure there's enough information in this forum to kill a whole year reading. It's a preference and I have my reasons.

[EthanolTurbo]

WELL, thanks for taking time out of your day for that 😂

First and foremost, it's my 4th E46M, mate. I've done all of it; NA, Turbo, stock, etc. It's a new mod I want to try. I'm not sure what "pulls," you're referring to, as it isn't a drag car and I have no desire to street race some kids who couldn't afford forced induction. I don't think I'll be getting blown past by them at that.

Methanol is super-risky, though. I've never given it a go. My LS3 E30 has some meth-injection, but it's NA with a bunch of Texas Speed goodies, not blown. So I'll be interested to see how it goes on this one. If it sucks, I can reverse all of it. But, I like to try new things and get information out there, so that's what I'm doing here- there's a kill switch in here and the tune defaults back to a base map if detonation is sensed or the meth runs low.

I've done the solid subframe bushing thing. Even though I went with full CMP reinforcement, I don't feel like putting unneccessary fatigue back in those parts of the chassis. I'll keep swapping bushings until I get it right.

The 19s aren't a bad choice- they're beautiful and they'll look really awesome at the Cleveland Auto Show at my booth, not to mention, they weigh less than some 18s out there. Have you ever picked up a Signature wheel? I would highly suggest you do that; huge selling point. When I want to go get rowdy, I'll swap on my Apex 18s or my spare BBS 18s, but I appreciate what you thought would be education.

Is there anything I can do to make your day better? 🤣

Without an intercooler that blower is going to heatsoak like crazy even with methanol. Getting consistent power without an intercooler is pretty much impossible, meth is somewhat of a substitute but not as reliable or safe. And by pulls I mean on the 2nd or 3rd one you're going to be down 50+ whp and it'll get worse and worse as the blower heatsoaks, bringing you back close to NA power levels.

[EthanolTurbo]

I disagree with it being pointless. I put poly in my diff so I don't have to replace them unlike rubber.

Enjoy the nonstop diff whine, the biggest source of NVH on my car is the poly diff bushing. It's probably the thing I regret most on my car. 🫣

[DMW_Evan]

Enjoy the nonstop diff whine, the biggest source of NVH on my car is the poly diff bushing. It's probably the thing I regret most on my car. 🫣

Hear me out...if you had a supercharger whine, you wouldn't be able to hear the rear differential...

[oceansize]

Ethanol is right. The path that many (most?) have chosen, and there are years and years of miles on our cars, is solid subframe and monoball rtab (obviously we're reinforced at the racp). Everything else stays rubber. There is very little give in the stock m3 diff bushings and the poly is a huge source of whine in these cars. The solid subframe bushings inducing more stress, which is debatable, is inconsequential once reinforced. Poly is considered the second worst choice for diff bushings behind solid. If you poke around you'll find many members in the "damn, why did I go poly/solid in the diff?" club. If you're going full blown race car then who cares.

[ugaexploder]

I'm in the "why did I go poly diff bushings" regret club 🙈

[simonnim]

If it's your daily and you're sensitive to diff whine or noise, I totally understand. I drive it maybe twice a month during the cold season or once a week during warmer times unless doing track days. I'm pushing the car hard during those times so there's a lot of noises everywhere.

If I can push off dropping the diff and changing bushings, I'm all for it. My personal preference.

[EthanolTurbo]

Hear me out...if you had a supercharger whine, you wouldn't be able to hear the rear differential...

The supercharger doesn't whine on the highway or in steady state cruising unfortunately or I would totally agree.

[PetrolM3]

Another 'why did I get poly' vote here... the day I went back to OE rubber, the car felt reborn. I do understand people who want to 'try new things' but being arrogant and choosing to challenge the wealth of knowledge from people who know this 20 year old platform inside out - that's not bravery or ingenuity IMO, it's ignorance. Oh well - to each his own. I do like white cars tho...