What is OEM+?

[dukeofchen]

When the parts were engineered at BMW, they had to balance all these factors with cost. In the aftermarket, you can spend as much money as you want so there is room for optimization.

I think this encapsulates it well. 25 years of technological advancement has also made certain parts mostly upside with little / no downside. Not to mention all the flaws in the original designs have been smoked out with years and miles.

[heinzboehmer]

Personally I like to build my cars in the OEM- methodology, where I make them worse than stock and wish I had left them alone

I, too, like to pretend that I know more than the team of formally educated engineers who spent years designing the car because I read things on the internet and/or sat on my couch daydreaming about how to redesign some aspect of it.

[Nate047]

Personally I like to build my cars in the OEM- methodology, where I make them worse than stock and wish I had left them alone

[sbay]

Anything that isn’t a boser hood

[Obioban]

OEM+ example would be using OEM E90 M3 engine mounts on an E46 car because they are stiffer and more robust

:cough: e9X M3 uses the same engine mounts as e46 M3 :cough:

[cobra]

To me, OEM+ means making a small refinement to original parts without straying too far from the original design intent. Once you deviate too far from the original package, you start introducing some compromises like NVH, driveability, economy, etc.

When the parts were engineered at BMW, they had to balance all these factors with cost. In the aftermarket, you can spend as much money as you want so there is room for optimization.

That said, there are a lot of aftermarket "upgrades" that actually don't provide any benefit other than bling, and simultaneously sacrifice performance, quality, durability, and everything else.

[9kracing]

I would argue that 95% of the cars on this forum are OEM+

This is not

[PetrolM3]

lol

It's something that again... started in the Honda world, and it was an answer to all the big-wing, extreme body kit, widebody, hella flush cars.

It basically means to modify your car in a way that the car could have come from the factory, both performance wise and aesthetically. IE no shaved bays, no roll cages, no body kits, no canards, nothing race oriented.

It actually has nothing to do with using OEM parts.

https://www.motortrend.com/features/...vic-hatchback/

Does this mean that depending on how many aftermarket mods this car has, this should be reflected in the number of pluses? Like if it's just a short shifter, it's OEM+. If you add aftermarket wheels, it's OEM++. Add aftermarket suspension and a big brake kit and it's OEM+++???

Joking...

[PetrolM3]

Would using E36 rear diff bushings be considered OEM- ?

LOL! I would say so...

I personally don't mind slightly more 'compliant' components but E36 units are definitely softer than OE E46 ones. This could cause premature failure of the third (front) diff bushing...

I have a friend who owns a Z4M and he's been 'downgrading' many of his suspension components to non-M e46 parts because he wants a more compliant ride. Other than struts and maybe some bushings, I don't agree with this approach and definitely view this as 'OEM-'.... personally, I'd be getting a non-M Z4 instead.

[Epsilon]

None of those are OEM+.... not a single one of those parts come from Original Equipment Manufacturers.

OEM+ example would be using OEM E90 M3 engine mounts on an E46 car because they are stiffer and more robust. Another one would be retrofitting F80 M3 brakes on an E46 M3. Catch my drift? They are OEM BMW parts but of higher caliber than the OE parts they are replacing hence the '+'

Modifying the car with aftermarket parts is exactly that... 'modified with aftermarket parts'... not OEM+

Would using E36 rear diff bushings be considered OEM- ?

[9kracing]

lol

It's something that again... started in the Honda world, and it was an answer to all the big-wing, extreme body kit, widebody, hella flush cars.

It basically means to modify your car in a way that the car could have come from the factory, both performance wise and aesthetically. IE no shaved bays, no roll cages, no body kits, no canards, nothing race oriented.

It actually has nothing to do with using OEM parts.

https://www.motortrend.com/features/oem-1993-honda-civic-hatchback/

[stephen]

I would do the rear topside reinforcement same time as bottom side as members consider doing just the bottomside is just a bandaid. I would consider Vincebar over other companies such as CMP because the Vincebar is hidden and retains factory trunk space.

Only true of the old CMP topside. Their new kit is hidden but also has the option for bolt in bracing.

[ugaexploder]

OEM+ is a term that was created to categorize car builds that are focused on maintaining the factory feel as you mentioned, or improving it with modern solutions. I don't necessarily believe you need to use OEM parts to be classified as OEM+. I view the '+' as a case for restomod type parts which wouldn't have been provided under another chassis or from the factory per se, but of course this is where most viewpoints are going to be different from person to person.

[PetrolM3]

Thanks for explaining. I like the idea of aftermarket parts that improve reliability with minimal impact on the factory feel. Here's what I've gathered so far:

VANOS: Beisan
Subframe: reinforcement kit
Subframe bushings: solid
RTAB: monoball
ARCA: adjustable

What other OEM+ aftermarket parts can I look into? I'll stay out of the suspension debate as well since I'm happy with OE.

None of those are OEM+.... not a single one of those parts come from Original Equipment Manufacturers.

OEM+ example would be using OEM E90 M3 engine mounts on an E46 car because they are stiffer and more robust. Another one would be retrofitting F80 M3 brakes on an E46 M3. Catch my drift? They are OEM BMW parts but of higher caliber than the OE parts they are replacing hence the '+'

Modifying the car with aftermarket parts is exactly that... 'modified with aftermarket parts'... not OEM+

[Halftim3]

I would do the rear topside reinforcement same time as bottom side as members consider doing just the bottomside is just a bandaid. I would consider Vincebar over other companies such as CMP because the Vincebar is hidden and retains factory trunk space.