Dumb Question Thread - No Flaming Allowed

[FBloggs]

Cheers for the reply.
Is Dinan still manufacturing those springs? or are they running out the stock.
I see that they are not available from all the main on-line vendors.
I'm looking for a firm damped ride.
The Bilstein B8/OEM ride which was unpopular on the E36M3 is what I'm looking for.

[DropTopKingM3]

Cheers for the reply.
Is Dinan still manufacturing those springs? or are they running out the stock.
I see that they are not available from all the main on-line vendors.
I'm looking for a firm damped ride.
The Bilstein B8/OEM ride which was unpopular on the E36M3 is what I'm looking for.

Autotalent has them. No tax and free shipping. Use coupon code nov2020 for 5% off.

[FBloggs]

Cheers for that.
Getting the ride/handling to where I want it is giving me OCD

[Swizbeatz]

Is there any way to get an idiot proof guide of what to get for some of the huge repair jobs? Like I see in the maintenance thread foam was still listed as a good option for subframe but have since read differently. Something like go to this website, buy this, this, go here and buy bushings, hand it all to a competent shop. Doing bearings? Get this, motor mounts from here, rebuilt vanos from here or here’s a list of websites with each part.

[sc_tr0jan_m3]

Any recommendations for an AlphaN dyno tune? I just got the Evolve CSL airbox and thinking of going AlphaN, sounds too much of a hassle the whole CSL software/ emissions connectivity thing. My shop recommended Epic which is what they use in most of their cars

Recent Epic customer and I'm very satisfied with the tune I got from Randy. It's a bit of a PITA with the coordination, but he was super efficient once we got our schedules aligned.

My car is 90% track time and I can run the car fast lap after fast lap with zero problems. My track where I'm a member has a power hour in the morning and I can run the car nonstop without having to cool down. I've gone through 2 different tuners before making the final decision to drop the cash and go with Randy, and I'm happy I made that decision finally. Shoot me a PM if you have questions.

[sc_tr0jan_m3]

The DINAN/Koni setup seems to be the best aftermarket non-coilover setup based on recommendations from others. Like with all his products, Steve Dinan put a good amount of R&D into his suspension kits.

Just remember that Steve Dinan has zero relationship to Dinan anymore. He started up a new company in the last few years. https://carbahnautoworks.com/

[Slideways]

Just remember that Steve Dinan has zero relationship to Dinan anymore. He started up a new company in the last few years. https://carbahnautoworks.com/

Yup, but the E46 parts were developed when he was still there.

[S3diment]

Confused about something. Was the E46 M3 offered with a 3.64 diff? Reading it was either that or the 3.62. Would a diff from a BMW X3 fit?

[oceansize]

Confused about something. Was the E46 M3 offered with a 3.64 diff? Reading it was either that or the 3.62. Would a diff from a BMW X3 fit?

3.62 only but Dinan stage 2 provided a 3.91.

[Nick_P]

Recent Epic customer and I'm very satisfied with the tune I got from Randy. It's a bit of a PITA with the coordination, but he was super efficient once we got our schedules aligned.

My car is 90% track time and I can run the car fast lap after fast lap with zero problems. My track where I'm a member has a power hour in the morning and I can run the car nonstop without having to cool down. I've gone through 2 different tuners before making the final decision to drop the cash and go with Randy, and I'm happy I made that decision finally. Shoot me a PM if you have questions.

Thanks! Im in between RK Tunes who is local and Epic cuz of their reputation and cuz they were recommended by my shop.

Yea coordinating is my only concern with Epic but hopefully it will be worth the hassle of coordinating dyno times with tuner schedules. I do around 5-10 HPDE events per season so not having to worry about temperatures or cool down laps is definitely a plus!

[sc_tr0jan_m3]

For what it’s worth, the previous owner of my car claimed it was tuned by RK and when I emailed him asking for support and provided a VIN to have him confirm or not, he essentially provided zero support and said that he can’t look up previous buyers by VIN (which seemed a bit weird to me). Either way the tune that was on the car prevented me from reading simple codes via an OBD reader and had a CEL when driving around. I could never confirm if it was indeed a RK tune but I had to send my DME out to remove whatever crap was on it and once I went with Andy, all was fixed in an hour’s session.

I go to my member’s track about 3-4 times a month so I’ve given the Epic tune a real test and I couldn’t be happier. Solid AFR’s and engine health has been solid on temps! I’d vote to go with Randy.


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[sbay]

Can you stretch rod bolts on a used rod? Car is a 2004 so requires the three torque sequence, can you do the first two stretches on a rod outside of the car and then the third torque in the car? Basically buy a used rod to do the first two sequences to stretch to save arm fatigue and not being at an awkward angle under the car. How would this affect reliability, etc?

[Slideways]

Can you stretch rod bolts on a used rod? Car is a 2004 so requires the three torque sequence, can you do the first two stretches on a rod outside of the car and then the third torque in the car? Basically buy a used rod to do the first two sequences to stretch to save arm fatigue and not being at an awkward angle under the car. How would this affect reliability, etc?

On a critical fastener like this, I'd follow the procedure to a T. A digital torque wrench makes it much easier if you are not sure. Using another rod would create a variable which I would avoid.

[DropTopKingM3]

Nick_P dont even waste your time with RK. He’s very difficult to get in touch with any very uncooperative if something goes wrong as stated above.

[Nick_P]

Good to know...thanks a lot! Actually the only reason I was considering RK tunes was cuz he’s local to me