3DM Motorsport E92 335i Track/Racecar Build

[barry@3DM]

Hello fellow Spoolstreeters, it's been a while!

I bought two E9X 335i cars a couple of years back with the idea that one be a street car that could be taken to the casual trackday and the other a dedicated track/racecar. This one is about the dedicated track/racecar build. I've had it for about 2 years, worked on it on and off, now it's finally getting to a stage where it is interesting enough to share.

The car is being built mostly for research purposes but do plan to do some casual races here and there such as BMW Club or NASA. I've always been an "old school" BMW guy and raced BMWs with NA motors so this will be interesting for me.

I wanted to have the liberty to do whatever to the suspension and engine and not be limited by rules (other than safety of course) so it will fit in BMWCCA Mod class or NASA GTS, or similar.

Going to keep it simple for now and put a few picutres up. I'll update this 1st post with links to future posts that are interesting as they come. I also hoping to lean on some of fellow Spoolstreeters for engine knowledge and parts!

I bought this car from fellow forum member @NoQuarter. The car was in an accident and was "totalled" by the insurance company so therefore a prefect candidate for a track car.

This first thing was to strip it down...

Next was do the cage work so I set the car on stands that were laser leveled and got the cage done...

Cage build progress... picking up the shock tower and subframe pickup points...

7 point "node"...

A few pics of the dampers, I'll go into more detail about this later but figured i'd post this up for now...

More to come!!

Cheers,
Barry

 

[The Convert]

are those coil overs for the 335 suspension, or are you swapping to the M3 suspension?

 

[barry@3DM]

are those coil overs for the 335 suspension, or are you swapping to the M3 suspension?

Those are Ohlins TTX Motorsport dampers. They do not come car specific, with the exception of a few cars such as Porsche GT3, Audi R8, and a few others. They are "universal" and are intended to be custom fit to the application. These specifically are the TTX46 strut and the TTX36ILX.

For the TTX46 strut, I specifally chose this version that has a blow off valve in it for curb hopping and threaded body for independent ride height adjustment. It came where there is a 1 way low speed compression and 1 way rebound adjuster (IE a 2 way damper). I will be swapping the 1 way valves out for the 2 way valves for low and high speed adjustment making them a "4 way" damper plus the blow off valve.

Same applies the the rear TTX36 ILX. I will be swapping the valves over to make them a 4 way. There is also a blow off valve kit that I plan to install in those as well but that is internal unlike the strut.

This car will be a hybrid of suspension parts. Some E92 335i, some E90 M3, some F8X M4, some completely custom.

2 way valve with low/high speed adjustment knobs...

 

[The Convert]

Damn...looking forward to the tech and gear side of this build. Sounds like it is going to be very well sorted.

 

[barry@3DM]

Damn...looking forward to the tech and gear side of this build. Sounds like it is going to be very well sorted.

Thanks! It's been staring me in the face for 2 years and i'm looking forward to finally having it come together but still a long road ahead. The engine part will surely be a hurdle, looking to lean on fellow Spoolstreet N54 gurus for that part!!

 

[nexus]

Danggggg - I thought my Ohlins look good

 

[fmorelli]

Danggggg - I thought my Ohlins look good

I'm sure they do

Filippo

 

[I am Jacks N54]

All Ohlins do look good, but TTX are on another level.

 

[doublespaces]

Nice cage, very interesting stuff I'm tuned in.

 

[Asbjorn]

Nice! Flat bottom, vent through hood? Please?

 

[JohnDaviz]

oh i think this is gonna be my favorite thread O_O

I had full Öhlins TTX on my racebike so i went with the Road and Track on my car. But this sir. This is next level i love it.

 

[barry@3DM]

Nice! Flat bottom, vent through hood? Please?

Flat bottom is on the build "ToDo" but likely a round 2 task. Round 1 is getting it running and to a shake down day. Having said that... MAJOR wiring advancements today!!! I'll expand on this once I have something fun to show.

For those who are interested... I highly suggest TinyCAD. It's open source electrical diagram and circuit building software. I'm using that to document the entire wiring harness of the chassis. When I stripped the car down I just threw away the OEM harness. Didn't even want to deal with it. I'm getting new plugs and pins for all the modules and making a harness from scratch. Call me weird but I actually enjoy it.

For all your wiring needs I suggest www.prowireusa.com

The TinyCAD can be found here: https://www.tinycad.net/

I'm still trying to determine if I go full Deutsch AS or Deutsch Industrial (DTM, DT, DTP). Likely will be a combination of both.

OK back to wiring schematics... more later.

 

[rac]

Call me weird but I actually enjoy it....
...I'm still trying to determine if I go full Deutsch AS or Deutsch Industrial (DTM, DT, DTP). Likely will be a combination of both.

I don't mind working with Deutsch either (also weirdly enjoy crimping them and putting them together....), its the oem crap and to be honest most other connectors that annoy me. I've thought about converting a lot of my existing connections to Deutsch as well - have not used the AS stuff. Looks really nice, compact design for so many potential wire to wire combinations. I'd go the AS for the large bundled looms and conventional DT range for smaller stuff.

 

[barry@3DM]

I don't mind working with Deutsch either (also weirdly enjoy crimping them and putting them together....), its the oem crap and to be honest most other connectors that annoy me. I've thought about converting a lot of my existing connections to Deutsch as well - have not used the AS stuff. Looks really nice, compact design for so many potential wire to wire combinations. I'd go the AS for the large bundled looms and conventional DT range for smaller stuff.

Yeah I think we are on the same page.... AS for the bulkhead and larger bundles and DT for simple stuff. DR25 heat shrink for engine compartment oil/chemical exposed looming and generic polyolefin for interior looming not exposed to oil and chemicals.

Also agree, there is something fun about crimping the barrel pins of a deutsch connector. I do not like open barrel pins but a necessary evil when dealing with OEM connectors.

 

[fmorelli]

When I stripped the car down I just threw away the OEM harness. Didn't even want to deal with it.

I'm getting new plugs and pins for all the modules and making a harness from scratch. Call me weird but I actually enjoy it.

Being somewhat involved in this project I wish to comment - first off not going to deny it. Yep. Weird.

Second ... when you say "modules" that is grammatically correct, because it is more the a singular component ...

Filippo

 

[rac]

Yep. Weird.

no c'mon, try it. get yourself a bag of closed barrel pins and go crazy crimping them with the deutsch tool. its like popping bubble wrapping only better!

 

[The Convert]

Yeah I think we are on the same page.... AS for the bulkhead and larger bundles and DT for simple stuff. DR25 heat shrink for engine compartment oil/chemical exposed looming and generic polyolefin for interior looming not exposed to oil and chemicals.

Also agree, there is something fun about crimping the barrel pins of a deutsch connector. I do not like open barrel pins but a necessary evil when dealing with OEM connectors.

Do you happen to have any good links/literature on those connectors and tools. I’ve got a lot of free time on my hands I could spend learning something useful. Thanks!

 

[barry@3DM]

Do you happen to have any good links/literature on those connectors and tools. I’ve got a lot of free time on my hands I could spend learning something useful. Thanks!

High Performance Acadamy has a lot of good videos
Here are a just couple of many that they have. Just look through their channel.

These guys have a lot of good info:

Motorsports ECU Wiring Harness Construction

If you are really bored, search through TE Connectivity. Register and you can download catalogs, CAD drawings of plugs, data sheets, etc. (I've spent WAY too much time on this site)

TE Connectivity: Connectors & Sensors for Harsh Environments

TE connectors and sensors are embedded in many types of technological devices, where reliable and persistent data, power, signal, and sensing connectivity are required.

www.te.com

Prowireusa has really good prices and is where I get most of my stuff. They don't have much in the way of help guides but looking through their catalog will give you a good idea of the different materials, tools, etc.

automotive electrical connectors | battery cable | heat shrink tubing | Prowire USA

prowireusa.com

Batts Racing is also helpful. Really good technical guides. Pricier than Pro Wire but they are close to me and if I need something in a pinch and don't want to pay overnight I go to them.

Technical Info | DeutschConnector.com

Deutsch Connector Technical Information. Installation instructions, crimp guides, connector selection help and more.

www.deutschconnector.com

Not so much on the help guide side... but more on the supplies side... these places I've gone to as well for various things:
https://www.aircraftspruce.com/

Welcome to MilSpecWiring.com - MilSpecWiring.com

Heat Shrink Tubing, Sleeving, Terminals & Wire Organization

At BuyHeatShrink.com, we specialize in heat shrinkable tubing, shrink wrap tubing, cable ties, expandable braided Sleeving, convoluted tubing and many other aspects of wire management.

buyheatshrink.com

 

[rac]

A few years ago I did a hpacademy wiring course. They do some really good courses for this kind of thing.

Learn how to tune a car | Online Tuning Courses

Want to learn how to tune a car? Our courses cover it all from EFI Tuning, Engine Building & Wiring to Suspension setup, Fabrication and much more.

www.hpacademy.com

barry beat me to it...

 

[NoQuarter]

a couple years back, I created a custom harness to retrofit the M5 active backrests into my 535.

Ended up doing about 120 connections. Don't envy what you are up to!