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My lil project and some ESS questions

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Monkeydonkeyratmagic
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Monkeydonkeyratmagic » Wed Dec 06, 2017 9:33 am

I'm going for the ESS in spring. Not splurging out like 10k just going for the standard kit and a set of KWs. OP that looks like a very meaty install you've got there. How are you finding it going about day to day trips?
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Ed Doe » Wed Dec 06, 2017 10:05 am

Smartbear wrote: Tue Dec 05, 2017 5:02 pm
Ed Doe wrote: Mon Dec 04, 2017 6:29 pm I do find it hilarious how people think the N52 is a fragile engine in the UK, when the guys in the states are slapping a cheeky borg-Warner turbo on a totally stock engine and making 500+whp :lol:
This guys car is an m54 though and not an n52? :?
Rob
Serves me right for my cursory look at the photos - you're quite correct! :lol:
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Machine monkey
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Machine monkey » Wed Dec 06, 2017 11:52 am

Monkeydonkeyratmagic wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 9:33 am I'm going for the ESS in spring. Not splurging out like 10k just going for the standard kit and a set of KWs. OP that looks like a very meaty install you've got there. How are you finding it going about day to day trips?
My coment was brakes ess suspension a diff and a z4 for about 10k you could just about do all that.
My little blue zed is in lots of bits. With lots of things started and not many finished! I may have found the limits of my time and ability!!

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Monkeydonkeyratmagic
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Monkeydonkeyratmagic » Wed Dec 06, 2017 12:47 pm

Machine monkey wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 11:52 am
Monkeydonkeyratmagic wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 9:33 am I'm going for the ESS in spring. Not splurging out like 10k just going for the standard kit and a set of KWs. OP that looks like a very meaty install you've got there. How are you finding it going about day to day trips?
My coment was brakes ess suspension a diff and a z4 for about 10k you could just about do all that.

Yes sure. I wasn't disagreeing with you. I'm just saying I'm not going all out like that. Be way too easy to spunk a few K on brakes and diff. I'd rather burn through 5 sets of regular pads and discs than spend it on a nice big fancy set .

One thing I am wondering is how well standard wheel width holds up or should I chuck a bigger set of CSLs on to cope.
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Machine monkey » Wed Dec 06, 2017 12:52 pm

Monkeydonkeyratmagic wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 12:47 pm
Machine monkey wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 11:52 am
Monkeydonkeyratmagic wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 9:33 am I'm going for the ESS in spring. Not splurging out like 10k just going for the standard kit and a set of KWs. OP that looks like a very meaty install you've got there. How are you finding it going about day to day trips?
My coment was brakes ess suspension a diff and a z4 for about 10k you could just about do all that.

Yes sure. I wasn't disagreeing with you. I'm just saying I'm not going all out like that. Be way too easy to spunk a few K on brakes and diff. I'd rather burn through 5 sets of regular pads and discs than spend it on a nice big fancy set .

One thing I am wondering is how well standard wheel width holds up or should I chuck a bigger set of CSLs on to cope.
There are cheaper brake options out there. You just have to be creative. I have alfa 156 Brembo 4 pot callipers on the front of my car. Same part number as used on the rear of a Ferrari 360 (old but good) I paid £75 for them and then made them fit. Upgraded the discs to 330 touring discs. And they are a great. Not hugely more powerful. But better initial bite and they feel more solid. And they just dont fade.
My little blue zed is in lots of bits. With lots of things started and not many finished! I may have found the limits of my time and ability!!

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Paulr
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Paulr » Wed Dec 06, 2017 1:55 pm

The looks beautiful, and well engineered. I am always surprised how people are prepared to spend so much time, money and effort on what is a pretty old car with high mileage! Must be the old Motor Trader in me looking at getting the maximum returns on my investment when I sell the car.

Saying that, glad you have done, looks great, bet it drives well too.
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by GuidoK » Wed Dec 06, 2017 2:48 pm

Paulr wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 1:55 pm Must be the old Motor Trader in me looking at getting the maximum returns on my investment when I sell the car.
Dont forget that z4 prices in the UK are ridiculously low. Where I live a z4 in same trim costs about 3 times as much as one in the UK.
That said, cars in the UK are usually in far lesser state of maintenance. Probably partly due to their price, and partly due to the bad weather and that a larger percentage of uk cars arent garaged.
But if you look at maximum return on investments, you shouldn't even consider tuning.
Tuning parts themselves hold fairly well on value (better than new cars), so if you buy an lsd, or bbk or supercharger kit you can easily sell them on seperately for say 50-75% or new value, but bolted on the car they have ample added value.
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Paulr » Wed Dec 06, 2017 3:13 pm

GuidoK wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 2:48 pm
Paulr wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 1:55 pm Must be the old Motor Trader in me looking at getting the maximum returns on my investment when I sell the car.
Dont forget that z4 prices in the UK are ridiculously low. Where I live a z4 in same trim costs about 3 times as much as one in the UK.
That said, cars in the UK are usually in far lesser state of maintenance. Probably partly due to their price, and partly due to the bad weather and that a larger percentage of uk cars arent garaged.
But if you look at maximum return on investments, you shouldn't even consider tuning.
Tuning parts themselves hold fairly well on value (better than new cars), so if you buy an lsd, or bbk or supercharger kit you can easily sell them on seperately for say 50-75% or new value, but bolted on the car they have ample added value.
We are lucky with the cars being so cheap - but it is a curse as well as you say, there are plenty of dogs about! I understand the yearning for tuning and creating a very personal statement, but I am always reluctant to take my car away from the manufactures specification as it means you limit the amount of people who will want to buy that car off you, making it much trickier to sell. However, your car has very subtle external mods that enhance the standard look as opposed to blinging it up, with some beautifully done mechanical mods that look factory fit, and as you say they are rarer over there, I don't think you will have an issue if you wanted to move it on. You just will not get back all your investment you put into it. It is still 100,000 mile 10 plus year old car. But you know that, and it was not what you had in mind when embarking on the project!
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Machine monkey » Wed Dec 06, 2017 3:43 pm

I don’t think many people have built there dream cars (That’s kind of what i do) With the head ruling. It’s a hobby and a challenge and its decisions made from the hart. It’s also the fun of building stuff for me the research the build doing it with your mates. I could spend thousands of golf or going down the pub. Or following a team around Europe watching whatever it was that team played. So the way i see it i am just spending on my hobby. Will i loose cash o yes diffidently. That’s why i try and build what i can as cheaply as i can.
My little blue zed is in lots of bits. With lots of things started and not many finished! I may have found the limits of my time and ability!!

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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by GuidoK » Wed Dec 06, 2017 3:52 pm

^exactly
Plus I also didnt buy my car with the intent to sell it.
Besides, my car is very heavily tuned with pretty much all Grade A components from premium manufacturers, and if I look what that has cost me over the years (and that is the tuning including all the maintenance, oil changes everything, just no gas/insurance and the price of the base car), it averages out at about £150,-/month
I know people who cant stand the urge swapping cars annually or so and losing much much more :roll:

Some people want a new car when they get bored; I just make it faster when I get bored :lol:

Just last month I was toying around with a brand new 718 cayman S on the german autobahn, and the performance was about on par.
Thats a £80k(!) car where I live. I'd say I have the bargain here :lol:

Maybe if you had it all done to your car it would be different, but I'm in the buildnotbought section, and building it is in the end what its all about for me.
If I had another car I would do the same. If that car was more expensive it would have cost me more money (parts for expensive cars are generally more expensive too), and if I started with a cheaper car, it maybe would have cost me less. But then again there arent many cheaper platforms around that are tuneable. You'd have to step down to a mx-5 or so.
Last edited by GuidoK on Wed Dec 06, 2017 4:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Z4 3.0i | ESS TS2+ | Quaife ATB LSD | Brembo/BMW performance BBK front/rear | Schrick FI cams | Schmiedmann headers+cats | fully polybushed | Vibra-technics engine mounts | H&R anti rollbars | KW V3 coilovers | Sachs Race Engineering clutch

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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Paulr » Wed Dec 06, 2017 4:05 pm

Can't argue with any of that! All valid reasons for doing what you enjoy, and that is what makes people so interesting!
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Machine monkey » Wed Dec 06, 2017 4:19 pm

Paulr wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 4:05 pm Can't argue with any of that! All valid reasons for doing what you enjoy, and that is what makes people so interesting!
Agreed but you are right. It’s not a sensible thing to do financially!! We can’t be like all Richard Rawlins!!
My little blue zed is in lots of bits. With lots of things started and not many finished! I may have found the limits of my time and ability!!

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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Monkeydonkeyratmagic » Wed Dec 06, 2017 4:42 pm

I just laugh off people that talk about "you'll never get that money back" fact is next year I intend to have a sub 7k spend that's quicker than these people splashing out 35k for a poxy A3 or a Golf R. Or worse...paying 8k to hire it for 2 years. Plus you try and get a convertible that's as feral and as rapid as a supercharged z4 that costs 10k tops and DOESN'T lose money. Oh a TVR or a porker that hemorrhages money in running costs, parts prices, constant breaking down and oh yeah costs 30k for a half decent one.
Generally when I say I'm investing X in my motors I mean I'm investing in the fun factor.
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Beedub » Wed Dec 06, 2017 9:53 pm

Machine monkey wrote: Wed Dec 06, 2017 8:31 am
Beedub wrote: Tue Dec 05, 2017 9:09 pm
Machine monkey wrote: Tue Dec 05, 2017 4:59 pm Really nice work.
I am loving the fact there are some nice clean fast non Ms out there. I think the non M car is overlooked as a track weapon. Obviously some things need changing. Much of the same stuff the M needs to be a true track beast. And this is look very well done with some really nice kit.
id guess the above car is quite abit quicker than ///M now.... prob around the same power but with way more TQ.
It’s not just the S/C either. Diff brakes suspension. And all for probably what an M would cost. But a much better set up track car than any standard M. So it makes perfect sense to me you want a z4 track day car and don’t have spare 20k buy the non M and spend 10k you will end up with a car that’s quicker anyway? Would take some good deals to get all this done for 10k i know and a lot of work yourself. But doable i think in the UK.

OP do look into changing your steering from electric to Hydraulic. I have done it and only had a very short drive in the car since. But I can promise you won’t regret the money spent and time doing it.

yeah this car is perfect really, so clean and i love the focus to the build, one of my new faves. must be a riot to drive, it would take some ///M to keep this in its sights .... probably an equally modded one.
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My lil project and some ESS questions

Post by Piper1 » Thu Dec 07, 2017 4:10 am

GuidoK wrote: Mon Dec 04, 2017 12:47 pm
Piper1 wrote: Sun Nov 26, 2017 9:47 pm
It does come with larger injectors which do sit higher causing the cowling to also sit higher and can cause the issue that I have pending your strut brace as the brace does contact the cowling now.

Prior to the bbk and the adjustable camber plates I had a strut reinforcement plate that sandwiches the strut tower with the strut brace. I’ve seen so many 240s blown out strut towers from too stiff of a set up I wanted some extra rigidity and now with the camber plates of course those reinforcement plates don’t fit so I plan on fitting those as a spacer to lift the strut brace up enough to give space to the cowling.
Do you have a picture of the injectors and one of how they now fit in the car?
I'm just very curious what type/brand of injectors they use in the stock manifold.

With the twinscrew manifold you get bosch style injectors (but the aluminium manifold that comes with it is very different). Red ones like these:
Image

I dont know how many cc injectors they are though. Some say 315cc/min but ESS removed the partnumbers from them so ESS want to keep that a secret.
Mine are grey, I didn't take a pic of them pre but can snap a pic of them installed as they sit. the pic I snapped tonight really was too close up with the cowling just shifted so I will get a better one up hopefully by the weekend. I'm sorry for the delay response on this one it's been a few weeks worth of moronic issues at work.
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