Five Great Performance Upgrades for BMWs
Right now, BMW is producing the quickest and most capable road-going vehicles in the automaker’s 110-year history, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for improvement. Whether you’re after more power, better handling, or simply a sharper look, the folks at Dinan have the bases covered. For more than four decades, the tuning outfit has focused on taking BMWs to the next level through meticulously engineered performance upgrades.
While many of these modifications can be bought as comprehensive kits known as Foundation and Experience packages, some enthusiasts prefer their upgrades à la carte, and Dinan can accommodate that approach as well. But with the wide array of performance upgrades available for late model BMW platforms, it can be tough to figure out where to start in order to ensure you’re getting the best bang for your buck.
Here we’ll get the skinny on the performance mods that should be on every BMW enthusiast’s radar. But before diving into the specifics, Dinan’s Nathan Fette offers some advice for those who might be newcomers to the modding game.
“Before you start the modification journey, you should first make sure that the car is healthy. Worn-out parts are going to work against you here. Once you’ve verified that the car is ready for upgrades, then it’s really about determining what your goals are. What do you want to get out of the car by doing these upgrades? Are you looking for more power? Better handling? Maybe there’s a specific shortcoming in the car that you want to address. Or it could be something as simple as, ‘I want my car to sound better.’ There are a lot of different paths you can take, and getting a better sense of what you want to accomplish can help ensure that the modifications you choose will get you there.”
With that in mind, we’re taking a closer look at upgrades that have been proven to raise the bar in various aspects of a vehicle’s performance without breaking the bank. Importantly, these modifications can also complement other upgrades that you may decide to bring into the mix further down the road.
Software Tuning
“With modern BMWs, we’re talking about turbocharged powertrains,” Fette notes. “And because of that, it’s incredibly easy to get significant power gains through software tuning. Depending on the platform and the octane of fuel you’re using, the gains can be anywhere from 50 hp to 130 horsepower on an otherwise stock vehicle, along with similar improvements in torque figures.”
Dinan’s tunes also provide control over the vehicle’s ECU, in turn allowing parameters for things like top speed limiters and throttle sensitivity to be adjusted, along with other tweaks.
“The tunes can also make changes to other elements, like the way the water pump operates, ensuring that you’re getting the maximum amount of cooling available for those really demanding track sessions,” he says. “And on some vehicles, we can even change the way the exhaust sounds through these software tunes. For example, we can make the exhaust on a base F80 M3 provide the overrun pops and bangs you’d get from an F80 M3 Competition. In that instance we’re essentially enabling a feature that’s already on the car, but is disabled from the factory.”
Fette notes that the presence of factory turbochargers enables significant performance gains without requiring any mechanical changes to the car. “The ability to adjust boost levels gives us a lot of freedom here. You could say that naturally aspirated engines are hardware-limited, while turbocharged engines are software-limited.”
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Intake Kits
Air intake systems have been a staple of automotive performance since the earliest days of hot rodding, but the designs, uses, and benefits of these components have changed over time. An open-air element on top of the carburetor of a vintage muscle car could provide power benefits due not only to reduced restrictions, but also because of the ability for relatively cool outside air to be routed directly to the air filter through a hood scoop. But virtually all modern engines are now fed by provisions that direct incoming air through the side of the intake manifold rather than the top of it, and as a result, the design of air intakes has changed dramatically.
“This is a relatively inexpensive modification you can install in your own garage with basic hand tools,” Fette explains. “You can add some sharp-looking carbon fiber to the engine bay, and depending on the type intake you choose, you can get a more aggressive sound, improved throttle response, and even a power benefit. But the type of intake you should use really comes down to what your goals are.”
He tells us that if you’re after a more aggressive sound, an open intake might be the best option. “It gets a bit tricky when you’re after power, though. You can get more power from an open intake in certain instances, but in this case you’re ultimately better off with a closed intake.”
After multiple pulls at wide-open throttle, an open intake is going to start pulling in hotter air, which will negate the benefits of its unrestricted design. That won’t really be an issue if you’re drag racing, or doing some spirited driving from stoplight to stoplight. But if you’re lapping the car on a road course, for example, a closed intake is going to provide more consistent performance for a longer amount of time.
It’s also worth noting that Dinan’s intakes are designed to work in concert with their flash tunes, in turn providing greater engine performance.“You’re removing a potential bottleneck in the system. Doing so provides increased flow to the turbo, and that means that the turbo doesn’t have to work as hard to spool up, so you’re improving efficiency while also prolonging the life of the turbocharger. This is one of those upgrades that really has no downside, and you can continue to use the same intake as you add other modifications.”
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Exhaust
Dinan offers a variety of exhaust upgrades for late-model BMWs. Fette says that which components make the most sense for a particular application largely comes down to the platform in question and how you want to change the exhaust note.
“A lot of newer BMWs are factory-equipped with electronically controlled valves in the exhaust system,” Fette says. “And because of that, you can often simply use a Valve Controller to get the sound you’re after. From the factory, these valves don’t fully open, so they’re never giving you maximum volume. A valve controller can resolve that with minimal expense.”
For those who are looking to alter the exhaust note rather than simply amplify what’s already there from the factory, he suggests looking at Dinan’s stainless steel axle-back exhaust systems.
“The Valve Controller is going to give you a sound similar to using one of our mid-pipes – with those you’re essentially deleting the resonators, so the volume of the exhaust is raised. With an axle-back you’re changing the muffler, and that affects the resulting tone of the exhaust. This is where you’re going to get a deeper, more aggressive growl. But what’s ‘ideal’ when it comes to the sound of an exhaust system is a pretty subjective thing. Personally, I would probably do the axle-back first because I prefer that deeper sound. And if that wasn’t loud enough, I could just add the mid-pipe to get more volume.”
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Springs and Bump Stop Kits
We’ve focused on powertrain upgrades so far, but what about the chassis? BMW has earned a reputation for building performance vehicles that masterfully blend responsiveness with daily drivability, but that doesn’t mean the factory tuning is ideal for every driver.
If you’re looking to elevate your ride’s handling capability, aftermarket springs are an attractive, relatively low-cost option to lower the vehicle’s center of gravity and improve body control at higher speeds. But as Fette points out, not all lowering spring kits pack the same level of engineering as Dinan’s do.
“One of the biggest benefits of our kits is that the rates of the springs and bump stops are engineered to work together to create one seamless spring rate. A lot of other manufacturers will give you a set of springs and expect you to reuse the factory bump stops with them. The problem is that the factory bump stops weren’t tuned to be used with aftermarket springs, and as a result, you get a harsh ride and an underperforming suspension system when the bump stop is engaged because they’re mismatched.”
Fette says that not only are Dinan’s spring and bump stop kits engineered to work together in terms of the resulting spring rate, they’re also designed to maintain the same amount of suspension travel as the factory setup. This allows the vehicle to largely retain stock ride quality despite the lower stance.
The amount of drop offered by these kits varies by platform and trim level. For those who prefer to have control over ride height adjustment as well as a more comprehensive handling upgrade, Dinan also offers height-adjustable spring kits for various BMW M models.
“These kits include springs and bump stops as well as threaded collars, along with ancillary hardware,” he says. “We wanted to retain the factory dampers with these kits because, starting with the F chassis generation, the vast majority of the vehicles we modify have electronically controlled adaptive dampers from the factory, and we wanted our customers to be able to retain that functionality.”
Although it varies by platform, these kits generally offer a range of adjustability of about two inches from stock, either lower or higher, Fette says.
“Another thing that’s important to note with both the adjustable and non-adjustable kits is that we use a linear spring rather than a progressive spring wherever we can. And that’s because linear springs provide more predictable handling. With a progressive spring, the effective rate is constantly changing depending on where the suspension is in its travel, and that makes it more difficult to predict how the vehicle is going to behave in different situations. That’s just not an issue with a linear spring – it’s going to behave the same way all the time. And that’s a huge benefit to performance driving.”
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Intercooler
Fette tells us that upgrading a turbocharged vehicle’s heat exchanger is another modification that essentially has no drawbacks or compromises involved, because it focuses on improving the efficiency of the engine. “You’re enabling the engine to provide more consistent power when driven hard for longer amounts of time because you’re increasing the headroom it has and improving cooldown times. With some platforms it provides an opportunity to increase peak power output as well.”
An upgraded intercooler also complements the flash tunes that Dinan offers by ensuring that the cooling system is up to the demands of the more aggressive software parameters. “It’s beneficial to anybody with a turbocharged BMW, regardless of platform or your performance goals. Especially if you’re pushing more power.”
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The upgrades recommended here can take a stock BMW to the next level while still providing a balanced performance package, but one set of solutions may not fit all. Fette adds that if folks are still a little unsure of which direction to go with their upgrades, they can simply reach out to Dinan to get additional advice from the experts.
“With just a few questions, our team can help plan out the path to reach those performance goals.”
CALL DINAN TODAY FOR EXPERT RECOMMENDATIONS: (800) 341-5480