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Everyday should be an opportunity to learn, to listen, and to live. In this automotive culture we live in, few can understand and many simply cannot get enough. What we all sometimes forget, is that we are the sport, the enthusiasts, and the faces that make up this amazing culture. Our cars, our driving, and our actions are direct expressions of our self expression. How we build a car, how we drive at the track, what color we choose, and why we do what we do are all individual characteristics. But the bottom line is we strive for one thing, and that is complete automotive excellence.
I was about 16 years old driving my first car which was a 1991 Honda Accord sedan. Yeah it was lowered, had some cool fog lights, and got me around. But it was never up to par with my Dad�s E36 BMW. This was about the time my passion and love was found for the BMW automobile. Several years later in college, a good friend of mine had a 4 door E36 M3. Being 19 years old driving around in such luxury and being one incredible automobile had me officially hooked. As I grew older and started Vivid Racing, I yearned to drive an automobile as fine as the M3. The handling, the power, the style, and more importantly, the symbol of perfection. Through many cars between, I had reached the gates. This time it was for real. A 2002 BMW SMG E46 M3 at my door steps.
The beautiful Laguna Seca Blue car arrived at Vivid Racing with the SMG transmission, navigation, factory 18� wheels, and of course, the all black leather interior. With years of wanting this car and finally getting my hands on it, would we simply leave it stock or would we create a total urban racing machine?
Rob Rohn co-owner of Vivid Racing took this project into his own hands. Knowing the thirst for M3 excellence I had and his success with previous project cars, this was his passion. As a car, three main characteristics are always important to us. Handling, Power, and Reliability. When we sat down and looked at the characteristics of the M3, we decided our direction based upon our needs for a true enthusiast car.
Being that our industry is so influenced by the Gen X and Gen Y crowd, we wanted to bring that attitude and out of the box styling to this M3 Project. From the outside, we wanted to give the car a noticeable difference, as well as save some weight. We added the Vorsteiner Carbon Fiber vented hood which saved about 20lbs as well as the Vorsteiner Carbon Fiber trunk. In addition the front bumper is all carbon fiber to resemble the CSL styling while saving weight. We trimmed up the rear bumper with a carbon fiber diffuser and to match the rest of the car, added carbon fiber side vents. The carbon accents stand out on the blue contours, however the carbon adds a sense of style and aggression that is not seen on other M3�s.
One characteristic that is always missed by drivers is the braking components. Anyone can go fast, but how fast you stop is more important. As a road racer, stock is never ok when you push a car hard lap after lap on the track. You always seem to want more brake to go just a bit deeper in the corners. Our M3 got a 4 wheel StopTech big brake kit to make this happen. It has a 4 piston calipers in the front and rear with an extra large 15 inch drilled rotor in the front. The rear has a 14.1 inch drilled rotor to give the car a complete balanced braking system. All for corners include steel braided brake lines for a stiffer pedal feel and Axxis Ultimate brake pads for firmer grip. With the brakes being substantially bigger then stock, the 2 piece vented rotors help in directing air to the caliper to out brake most race cars. This gives us safety and comfort when driving our M3 to the limit.
What makes our M3 handle is the most important aspect to us. Driving on mountain roads, racing on the road course, or cruising to work, a car that you have confidence in, is going to get you there in one piece. We wanted to make sure our M3 had a great ride like stock but would perform superior in handling. We added the H&R Club Sport Coilovers to the car. This gave us a preset dampening coilover with adjustable ride height. The ride height was set to give the car a tough look, but perform without any hinderances. In addition, we added an Agency Power front strut bar to reduce chassis flex and keep the car flat in turns. To correct the rear wheel drive constant oversteer with traction control off, we choose to add a complete set of sway bars and sway bar links to improve the vehicles balance from Agency Power. The Front sway bar is 3 way adjustable, hollow and 30mm in diameter. The rear sway bar has the same qualities as the front but is 26mm in diameter. Both sway bars come with adjustable sway bar links to help in corner balancing for the best and must neutral handling possible.
The only way the M3 truly looks sporty is with 19� wheels. To continue with our black on blue theme, we added a set of IForged Flux 3 piece wheels. These wheel are custom designed to fit with our big StopTech brakes. The fronts are a 19x8.5 and the rears are 19x10.5. These wheels stand out with the black centers including a 4 inch polished lip in the rear and 2.25 inch lip in the front. The most exciting part of driving this M3 is the way it grips to the road. This is accomplished with some of the most serious tires on the market for street or track use. Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 tires wrap the front with 235/35/19 and the rear with 275/30/19. This tire is much softer then most conventional street tires giving it a strong grip on the tarmac. However the ride is not affected with noise or overly fast tire wear. Running these at a good 30psi in the front and 28psi in the rear is our setup for optima grip.
Since the E46 M3 is already pushed to its limits, making horsepower on the car is not the easiest task. With a high compression motor, sequential manual gearbox, and 3 liters, our options are simple, free up the air. We replaced the factory air box with a high flow K&N Typhoon intake unit. This intake includes a new intake pipe and K&N cone air filter to gain 8.9 rear wheel horsepower. Additional, we wanted to improve the engine sound and performance. To gain a tasteful and moving sound, we added the Supersprint Race Exhaust with larger midpipes. This exhaust system gave the car a F1 style rasp sound that included quad stylish tips to compliment the carbon fiber rear valence. This exhaust combination gave us an increase of about 13 horsepower.
Lastly and most importantly is what makes the BMW M3 the Ultimate Driving Machine. A cockpit designed to embrace the drivers feel for the car is the defining additive to driving enjoyment. We decided comfort and style was important to us so we kept the essentials and changed to the necessities. Our factory BMW M3 leather electric seats put us in the proper driving position, but what enhances the driving experience is our Agency Power Paddle Shifters. These paddle shifters are much larger then the factory SMG paddles. They elegantly follow the contour of the steering wheel giving further ability to aggressively drive in turns and keeping our hands positioned on the wheel. For additional styling, we added our own carbon fiber trim on the steering wheel, shifter surround, dash, and even the door handles. MBQuart pounds the sound into the cabin with complete interior replacement speakers and then a single 12 inch subwoofer with amp to power the bass.
Having reached my dream of owning an M3, I could have never expected it to be this satisfying. With the creative help of Rob and the visions of Vivid Racing, we created an M3 that is a true joy to drive. Superb styling, amazing handling, efficient power, and ability to out perform the competition.
