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German Car Blog, Performance, Tuning, Motorsport, and Modification News
Published on 03-12-2011 05:32 AM
Renntech has released their Mercedes SLS AMG long tube headers. They don't come cheap, MSRP being $8200. They seem to be a quality piece that is ceramic coated. Power claims are 20 horsepower and 20 pound-feet of torque but there are no dyno or performance numbers to substantiate any power claims. The headers include 200 cell sport cats and we wonder what the gains and price would be without the integrated cats. ...Published on 03-12-2011 04:26 AM
CEC wheels recently posted pictures that caught our attention. They compared a Vorsteiner carbon fiber E92 M3 diffuser to AC-Schnitzer's diffuser and the quality difference is startling. This is the not the first time we have heard concerns about poor Vorsteiner quality. For a company willing to charge $25k for a widebody kit the contrast here between the two pieces with the Vorsteiner diffuser showing scratches and poor plastic construction is pretty extreme. Take a look at the pictures and decide for yourself. ...Published on 03-12-2011 12:49 AM
Nice to see a mainstream site finally catch up to what we have been saying for, oh, what, over a year now? David Kiley, author of Driven: Inside BMW, The Most Admired Car Company in the World, questions the direction BMW is taking. He does it very well too, stating BMW is lacking direction and trying to cater to everyone watering down the brand. Mr. Kiley also states the following, "BMW is starting to feel a lot like Toyota in how it goes about its business and its brand." The article is posted below and well worth the read as the author makes a strong, valid case. We are glad we are not the only ones noticing what is and has been happening to our beloved car brand. ...Published on 03-11-2011 09:11 PM
Normally this first drive videos are rather boring but this one is well done by MotorTrend. The video delves into the motor choices for the USA as well as the transmissions. Motortrend highlights that the USA will not be getting a dual clutch transmission to go with the supercharged 3.0 TFSI 6 cylinder. Additonally, that the 2.0t base motor will be mated for a front wheel drive CVT. They also highlight the various technological aspects, definitely worth watching. ...Published on 03-11-2011 03:22 PM
The C63 in this video belongs to BenzBoost.com member Dodger63. For any who has doubted the performance numbers coming from this C63, this video should provide a very strong reality check confirming the C63 in the video is indeed a strong 10 second car. Modifications are as follows: MHP V4 tune, MHP headers, MHP race exhaust, Carbonio intake, Evo rotors, Braille battery, Sparco seat, and there was a passenger. Vid speaks for itself, check it out below. ...Published on 03-11-2011 02:55 PM
EVO confirmed with a pre-production test drive that the F10 M5 will indeed have a dual clutch transmission. You may all remember the hoopla Motortrend created with their report that it would be automatic only. This is one of those times where it is important to hold a magazine accountable for sensationalism and just trying to generate buzz based on false information which definitely hurts MotorTrend's credibility. What DCT unit will it have? Well, chances are, with the torque the M5 will be generating it may get the Getrag unit out of the California which is rated to hold 553 pound-feet. It may even have to be a modified Getrag 7DCL750 as the M3 7DCI600 can only hold 440 pound-feet. ...Published on 03-10-2011 07:45 AM
Now, don't get us wrong, we are very impressed with what Ford is doing lately. Honestly, we think BMW could learn a thing or two from them. Things like the factory supported supercharger setups for the Mustang 5.0 are amazing and the Ford Racing parts catalog makes the BMW performance parts offering look... well, pathetic. MotorTrend claims the Boss 302 laps Laguna Seca in 1:40.21 vs. the M3's 1:42.96. What were the tires used? Was the M3 a DCT? Were they tested on the same day? Are we to really believe the Boss 302 outlaps the Audi R8? Read below for the answers. ...Published on 03-10-2011 06:43 AM
Mercedes has expanded their AMG Academy program to include... yes, the SLS AMG GT3 racecar. They actually have several programs based around the real thing. There are four levels to the program: GT3 Experience, GT3 Warm-Up, GT3 Training, and GT3 Competition. The first level of just experiencing the race car starts at 1,500 Euro. The courses then progress until actual racing competition with 10 other participants. This will take place in 2012 and is only available in Germany unlike the other AMG Academy programs which are available in the US. We have detailed the packages below and are accepting donations: ...Published on 03-10-2011 04:01 AM
OE Tuning recently tuned three N52 based E90 3 series. The first car was a 2006 E90 325i on 91 octane that was completely stock. The second car was an E90 328i also on 91 octane and completely stock. The E90 330i had an aftermarket filter and BMW performance exhaust, also on 91 pump gas. These cars all share the same basic motor but with different intake plenum designs and tunes. They were all flashed with an off the shelf tune available from OE Tuning for $395. The results are quite interesting, check out the graphs below. ...Published on 03-09-2011 09:06 PM
TheophilusChin has done some renderings of the next generation A3 based on the A3 sedan concept that was shown in Geneva. The headlights are obviously taken directly from that and the inspiration can be seen in the taillights as well. We like the rendering and hope the next generation looks something like this, check out the video of how it was done below. What we really want though is for them to produce the sedan concept. ...Published on 03-09-2011 06:53 PM
The S50B32 is a thing of beauty. This was the E36 M3 motor we did not get in the States but should have if BMW respected us. Well, too late for that, but not too late for Active Autowerke to release a supercharger for the popular motor. Unlike the US S50's, the S50B32 has indpendent throttle bodies and you can see how the Active manifold feeds into them. The blower used is an HKS unit likely the GTS8550. Pricing has not been revealed yet but a teaser dyno shows gains of 124 whp, very nice. ...Published on 03-09-2011 12:00 PM
Diesel sales have been exceptionally strong for Audi. The A3 and Q7 in particular have Audi of America president Johan de Nysschen declaring that the United States diesel market will expand the include the A8, A6, and Q5 in approximately 24 months. Now 2 years is not exactly a rapid change but definitely is progress on the diesel front for the United States. All this extra production is likely to lead to an Audi factory in the United States which is likely what will account for the delay. ...Published on 03-09-2011 05:08 AM
Warning: This dyno is a very low reading dyno. Most C63's with the P31 package dyno around 420whp stock on a dyno jet. Stock the car ranged from 378-394whp. Tuned it ranged from 417-427whp So that is a gain of 33whp and 32trq. Very solid numbers. I was not expecting these results at all as I have heard you could not gain much out of a tune on the P31. So thanks to Jeremy at OE Tuning! ...Published on 03-09-2011 04:00 AM
Not too long ago this would have been science fiction. With an Ipad or Android phone APR will have EMCS software available for download. This will work much in same fashion as how you used to switch maps with the cruise control stalk. It doesn't end there, it will allow you to record logs to your phone, check/clear codes, have electronic gauges, and record performance measurements. Awesomeness. ...Published on 03-08-2011 10:25 PM
ETKA is the Volkswagen Group's parts database. Remember when the leak confirming the motors for the new S6 and S8 along with their horsepower figures hit the web? Well, it would seem the same Russian group responsible has struck again this time revealing the 360 horsepower TT-RS Plus in the system. It would seem full details should be released around May. Will it come to the US? Stay tuned. ...Published on 03-08-2011 06:43 AM
MotorAuthority caught the new Audi S6 out and about without any camoflauge. We have to think this is just about how the final product will look with the more aggressive front as well as the quad exhaust. The car will have the 4.0 liter turbo V8 motor putting out horsepower in the low 400's as previously reported. We would expect the official unveil to come very, very soon. ...Published on 03-08-2011 03:52 AM
What the Swedes do with turbo BMW's is absolutely incredible. Some of your are familiar with PPF out of Sweden, a company that has done some ridiculous turbo BMW's. This is an S50B32 Euro motor out of the E36 M3 with a precision 8285R billet turbo at 30 psi running E85. Keep in mind, the 1220 horsepower is seen on an engine dyno, not at the wheels, but when you are talking about over 1000 horsepower it is ridiculously impressive no matter what. Check out the vid and pictures below and expect some record setting 1/4 mile times soon. ...Published on 03-08-2011 02:00 AM
Now this is what we call some serious bimmer boost, a project more than worthy of recognition and admiration. This E36 M3 belongs to davidtm5 who has a built S52 motor running a GTX 42 with Bavarian Solutions cams which has put down 953 whp at around 37 psi of boost. Yes, whoa. The setup sure looks to be 1000 whp capable and the owner does drag race so the power for an 8 second pass is there. We bow our heads in respect, check out the graphs and video below. ...Published on 03-07-2011 11:22 PM
We have all seen the black series in testing and every indication is that it will be coming. Our designer Wild-Speed gave us his take on the upcoming black series which we certainly do like. He did both the front and back to give a complete view. The rear in particular being a aggressive with the diffuser and quad AMG-style pipes. The question becomes, will this get the 5.5 liter twin turbo motor or a higher tuned version of the 6.2 liter M156 V8? If it does get the 5.5 liter turbo V8 as has been reported, game over. ...Published on 03-06-2011 10:45 PM
This video is from BimmerBoost member 3Fest who recently had his E46 330i tuned by OE Tuning. He tells us that some doubted his gains so he set up a run with a stock E36 M3 to prove the tune in the real world. The E36 M3 stock for stock is the faster car. Both cars are manual, E36 has a passenger. The video speaks for itself. ...
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