I'm interested too, as these small issued could have cost like 5 grand or more. I guess that's relatively low compared to the cost of the car and kit, but still.
Good questions.
For those that are considering FI (
superchargers or turbochargers), there are two very important costs to consider.
Clutches and Clutch Longevity
Aftermarket clutches have a significantly shorter lifespan that the original factory clutch. As supercharged or turbocharged M3's make more and more power the need for an aftermarket clutch becomes a necessity. The coefficient of friction of aftermarket clutch disks are significantly higher than that of organic factory clutch disks to hold the added torque a supercharger or turbocharger produces. As a result more material comes off with every engagement. SMG's are particularly abusive on these clutch disks as the shifts are considerably quicker. Each shift removes more material from the clutch disk on average than a non-SMG. Expect to see a lifespan ranging from 15,000 to 30,000 miles on an aftermarket clutches. Depending on driving habits, racing events, and general issues such as SMG pumps, accumulators, ball pins, etc. it could be considerably less or even more than that.
E46 Subframes and Tearing
If you have an E46, you may have heard of the BMW recall on the subframe. We are seeing more and more subframes tear on factory BMW E46's. Whether or not you choose to install a supercharger or turbocharger you should inspect your subframe to see the tell tale signs of a tear. These show up as a small line in the metal going away from where the rear subframe mounts to the chassis. We have a great deal on the subframe re-inforcement for those that want to ship their cars to us. We often do this at the same time we install turbo systems for people.
Oil Check Valves
The HPF turbo system comes with an upper oil check valve. This prevents oil from draining from the filter into the turbo after the car is shut off. If the check valve fails (which is rare) you will see smoke out the tailpipe immediately following startup and the smoke will go away once you drive it. If this occurs call us and we'll send you a new one for free. Swapping them out takes about 5-10 minutes.
Axle Strength
To date, we know of two axles that have failed. One in TazaM3's AA turbo'd M3 during a launch, and one in ForcefedM3's M3 when the suspension was fully extended (changing the drive angle) when one wheel was forced into an awkward position due to a fault in the road. There are currently over 500 supercharged M3's and over 70 turbo'd M3's running without incident with up to 1000+rwhp without breaking axles. We don't recommend replacing or changing the rear axles for power levels below 1000rwhp. When people start setting up the rear ends on these M3's for drag racing then we may find what the limits are of the stock rear axles. Until you do, they will hold up to just about whatever abuse you decide to put them through.
If you have any questions about any of these, feel free to email
[email protected] and he can answer any questions you might have.
Take care,
Chris.
