-------------------- 1 --------------------
#1. Drive-by-wire (was Re: M3 SMG the only option?) - from Rex Tener
Top
Date: Tue, 01 Oct 2002 14:12:09 -0700 From: Rex Tener <rex_tener@yahoo.com> Subject: Drive-by-wire (was Re: M3 SMG the only option?) At 12:20 PM 10/1/2002 -0500, Jeff Thompson wrote: >If I ever get the E46, I'll row through the gears myself. If I could get >rid of the drive-by-wire throttle, it would be perfect. :) I would strongly encourage everyone to drive their prospective drive-by-wire vehicle before purchasing one. My wife has a 2001 M Coupe with the S54 motor, which comes with drive-by-wire, and I hate the feel/reaction of the throttle. It is very unresponsive, especially on heal-n-toe downhshifts. It seems to take it forever to sense the gas pedal has been moved. I can tap the throttle to wide open and close without the tack jumping more than a few hundred RPM. Try that in a car with a real throttle cable. :-) My '95 M3 had the perfect balance of responsiveness and resistance to movement. My '96 M3 has lots of resistance to moving the cable and can be difficult to get the throttle just right at small throttle openings. -- Rex Tener rex_tener@yahoo.com 1996 BMW M3, SCCA SFR Solo II Street-Mod #173
-------------------- 2 --------------------
#2. Re: [E36M3] Drive-by-wire (was Re: M3 SMG the only option?) - from Jim Bassett
Top
Date: Tue, 01 Oct 2002 14:44:06 -0700 From: Jim Bassett <jimbassett@attbi.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Drive-by-wire (was Re: M3 SMG the only option?) At 02:20 PM 10/1/02, Rex Tener wrote: >I would strongly encourage everyone to drive their prospective >drive-by-wire vehicle before purchasing one. Good advice, Rex. I've heard from others that they aren't all that impressed with the drive-by-wire feel. >My '95 M3 had the perfect balance of responsiveness and resistance to >movement. My '96 M3 has lots of resistance to moving the cable and can be >difficult to get the throttle just right at small throttle openings. Interesting that you mention that, since I've felt the same difference between the '93 325is and the '98 M3, and just chalked it up to the two cars being pretty unrelated :-) Seems like there are more subtle differences that I first thought. Jim Bassett
-------------------- 3 --------------------
#3. Rear Koni Adjustment Discrepancies - from Jeremy Warfield
Top
Date: Tue, 1 Oct 2002 17:54:17 -0400 From: "Jeremy Warfield" <jww95@earthlink.net> Subject: Rear Koni Adjustment Discrepancies Which direction is stiff??? I've had my Koni SA's for over a year, and always set the rebound in the middle of its adjustment (I never thought too much about which direction stiffened and which softened until now...) I was told that to adjust the shock, you placed the bottom on the ground between you feet, and with a t-handled hex wrench, compressed the piston and then turned the shaft in the same way as the fronts (counterclockwise == stiffer). But after I installed the 525# rear springs, I wanted to go about 3/8 to 1/2 of a turn off full stiff, but when I do this (turning ccw) the shock appears to have much less rebound resistance than when at fully clockwise position. So I did some searching through the e36m3 digest archives, and some old posts confirm direction of adjustment to be the same as the fronts (ccw = stiffer), but after some browsing on the koni NA site, I came across this..... btw, e36m3 Rear Koni SA's are the 8240 series Taken from ==> http://www.koni-na.com/adjustment.html ========================================== Adjustment Procedure 76, 80, 82, 86, 87, 88, 90, 8040, 8240 Series Rebound Adjustment Procedures Remove the shock absorber from the vehicle and hold it vertically with the lower eye or pin attached in a vise. Use clamp plates to prevent damage. Fully collapse the shock absorber, at the same time turning the dust cap or piston rod slowly to the left (counterclockwise), until it is felt that the cams of the adjustment nut engage in the recesses of the foot valve assembly. Some shock absorbers include a bump rubber concealed under the dust cover and it must be removed prior to adjusting. The damper may have already been adjusted. Therefore check whether the shock absorber is in the adjustment position or not by keeping it collapsed and gently turning it further to the left counting at the same time the half turns until a stop is felt. Stop turning then and do not use force. Keeping the shock absorber collapsed, make 1 half turn (180 degrees) to the right (clockwise). In case of prior adjustment add the number of half the turns previously found. The total range is about 5 half turns. Pull the shock absorber out vertically without turning for at least 1 cm to disengage the adjusting mechanism. The dust cap or piston rod may now be turned freely. ADJUSTING DIRECTION Clockwise = Firmer Counter Clockwise = Softer ============================================ So what am I doing wrong? jeremy- 95 m3 that doesn't have a clue...
-------------------- 4 --------------------
#4. Re: [E36M3] Drive-by-wire (was Re: M3 SMG the only option?) - from Zack Steinkamp
Top
Date: Tue, 1 Oct 2002 15:03:08 -0700 (PDT) From: Zack Steinkamp <edsarkiss@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Drive-by-wire (was Re: M3 SMG the only option?) it's all in the programming. as long as the servo opening the throttle butterfly (or the intake valve lift as in the new 745i) can keep up with your foot, which is very conceivable considering 6ms seek times with servo motors inside of hard drives, it's just a matter of programming the throttle response to the pedal input. maybe someone will come up with a "disable pedal input smoothing" easter egg. or even taking it the other way. just as the brake controller in the 745i will give added braking pressure if it detects that you are "panic braking", the same could be done with a throttle. if you are really punching it, the car could quickly open the throttle faster than you could move your foot to the floor. again, it's all in the programming ;-). zs* * programmer --- Jim Bassett <jimbassett@attbi.com> wrote: > Date: Tue, 01 Oct 2002 14:44:06 -0700 > From: Jim Bassett <jimbassett@attbi.com> > Subject: Re: [E36M3] Drive-by-wire (was Re: M3 SMG > the only option?) > > At 02:20 PM 10/1/02, Rex Tener wrote: > >I would strongly encourage everyone to drive their > prospective > >drive-by-wire vehicle before purchasing one. > > Good advice, Rex. I've heard from others that they > aren't all that > impressed with the drive-by-wire feel.
-------------------- 5 --------------------
#5. Re: [E36M3] Rear Koni Adjustment Discrepancies - from Chester Wong
Top
Date: Tue, 1 Oct 2002 15:12:53 -0700 (PDT) From: Chester Wong <chester_p_wong@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: [E36M3] Rear Koni Adjustment Discrepancies Does it really matter? If you turn to full stiff (which should be clockwise while you're looking down at the shock) and the rod comes up slowly, you know that's full stiff. If you turn it the opposite and the shock rebounds quickly, you know you're at full soft rebound. So? Go from there! I think the confusion stems from the frame of reference (how you're looking at the shock, etc). Don't overthink this one. Just adjust it, and go have fun...wish I could :( Chester > ADJUSTING DIRECTION > > Clockwise = Firmer > Counter Clockwise = Softer > ============================================ ===== __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? New DSL Internet Access from SBC & Yahoo! http://sbc.yahoo.com
-------------------- 6 --------------------
#6. RE: [E36M3] Rear Koni Adjustment Discrepancies - from Jeremy Warfield
Top
Date: Tue, 1 Oct 2002 18:29:29 -0400 From: "Jeremy Warfield" <jww95@earthlink.net> Subject: RE: [E36M3] Rear Koni Adjustment Discrepancies >>Does it really matter? If you turn to full stiff (which should be clockwise while you're looking down at the shock) and the rod comes up slowly, you know that's full stiff. If you turn it the opposite and the shock rebounds quickly, you know you're at full soft rebound. So? Go from there! That's what I did on the workbench, and it made more sense to me that the shock with more rebound resistance would extent more slowly. I was just hesitant to assume that because of the lack of spring tension as the shock was unloaded. >>I think the confusion stems from the frame of reference (how you're looking at the shock, etc). Yeah, it just really puzzled me since the adjustment direction (referenced by the piston) is reverse for the shocks vs the front struts. But since I know realize koni's marking on the shock body for + and - are reference to rotating the shock body as opposed to the piston shaft. >>Don't overthink this one. Just adjust it, and go have fun...wish I could :( You'll be up and running soon! We're hanging in there for you! thanks jeremy- > ADJUSTING DIRECTION > > Clockwise = Firmer > Counter Clockwise = Softer >
-------------------- 7 --------------------
#7. Carfax - from Marc Plante
Top
Date: Tue, 1 Oct 2002 19:28:13 -0400 From: "Marc Plante" <marc@plante.com> Subject: Carfax Does someone have an open carfax account that I could tap into to check on a car? Contact me offline. Thanks, Marc Plante E36 325i, 207k Vienna, VA
-------------------- 8 --------------------
#8.Removing Tint, CD changer, etc - from marc@plante.com
Top
Date: Tue, 01 Oct 2002 16:31:30 -0700 (PDT) From: marc@plante.com Subject: <Misc>Removing Tint, CD changer, etc Couple miscellaneous questions about a 1997 M3/4 I seem to be zeroing in on (for my SO, I'm a 2.5 kind of guy for now)... 1) Does anyone have a general sense of what it's going to cost to remove tint from a car? I figure $250. I'd rather not mess with the defroster in a DIY job. 2) Is there a quick way to understand what manufacturer's radio is in the car. I have a spare Alpine changer, and am wondering if it's going to be compatible. Thanks, Marc Plante E36 325i, 207k Vienna, VA
-------------------- 9 --------------------
#9. Re: M3 SMG the only option? - from John Bullivant
Top
Date: Tue, 1 Oct 2002 19:46:35 -0400 From: "John Bullivant" <johnbullivant@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: M3 SMG the only option? I've been following the postings on this subject with interest as I have a 2002 M3 with SMG, my prior car was a '96 E36 M3 Coupe - fully 5-speed manual. I've been driving stick shifts for more years than I care to say - I started life in UK where automatics are just not appreciated. The current SMG II transmission has only 2 main modes, an automatic mode for those times where you're just too lazy to do a darn thing (such as crawling along the NJ Turnpike), and the fully driver directed mode, where you select the gear. In this mode, the only thing you cannot do is downshift when it would over-rev the engine (thus avoiding that "High Dollar Downshift), and for convenience, the computer will downshift at extremely low revs to get you into a gear more suitable if you forget - thus if you have to stop a junction, you can be lazy and just brake - it'll give you first to start in. I find the SMG transmission to be a delight to drive. I used to love shifting with gear stick and clutch, but the degree of precision and speed one gets with the SMG transmission obeying your commands can hardly be equaled - and certainly could not be equaled 100% of the time. I find I do not miss the "joy" of stirring the stick and pushing the clutch (if I want that, I'll jump in the Cooper S my wife's just getting - if she lets me!). With SMG, you can still do stupid things, such as forget to upshift in time and end up hitting and sitting on the rev limiter; you can still downshift rather than upshift, but without the risk of blowing the engine; you can still shift at all the wrong moments. It will do what you tell it - UNLESS that would kill the engine - to me that IS progress. I do agree with Jeff that one risk is the extra complexity, however, when you compare the e46 motor to the e36 motor, there's so much more complexity, what the hell, we might as well go for broke! (which could be the state of my bank balance if the tranny fails at 4 yrs 1 day) regards jb
-------------------- 10 --------------------
#10. RE: [E36M3] My LTW is for sale - from Carguymb@aol.com
Top
Date: Tue, 1 Oct 2002 20:28:54 EDT From: Carguymb@aol.com Subject: RE: [E36M3] My LTW is for sale Seth, Nice car! Want to throw a price out there and tell us where the car is? Martin Bullen '95 M3 '97 Z3 2.8