Dinan M3.com - A Profile

As I explore the capabilities of this car, gather more information available from different sources and prepare this car for daily life, I will be encountering challenges and "opportunities" and I will try and document as much of this process as possible. Specs and such can be found elsewhere, I'm going to relay what happens to me as time goes on...

DYNO DAY!!!
12/11/04 - Trip to Carolina Auto Masters in Durham, NC for a pull on the dynamometer to see what we actually have at the rear wheels. No big suprises, 216.1 hp at 5900 rpm, and torque of 208.3 @ 4500 rpm (see report)

The first item in preparation for it's first track event will be UUC Motorwerks urethane transmission mount "enforcers" designed to address a known weakness with these cars that, under load, can cause missed shifts due to a deflection in the transmission relative to the shift linkage. Hitting 1st gear while trying to downshift into 3rd can cause much destruction, so this is not something that will wait, especially since it is so inexpensive to remedy (`$70.00). I've heard lots of discussions on which mounts to use, and since this will see some track use, I'm not taking any chances. I ordered a set of the heavy duty "red" mounts with the aluminum enforcers. Installation was a relative breeze, and I notice very little additional drivetrain vibration. There is indeed a huge difference in the "pliability" of stock mounts as opposed to these.
UPDATE!! Upon inspection, I noticed the urethane had deteriorated quite a bit, and was in serious need of replacemant. Upon replacement, I noticed a definate difference in the feel of the drivetrain, noticable increase in vibration, and a bit more snap in the shifting and throttle response - very nice........

The next item to address is again, a known problem, the radiator. It seems that the upper hose neck has a tendency to become brittle with age, and is something best taken care of before a problem arises. The water pump impeller is made of plastic and is also known to be an item prone to failure, so that will also be addressed at this time.

Found a great deal on some wheels for track use from the folks at Wheel Exchange, Alutec 17x 7.5. They are a bit heavy at 21', but the relationship between weight and price is logrithmic, so these will have to do for now, besides, if I mess one of these up, it won't be a crisis... I was able to buy a set of Khumo V700 R compound tires last year. WOW! Just WOW!!! What a difference. The car seemed to just come alive, stick like crazy and give me a lot more flexibility in the corners to throttle-steer and play with rotation. What a difference!

This year I went to Toyo RA-1's, and they were noticably grippier, but did not last nearly as long as the Khumo's.