Gintani Supercharged E92 M3

How do you go about modifying a car that is truly a benchmark in its own class ?
The M3 has always been the top of the line street performer. With cheetah like reflexes, jaguar like top speed, and the growl of a lion, the M3 leaves nothing to be desired in the world of daily driven sports cars.

So how does one go about improving something that is truly best in class (5 seconds faster per lap in this video!), and something that is without a doubt the best that the OEM *and BMW is not any plain old OEM* had delivered?

Most enthusiasts would quiver at the idea of modifying a German car, let alone the M3. However, Sammy, the owner of the car in question here went ahead with a surgical strike buildup.

In trying to improve an already stout performer, the approach always has to be two fold:

In order to outdo the best of what OEM has to offer, you have to go after the absolute BEST in class of what the RACE WORLD has to offer!
Less is always more, a few strategically chosen high quality parts will go a long way towards producing a masterpiece of a car that is still as comfortable, reliable, dependable, exciting, and forgiving as the factory car was.
The plan to upgrade this M3 was to play up it’s strongest inherent qualities : it’s balance, it’s poise, and it’s engagement.

To make the care more exciting and engaging, Sammy has chosen to upgrade the engine with the utilization of Akrapovic Titanium Exhaust and a Gintani Supercharger kit.

The exhaust is a beautiful titanium piece that is a direct bolt on to the old cat-back exhaust system and features a built pre-catalyst balance tube (H-pipe) as well as a post-catalyst X-pipe for better engine scavenging and cylinder bank balance. The titanium construction not only reduces the car’s running weight, but moreover titanium exhausts have a nice ‘resonance’ to them where they help amplify and meld the timbre of the exhaust sound into a more exotic and sinister sound.

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The Gintani Supercharger boost the power output of the M3’s V8 using a vortech V2 supercharger, a custom Gintani intake manifold complete with a built in air to water intercooler, and a matching software tune. The use of a centrifugal supercharger enhances the linear and controllable performance of the M3 , while the choice of a short air path air to water intercooler (rather than a long path front mounted air to air) maintains the quick response of the naturally aspirated V8 engine that is typical of M3 performance. After all is said and tuned, the prototype Gintani Kit delivers over 480 rear wheel horsepower at 8.0 psi of boost.

What is great to see on this specific application is how a well designed exhaust system can dramatically improve the performance of a supercharged car. Sammy’s car is only running 7.5psi of boost meaning that the exhaust system has relieved the engine of 0.5 psi of exhaust back pressure. With this freer flowing exhaust and freer breathing engine combination the supercharger package when all is said and tuned delivered 512 rear wheel horsepower at a lower 7.5psi of boost!

In other words, the exhaust system (and a matching tune) on this application is worth 32 rear wheel horsepower. Considering the stock M3 delivered a respectable 315 rwhp on the same dyno, the combination here is worth 197hp which is surely going to enhance both the excitement and the engagement of this car.

With close to 600 crank hp on tap, Sammy then turned his attention to making the most of this power. A set of KW Variant 3 with adjustable rebound, compression, and compression rates allows the car to put down the power through the rear wheels and maintain its poise on high speed canyon runs. Sammy says they “feel amazing, smooth as hell, soak up bumps very well, especially thru the canyon, keeps wheels planted. Daily driving is fine, feel like its on the middle setting of the stock 3 settings.” which is a testament to the performance and the quality of the KW V3s.

Keeping the car’s stability at triple digit speeds is a new body kit from 3F engineering (not a body kit manufacturer but rather an engineering firm). The kit comprises three important components to help reduce the car’s drag and increase it’s down force at high speeds. A front and rear carbon fiber diffuser accelerate the air’s motion under the car creating a low pressure front under it for better road hugging and more controlled high speed cornering, while a carbon fiber low drag low profile rear spoiler adds down force to the rear end.

The front splitter / diffuser also guides generous amounts of air to the front mounted air to water heat exchanger for the intercooler system as well as to the massive brake ducts feeding now upgraded 380mm / 6 piston front and 345mm / 4 piston rear Brembo rotors. These massive units are the only thing that would qualify as an ‘upgrade’ on a car as stout as the M3 and they just “STOP -- thats what happens when [you] hit the pedal now, but consistently and [don't] feel any fade.”

Last but not least in this exotic transformation are supercar sized 20X9 front and 20X10 Rear Agio sport wheels. The wheels are wrapped in Falken FK-452: 245/30/20 and 285/25/20 tires which are hard pressed to keep the power down in the first two gears.