MORE POWER. Dinan s blown M3 gets a boost in power THE S3-R IS AS FEROCIOUS AS A FERRARI, YET AS FUNCTIONAL AS A CAMRY, TRULY AN EVERYDAY SPORTSCAR.

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1 MORE POWER Dinan s blown M3 gets a boost in power STORY COLUM WOOD PHOTOS JOOST DEMUYNCK THE S3-R IS AS FEROCIOUS AS A FERRARI, YET AS FUNCTIONAL AS A CAMRY, TRULY AN EVERYDAY SPORTSCAR. It was a less than perfect day for MLE s visit to Dinan HQ, as the skies were filled with intermittent blasts of rain. I passed at least an hour with my photographer on a tour of the state-of-the-art Dinan facility hosted by Scott Leandres, Dinan s marketing director. While I d like to tell you about the tour, I m sure you d much rather I get to the part about the 462hp (that s wheel horsepower) Supercharged M3. It is, just as Steve Dinan himself professes, performance without compromise. The car was as docile as a family pet, yet as wild as a lion on the savannah. Through Dinan s focus on efficiency, the already impressive 423hp supercharged version of BMW s M3 gets an additional 39hp courtesy of a cast aluminum air-to-air intercooler. A larger rad is also used to ensure optimum operating temperatures, and the rad fan comes on whenever the car is in boost and stays on for three minutes afterwards to reduce heat-soak. What is rather stunning is that when you consider the stock 333hp engine probably produces just under 300 whp, then Dinan s supercharger gives a gain of roughly 170 whp, and all from only 5.5lbs of boost. Its an efficiency thing, says Dinan, If you look at our supercharger kit, we have a much larger compressor, a larger intercooler and we use the full sized plenum for a 15 to 20 percent gain in efficiency. A final drive ratio of 3.91 can also be credited for keeping all 328 ft-lbs of torque on hand. The S3-R (which retails for $19,999) retains many of >

2 What we came across was a weekend driver s wet dream; the road looked like Lombard Street, the scenery like something out of Braveheart. The car was as docile as a family pet, yet as wild as a lion on the savannah. DETAILS 2001 BMW M3 WHEELS, TIRES, BRAKES (f) 19x9.5-inch Spread Forged Dinan wheels with 265/30R19 Michelin PS-2 tires, Dinan by Brembo four-piston calipers and slotted 380mm rotors, Goodridge stainless steel brake lines, Dinan-spec Ferodo brake pads, (r) 19x10- inch Spread Forged Dinan wheels with 265/30R19 Michelin PS-2 tires, Dinan by Brembo four-piston calipers and slotted 345mm rotors, Goodridge stainless steel brake lines, Dinan-spec Ferodo brake pads SUSPENSIONS Dinan springs, Stage 3 Dinan/JRZ shocks, Dinan front strut tower brace, Dinan rear shock tower brace, Dinan adjustable front antiroll bar, front negative camber plates, mono-ball lower control arm bushings, mono-ball toe-link bushings CHASSIS, BODY Dinan decklid badge INTERIOR Dinan Floor mats the parts from the S3, such as the cold air intake system, bored out throttle bodies, high-capacity fuel injectors and the lighterthan-stock stainless steel exhaust system (which despite having quad exhaust tips, only makes use of two of them). The power is tremendous and yet with the Dinan/JRZ suspension products, as well as the new wheels, tires and LSD, the power is not wasted on burning rubber. Instead it pulls your head back into the seat while you grab gears and toss the car through corners with agility and precision. Now as I started the engine and backed out of the Dinan garage, there was only the subtlest hint that this car was not stock. It was as simple to drive as a showroom 3 Series. Inside the cabin only the Dinan floormats hinted at the fun that was to lie ahead. Much of the car s smoothness can be credited to the Dinan engine management software which was carefully designed to give a natural BMW feel while completely altering many aspects of the engine s performance, including throttle, cam timing, air/fuel mixtures, ignition timing and more. The Dinan ECU also eliminates the top speed governor while increasing the redline to 8000 rpm, thus allowing the car to reach 60 mph in only the first two gears. With Leandres in the passenger seat and I behind the wheel, I was directed towards an area just outside of town where I was assured the roads would provide an ample challenge. What we came across was a weekend driver s wet dream; the road looked like Lombard Street, the scenery like something out of Braveheart. As the rain earlier in the day turned to a simple mist, traction wasn t a huge issue. Snaking up the hillside roads, with not another car to be found, the entire road belonged to me and this stunning M3. The only obstacle to be avoided was the occasional miniature mudslide caused by the weeks of rain which had saturated the northern part of the state. I soon realized how hard the LSD and the Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) had been working, when I got cocky and decided to turn off the DSC. Dropping into second gear as I entered a wonderfully steep right-to-leftto-right climb, I hadn t realized the extent of traction loss until the car reached the top and my own correction, followed by some immediate grip on some dry asphalt, 80 L E

3 AS YOU CAN SEE, THE ONLY BLING ON THIS BIMMER ARE THE WHEELS.

4 The E46 M3 is probably the best looking car ever made, says Steve Dinan. Q&A WITH STEVE DINAN THE OWNER of North America s largest aftermarket company took time out of his hectic schedule to answer a few questions about Dinan, BMW and the future of tuning. MLE: Do you have any supercharger projects for the next generation of BMWs? SD: Dinan is going a different direction right now. BMW engines have gotten so complicated and compression so high and displacement so large, that you can t do forced induction without lowering compression. If you are going to have to rebuild it, then why not just build a natural aspirated high performance engine? We are working on a 5.8L 600hp naturally aspirated version of the new V10 which creates as much power as the supercharged E39 M5. MLE: Are you planning on working with BMW s new bi-turbo system? SD: When the new 335 comes out, we will raise the boost and remap the computer. That will probably make 400hp. MLE: Why BMWs? SD: I started this company in You have to think about 1979; Acura didn t exist, Lexus didn t exist, Ferraris used to break once a week, Benzes were tanks, Porsches would spin out every time you put the power down. I got to BMW and thought, wow, it drives real nice, it handles real nice. As an engineer I appreciated the concept and the execution, so I made the decision on the merits of the vehicle at the time. Out of all the cars that exist now (1979) this is the most fun, the best driver s car, best engineered car. I guess the rest of the world finally agrees when you see how successful BMW has been. MLE: Would Dinan ever work on cars other than BMW? SD: I never say never. We have dabbled in Benzes and Porsches in the past. It s possible if BMW falters and Mercedes is on fire that we might have to shift our focus but we are pretty much all BMW people around here. We have equity in the brand. We know how BMW engineers do things because we know the way they like to do things. MLE: Will Dinan ever do body work? SD: That is something we have debated for 10 years. The reason we haven t so far, is the 35 models BMW has. Every time we have spare time and spare money, BMW comes out with another model. We just never get around to it. It s not that we don t want to, but we are serious racers. When it comes to making a 500hp motor or a spoiler kit, the decision isn t a hard one. MLE: What is your favorite BMW design; aesthetically and from an engineers point of view? SD: I d have to choose two cars. The E46 M3 is phenomenal driver s car and a phenomenal track car. As a former race car driver it appeals to me on that level. I do find it a little rough however and sometimes you are not in the mood for it. The E46 M3 is probably the best looking car ever made. The new M6 is also very attractive. It is a luxury hotrod. Maybe it doesn t have the nimbleness or handling of the M3 but it has a lot of power and is super smooth, super quiet and super refined. You ve gotta have one of each. 82 L E

5 almost had Leandres and myself picking trees out of our teeth. Once we emerged from the last corner, some braking (and a little praying), followed by a conservative step on the gas and we were on our merry way, I a lot more appreciative of DSC. Shortly afterward the rain ceased entirely and the brilliant green scenery made for an excellent backdrop in and around the Uvas Reservoir. With my near career-ending incident behind me, I set a more relaxed pace for the rest of the day, with bursts of ego (and testosterone) boosting spurts as infrequent as the brakes in the weather, in what soon became a very wet day. As is obvious from the photos, the only bling on this Bimmer are the wheels ($1,299 up front and $1,349 in the rear), and even they are as purposeful as can be. The ultra-lightweight 19-inchers (covered in modest 265/30R19 rubber all around) weigh only 20lbs. Inside each wheel sits a Dinan by Brembo four-piston caliper, with 380mm rotors up front and 345mm in the rear. It was probably this stopping power that saved my bacon earlier, (but I like to credit my quick thinking). We are doing an even higher version, says Dinan. We will lower the compression and up the boost some more to make 500hp. SOURCEBOX DINAN 865 Jarvis Drive Morgan Hill, CA W: T: SPECIFICATIONS 2001 BMW M3 ENGINE BMW 3.2L Inline-6 with Dinan Supercharger ENGINE MODIFICATIONS Dinan exhaust and high flow throttle bodies, S3-R Interooled Supercharger System including: Vortech gear-driven supercharger compressor (5.5 psi boost), large air to air Intercooler with high hlow cast aluminum tanks, automatic intercooler auxilliary fan, CNC aluminum and steel mounting brackets, high flow cold air intake, high capacity fuel pressure regulator, high capacityfuel injectors, automatic belt tensioner, high capacity aluminum radiator, high capacity oil cooler ENGINE MANAGEMENT S3-R Dinan engine management software DRIVETRAIN MODIFICATIONS 3.91 final drive limited slip differential NUMBERS Horsepower: 8000rpm Torque: rpm There is more to the brake setup that just that, but the same can be said for the engine, the suspension and even the ECU. In fact there are enough parts on this E46 M3 to write a thesis on and Dinan isn t done yet. Steve Dinan himself told MLE that he has another E46 prototype in production. We are doing an even higher version, he says. We will lower the compression and up the boost some more to make 500hp. Why more power? According to Dinan the answer is simple; We think an M3 should be a 500hp car, he says. And if you d rather wait for the E90 M3, go ahead, because when you get tired of the 400hp V8, Dinan will be there with a 4.6L stroker kit, to give you another 500hp M fix. Whatever your BMW, Steve Dinan has a horsepower solution for you, and as always, Dinan horsepower comes with their unparalleled warranty. MLE 84 L E