Jake's Budget-Built BMW 335i Thread (Drag Inspired)

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After getting bored with my daily driver E70 X5, I sold it and started my search for a new project. As I continue to grow my YouTube channel, I wanted something that I could daily drive and modify. Since I know my way around an N54, I found myself looking for an E90 335i. This would give me 4 doors and a plethora of options to pick from. My only stipulations were that it had to be automatic, cheap, and not a pile of crap.

My search across the Midwest uncovered a lot of overpriced junk. As a member of E90Post, I stumbled across a listing that hadn't been getting much interest over the course of 3 months. I noticed the price was more than fair after a few price drops and the car seemed to be a great value. I contacted the seller and asked a few questions. Everything seemed legit so I had him bring it in for a PPI at a local BMW indy shop.

Next thing I knew, I was scheduling transportation from Texas to Wisconsin.

I took delivery of the car sight unseen and am very happy with the car. The transaction went smoothly, the seller was great to work with and I get to enjoy a rust-free chassis!

It's a 2009 BMW 335i (N54) with 140k miles. Face-lift sedan with sport package, premium package, heated seats and comfort access. Tons of maintenance records and tastefully modified with a Dinan carbon fiber cold air intake, JB4 tuner and window tint.

I have lots of plans for it because I'd like to make this an exciting build with modifications and maintenance. It'll start off like most N54s, but I'm really gonna turn things up later on this year. I'd like this to be a budget-built stock turbo drag car. I still have my 750whp 135i (see here), but this should be the polar opposite being an automatic, twin turbo sedan instead of a manual, single turbo coupe.

If this build sounds like something that interests you, I'd encourage you to subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow along on my 335i blog.

 

[suspenceful]

I uploaded a video that shows the delivery, my first drive and my future plans for the build

 

[suspenceful]

Next up was polishing the nasty headlights that I pointed out in the video upon delivery.

I've had really good luck using the 3M headlight restoration kit, along with a few additional supplies in the past.

These are the products I used:

• 3M Headlight Lens Restoration System
• 3M Automotive Masking Tape
• Automotive Glass Cleaner
• 32oz Spray Bottle
• Meguiar's Microfiber Towels
• Meguiar's Ultimate Quik Wax
• Cordless Drill
• Shop Towels

Since I've had such good results with this method, I created a DIY video that shows the steps I take and the products I use. It also includes a cool time-lapse, let me know what you think!

 

[suspenceful]

I took her out last weekend and snapped some better photos to show you guys what I'm working with

 

[tisdrew]

I hear @Twisted Tuning can set you up with some n2o

Also, do you plan to get a fancy expensive LSD or just weld the diff?

 

[suspenceful]

I hear @Twisted Tuning can set you up with some n2o

Also, do you plan to get a fancy expensive LSD or just weld the diff?

I think I'll be getting in touch with him down the road

Gonna run it as-is for now, then if I'm able to weld it later on, that's what I'll do.

 

[GreyNBlueE92]

I heard nitrous is "cheap"...

 

[JohnDaviz]

i like your headlight DIY.
But either i missed it or you did not use any proper coating to seal your shiny headlights.

With no proper coating they should not last really long being so clean.

To quik wax is nice but after a few rainy days its gone.

 

[Clean WHP]

does it have to remain a daily? i want to see this thing fully gutted one day!

 

[SJ_1989]

Gut it

 

[Torgus]

I say buy all used parts. Show everyone online how fast you can make an E90 for small money. Drive up demand for these vehicles up so mine does not devalue so damn fast.

There is no reason you should not be running low 11s for under $2000 imo. #sendit

Gotta love the tan interior, wtf was BMW thinking? I had it on my E90 and E91.

 

[suspenceful]

I heard nitrous is "cheap"...

We'll find out towards the end of the modding process... if there is an "end"

i like your headlight DIY.
But either i missed it or you did not use any proper coating to seal your shiny headlights.

With no proper coating they should not last really long being so clean.

To quik wax is nice but after a few rainy days its gone.

You're correct. I plan to spray them with a nice clear-coat spray sometime soon. Hopefully that protects them!

does it have to remain a daily? i want to see this thing fully gutted one day!

Just because it gets gutted, doesn't mean I can't daily it

Gut it

It will be, don't worry! Just not sure how far I'll take it... I'm envious of how much you stripped out.

I say buy all used parts. Show everyone online how fast you can make an E90 for small money. Drive up demand for these vehicles up so mine does not devalue so damn fast.

There is no reason you should not be running low 11s for under $2000 imo. #sendit

Gotta love the tan interior, wtf was BMW thinking? I had it on my E90 and E91.

I have some parts lined up already, I'm going to stick with the best parts that I can get for the money. Obviously, used parts are preferred, and I'll go that route for some things. But you won't be seeing anything crazy expensive on this car, I'll save that $$$$ for the 135i.

I can't wait to get rid of the tan interior. It's clean and has grown on me a little bit, but will still get removed.

 

[SJ_1989]

I can't wait to get rid of the tan interior. It's clean and has grown on me a little bit, but will still get removed.

I change my mind..... Don't gut it and buy my black interior instead!

 

[suspenceful]

I change my mind..... Don't gut it and buy my black interior instead!

Lol, maybe if this wasn't going to be a performance-oriented build. If I take it out, it's not going back in

 

[suspenceful]

I went to my local 1/4 mile drag strip to get some baseline results before I start diving into maintenance and modifications!

It was my first time launching or racing one of these cars with an automatic transmission. Definitely a learning moment, especially after getting used to my 750whp manual 135i. Two completely difference experiences! It was hard to tell the 335i was even doing anything because the stock exhaust is so quiet :lol

First-ever pass down the strip netted me a 14.71 at 95mph. Not great. I foot-braked the car and wasn't sure how high the stall would let me go before starting to spin the rear tires.

For the second pass, I left off idle thinking that might help. It didn't. Lost a tenth to the 60ft, but seemed to go down the back half of the track faster. The car was a lot cooler on this run as it didn't heat-soak in the staging lanes like it did on for the first run.

I've been wanting to test the accuracy of my Dragy device, so I had it on during my first two runs. I was impressed to find that it was within 0.03s and hit the MPH on the head! Take a look at the Dragy results below compared to the actual slips and you'll see each measurement is almost spot on. It's an awesome little device for measuring all sorts of stuff. 1/8 mile, 1/4 mile, 1/2 mile, 0-60mph, 60-130mph, etc.

You can order one from Amazon or Burger Motorsports!

Since the Dragy was so accurate and the track was packed, I decided to hit a couple backroads on the way home instead of waiting in line for 1hr per pass. For my third attempt, I held the e-brake along with the foot brake to stall up the RPMs. Once I was ready to go, I released both brakes and it resulted in a much better launch.

Unfortunately, the tires spun on my first street attempt because the tires were cold. So I did a u-turn and went right back to the same spot and did a 4th run after warming the tires up. Same exact launching strategy and the tires hooked, resulting in a better 60ft and much better ET than my original 14.7.

All passes were done in sport mode, without manual shifting. I let the car automatically shift for me to keep things consistent. I probably could've squeezed some faster times out of it if I shifted earlier to keep the car in it's powerband. I can feel the boost tapering off up top being stock.

Best of 14.31 @ 97mph leaves a lot of room for improvement. Next step is some much needed maintenance. The car has 140k on it and has never had a walnut blast (to my knowledge), and it could use some spark plugs/coil packs.

Check out the video of my runs, you'll get an awesome POV-style view of me going down the track

 

[suspenceful]

I finally set aside some time to give this car the walnut blast it deserved.

Here are the supplies I used:

• Fine Grade Walnut Shells
• Intake Valve Cleaner
• Intake Manifold Gaskets (6)
• Abrasive Blaster Kit
• Vacuum Adapter & Blasting Wand
• Brass Adapter Fitting
• Remote Starter Switch
• Pick Set
• 8mm, 10mm, 11mm, T20, T25 & Hex Sockets
• Pistol Grip Blow Gun
• Shop Towels
• Vacuum
• Air Compressor

Let's get started...

Well, I think I figured out why the car couldn't eclipse 13's in the 1/4 mile! I couldn't believe what I found after removing the intake manifold!

After loosening up some of the carbon with a pick...

Then after one pass of walnut blasting...

Lots of walnuts and manual scrubbing later...

I even cleaned up the intake manifold ports because those were caked with carbon as well. You can see the cleaned port on the left and the dirty port on the right.

It was a lot of work, but totally necessary. If you want to watch my whole process with more of a DIY/How-To style, check out my YouTube video. It also has some more information and a drive at the end showing the power increase/restoration.

 

[Traf]

Damn the amount of carbon buildup is crazy

 

[suspenceful]

This week I changed the spark plugs and ignition coils and wanted to shed some light on the process. I filmed an in-depth video and wrote a guide to help others properly replace, gap and install their new plugs & coils.

Ultimate N54 Spark Plug Guide: https://bmw335i.com/2019/05/22/bmw-n54-spark-plug-replacement-gap-guide/

My old plugs were gross and some of them were coated black. Smelled like fuel, so I'm guessing my index 7 injectors are leaking

But anyways, I got Burger Motorsports' new spark plug kit which includes 2-step colder NGK spark plugs, a spark plug removal socket, a spark plug gapping tool and a feeler gauge. I also got some Bav Auto high performance ignition coils to try out. They seem great so far!

I'm in love with the BMS spark plug gapper tool, wish I had it a long time ago. Can't wait to use it every time in the future for both my 335i and 135i. If you're curious how it works, I walk through the process in my video above.

I even used my Dragy to get some real-life performance results before and after swapping the plugs & coils! I did a 0-60mph run before and the best result I could achieve was 5.71 seconds. After installing the upgraded parts, I went out for another run and was able to knock it down to 5.53 seconds!

I guarantee if you watch the video or read my complete blog post, you'll learn something that you didn't know before. Either way, let me know what you think!

 

[Traf]

Why these coils and not the Delphi GN10571 for example?
Also why 2 step colder plugs on stock turbos ?

 

[derekgates]

This week I changed the spark plugs and ignition coils and wanted to shed some light on the process. I filmed an in-depth video and wrote a guide to help others properly replace, gap and install their new plugs & coils.

Ultimate N54 Spark Plug Guide: https://bmw335i.com/2019/05/22/bmw-n54-spark-plug-replacement-gap-guide/

Wow, that's a nice kit! I didn't know they offered such a thing. I've been using the Bosh spark plugs for quite a bit of time; are the 2 steps cooler plugs really recommended for all tuned cars? hmm

Impressive results with draggy!