Hey Guys,
Its been a long time since I've been engaged on this forum as I am usually busy with the general social media outlets. To be frank, if you reached me on any social media outlet I am working to catch up as I've been busy with making the items etc. So bear with me
However I was asked to post some of our work in here primarily around the 6 month development of the launching (Today 06/24/19) N54 Engine Cover.
Now lets talk about what it is - A FULL CARBON replacement to the factory N54 Engine Cover that is available in over 15 different style of Carbon Fiber, Kevlar, Dyneema, Innegra, and Poly Hybrid Fabrics. All of these hybrids are reinforced with carbon fiber tows which makes it a carbon fiber "hybrid". The biggest thing for the engine covers are the fact they are the FIRST Vacuum Resin Infusion style of cover on the platform which allows us to have a broad diversity for customization and styles.
The resin system we are using is one that was made specifically for under hood applications and we have 4 engine covers in various climates being tested for the last 4 months. They weren't the final variants but they are still the mirror composition that allows for us to test the heat tolerances and chaining of the epoxy with heat cycles.
The mold we created is the 5th revision of the cover which replicates the OEM N54 Engine Cover but its designed to be very light (not that you would want to drop grams off the engine cover but its still a win haha) and with a Single Turbo Primary test group we have nothing but good feedback. Most notably Billy Orton aka PANDA 335i with his hood exit exhaust - he was amazed that the engine cover not showing any signs of degradation over his testing time now.
So lets get a little technical on the part itself since I do enjoy talking about carbon fiber and its general processes.
- The Mother Mold is composed of a 12 layer 12oz fiberglass "layered build" using medium weight Epoxy Resin with a special hardener additive. This is not the same as a Polyester Resin Mold which tends to emit styrene and warp over time due to the moisture absorbs by ambient humidity. The mating or cavity surface is a Epoxy MEK Gel Coat that is high slip then sealed, semi-perm release and coated with 7 layers of Carnauba Wax. This mold should reliably make 400+ parts without deviance from the shape. FUN FACT - Have you ever bought a part then had a friend but the exact same part from the same vendor yet one of yours doesn't fit like the other? - Well now you know why that happens. A tired mold or one that was not sealed after use and absorbed moisture/warped due to a cheap poly resin build style.
- The mold is laid up using a heated mold method that lowers the viscosity of the Infusion HT Resin to prevent fiber wicking once it enters the mold from ambient temperatures. The change allows the resin to remain thicker in the pot then drastically reduce its CP upon entry through the resin inlet. Naturally we degass/boil the resin prior to mold entry to prevent gassing of the resin while it travels over the bagging surface as its boiling point in vacuum is about 46*F.
- The stack we are using is a 1 layer beauty fiber/hyrbid backed by 3 layers of Twill 6.7oz fiber formed into shape by hand then overlaid with our ending stack for the infusion flow matrix using a resin break to allow resin to fully saturate the fiber. There are a vast amount of variables to every mold for flow (Darcy's Law) so one with the detail we have is considered extremely complex.
- Once we load the mold we then seal it off and apply the maximum vacuum attainable at our elevation via a 2hp ProSet Vac Pump. These pumps with fresh oil can manage 40 microns of vacuum (atmosphere in contrast is 760,000 microns). After we attain full vacuum with no leaks we monitor the vacuum rate by using a volume normalizer (micron gauges always show loss of vacuum once the vac source is closed and needs a large volume of air to normalize the pressure in the lines to show accurately) then wait 45 minutes. If the Micron Gauge shows no loss in the system then we are good to infuse the resin into the mold. Even a small leak of pressure 0.1mc will create a part with pin holes, fisheyes, or variables in the ratios that will visibly be fine however cause issue later.
- We hand Dremel/cut the cover to its final shape and oil/mounting holes then take it to our paint booth to shoot 2:1 High Solids Urethane UV Clear Coat in 3 stages. This is the best possible protection to the resin as its atomization is fine to stick to all small areas compared to the usual Duratec UV Gel Coating which frankly is a trash way to finish a part. Also Polyester Top Coats are not comparable with Epoxy Resin systems. They may look decent for a few month but once the UV starts to hit it you'll notice a white texture that forms and flakes off. Some of you have probably seen this first hand prior.
Now what you probably want to know:
-Starting at $289 + S/H
- Full Carbon Full Replacement (NO FIBERGLASS AT ALL)
- Heat Tested up to 390*F with zero fading or loss of shape
- OVER 1 DOZEN FIBERS TO CHOOSE FROM
- WILL FIT SINGLE TURBO, TWIN TURBO, PR COILS, BL COILS, PORT INJECTION RAILS
- If you have stock turbo and eventually plan to go Single Turbo then you can keep this cover as it will 100% Fit
ADDITIONAL THINGS TO KNOW
- We will be making only 27 at the launch due to the time needed to make each one. The orders will be made by order number ASCENDING.
- Orders will be shipping in 2 weeks as we need to gather materials for every fiber style ordered.
- Heat and sound deadening options will be available for extra cost. The test covers where done without heat insulation whatsoever FYI. So its peace of mind or if you want to try and keep the injector ticking down a little.
- We can make custom logos, texts, etc on the cover for extra but that requires you to email us your order number to see if your idea will work. [email protected]
- 1 YEAR WARRANTY ON THE COVERS FOR DEFECTS ETC.
- A BMW Roundel that is a separate molded part we make here in the shop will be offered to match the cover too. Its a 100% CF BMW Roundel that will go over where the OEM BMW Roundel is on the engine cover. Its a rather complex part but adds detail like nothing else and looks incredibly good, too.
-Starting at $289 + S/H
- Full Carbon Full Replacement (NO FIBERGLASS AT ALL)
- Heat Tested up to 390*F with zero fading or loss of shape
- OVER 1 DOZEN FIBERS TO CHOOSE FROM
- WILL FIT SINGLE TURBO, TWIN TURBO, PR COILS, BL COILS, PORT INJECTION RAILS
- If you have stock turbo and eventually plan to go Single Turbo then you can keep this cover as it will 100% Fit
ADDITIONAL THINGS TO KNOW
- We will be making only 27 at the launch due to the time needed to make each one. The orders will be made by order number ASCENDING.
- Orders will be shipping in 2 weeks as we need to gather materials for every fiber style ordered.
- Heat and sound deadening options will be available for extra cost. The test covers where done without heat insulation whatsoever FYI. So its peace of mind or if you want to try and keep the injector ticking down a little.
- We can make custom logos, texts, etc on the cover for extra but that requires you to email us your order number to see if your idea will work. [email protected]
- 1 YEAR WARRANTY ON THE COVERS FOR DEFECTS ETC.
- A BMW Roundel that is a separate molded part we make here in the shop will be offered to match the cover too. Its a 100% CF BMW Roundel that will go over where the OEM BMW Roundel is on the engine cover. Its a rather complex part but adds detail like nothing else and looks incredibly good, too.
Thanks for reading and if you have any questions please feel free to let me know. I will do my best to keep and eye on this thread but wont commit to a immediate response rate as my time is usually spent gloved up making items.
