A few questions

[Z3sarecool]

Hey everyone,

I am new here my dad has a Z3 and he may be getting a new car soon, so I may be able to mess around with his old Z3 now. I searched but could not find the answers I was looking for so here they are. 1) What are the best bang for buck mods as far as power and handling? 2) How hard would it be to swap the M-series engine and tranny or even the Z4 engine and tranny into my dad's 97 Z3? It is a 2.8 liter 6 cylinder. My dad and I would like to look into this as a father son project and was wondering how much work this would be. Any info would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Z3sarecool]

come one guys... any info would help. surely someone on here knows.

 

[Big Daddy]

Welcome to the board. The best modifications for your Z3 would be performance chip upgrade, CAI, and for handling a Dinan Stage I suspension with Koni adjustable shocks. I am sure any Z3 motor, even the M's. Your 2.8 is a 190 hp motor, the older 3.2 M motors were 240 hp and the newer 2001 and newer were 315 hp.

 

[Zee3Coupe]

Bang for the buck, I think an engine swap would be your worst option. From what I've seen (but haven't done myself) you can tune the 2.8 well into the 240 horsepower range of the earlier M engines, and with the help of a supercharger, put it positively out of the park. And after all that, it still wouldn't cost you as much as an engine swap.

I read an article recently comparing the Conforti Chip to the Dinan chip. Looks like the Conforti is superior for everyday driving (torque and 'usable' horsepower throughout the range), but the Dinan is better for the track (mostly high end boost). Depends on what you're looking to do I suppose.

I put the racing dynamics strut brace/stress bar on my front end mostly as a precautionary measure as it typically takes stress and ware off the suspension, keeping it 'tighter' longer. However, once I had it on, I was shocked by the solid feel it gave in turns.

Finally, I'm a proponent of the philosophy that the best, most cost effective improvement you can make to your car is a new set of high performance tires.

Good luck!