Anyone who enjoys driving always wants to maximize the pleasure that they get from behind the wheel. For plenty of people that means making sure that the performance they achieve from their car is as good as it can possibly be. Sure, for some this includes making some pretty major modifications. But we’re not all experienced home mechanics or can afford to make big changes to our BMWs.

There are, however, some simple ways that we can make them run a little better, accelerate a little faster and create an altogether more exciting driving experience.

Lose a little weight

It sounds obvious, but it’s surprising how many people constantly drive round carrying excess weight in their cars. It might be snow shovels and other equipment stored in the trunk all year round or that set of golf clubs that just seems easier to leave in the car. So only carry the essentials you need for the journey – and some people even recommend only ever having a maximum of half a tank of gas for weight-saving reasons.

Put in some premium synthetic oil

Oil is like the lifeblood of your engine. It performs more functions than you might ever imagine. For example, it doesn’t simply lubricate all of the moving parts of your engine, it also cleans them and even helps to cool down its operating temperature. So, it makes perfect sense to use the highest quality oil you can find, and this is invariably a synthetic kind. It may cost a little more than natural oil, but it’s worth it.

Stiffen up the suspension

There’s a trade-off to be done here. If you want to greatly improve your BMW’s handling and cornering at speed, you’re going to have to settle for a firmer ride. But if that’s something you’re prepared to do then it’s well worth getting the shockers and springs replaced. While you’re about it, it’s also an idea to ask the suspension shop to swap any rubber bushes with polyurethane ones instead. They last longer and add to the firmer control.

Replace your spark plugs and air filter

These are both operations that are easy for the home mechanic to carry out. The principle behind doing this is simple. The stronger the spark igniting the gas, the better the combustion will be, and old spark plugs soon become corroded and less efficient. And, just like humans, engines need plenty of oxygen to perform at their best. Old air filters get clogged up with dust, dirt and other particles which stops a percentage of that oxygen getting through.

Get better tires

Tires are what keep your BMW car in contact with the road. So, fitting the best that you can is obviously going to be a big contributor to how it handles. Choose the right ones for the conditions in your area and the type of driving that you generally do, and you’ll soon feel the benefit. The best can be expensive though. So you might want to look into a good tire payment plan that’s going to help you spread the cost.

Tweak your ECU

Pretty much all the functions of engines these days are controlled by an electronic control unit. By loading different software, you can dramatically change the way that your car performs, you just need a garage that has the equipment to do this. One word of warning – this may well invalidate the warranty from some manufacturers if it subsequently develops an engine fault, even if it’s not been directly caused by the ECU.

It also goes without saying that taking good care and scheduling regular maintenance for your auto is also going to improve its performance. Then you also have the choice of making even more radical changes if you have the money and the inclination.

But, for most drivers, just following these six tips should do the job very well indeed.

About Post Author

Marcus M.

http://www.bmwcoop.com

The post 6 Surefire Ways To Pep Up Your Car’s Performance appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

It’s not like the BMW 1 Series M Coupe actually needs a set of modifications to the chassis, but it hasn’t stopped the guys from H&R from doing it.

They’ve taken what’s the finest driving machine out there, stiffened it up and, together with BMW Motorsport, they’ve turned into less of an all-rounder and more of a track day car.

With that in mind, not only have H&R sharpened up the suspension and chassis but they’ve also gone through the trouble of providing a new paint job.

And it’s not some stupidly themed orange paint with gold stripes either, it’s actually wearing a BMW racing coat.

Under the skin, the H&R BMW 1 Series M Coupe receives a suspension drop of 1.2 inches at the front and 0.6 inches at the rear.

This was teamed with a set of 19 inch BBS Super RS alloy wheels that have been wrapped in Continetal ExtremeContact DW tires, a combination that eventually needed some spacers to make everything work.

The new set of wheels opens up a possibility for a Brembo GT 380 mm brake kit with all of the bells and whistles that might entice.

A final touch that H&R and BMW Motorsport did to the 1 Series M Coupe is an interior lined in WeatherTech FloorLiner DigitalFit carpet.

Apparently that means the interior of the H&R prepped BMW 1 Series M Coupe was digitally measured for the tightest of fits possible.

Useful link: CarTransportQuotes.com

The post BMW’s 1 Series M Coupe helped along by H&R appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

While BMW has a proper racing heritage the 6 Series is not one of the models that contributed much to it.

The car we have here may change things a bit as it represents the result of a project destined to prep the car for GT1 racing regulations.

The car starts out as a BMW 6 Series which then goes to specialist tuner Alpina to become the B6. Should that particular car be lucky enough, it might just end up being turned into an Alpina B6 GT3 which will see all of its life as a racer.

That is unless it ends up in the hands of the guys over at Aurora Racing Designs which will turn it into a GT1 spec racing car to comply with the new rules there. “The guys” are former McLaren engineer Nicholas Galbraith and former Alpina racing designer Andreas Puschel.

Going from GT3 to GT1 is a logical step for the car and Aurora Racing have taken over this project in an attempt not to affect Alpina’s customer GT3 racing program. The experience of the people behind Aurora Racing Designs will see the B6 GT1 going through some serious aerodynamic, structural and suspension changes in order to make it competitive.

The post Alpina B6 GT1 by Aurora Racing appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

BMW fans always love M cars but let’s face it, they’re not for everyone. If a budget worries you or the performance terrifies you or any other reason may come between you and owning an M5 in particular, then you should worry no more.

As BMW are working on getting you half way there with a M-Sports package for your nice simpler and more affordable BMW 5 series.

The 5 Series is pretty much available at dealers round the world so this special option is almost here but for now it’s going to be hidden under specific BMW camouflage.

As previous M-Sports packages have shown us and as these photos are hinting, this prototype suggests that the new model will receive a deeper front air-dam with larger intakes, side sill extensions and a re-contoured back bumper to accommodate the larger the tailpipes.

Besides what’s visible here, a M-Sports package for a BMW will offer you some trim upgrades like aluminum or carbon-fiber, some M badges everywhere along with more aggressive sport seats and perhaps a different steering wheel.

There are a few mechanical components of serious importance to come along with this package such as, wheels, tires and suspension or brake packages.

The post More spyshots, this time it’s the BMW 5 Series M-Sports package appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

Hamann Motorsports is a German tuning company that specializes in BMW, Land Rover and Ferrari. That first one is the one we’re interested in, obviously.

What Hamann have been involved into recently is the improvement of the GT variant of the BMW 5 Series.

In particular they’ve focused on one version that is most likely to sell due to it’s engine, the 530d and what they’ve come up with something quite un-Hamann-ish as the car is better but surprisingly discrete.

Hamann’s 5 series GT gets the following modifications: a new suspension setup across the range, functional front and rear spoilers, side skirts and then there’s a special rear apron destined to house Hamann’s new mufflers. The 530d version of Hamann’s BMW GT is also getting some reprogramming for its Motronic system in order to obtain an extra 30 horsepower and you know get 275 horsepower and an alarmingly large amount of torque numbered in at 457 lb-ft.

The discrete looks don’t really fit with the wheels as they seem to be a bit of a show off fest. It’s still a Hamann after all and there is no problem with getting something like a 550i GT.

Another interestingly discrete thing about the 5 series GT from Hamann is the press release as the German tuning company clearly states that what you get with your 5 series GT exactly what you would get with your BMW 5 series GT just that it’s a bit tuned up.

The post Hamann BMW 5 series GT appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

A tuning firm from Germany, namely Miranda Series has made a tuning package for BMW E92 Coupe. This tuning package, you can name it Red Devil, contains AC Schnitzer front and rear spoilers, a carbon fiber rear, a carbon fiber strut brace, a stainless steel sports exhaust system.

About the suspension sistem we can say that it was upgraded to Bilstein coilover suspension… The tuning package features also 19′ inch wheels at the rear wrapped with 235/35-19 and 305/25-19 tires respectively.

I can say that the Miranda Series tuner made a great work. The design looks beautiful and I think they added the suitable parts.

Now, please enjoy some photos with this great tuning for BMW E92 Coupe by Miranda Series:

[Thanks to our friends from Carversation for info and pictures]

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