3.0 Power Adder Options

[PropellerHead]

Originally Posted by Bdc101

Sounds like a great job for a V8 :P

Originally Posted by Happy

I was riding around in 4.4is the other day, and I can confidently say that, this is the best advice.

+1

I did the math in.. when was that? 2011? I was set to strap on (intentional euphemism) a blower to my '04 3.0. I'd owned it for 7 years and it had ~100k miles. Of course, I would have followed the same path as I had on my SC'd 540: Brakes, big ass aluminum radi, ALLL the suspension stuff, and for the automatic- an uprated cooler. At the time, I would have dropped north of $12k to prep the i6 *AND* add a blower. SC should be considered the very LAST thing to add after prepping the drivetrain for big changes.

Instead, I found a 4.8is with something like 11k miles. I sold the 100k mile i6 and dropped about $13k more to purchase the 4.8is. I netted WAY more power than the simple bolt-up SC would give the 3.0, and it was EVERYwhere, as designed. The platform was designed for the engine delivering it. With the purchase, I got a ton more bells and whistles, most of which I have since changed or upgraded.

Of course, in the 12 years and 164k miles since then, I have dropped more than twice what I paid for the car in alll SORTS of silly stuff- including one of those fancy, bullet proof radiators. But, only ab the $ price of my 3.0 was spent on bullet-proofing the cooling, seals, and alll the other stuff. And that's me being obsessive.

I am pretty stubborn, so I would probably still be driving the 3.0 if I hadn't sold it to my neighbor. Their kids handed it down until they sold it last year with something like 230k on it. They were unhappy with the cost of maintaining the i6 as well.

I don't know what's out there now. I have since purchased another N62 (masochist?). It only had 32k when I bought it in 2019. 55k now and she's just as purtty as you please.

Funny story ab that one: Yep. I sold an '01 3.0 with a touch over 130k miles to buy the '04 V8. We'd purchased the '01 3.0 new. The upgrade to an '04 with XDrive, nav and a HOST of stuff beyond the motor cost me ab as much as a blower would.

[Happy]

Originally Posted by PropellerHead

I have since purchased another N62

Man.. I like N62 power!! Sweet plant! And the sound…


E53 RiPPeR
XOuTPoST jUNkiE
ReVELaTiON 22:21

[PropellerHead]

Originally Posted by Happy

Man.. I like N62 power!! Sweet plant! And the sound…

It was a nice day today, so I was zipping home a little after dusk in the freshly washed E30. Behind me then, I see some very white halos, but 'odd,' think I. They're too round to be so white? And what of this obvious odd height? That's no E39? I see a reflection off the under ride protection and think, 'Ahhhh... That's lil wifey in my X5!"

Sure enough, she passed me- windows down (of course) and I got a rare chance to hear what others hear and also see what they see. Damn thing sits as perfect as one of those new Audi SUV Q-what's-it's-nuts(?). I only got to follow for a minute 'cause we were around the corner, but oooo that sound!

[Bdc101]

What do you mean you are "limited to keep things from getting hot due to RPM?" Are you purposefully slowing down your driving because you think it's too hot, or are you getting warnings on the dash?

Adding more horsepower to the equation (boost or otherwise) would just make an overheating problem worse. Unless your heat problem is just in your head, you probably need to address that first before adding more power (and heat), right?

[7to3_enthusiast]

Originally Posted by Bdc101

What do you mean you are "limited to keep things from getting hot due to RPM?" Are you purposefully slowing down your driving because you think it's too hot, or are you getting warnings on the dash?

Adding more horsepower to the equation (boost or otherwise) would just make an overheating problem worse. Unless your heat problem is just in your head, you probably need to address that first before adding more power (and heat), right?

My X5 trans overheats when trying to stay at highway speeds while towing the GTR. Mainly because to keep up with the flow of traffic I have to give it enough throttle that it downshifts to 4th and my RPMs typically are around 4500+. Increase in RPM creates friction and thus heat at an exponential scale. Hence why diesels are typically so well mannered for towing.

[Bdc101]

Originally Posted by 7to3_enthusiast

My X5 trans overheats when trying to stay at highway speeds while towing the GTR. Mainly because to keep up with the flow of traffic I have to give it enough throttle that it downshifts to 4th and my RPMs typically are around 4500+.

You are most definitely not going to solve your transmission overheating problem by adding boost so you can have more HP at lower RPM. If you tow a 3800lb car with a 1,500+lb trailer you are right at the limit of the 3.0 auto's towing capacity (5,500lbs). It's far more likely that your transmission is in need of maintenance or at best an external cooler. Then you could just use the throttle normally in your current motor instead of adding horsepower so you can overheat your transmission even more by transmitting more horsepower (and thus more heat) through it.

[nick325xit 5spd]

Originally Posted by 7to3_enthusiast

My X5 trans overheats when trying to stay at highway speeds while towing the GTR. Mainly because to keep up with the flow of traffic I have to give it enough throttle that it downshifts to 4th and my RPMs typically are around 4500+. Increase in RPM creates friction and thus heat at an exponential scale. Hence why diesels are typically so well mannered for towing.

Why don't you add a transmission cooler? You will need that no matter what, and that's a lot cheaper and more reliable than trying to brew up an FI solution.

As for diesels, well, the thing about them is that they HAVE to be force fed to make enough power to perform well. And they are built from the factory to withstand all that. Also, my diesel truck has a transmission cooler and a trans temp gauge from the factory because, well, they still overheat.

[nick325xit 5spd]

In terms of getting what you want, you'd want a small turbo setup if the goal is low end torque. But, again, I'd advise against this. You're going to spend a lot of time fighting it.

[7to3_enthusiast]

Originally Posted by nick325xit 5spd

In terms of getting what you want, you'd want a small turbo setup if the goal is low end torque. But, again, I'd advise against this. You're going to spend a lot of time fighting it.

Thought about this initially as well. Would definitely give the low end tq since the load could build more boost. BUT my turbo cars over the years I've always fought with reliability and heat issues where my SC'd cars have not. I've seen several stock motor M54 from our local BMW shops push 400-450 whp unopened so not too worried about the motor. Just have no experience with the transmission so far.

[nick325xit 5spd]

Originally Posted by 7to3_enthusiast

Thought about this initially as well. Would definitely give the low end tq since the load could build more boost. BUT my turbo cars over the years I've always fought with reliability and heat issues where my SC'd cars have not. I've seen several stock motor M54 from our local BMW shops push 400-450 whp unopened so not too worried about the motor. Just have no experience with the transmission so far.

Were literally any of those M54s being used for towing? I bet the answer is no.