Hoping some Geogia bimmer guys can help. I'm trying to locate an acceptable 1992-1995 E36 325. It will be made into a Spec E36 racecar. Therefore it needs to be fairly stock, but running. A salvage title is fine as long as it isn't wrecked or shaped like a banana. I would like to keep the price less than $4000. If you know if a potential car or a good source of used E36's or BMW, then please please let me know. Gracias

Here you go, dude...go buy it quick, before I do:

http://atlanta.craigslist.org/car/209826099.html

From a spec series standpoint, the 93+ VANOS cars will be faster than the 92 non-VANOS (especially if they spec a 3.15 diff which will require low-end torque). I'd stay away from 92's.

i would think the 92 would be superior since the engine is more of a high RPM motor...

may be wrong though

dunno

Why would high RPM's help? Area under the curve is the key, and the VANOS motor will RULE the non-VANOS in that area (especially if you spend some time dialing in the tuning).

Why would high RPM's help? Area under the curve is the key, and the VANOS motor will RULE the non-VANOS in that area (especially if you spend some time dialing in the tuning).

i dont think "tuning" is allowed for specE36 :)

I'd completely prefer 93+, but it's been a pain just trying to find a decent donor that isn't overpriced or a piece.

i dont think "tuning" is allowed for specE36 :)

The rumor is that chips will be open because it's impossible to police. Official rules won't be released until October 1.

I'd completely prefer 93+, but it's been a pain just trying to find a decent donor that isn't overpriced or a piece.

Maybe look outside of Georgia/Atlanta? They seem to be a dime a dozen up here in NC. Maybe try the Greenville/Spartenburg area?

The rumor is that chips will be open because it's impossible to police. Official rules won't be released until October 1.

wow... so custom tuning will be legal... thatll make it get expensive... thats dumb...

random mobile dyno maks policing very easy... top 3 finishers get dyno'd

pretty easy to police i would think?

I agree that allowing programming is bad for a spec series. In Spec30, all cars dyno identical +/- 5hp. Now you'll have a car with stock chip at one hp, an old Dinan chip with 10 more hp, and a custom tune with 10hp on top of that.

I think it's stupid, everything should be stock from intake to the tailpipe (minus cats of course).

i would think the 92 would be superior since the engine is more of a high RPM motor...

may be wrong though

dunno

Supposedly the 92's have hotter cam's and the rods/??? are beefier.
The vanos provide better mid-torque and high end.

I bet Robstah can provide a better explaination of pro and cons of the M/xx vanos and non-vanos.

Well the way I understand it is.. Once past first gear low end tourque doesn't come into play. You need to be in your powerband when you shift gears. My 92 engine would pull on cars after 2nd gear.. 1st gear was a joke though.....

I loved it .. 2nd gear pull to redline.. shift .. drops me into 4500 RPM pull to redline.. shift..

Was really nice heel/toe shifting as well.. All of the 93+ 325s I drove starting losing power at high rpm.. So I would shift earlier, which would put me too low in the RPM range to pull..

I don't know, it never felt right to me.. :dunno

We can build a spec e36 race car..! Just give us a call, ask for Thomas!

Ok, a 92 e36 "non vanos" is just as fast if not faster than the 93 e36 with "vanos" cause, the 92 non vanos has higher compression pistons and hotter cams from the factory...

Interesting comments about the 92 and 93+ differences. It seems many opinions completely vary about which one to use. Of course, locating one is more of an issue than picking years.

Trust me, you want VANOS in a race situation. Area under the curve, area under the curve. There's a big difference between being "just as fast" while pullin in a straight line and having the most useful torque band in a racing situation. Take a look at the winning SCCA ITS BMW's...they are VANOS cars.

random mobile dyno maks policing very easy... top 3 finishers get dyno'd

Getting a dyno to the track all over the country for a group as small as BMW CCA just isn't in the cards. The cost would be impossible to recover, and you'd be asking a heck of a lot more of the volunteers who run the events.

Well the way I understand it is.. Once past first gear low end tourque doesn't come into play.

We run a 4.45 differential in our race car, so we have a huge torque multiplication factor. We added VANOS back to our motor and picked up 40 foot pounds of torque and a much wider torque curve. A wider torque curve would become even more important with a 3.15 or similiar diff because the Spec cars are going to be exiting a lot of "slow" corners at low RPM's in 3rd gear. Torque wins races.

Getting a dyno to the track all over the country for a group as small as BMW CCA just isn't in the cards. The cost would be impossible to recover, and you'd be asking a heck of a lot more of the volunteers who run the events.

this is true.. maybe just totally random at different times... seems like it could be possible from time to time... specially if a handful of cars are ALWAYS front runners and seem to "just be faster"

We run a 4.45 differential in our race car, so we have a huge torque multiplication factor. We added VANOS back to our motor and picked up 40 foot pounds of torque and a much wider torque curve. A wider torque curve would become even more important with a 3.15 or similiar diff because the Spec cars are going to be exiting a lot of "slow" corners at low RPM's in 3rd gear. Torque wins races.

torque does win races... i didnt think about it that way

you are correct sir

BMW La Mans cars run without it and some speedvisionn cup cars..

BMW La Mans cars run without it and some speedvisionn cup cars..

BMW LeMans cars have a 6-speed gearbox with 6 usable gears and a quick change rear diff which allows them to dial in the gearing to fit the car's narrow torque band for each track. You can't always apply something from a professional level Sports car with a specific set of rules to a Spec E36.

I'm not aware of any World Challenge cars currently running without VANOS. The PTG cars that ran World Challenge most definitely ran with VANOS according to the pictures I found running a quick Google search.

No worries, I'm just trying to share some hard learned advice to save folks from wasting their time and money, having built and raced a non-VANOS 325 in the past and having seen the big difference that VANOS made on the motor in our CMod car. And then the ITS results speak for themselves as well. Torque wins races...the wider the torque curve, the better.