Supercharged!?

[s8n]

Considering some FI for the 325 Ti. Given the dollar, are local workshops dropping their prices to account for this or am I best to order a kit from overseas and have a local workshop install it?

Any issues ordering a E46 325CI kit from the US?

I hear a Sydney guy had this done to his E46, but I cant find any contact details for him to see how its going long term.

Big concerns for me with modifications are drivability/reliability. I like a stock feel, but with more power

Thanks

[flukey]

I have been wondering about this too but the reported $10K price tag put me off pretty quick.

What kit are you considering? Have you got a link?

[s8n]

ASA kit, as apparently they use a clutch which engages at 1k rpm, and reduces the need for the supercharger to be running when idle. This is good for me as its a semi daily driver...

[DVS318]

dig up the old Car of the month thread and look for Mickysu's 325ti S/C, see if i can get a link...

Linkage; October '05 Feature

[1q2w3e4r]

Bavariacars in Gladesville are the Australian distributors for ASA's Infinitas supercharger kits.

No point in ordering overseas when there is local availability with warranty and after sales care.

[s8n]

1q2we4r, there is a point if they cost the earth here. I'm sure ordering from OS would attract the same warranty...

[1q2w3e4r]

Like anything you have to pay to play. If you think $10 or $12k for a reliable forced induction kit with after sales service and warranty and tuning is too steep perhaps its not the best idea for you. To put it in perspective the head and valve train gear on my GTR is worth more.

No workshop is going to warranty a kit they haven't sold you, and I think you'll have a hard time getting ASA to as a) they have a local distrubtor so I can't imagine they would sell direct to you, especially as Erik from Bavariacars is heading over to Europe to work with them in the next 12 months. Which leaves you with b) ordering from another overseas vendor and having a third party install it here. Don't forget duties and taxes. The margins on these kits are really quite low.

[s8n]

Thanks for your thoughts, Ill look into some options, I do believe $10k or over 25% of the cars value is far too expensive for a FI kit.

[1q2w3e4r]

Absolutely it depends on your budget and what your after. The fact remains though its expensive to modify cars and do it properly across all forms of marquee's.

Perhaps it might be worth while reassessing your goals from what you want out of the project?

[flukey]

Originally Posted by s8n

Thanks for your thoughts, Ill look into some options, I do believe $10k or over 25% of the cars value is far too expensive for a FI kit.

I agree, alot of money for FI. However, less expensive mods I imagine with a small n/a 6 cylinder as the 325's have, is going to get you bugger all performance.

I cant imagine somthing like a cold air giving you more than 5kw's, exhaust maybe that or a bit more, hi-flo filter say 2-3 kw's.

You could esily spend quite a few thousand $$ and get a whole 20kw's in return.

[s8n]

1q2w3e4r, agree. I've modded german cars before, I'm no stranger to expensive costs. However, theres sensible expensive costs and silly expensive costs - buying overseas seems like a cheaper more sensible option for me. Having it supported won't be an issue I'm sure. Infact I know it won't Theres plenty of good performance shops for BMW's around Sydney.

no need to reassess, the goal is FI via supercharger and theres plenty of places that sell them for good prices

I did this exact same thing with my last car, purchased reputable parts overseas, some locally and then had a trusted performance shop install them.

I don't see the sense in paying more for the same thing?

Flukey, I'm with you 100%. FI is the only engine mod I would consider for a N/A motor, other types of mods are expensive, time consuming and yield sometimes poor results.

[1q2w3e4r]

I think your going to be in for a surprise thats all, best of luck with it.

A 2 second google search turned up this as the first result, ESS supercharger for E46 325 retail price is what $6200 USD which is a shade over $7100 AUD before you take into account shipping, duty, GST and other taxes. Along with paying labour to have it installed and then a custom tune done. Ca-automotive in the UK also sell them in the UK, where prices are still expensive, read 7000 pounds

I take it you added forced induction to a NA engine before? Because it'd be a very large call to have a workshop warranty an engine failure on a kit you've provided them with.

Its your money, do as you will, but by the time you add in the cost of finding a kit as I'm positive ASA won't sell directly to you and have it imported, pay duty, freight, currency conversion, find someone to install it, pay the labour to have it fitted and have it custom tuned how much do you really think its going to cost? I know for a fact the bulk of the profit the distributors make in selling the kits is in the labour, not the kits themselves.

There's plenty of BMW workshops in Sydney, there aren't plenty of good ones however, in fact you could count the competent ones on less that one hand.

[E30stain]

i say get the kit from overseas... it would be a fairly tough ask but if they send it as a 'gift' then u dont have to pay anything to get it in the country... try looking up vf engineerings kit.. its fairly cheap compared to others and there should be one for your car, also they have quite a good track record... im gonna get bilstein pss9's from america within the next couple of months due to costs... ive recently come back from europe and must say never compare anything to uk prices they inflate the fuck out of everything... nothing is worth buying there... yeah warranty would be a big issue for you so if you put your trust in one of these brands... and i would, then go for the import. especially with our dollars close... if anything breaks it would most likely be part of the kit and especially if you go vf engineering then u can get plenty of vortech parts cheap here.

jus my $0.02

just because u own a premium car doesnt mean you have to pay up for everything... even repco tried slamming me with excessive postage costs.... i agreed i would have to pay postage but $50 was a bit far for a strut brace... bring on whiteline products on ebay :P

[GHaST]

Food for thoughts:

A. Sending it as a "gift" isnt full proof. so factor in GST+other tarrifs. (speak to dom in the german parts for j00 thread .

B. Do an FI kits actually warranty engine failure? cause if so thats really good, I just didnt expect it at all.

C. It always ends up more expensive than you first think.

D. The kit is can be quite easily sold - so its not *that* bad.

E. Eric is an awesome guy - and his advice is top notch.

[s8n]

I'll be factoring in the cost of a kit and a clutch.