BMW's NA I6s sounded like sex to the very end...

"JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7" (jayzayeighty)
06/18/2014 at 21:04 • Filed to: None

Here's your garden variety country club-grocery store 3-series-powering N52 with an Eisenmann race exhaust and Supersprint headers. The induction noise is insane on a stock 190kw from an E89, and I can't wait for the day when I can take the keys for a lessened price and do an ECU tune, intake, and exhaust (although the likelihood of such an event is dubious) to get power in the 290 rwhp range on an N52. I know this is a dead horse, but the turbo power plants from BMW will never be able to give me such an automotive boner the way the smooth, revvy normally-aspirated ones did.

DISCUSSION (22)

offroadkarter > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/18/2014 at 21:06

215rwhp? even on a mustang dyno, all the more reason I'd step it up to a 335i.

Nugmast3r > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/18/2014 at 21:10

Obligatory S38 shout out.

Kinja'd!!!

theloudmouth > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/18/2014 at 21:10

I could not agree more. Granted, I want to add one alongside my N54.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Nugmast3r
06/18/2014 at 21:19

What I would do for an S38 M5. Quite a machine, perhaps BMW's best.

AM3R > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/18/2014 at 21:29

Kinja'd!!!

Wooooh! N52 represent!

macanamera > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/18/2014 at 21:30

Properly modded N54s sound great too...

YSI-what can brown do for you > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/18/2014 at 21:33

Turbos don't give boners?

Devlin Munion > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/18/2014 at 21:41

Finally someone else who like the non turbos better.....

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > YSI-what can brown do for you
06/18/2014 at 22:06

Haha they sure do, the Supra supplying years' worth turboners for me, but in a BMW give me a Getrag manual and six sweet cylinders lined up in a row sans turbo(s)!

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > macanamera
06/18/2014 at 22:07

This is true, but I am more inclined to the N52. It's just more involving and rewarding in driving IMO, although I understand the N54/55 is better by any metric.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > AM3R
06/18/2014 at 22:10

Yes! And Space Gray, too! (I don't own a BMW, let alone a newer one, but I somehow convinced my mother to buy an '11 Z4 30i M-sport 6MT as a new car earlier this year and have no regrets)

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Devlin Munion
06/18/2014 at 22:18

Turbos will make your BMW more powerful, and a green smoothie will make your steak and cheese healthier. I want neither.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > offroadkarter
06/18/2014 at 22:22

Feel is more important than power, and there are opportunities to hear banshee scream of an NA BMW I6 at 7k RPM and feel the power load up on a daily basis, where an N54 would not provide the same experience and would require much more desirable conditions to really be opened up. Just my .02

YSI-what can brown do for you > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/18/2014 at 23:12

Hehehe, well the BMW above does have a Supra engine. So there is that.

I think the fact most BMWs sound terrible when turbocharged is down to the way they design the way the turbos work and the headers the use.

anothermiatafanboy > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/19/2014 at 01:06

Unless there is something I don't know about this engine, you are going to need a whole lot more than I,E, and ECU to get 290 rwhp. Approximately 325 horsepower at the flywheel is certainly possible with a 3 liter, but not without raising the power peak and therefore redline quite a bit. That thing does sound great though. Save the N/A motors!!

DipodomysDeserti > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/19/2014 at 02:55

I had a 328i, but after owning a WRX for a few years neither the sound nor the power we're enough to excite me. I ended up getting a 335d which sounds glorious when opened up. I have no trouble finding oppotunities to stretch her legs. My dad picked up an M235i and it too makes glorious sounds and is flogged on a daily basis. IMO, these cars are too heavy to be exciting with the NA sixes and even the turbo fours. I definitely prefer the NA six over the turbo four, but the turbo six is in another league altogether. I don't see too much of an engine sound reduction between the NA and turbo six. Even my biturbo diesel six has a wonderful throaty growl.

KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/19/2014 at 07:30

This is obvious, if a bit lost on the current crop of BMW engineers.

Hence why as most dezinens around here are aware, I have an E85 Z4 3.0si Jalopnik Edition. Because the soundtrack from the high output N52 is better served in a roadster with the top down.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/19/2014 at 12:08

Yes. Also, NA V8.

AM3R > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/19/2014 at 12:18

(sparkling graphite, but I got the two mixed up until I got the car anyways haha)

I hope you're driving the Z4! It's crazy how cheap Z4M coupes are! They go in the upper 20's EASY! It's crazy how much I want one....

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > AM3R
06/19/2014 at 15:12

Damn, I definitely see how it's the darker color now although the light tricked me. It's a great color for sure. I'd really be surprised if I could have gotten her to go with an E85 coupe. That engine in a small car must be insane, and if I could afford one I'd be very tempted to try one out. The N52 is pretty nice to use but is totally gutless until your get it over 4k RPM. The good part is that you can peg it when you need to get going. It's pretty much the opposite of my car, although they both have similar hp, and are RWD two seaters.

AM3R > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7
06/19/2014 at 21:20

yeah I will say with the N52 and an auto trans (sad face) if you aren't manually shifting in sport mode it's almost like experiencing turbo lag, there's a little hesitation before you REALLY get going.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > AM3R
06/19/2014 at 21:33

While rowing through the gears is a pleasure, I have to say that BMW's 6AT is a great automatic trans and does let you shift manually. Nothing like that engine over 4k RPM, as it really rewards you for getting on it. The induction growl at low revs make up for any lack of power in the lower range. It's definitely a nice contrast to an L98 with absolutely no power over 4,500 RPM, although I aim to make the power band much smoother with some minor modification.