[pranavmichael]

INTRODUCTION

They said you can’t make the ultimate driving machine better. I said wait and watch.

Being my first review/write up on the forum, I tried keeping things simple. My respect has greatly increased for the regulars of this community, it is not an easy job.



The ultimate driving machine came home in April 2014 on my 18th birthday. But in the same year I went to the states to pursue my under graduation. Due to some unforeseen circumstances, I had to return in 2015 and continue my education here. From 2014-15, the car was just driven 2500kms. However things changed when I got back. From 2015-17, I put 35000kms on the car and the urge to spice things up started rising.





The review has been divided into 6 parts depending on the modifications done to the car. To quickly navigate to a particular part, just use the index below.

Index

Part 1- Bodykit and Exhaust
Part 2- Wrap and Alloys
Part 3- Wrap and Alloys, again..
Part 4- Interior
Part 5- Suspension and Exhaust
Part 6- Re-Paint

Current List of Modifications on the Car for those who don't want to read the entire review:

Exterior

• Full Car Repainted in San Marino Blue
• M3 Style Front and Rear Bumper
• M3 Style Front Fenders
• M Performance Side Skirts
• M Performance Carbon Fiber Mirror Caps with Dynamic Turn Indicators
• Dual Slat Grille
• M3cs Carbon Lip Spoiler
• Custom made 2 Piece Forged Alloys wrapped in 245/45/R18 Dunlop Sportmaxx Rubber

Interior

• Full Custom Interior in BMW Cohiba Brown Leather
• BMW Competition Seat Belts
• Carbon Fiber Interior Trim
• Custom Carbon Fiber Flat Bottom Steering Wheel
• 10.25' Android Head Unit

Under

• Code 6 Pops 'n' Bangs map (305hp 450Nm)
• Milltek Non-Resonated Catback Exhaust with Race Muffler and Quad M Performance Carbon Tips
• Bilstein B8 Dampers
• Eibach Anti Roll Bars (Front and Rear)
• Custom Coding Options Enabled
• EBC Yellow Stuff break pads
• VRSF Charge Pipe
  

[pranavmichael]

PART 1

(Bodykit and Exhaust)

In May of 2017, I decided it was time and started with the first set of modifications. For the bodykit, I contacted various shops across NCR but finally chose Auto Marc since they had most of the things available under one roof (Bodykit, exhaust, other accessories). I went ahead with the following items:

• M3 Body Kit
• M3 Side Fenders
• M Performance Side Skirts
• Dual Slat Grille
• Carbon Spoiler
• Carbon ORVM Caps
• M Performance Front Lip
• Borla Exhaust??

You’d ask why is there a question mark in front of the borla exhaust, I’ll get to that in Part 5. It took approximately 3-4 weeks to get all the parts installed. This included painting the bodykit as well.





The bodykit's installation was pretty good. All the panel gaps lined up nicely and overall it felt solidly put together. However, the exhaust was a different story. The sound from the exhaust was very weak, it was just a tad bit improved over the stock exhaust, but being a petrol car I expected it to sound a lot better. The car was again sent to their workshop and the shop owner ‘Sanjay’ promised me the exhaust will sound better this time. The exhaust did sound better upon coming back but I still wasn’t satisfied but the owner told me this was the best that the borla exhaust could do. Me being in a hurry to get my car back to get the other modifications done, I didn’t check everything thoroughly and took delivery of the car.

Other photos of the following installations went missing when my old phone got stolen, but managed to get a few from my friends.

PART 2

(Wrap and Alloys)

In June, after getting the bodywork done, I wanted to get a Nardo Grey wrap done on my car. Contacted almost every wrapping shop in Delhi but since it wasn't a popular colour back then, nobody had it in stock. However, one of my friends was able to find a shop in West Delhi named ‘Car Stylo’. The shop owner said he could arrange this colour for me. I was at his store the next morning. He quoted me a price that was unheard of for wrapping a sedan. It was extremely cheap, this should have raised a red flag for me, but I still went ahead with him because I was adamant on getting the car wrapped in Nardo Grey. He took 2 weeks to wrap the car and when I went to pick it up, I was in shock. I’m pretty sure I could’ve done a better job wrapping the car. The panels were wrapped in multiple pieces and every piece was lifting from the edges, it was just horrendous.



At first the shop owner refused to acknowledge the horrible quality of his work but after a few not so nice conversations he did. By next week he took the wrap off and refunded 75% of the amount he charged.

Also during this time, I got alloys installed on my car. Wasn't that informed back then so went with a set of replicas. The offset on the alloys was completely off and they were poking out of the fenders. But I was just in a hurry to get my car back home and ignored many important aspects in the beginning of the build.



Learnt some expensive lessons along the way but I promised myself that I won’t cut any corners proceeding with the build.

[pranavmichael]

PART 3

(Wrap and Alloys, again..)

Took me almost a month or two to find the perfect person for the wrap job but the wait was totally worth it. Went with ‘Steam and Shine’ this time. No words are enough for the quality of work these guys do. I chose Satin Gunmetal Grey from Hexis and the wrap job was done in just a week.



Upon receiving the car, I was in complete awe. The car looked way better and my vision was finally coming together. All the panels had been properly wrapped, the bumpers were wrapped in a single piece and everything was just top notch. I also got the brake calipers painted acid green and my previous alloys black to finish the look.



For the alloys, I got in touch with Chirag at ‘Dawn Auto’ through a friend of mine. I couldn’t have asked for a better person to deal with regarding alloys. I had a particular design in mind but sadly he didn’t have anything similar in stock. We mounted the car on the jack and put a few alloys on but nothing was to my taste.





Since I had a particular design in mind, he said he could get customs alloys made in the exact same design. However, being custom made, the alloys would take a lot longer to arrive say approximately 3-4 months but I was ready to wait. I went ahead and paid him the advance and the order for the alloys was placed. After a long wait, I got my hands on the alloys in April of 2018. The specs have been listed below:

• 2 Piece Forged Alloys 8.5Jx18in
• Tyres: 245/45/R18 Dunlop Sportmaxx

The fitment of these alloys was absolute spot on. I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking.

[pranavmichael]

PART 4

(Interior)

Fast forward May of 2019, I decided to get the interior changed. With an exterior like this, the beige interior was just not cutting it. This was probably the biggest project for the car till date so I wanted to find the perfect company to do it. After researching a lot, I found a place in Pallika Bhawan named ‘Autotrade Aviation’. The specialize in re-trimming private/commercial jets but have started doing cars as well since the past few years.

After a lot of talks with the owner, we decided to re-trim the entire car. I went with BMW's Cohiba Brown Color. In my opinion it is the perfect mix of luxury and sportiness.

The following things were re-trimmed in the interior:

• Floor Carpet: Beige to Black
• Headliner: Beige to Black
• Dashboard: Black and Beige to Black and Brown
• Doors: Beige to Black
• Seats: Beige to Cohiba Brown
• Door Inserts: Beige to Cohiba Brown
• Miscellaneous Plastic Trims: Beige to Black
• Wood Trims: Brown Wood to Carbon Fiber

The process was daunting to say the least. The entire interior was stripped to bare bones, I’m glad I didn’t get a heart attack seeing my beast in that condition. But the staff knew what they were doing. Not one single clip was broken from the interior during the dismantle and installation of the interior.





The leather used by them in nothing short of excellent. It is on par with the likes of Volvos, Bentleys etc. From my personal experience, the leather in my 3er is a lot softer and plusher than on my XC90. I’m sure this says a lot about the quality of materials used.





While getting the work done, a few more things were added to the car:

• BMW Competition Seat Belts
• Custom Floor Mats
• 10.25’ Android Head Unit
• ///M Logos in the Seats
• Random Interior Trim Pieces from Ali Express
• Dynamic Turn Indicators

Another addition I got for the interior was a custom made carbon fiber flat bottom steering. My original steering was sent to Sushila Autotechnik in Mumbai and was customized by them. The turn around time was a lot more than we had originally agreed on. Also they used faux leather instead of genuine leather but that was not a big deal as the guys at Autotrade Aviation re-trimmed it for me using genuine perforated leather.

[pranavmichael]

PART 5

(Suspension and Exhaust)

The car was now 5 years old and as expected the suspension started creaking. Since I can't tolerate unusual sounds with my car, decided to get it checked. Contacted Arush at ‘Autopsyche’ and discussed the available options. He asked me to drop by to his to shop with the car so that he can personally inspect it.

Reached his place and we put the car on the lift. I told him the only mechanical modification done till now was a full borla exhaust. Remember the question mark on the borla exhaust in part 1? I was shocked to see what we saw under the car. The exhaust was no borla. The exhaust was a cheap makeshift exhaust made using BMW’s stock pipes and the only part changed on it was the muffler. They replaced the stock muffler with a cheap chinese one that can be found on Ali Express. I was in utter shock. Auto Marc had clearly cheated me by saying a full borla exhaust was installed. I know it was my mistake for not checking but a company shouldn't make such false statements. I’d advise all members to stay away from that shop or even if anybody decides to get some work done, please double, triple check the work. I certainly didn’t have a pleasant experience.

Coming back to inspecting the car, the shocks were completely worn out. However the springs were perfectly fine. So we decided to install Bilstein B8 Dampers in conjunction with the stock springs. While at it we also decided to install some anti roll bars from Eibach in both front and rear of the car. After installing both these things, the car drives like it’s on rails. It corners absolutely flat and feels planted even over the biggest bumps. I’d advise all f30 owners to get this done, you won’t regret it.



For the exhaust, I was in no favour of the jugaad one so got that changed too. I went with a Catback Non-Resonated Milltek Race Exhaust with some M Performance carbon end tips. To make the exhaust sound even more sweet, got a Stage 1 Code 6 Pops ’n’ Bangs re-map as well. With 305 horses on tap, the remap completely changed how the car drove. The Code6 guys certainly know what they're doing.

http://youtu.be/SXDrsAbeAz4

The exhaust has these pops and bangs only in Sport and Sport+ modes. No gunshots in Comfort and Eco Pro.

Lastly got the carbon spoiler changed to a newer CS style one. This one is built a lot better and has a much nicer carbon weave as compared to the previous one.

[pranavmichael]

PART 6

(Re-Paint)

Year 2020 and the world just got hit by the biggest pandemic. As every other household, our cars weren't getting used a lot, especially the 3er. I had covered it using my TPH cover and was parked for 2 months before I decided to turn it on. Took the cover off and was surprised to see the state of the car. The entire upper portion of the wrap had turned purple. It was the TPH cover that had bled into the wrap because of the rains. I tried calling TPH but as always nobody answers calls once you receive their product. Tried even messaging them but no replies, no nothing.





I was worried the battery may have died but the beast started without hesitation. But the not so good bit was the steering was jammed, couldn't move it at all. Got the car towed to BMW Bird Automotive in Gurgaon as I've always sent my car there for major problems. I've got a pretty decent contact there so they always sort the car out on a priority basis. I got a call the next morning from my SA and he said the rats had chewed the steering sensor wire. I haven't had a rat problem ever but I guess because of the lockdown and the car being parked for long, it was expected. Asked them to get it repaired. The turnaround time was amazing, the next day the car was returned back.

Since the wrap had got spoilt, there was no other option but to get the car wrapped again. This time wanted something different and had a particular shade in mind, San Marino Blue from BMW. But after researching a lot figured no wrap can match the depth and the feel of SMB since it was a gloss shade. Hence decided to get the car repainted. Yes I know this would've affected the resale value of the car but I never plan on selling the 3er. This will always be a part of the garage.

Got in touch with Rohit at Ceramic Pro. Previously he's done a full Llumar Platinum PPF on our XC90 and has also repaired many cars of my cousins. He's now like a part of our family and his work has always been top notch so I trust him fully. Told him what I wanted and as expected he said he'll get it done. Dropped the car off at his place on July 3rd.

The initial stage was getting the wrap off which took a few days. Because of the age of the wrap, it was pretty tough to get off. Next the car's dents got filled and sanded making the car ready for primer.





After applying the primer, the entire car was sanded to prepare it for paint. However, before painting I wanted to see a sample of the paint so that I could make sure it was the exact colour I wanted.





Got the sample once the paint was ready and approved it in a heartbeat. It is the exact shade BMW uses. There is nothing off about it, it's absolutely spot on. Rohit told me the machine they use to mix paints has almost all the colours in the world stored in it’s database so there is no room for error.





The painting took a while but it was well worth the wait. The colour was absolutely perfect, it came out way better than I expected it to. To give a good contrast to san marino blue, I got the brake calipers painted in yellow and all the trim pieces gloss black. Also, the alloys were refinished in satin black to compliment the gloss paintwork.







Next, the roof and front bumper inlays were wrapped in 3M's 2080 carbon vinyl. The texture and look of the wrap is top tier. Obviously it can't match genuine carbon fiber but it definitely does the job.







After all of this got completed, the entire car got a gold treatment from ceramic pro. It includes:

• 1 Layer of Ceramic Pro
• 5 Layer of Ceramic pro 9H
• 1 Layer of Ceramic Pro Light
• 1 Layer of Ceramic Pro Rain (all glasses)
• 3 Layer of Ceramic Pro Plastic (exterior)
• 3 Layer of Wheel & Caliper on Alloys

To finish things off, the car key was painted in San Marino Blue with gloss black accents.



The entire process took 2 and a half months but the wait was totally worth it. The quality of paint and the entire work is exceptional as expected. Pictures of the finished car can be found below.

[pranavmichael]

PHOTOS

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[Dry Ice]

The final outcome looks great! Please post some daytime pics as well, the color has come out really nice!

How easy or difficult was it to get the color changed on your RC? The factory color seems like black?

[speedfreak]

Wow, nice write up and build there @pranavmichael. Car looks well finished.

[pranavmichael]

Originally Posted by Aditya

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks Aditya!

Originally Posted by Dry Ice

The final outcome looks great! Please post some daytime pics as well, the color has come out really nice!

How easy or difficult was it to get the color changed on your RC? The factory color seems like black?

Thanks Dry Ice. I have an outdoor shoot planned for next week, will definitely post some shots once done.

The original colour is imperial blue so didn't get anything changed on the RC.

Originally Posted by speedfreak

Wow, nice write up and build there @pranavmichael. Car looks well finished.

Thanks Speedfreak.

[ramnaresh_2000]

First of all let me tell you how jealous I am feeling right now after seeing this transformation. This looks fab-ul-oussss. Very tastefully modified.

Having said that, my 2 cents below

• I see leather seat covers were added. Will it not impact airbags deployment in case of any accident? (Hopefully it will never occur)
• Will there not be dip in resale value of the vehicle if fully re-painted? I once fully painted my first gen verna to same colour, I faced a lot of setbacks when selling it. Every dealer took it as a chance to give bad quotation stating only accidental vehicles will get fully painted and that is public perception.

[arindambasu13]

Awesome makeover. That electric blue shade with the blacked out wheels and front bumper/ grill looks droolworthy. Blue is my favourite colour, and the sportier the car, the better it looks. Great job!

[superbad]

Originally Posted by pranavmichael

The original colour is imperial blue so didn't get anything changed on the RC.

I'm assuming you didn't get the Nardo grey endorsed in your RC. Would urge you to be more careful, always better to stay on the right side of the law.
Great job on your car, you've great taste & an eye for details.

[iliketurtles]

Fabulous choice of color there, San Marino Blue is such a regal, elegant color.

Had a few questions about your exhaust; is it running the stock downpipe? Or did you stick with the factory downpipe simply because the exhaust is non-resonated? And could you please share a longer, close-up video of it to savor the exhaust note. I'm debating whether to go with Milltek or some other route on the exhaust, and I've only heard a Milltek on the B48, and not the N20/26 (which I assume you have).

Keep revvin'.