We’re wrapping up on our E46 build now, looking back on the build itself and the results we’ve seen with the car…

2016 saw team TEGIWA take home 2nd place in the debut M3 Cup Championship, an incredible result for us. Showing all that hard work is paying off for sure, thanks too excellent craftsmanship on top of some superb driving by Luke.

You may not recognise the car in its new garb in the first image, since its completion (as well as the last time you’ve seen it on the blog) she has had a new livery applied. This was a new change for the winter, and to accompany it a sister car piloted by David Whitmore.

We’ve seen tremendous success with the E46, both in fact, proving to be a fantastic car to drive and compete in. This however was car 33’s swan song,  after numerous podiums Luke elected to finish mid season to focus on the team itself. And with the M3 cup in full swing there’s no shortage of jobs to do on the sister car, which has now become the primary focus. There are plans for the original car, but right now we can go full steam ahead with our project E92.

Watch this space for more news on the E46’s, our latest build the E92 M3 and any future news we have for you!

Since completion of the M3 build, Luke has tested the car, putting it through its paces at Silverstone a few weeks ago. The car as we’re sure you will agree, looks awesome! It performs really well thanks to the punchy high revving NASP engine and the grip improves and improves with some alignment/ camber/ toe adjustments.

In additional preparation for the upcoming debut of M3 Cup in 2016, Luke decided to have the engine built from ground up to eliminate any potential niggles and to safe proof it for race conditions. We contacted Terry Wilson over at Butler Motorsport to carry out the work as he has many years of experience under his belt working with M3’s. All parts used are Genuine BMW items ensuring quality and longevity. ARP Rod Bolts were used, sourced from www.tegiwaeuro.com As Luke is retaining Vanos, a full rebuild was completed including Vanos pressure hose, this is the revised type with 2 lugs. The earlier type has only one, and has on occasion fractured at that mounting point, resulting in total oil loss! Not what we need in the middle of a race..

Once the motor was back in the car, running in was required.. BORING but a job that has to be done and hey.. a race-spec M3 on the road? Head turner or what? Enjoy the photos!

Moving on to the interior, our in-house whittler Andy started on the door cards. Since the doors had been stripped, they needed something to neaten them up, so Andy fabricated these great looking items which really enhance the aesthetics.

A number of notable changes have been made to the dash and centre console. The glovebox has been removed and the centre console altered drastically to accomodate USB ports (to charge the GoPro & Solo Lap Timer), GoPro Controller, Kill Switch, Fire Extinguisher Switch and Rain Light Switch all housed in a custom fabricated carbon fibre housing.

As this is being written, the rear spoiler and brackets are being fettled with prior to mounting the the CSL bootlid. Which leads us to the next stage.. AERO. The car is still yet to be dressed with canards, lip and splitter up front and as mentioned the wing for the rear of the car all working together to increase downforce and keep the car planted and as grippy as possible.

Moving away from bodywork until images of the final outcome are posted and moving back onto the engine. Luke at TI-Motorsport has fitted a set of TEGIWA EURO blue silicone coolant hoses paired up to a brand new TEGIWA EURO radiator.

The factory oil cooler has a thermostat that closes off the cooler path until the engine builds temp, running only a portion of the oilflow through the cooler once warm. The TEGIWA EURO ‘Oil Cooler Diverter Valve’ quickly remedies this issue by making the cooler full-flow, or diverting all oil through the cooler for maximum cooling effect. This will typically bring down stubborn oil temps 30+ degrees on tracked engines, with the factory spec oil cooler. Once all housing is removed, it takes just 5 minutes to install but when fitting to a road car you will additionally require a performance inline thermostat.

Seven days have passed since the last updates were posted and yet again, major developments are taking place! Luke at TI-Motorsport made a few final changes to the M3 before heading out to his choice of trusted body shop. Luke has used the bodyshop previously for two Civic Cup cars, both of which turned out excellent.

As with any FRP (Fibreglass Reinforced Plastic) exterior part, adjustments to the CSL style bootlid were required by the body shop to bring it perfectly in line with the shut lines. Whilst doing this, the lock mechanism hole, numberplate light recesses and number plate holes were filled as they are not needed. The recess where the BMW Rondel would normally sit is to be used for the mandatory ‘rain light’.

The next job was addressing the wings both front and rear. RUST.. something we all refuse to accept. Unfortunately the E46 M3 is prone to arch rot in particular the front. Dirt works its way from the inside of the wing and is trapped in the outer edge slowly rotting the panel over time. This M3 has suffered from rust but since in the long term the car will have FRP front wings, it made sense to repair the steel OEM wings for the cars debut and track outings. The car was previously sitting on an old set of coilovers and it was dropped straight to the floor on some pretty wide wheels meaning each arch was crumpled. The arches have now been rolled, bent back into shape, hammered, filled and primed ready for paint. Any additional dents etc have also been ironed out in prep for paint.

Whilst the engine was removed, Luke fitted a braided clutch line. A common problem with 3 Series dating back to previous models is ‘play’ in the steering. This occurs due to the rubber donut on the steering arm. A billet donut will be fitted to reduce the steering vagueness. The engine and bay is to be fully de-greased and cleaned back to it’s former glory. The strut tops were cracked, a common problem. They have been welded, ground and zinc painted to protect them. The rear struts have had reinforcement plates fitted.

Below is a shot of the original OEm 19″ wheels with a new Yellow Speed Racing BBK. If you have been following the build you will have seen that we have a set of APEX ARC-8 wheels going on the car, but this photo is more of a reminder to just how poorly the car was looked after over the years. Looks like we rescued this one!

If you have read Part 1 of the build, you will know that the car was awaiting collection by Luke at TI-Motorsport on 20th July. It’s been 9 days since Luke collected the car and he has made great progress.

First on the long list of jobs.. Strip her! The E46 M3 is a well-built burly car. Removal of the front and rear bumpers reveal beefed up Carbon Kevlar supports. It’s always an interesting part of a project, stripping off parts, sometimes you wish you hadn’t started, as there can often be unexpected issues. But.. How else would you discover any potential problems? Enter the common subframe issue found on both the E46 M3 and Z3M. Due to the poor design of the rear subframe, under hard acceleration, the subframe pulls on the floor of the car creating cracks. Luckily Tegiwa Euro have subframe reinforcement kits in development and from the very start of the build this was one of those ‘must do’ jobs to prevent any unwanted issues on track. The kit simply comprises of metal plates, which are welded into place to beef up and support the subframe, which in theory is a simple task, but in reality is a chunk of work to complete.

Subframe

Whilst the LSD and subframe were out, Luke replaced all bushes with a Powerflex Black Series Full Bush Kit. Since comfort isn’t exactly on the list of priorities, a harsh ride isn’t an issue. Performance and handling however are the foundation of any racecar.

Transmission

Luke has fitted an RPC (Racing Performance Clutch) Stage 3 Clutch, mated with an RPC Single Mass flywheel for optimum performance. A Tegiwa Quick Shifter has also been fitted to ensure lightening fast changes.

Suspension & Brakes

The car came with what we thought were Bilstein coilovers. It turns out we were correct although the rear passenger side strut has been replaced with an unknown brand. Worrying if this were to continue as a road car. All of the suspension and brakes have been stripped to make way for the new Yellow Speed Pro Plus Racing coilovers, adjustable rear camber arms, Yellow Speed 6 POT 356mm Front Big Brake Kit and refresh for the rear brakes inclusive of discs, pads, lines and fluid.

Engine & Exhaust

The Tegiwa Carbon Fibre airbox, Exhaust Manifold & Full Exhaust System are currently in the development stages, shortly going into the manufacturing stage. Luke removed the engine and exhaust from the car to access other areas and give the car the overhaul it requires including uprated engine mounts etc.

We are very happy with the work Luke is doing and we cant wait for more updates to come through. Stay tuned for ‘Part 3’ of the build!

Bonus Images

A new club level one make GT Series is to debut in 2016. If you like rear wheel drive cars, a lot of horsepower and the unmistakable sound of a straight 6, M3 CUP is the race series for you!

Luke Sedzikowski, Director of TEGIWA IMPORTS & TEGIWA EURO has built and raced 3 generations of Honda Civic in CIVIC CUP throughout the past 3 years with great achievements. (Just checkout the trophies in our reception area.)

Thanks to the blood, sweat, tears and talent that has been combined to achieve great results, Luke had no hesitations when deciding to move on to M3 CUP, setting out to continue the success for both driver, race series and business.

First things first, source a donor car! [ CHECK ] A Carbon Black example was found when trawling through eBay and shortly after, we were on our way to Bath, Somerset to pickup the M3. First impressions were, cosmetically it needed some major TLC, which isn’t a problem since new panels will be fitted with a full re-spray in BMW Arctic White to boot. Mechanically the car is sound, standard maintenance is to be carried out including a VANOS refresh to ensure the engine is race ready. Again interior wise, this didn’t matter as it was to be stripped entirely. As for the chassis, suspension and brakes, there is no issues since we will be upgrading a bunch of parts.

The M3 sat in our workshop for no longer than 12 hours before we got cracking on battling the interior. Seats, carpet, roof lining and door cards, you name it, it was removed. The dash was cut apart, deleting the glove box area.. Because race car… and fire extinguisher. This was all in preparation to be picked up by Shaun at SW Motorsports. The car was to return 5 days later with some major changes.

Back in our workshop, the M3 now housed a full SW Motorsports bespoke designed and built roll cage, coated in a fresh layer of paint. Shaun also flocked the dash to prevent any unwanted reflections/ glare whilst terrorising tarmac. Due to the pillar less design of the M3 windows, window nets were also fitted. Now additions could be made to the interior, starting with a Carbon Fibre Sparco bucket seat paired up with an alcantara Sparco steering wheel and snap off boss, retaining the rake adjustment.

Luke and Team Tegiwa are a busy bunch, this time round although we wanted to transform the M3 into a track slaying, muscle bound brute, this was not going to be feasible. Introducing fast road, track and race car specialists TI-Motorsport. TI-Motorsport offer the best in race car builds with only the highest attention to detail. Exactly what we require! The M3 is eagerly awaiting collection by TI-Motorsport to begin the transformation.

Listed below are the parts to be fitted. Additionally the car will be re-painted in our chosen colour scheme.

Be sure to keep up to date with the build, we will be posting updates via our Facebook page. You can also keep up to date with the latest M3 CUP news, update & events here.