Mashimarho's G80 M3 Build
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The Olive Martini
A Gentleman's Racecar
The BMW M3 has been an iconic car for decades that has created a legacy known for its sheer performance on the track and the beautiful chassis that it has been built around. One can argue it is truly the Ultimate Driving Machine. With the M3 being the mainstream car of choice, we had to get our hands on one and prove to our loyal customers we know just how to do it right. In this article, you'll see the complete break down and inspiration that resulted in this monster of a vehicle.
The first thing we had to look for in an M3 was making sure it was xDrive. The G8X M3/M4 only comes in the ZF 8 Speed automatic transmission for the xDrive variation. This is our ideal choice of transmission with how much improvement engineering has developed on the transmissions. Secondly, we wanted to find a subject that also had factory carbon fiber bucket seats. This is as functional as it is beautiful. We needed light-weight bucket seats that allowed us to be as planted to the chassis as possible.
The modifications that we had chosen were precisely curated and chosen for our very specific build. The goal was to not only put down power, but to do it safely while being a showstopper. Car show is in our blood and we can't ever get that out of our system. So, we've got to look good while doing it.
Below, you'll see a very fine-tuned and tailored list of modifications that we've done to the 2023 BMW M3 xDrive to unlock it's optimal potential. Click the links to find further details on each product. Remember, Mashimarho is your preferred dealer to all your favorite parts and brands; especially on this car.
Performance
For all of our performance modifications, we've aimed for a higher horsepower territory. This is to be catered to a drag or roll race focus. When forced induction was introduced to the M3 in 2015, it opened a whole new market; The Need For Speed.
The Turbo
KLM Race
First and foremost, we've got the KLM Race Savage Series Single Turbo Kit. We opted to use the Precision Turbos Sportsman Next Gen 7480 Turbo. This will allow us to reach our goals of getting to high quality horsepower numbers. We chose KLM Race, because of their reputation in the industry. They develop and fabricate some of the top/fastest builds in the industry. We wanted peace of mind when it came to putting the power down without any bottlenecks. The KLM Savage Series Turbo kits also included the oil catch can, Turbosmart wastegates, blow off valves, exhaust manifold and all the necessary piping needed to install this kit. This is a turbo kit that installed very smoothly without any additional cutting or fabrications. We added their oil catch can for an added security to this build as well. Beautiful catch can with great ventilation.
Find the KLM G8X Savage Series Single Turbo Kit here
The transmission
Pure Drivetrain Solutions
As for our transmission, we had wanted to go with the top of the line builder in the industry and we choose Pure Drivetrain Solutions. We stuck with our gut and went all out. We opted for the Stage 3 transmission, built torque converter, and the transfer case upgrade. The torque converter now has a billet stator. The transmission still runs quite smooth while being able to hold and put down all of the horsepower without any hassle. We sent out the full transmission and torque converter and received it back in just a few weeks.
Find the Pure Drivetrain Solutions Transmission upgrade here
VTT
Soft bushings are the enemy of hard launches and drivetrain longevity. The factory BMW transfer case bushings—especially on the G8X and F9X platforms—are notoriously soft. That’s the last thing you want when you’re putting serious power down.
Find the Billet Transfer Case Bushing Insert here
Cooling
CSF
We already knew we wanted to run the full CSF Race Cooling Suite. CSF Race is not only pioneers for cooling, but also necessary to allow us to utilize their Level-Up Charge Cooler for fueling. Each CSF component not only allows the car to run cooler, but will mitigate heat soak leading to power drops, increase core volume and capacity, and port injection capability. The CSF kit for the G8X platform is composed of 5 components; 4 if you're a manual transmission owner.
CSF #8215: High Performance Front Mount Heat Exchanger
The Heat Exchanger is a crucial component when racing. With high IATs the charge cooler uses the heat exchanger to cool the overall circulation through the charge cooler manifold. This is especially crucial when it is under high load and heat soak conditions. This helps you maintain high power and recover quicker between runs and passes.
Find the CSF G8X Heat Exchanger here
CSF #8221: High Performance Automatic Transmission Cooler
The BMW ZF8 Automatic transmission is no slouch. And, with drag racing, roll racing, circuit, autocross, you'll need to improve shifting performance and have long-term transmission health. With lower temperatures, things are more predictable. Heat-soaked ATF often leads to delayed or soft shifts, and over time, accelerated wear- this upgrade mitigates both risks. This cooler now offers a dual-core design to increase capacity. This allows for higher efficiency and reliability. Everything is OEM fitment and plug and play. Protect this unit with the included rock guard too.
Find the CSF Automatic Transmission Cooler here
CSF #8321: High Performance Auxiliary Radiator
The G8X has TWO separate auxiliary radiators. Each one controls a different cooling function. These are sold separately and help in sync overall. The driver side cools the engine. This works alongside the main engine radiator to provide extra capacity for cooling engine coolant- especially under high load and heated track days.
The passenger side cools the charged air helping reduce intake air temperatures and fight heat soak when under boost.
Overall the cores are 42mm thick and greatly improve heat transfer compared to the single row OEM 34mm core. With 10% more surface area, you'll be more resistant to heat soak. If you're tuned, this is an item you don't want to miss.
Find the CSF G8X Auxiliary Radiator here
CSF #8266: High Performance Engine Oil Cooler
With every high performance build, you will need to address engine oil temperature. These coolers drastically change the cooling efficiency. Often times these cars can go into limp mode if overheating. CSF provides a rock guard to prevent further damage to the low and visible oil cooler.
Find the CSF G8X Engine Oil Cooler here
CSF #8233: S58 Level Up Charge Air Cooler Manifold
The G80 needs cooler and denser intake charge. With the CSF charge air cooler manifold, you're getting more volume and lower IATs. This manifold does it all. It also integrates a top-fed fuel rail and port injection ports. This crafted billet manifold is truly bigger, better, and fits like OEM. This handles high boost capabilities and a necessity for upgraded turbo owners. While many people's first thought is the price tag, every one else is thanking CSF for pushing the boundaries of their build. It's not cheap, but going over 1,000 HP is not cheap to begin with. CSF is the #1 cooling brand in the world. Step up and give your G8X what it deserves. Not all things are created equal.
Find the CSF G8X Level Up Charge Air Cooler here
Fueling
Precision Raceworks Stand Alone Auxiliary Fuel System
Fueling is just as important as any other power modifications. Without proper fuel injection, reading, and flow capacity, you won't be able to reach your power goals. We had Precision Raceworks provide us with their G8X AFS kit (Auxiliary Fuel System). Precision Raceworks is an industry leader for providing BMWs with high caliber fuel systems. This is the highest performing and most stable low pressure fuel system on the market. This features TWO Walbro 535 fuel pump units with a combined flow of 800LPH at 3 bar.
Precision Raceworks has also supplied us with their 1300CC injectors to ensure proper flow through our port injection system.
Find the Precision Raceworks G8X Auxiliary Fuel System Here
Precision Raceworks ethanol sensor
Ethanol is a vital component to high power. In order to get high amounts of boost and timing people run E85 on their cars. With our G80 running an E98 blend with ethanol ratings at E90, we are needing to run a flex fuel sensor with out ECUTEK tuning platform. You'll need to make sure you supplement your fuel supply with a proper fuel pump and port injection to maximize your needs. There are multiple options for everyone with the MHD and Bootmod3 Flex Fuel sensors to run E85 these days.
MOTIV Reflex +
Think of Motiv Reflex as a separate brain controlling your auxiliary/integrated fueling parameters. With port injection and flex fuel, the vehicle needs commands to control the injectors, adjust fuel levels. boost controls, and monitor these all in one house. MOTIV Reflex + does that and much more.
Find the Motiv Reflex + here
Tuning
Tuning is perhaps one of the most important pieces when putting together a "Race Car."
Anyone can buy bolt-ons, but to tune a car properly, you will need work with a industry renown tuner to create all the perfected parameters.
FEMTO DME UNLOCK
The first things you need to do for all G8X M2/M3/M4 is unlock your DME. The factory Bosche ECU is locked and cannot have files overwritten, so we will ne to start with allowing maps to be written on the DME to program functions in higher boost categories. The one and only proper way is to do a FEMTO unlock. This will require removal of the DME from the engine bay and sent to Finland or us to send to FEMTO. They will process the DME and work their magic to allow newer DME to be able to be programmed. This will allow you to run MHD or Bootmod3 on your BMW and tune your car. If you are like us, you can clone your DME and run ECUTEK.
Find the FEMTO DME Unlock Service here
Mike Botti Tuning
"Trust your tuner" they say. Well, we're glad we chose and trusted Mike Botti aka STImikey. He has claimed world records and knows this platform inside and out. Mikey was able to guide us and also help solve so many small issues or questions that arose. It's clear he's the best tuner in the industry and is the B58/S58 king. Big shout out to Mikey for getting us to where we wanted this car.
Email us if you would like to join this tuning platform with Mike Botti. We can get you introduced and on the same train.
Rod Sutphin Custom Transmission Tuning
The transmission can often feel jerky or slugish even. With the Sutphin custom transmission tuning, our built transmission not only launches on a dime, but smooths out the transmission for daily driving. Shifts are adjusted to a higher RPM and torque is delivered on the spot. The car drives like it should. Using the XHP platform to tune, Rod Sutphin has made the ZF8 on the G80 xDrive into a track monster. Everything from throttle response to power delivery has scaled into his custom tuning.
You can find his tuning at https://sutphintuning.com/
Exhaust
Meisterschaft
The newer BMWs are often mistaken for not the best sounding M cars out of the dealership. Meisterschaft from GTHaus has changed that problem since the 90's. Being an innovator and manufacture, GTHaus has cured the often misleading claim that BMWs do not sound good and turned that into glorious music. The Meisterschaft line up is one of the world's leading BMW exhaust brands. Not to mistaken it from many competitors who's systems originate and are made in China or Taiwan, Meisterschaft designs and manufactures their own exhaust systems. The owner, John, has quite the extensive history, education, and experience in exhaust thermodynamics and engineering.
The G80 is rocking the Meisterschaft GT2 system which sounds incredible with the single turbo paired with it. There is no rasp, drone, tin sound. It is a beloved symphony to hear. Meisterschaft is so sure that every exhaust we sell is going to guarantee your satisfaction or they'll take it back, no questions asked.
Find the Meisterschaft GT2 exhaust on our G80 here
Mashimarho G8X Exhaust Brace
Many aftermarket exhaust tend to hang lower thus coming into contact with the midpipe. We've found a solution to create extra clearance so it will eliminate vibrations and rattles. Some exhaust companies send new braces, but still are too shallow and vibrate. The Meisterschaft units actually do not need these as often as other brands however, we had a custom mid pipe that was much wider and thus needed it.
Find the G8X Exhaust brace here
Suspension
AST Height Adjustable Spring Kit
For our suspension we wanted to retain the factory electronic dampening control for when we race. We have stuck with a company that not only offers the HAS kit, but one that has more of a range for lowering adjustability for us to stay more planted lower. AST makes the lowest range HAS kit, and it was an easy answer for us. This allows us to check all our boxes while making the car look good.
Brakes
Signature Werks 17" Rear Brake Conversion Kit
Factory G8X M2 M3 M4 rear brakes can only allow down to 18" diameter wheels. This makes it harder to allow larger sidewall tires. With the help of Signature Werks, we've developed a perfect option. We do not want to sacrifice the performance of the braking capabilities. So, we've integrated ZL1 calipers to the rear brake with new rotors as well as a dedicated electronic parking brake. Everything functions like OEM. There is no programming needed.
Find the Signature Werks 17" Brake Conversion Kit here
Service and Labor
Bimtech PNW
We can't thank Ivan and the Bimtech team enough for being our trackside partners and shop to help us not only complete our build, but to really dedicate to the racing life. From influencing what is best practice to guiding us on necessary parts for the build, Bimtech is our partner and the only shop that will touch and service our G80 M3.
Find them at PNWN54.com
This build has been a wild journey to say the least. We did not anticipate this car reaching 1,000 horsepower. It is not only a deadly weapon, but it has been a reflection of all of our hard work and dedication. We truly feel this platform has evolved so much since the last generation of M3 cars. We don't know what is next, but let the race season begin.
