August 4, 2020

Your S55 is Definitely Going To Blow Up

At least that’s what everyone wants you to believe.

 

The S55

An inline 6 twin-turbo motor manufactured by BMW. You can find this in the F80 M3, F82 M4, F83 M3, and the F87 M2 Comp package. We may be a little biased but this motor is one of our favorites to date. The potential that this thing packs is insane. We started out with basic bolt-on builds and now have multiple 700+ hp builds under our name. All stock internals, most, stock fuel systems. Some of our craziest builds to date have been going strong for well over 2 years with zero issues. We wish we could show you some of the insane videos we have but for sake of legality, we’ll leave it up to the imagination or a few simple Youtube searches 😉

It seems like BMW did everything right with this one…almost everything anyways.

The Ticking Time Bomb

It wouldn’t be BMW if this amazing motor didn’t have some odd weak point that we managed to find. “We” being the aftermarket savvy community. For the S55 it’s the crank hub. A brief synopsis of the issue – the crank hub is what holds the crankshaft together with the timing gear, these, accompanied by a chain, keep your pistons and valves moving when they are supposed to move. On the S55, these pieces are held together by what’s called a friction plate, and a single bolt with a ton of torque. In some rather unfortunate instances, the bolt backs out and causes the timing to slip. In the best cases, the DME catches this slip of timing and will not allow the engine to run, in the worst, well, most of you know what happens when valves and pistons meet..they tend to leave a lasting impression..and not the good kind.

When Will It Happen To You?

Well, it depends on who you talk to.

The forums? You probably already spun it and just don’t know yet. Facebook, 70% say you’re screwed. 20% say “well, I’m running full e85 with no issues – it’s not a real problem” and the other 10% have already upgraded theirs and are enjoying life stress-free at night.

If you ask us, well, it’s like an insurance policy. Do the fix, save yourself the nightmares. Don’t do the fix, and panic every time you feel like mashing the throttle in your $50k+ performance car you bought to enjoy without limit. Personally, we don’t push the subject until customers decide to pass the stage 2 OTS map. However, this is purely based on our own comfort zone and personal experience.

I Can’t Sleep At Night – How Do I Fix This? 

Step one, DO NOT TRY TO DO THIS AT HOME. Unless you are some sort of BMW guru with all of the proper tools and a ton of patience, please, save yourself the headache and the awkward phone call. Find a shop, like us 🙂 that is familiar with the issue and how to properly complete the fix.

Now that we got that out of the way.. you call us, we order one SSR 4 pin crank hub kit, plus all those gaskets, bolts and other miscellaneous bits we have to remove, you drop off your car, four days and a lot of drilling into your crank later, you pick up your car! You now sleep nightmare free. It’s that simple.

We may have missed a few small details, like pricing and such but you can call or email us if you’re looking to have this done and we’ll get you all of those minor details.

We have been tackling the dreaded crank hub fix since the very beginning, alongside many other big-name shops. We are here to help ease any concerns you may have. Our phones, emails, and DM’s are always open to questions! Please do not hesitate to reach out.

For more information, BMW modifications, service, repair, or any other questions you may have, feel free to contact us.

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July 15, 2020

It’s Time To Have That Talk – N54 Reliability

Ah, the infamous N54…Yes, we are going to talk about it. So brace yourself.

The N54 platform is pretty stout. We won’t get too deep into it because a simple search will provide you with mountains of information on the motor itself. The N54 coming equipped with a forged crank and rods (yea, yea this is up for debate according to half of the community but we’re basing this on our personal experience) have made upwards of 800+ hp on STOCK INTERNALS.

However, it seems at this point in their existence they have gained some sort of reputation for being rather unreliable… which is quite interesting to us.

Most of the N54’s we see come through our shop on a daily basis have already lived the first half of their life as a full bolt-on/tuned car.

Now as the second and third owners acquire these cars at the 80,000 miles + mark, they are experiencing the failure of gaskets, water pumps, electronics, turbos, etc.

This where the bad reputation begins.

Every motor faces normal wear and tear. Completely stock motors end up with leaky gaskets, blown turbos, broken coolant lines, etc. These items are only made to last so long. Especially with most of these items being made out of plastic. Factor in the additional heat, the additional power, and torque being pushed through these motors when they become tuned – now you have sped up that process.

As the current owner, you hold the responsibility to understand and respect the performance this platform provides you. Maintain it!

As the next owner, you have to educate yourself. Do your research, find the history, modifications, mileage, what maintenance has been performed, and what needs to be done.

The unfortunate downfall of the N54 platform is simply the owner’s failure to keep up with maintenance.

We see it all too often.

We cannot stress enough the importance of maintenance. Believe us, we know it sounds lame.. who wants to spend $2,000 on maintenance when you could make 500hp and then some with that same money but you’ll thank us later when you have a reliable 600+ hp N54.

A great example of this very conversation is our good friend Cristian, or as some of you may know him by, Vehicle Virals. We’ve been working with him for quite some time on his 335i. When he first came to us, we had a similar conversation about his feelings on the reliability of the N54 motor. He was frustrated by multiple repairs that were needed at this point in the car’s life. However, like most others, Cristian was not taking into account the current mileage of the vehicle vs the additional power that he has now chosen to add.

When customers like Cristian come to us and are in need of turbos, gaskets, and other maintenance items, we offer an option to drop the motor and completely reseal it. This route means we can knock out turbo replacement and all gaskets well under the same time frame of doing only turbos. Basically, you guys get more for less!

Cristian opted to take this same route and decided to document this process with us for his Youtube channel.

His videos show a lot of this process in-depth and explain why we offer this option and a lot of our feelings on the N54. Check them out!

For more information, BMW modifications, service, repair, or any other questions you may have, feel free to contact us.

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January 18, 2020

PSI Builds An Insane Street Car

 

From the beginning of its existence the F80 M3 has been picked apart time and time again. Compared to its predecessors, often asked if it can really be considered a true “M” car. Sound, style, drive-ability each dissected to the fullest degree. Years after its initial release, enthusiasts have pushed every limit of the F80. Finally allowing the chassis some of the credit it deserves.

Luckily for us, we’ve been given the opportunity to push some limits ourselves. Our customer approached us with a goal in mind, 750 whp. Now, if you follow the F8x world you know this is nothing compared to what has been done. However, 750 whp while maintaining stock internals, safely and reliably is still quite the feat.

Our first thought was, how can we achieve this while keeping it as simple and safe as possible? Well knowing what we do about the S55, we knew it wouldn’t take much. Now, while we are genuinely impressed with the capabilities of the stock turbos, we knew we couldn’t push this power without utilizing Pure’s stage two upgraded turbos. We paired these with some simple supporting mods, such as, VRSF downpipes, CSF top mount cooler and a Fuel-it port injection kit.

The most important part of this for us was safely reaching our goal and there is no-one we would trust more with this task than Cary Jordan of Jordan Tuned. We’ve had a long running relationship with Cary and have witnessed his endless knowledge at work within the BMW community, especially for F8x full E85 tuning.

The results were simply amazing. 751 WHP and 723 TQ.

Making this power and putting it down are two separate achievements in itself. Finding a wheel and tire set up that is both aesthetically pleasing and entirely functional is not always the easiest.

We’re a huge fan of the fellas over at Titan7 wheels and conveniently so, they make what we consider to be some of the nicest looking and track-ready wheels, which is exactly what we needed for this build to come together.

The end result: We have one hell of a car on our hands!

Mod List: Pure Stage 2 HF, VRSF downpipes, Agency Power front mount intakes, CSF charge cooler, Fuel-it port injection kit, Clutchmasters FX350 Clutch Kit w/ Aluminum Flywheel, AWE Track Exhaust, Max PSI Keyed Crank Hub, BC Racing Coilovers, Titan7 TS5’s. Tuning by Cary Jordan @ Jordan Tuned.

For more information, BMW modifications, service, repair, or any other questions you may have, feel free to contact us.

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September 5, 2019

A Rare E36 M3 visits PSI

We have been allowed to handle some of the most beautiful and rare specimens of BMW’s Florida has to offer for over a decade. We still get excited every time another one steps in the shop. This one was no different.

When Michael pulled up in his 1997 Boston Green M3 we were amazed, not only at the color but how immaculate the car was.

Inside and out…in addition to the exterior color, the interior caught our attention rather quickly. This Boston Green exterior is matched with BMW’s Modena interior. Making this E36 even rarer.

The addition of these Apex ARC-8 wheels completes the very subtle yet aggressive OEM style.

Michael has put much effort into maintaining a very aggressive machine while maintaining the OEM style and it shows in all of the little details.

We are blessed to have the pleasure of servicing this rare find and many others!

For more information, BMW modifications, service, repair, or any other questions you may have, feel free to contact us.

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August 22, 2019

Did you know?

Not only does PSI build some bad a** cars, but we also service and maintain them.

We love our fast and fun cars. There is nothing like tearing into brand new BMW’s and making them faster and more enjoyable.

Single turbo N54’s, full bolt-ons? You bet! S55 Turbos? S63 Tuning? You got it! We do it all.

However, we also like to keep them running healthy. Maintenance is no fun, we’ll be the first to tell you that but it’s a necessity and we preach it consistently.

We offer many services that can benefit your vehicle. From track car to streetcar or just your daily commuter.

Some of these services include: 

  • Oil Changes
  • Tune-Ups
  • Engine Repair
  • Engine Replacement
  • Engine Performance Check
  • Computer Diagnostics
  • Electrical System Diagnosis & Repair
  • Brake Repair
  • Factory Scheduled Maintenance
  • Suspension Repair
  • Cooling System Service & Repair
  • Transmission Service & Repair
  • Tires: Mounting and Balancing 
  • Wheel Alignment
  • Pre-Purchase Inspections
  • Maintenance Inspections
  • Battery Replacement

and so much more!

For more information, BMW modifications, service, repair, or any other questions you may have, feel free to contact us.

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August 13, 2019

Taking the Leap – E46M x ESS Tuning

For a lot of E46 M3 owners, the pinnacle of owning their car is the point in which they take the jump and supercharge it!

The same is to be said for this old girl. After being enjoyed in her natural form for years, it was finally time.

ESS makes some of our favorite supercharger kits for BMW’s, the E46 M3 included.

After tons of discussion, our customer ultimately decided on the VT2-525 kit. One of the main priorities was to maintain an OEM driveability until he was ready to demand that extra power. This is something ESS advertises heavily with this kit and we can absolutely agree that they have achieved this. While there were many reasons we decided on this particular kit, the fact that we can upgrade easily down the line if needed is also a huge pro.

One of our favorite parts of the ESS kit is how subtle it is. With the exception of the FMIC of course. The Vortech V3 blower sits beautifully inside the engine bay. Tucked away, almost as if it belonged there.

The power delivery is smooth, yet strong and the E46M chassis handles this power like a champ. Coming in at roughly 190hp over stock, we have nothing but amazing things to say about this beast and her newfound power!

A huge thanks to the guys over at ESS for providing such a quality kit and amazing customer service!

 

 

July 3, 2019

Never Judge A Book By It’s Cover – The F10 550i

It’s always an interesting journey when a customer approaches us with something we don’t modify too often. In this case, it was an F10 550i. We know most of you are going to ask -“why?”. Why didn’t he buy an M5? Well, he simply wanted to see what the underdog could do and we were eager to help him find out.

From the exterior, she looks like your average 550i.

We called up our friends at Pure and ordered a set of stage 2 upgraded turbos. Along with Pure’s turbos, we are running downpipes, intakes, BMS meth kit with a Torqbyte CM5-LT methanol controller and a tune from Active Autowerke.

We were excited to test out the Torqbyte CM5-LT meth controller. This controller allows you the ability to independently configure and control multiple WMI pumps and multiple solenoids. This is very convenient for high boost and high horsepower, direct-injection applications that require more complex WMI setups.

Now, not only is this a car we don’t heavily mod often, this one is being built for something we don’t normally deal with either, drag racing. We are quite curious to see what happens when we get it on the strip. The goal is to make a good 11.5-second pass. We’ll have to update you guys on how this goes, so check back in! We are eager to get this thing on the dyno as well, however, we expect an easy 650hp!

We expect to see this beast back in the shop soon for some suspension and braking upgrades. Along with that power definitely comes some responsibility.

June 18, 2019

Pure Fun in This 640i!

PSI did a Pure Turbo upgrade in this 640i!

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 How do you feel about the N55 platform?

We can tell you we love it a lot more with some upgraded bits!

The Pure Turbo stage 2 upgrade for this 640i is engineered to reach 500+whp. Some of the features of this upgrade are:

-Upgraded Point-Milled Billet Compressor Wheel

-Upgraded HiFlow Turbine Wheel

-Dual Compressor Oil Seals, Dual Turbine Oil Seals

-Large Diameter 360 Thrust Upgrade

-Extensive Turbofold Modifications and Machining

-VSR Balanced

So we paired it up with some other upgrades such as an intercooler and JB4 to see what we can push out of her.

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What stands out the most to you about the 640i? For us, the retrofitted front bumper makes all the difference. This isn’t something we see often, so this was a treat for us. This bumper absolutely changes the look of this thing and we love it.

For more information, BMW modifications, service, repair, or any other questions you may have, feel free to contact us.

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June 13, 2019

The M3 That Will Never Go Out of Style

The E9X generation of M3’s will go down in history as one of the best M’s produced without a doubt. PSI’s love for these cars goes way back to the roots of our own “Project Fire“. As the years have flown by and new generations of M’s have come about, there has been no lack in customers caring for their E9X’s. One of our favorite E92 M3’s that we have had the pleasure of servicing and modding belongs to our good customer, Andrew.

When Andrew first came to us, the passion he had for this car was beautiful. He believed in driving it and driving it hard. He believed in maintaining everything BMW had intended it to be but better.

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More power, more aggression, more sound, and better handling. These were the goals.

We began our upgrades with an Active Autowerke’s pulley kit.  The underdrive pulley kit helps increase a small bit of torque and horsepower by reducing the drag from OEM pulley/belt systems. In addition to the pulley kit, we added an Active Autowerke’s signature exhaust system with x-pipes to help increase flow and amplify the godly tone that the s65 produces. Lastly, we installed an Active Autowerke’s tune. AA’s tune for the S65 / E9X M3 is by far one of the best! The biggest gain we like to note from this tune is their ability to create a responsive throttle and create a much more smooth yet aggressive power delivery overall.

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Once we got the power delivery down, it was time to play around with the handling. We purchased a set of BC Racing coilovers, BR type and paired these with a set of HRE FF01’s wrapped in Michelin Pilot Super Sports. After a few adjustments, we got the fitment just right for the type of spirited driving Andrew enjoys.

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Now, power and handling out of the way, it was time to make this girl look just as aggressive as she was.

To start, we installed a Vorsteiner GTS-V front lip and rear diffuser. These two pieces are very subtle, yet unbelievably aggressive when paired with the proper accents. A few additional items we installed to help accent these were a 3D Design carbon fiber trunk spoiler, IND carbon fiber kidney grilles, and hood vents. Each of these items, while very minor helps accentuate the amazing body lines of the E92 M3. Keeping it simple seems to be the key when modding the exterior to these beasts.

BMW provided the masses with an amazing platform when producing E9X M3. As the new generations arrive, we hope to see this generation continue to thrive.

For more information, BMW modifications, service, repair, or any other questions you may have, feel free to contact us.

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June 12, 2019

PSI Mods Another M2C

PSI is no stranger to modding the new M2 Competition series. So when this one showed up we were eager to play!

If you follow our social media, you will see our work on quite a few of these. Anywhere from light modifications such as reflectors and lips to full aero kits, suspension, tuning and more. We’re a pretty big fan of the potential that the S55 offers in the F87 chassis. So our enthusiasm to play with them and really push the limits is through the roof!

One of the biggest complaints we hear about these beauties is the eye-sore exhaust system. So, of course, in true PSI fashion, one Remus exhaust system was on order. If you’re unfamiliar with Remus, you definitely should make yourself familiar. They make some of the best systems available for BMW’s.


Their system for the M2C specifically, helps pull out those deep tones that the S55 lacks from the factory. We went with the axle-back system featuring their black / carbon tips. We highly anticipate adding their mid-pipes to this system, but for now, the axle back does the job. The carbon details in the tips add just the right amount of pop to make them stand out against the black paint and mix well with the carbon fiber aero.

Next on the list was getting her prepped for some new wheels. We grabbed a set of BC Racing, BR coilovers and got this thing sitting nicely. This is our second M2C rocking BC Racing coilovers and we gotta say we are definitely a fan. The ride quality is amazing and of course, the adjustability that’s offered by the BR kit is just the cherry on top.

The guys at BC Forged hooked us up with a set of RS41’s in a custom graphite grey. The graphite of the RS41’s also helps compliment the carbon fiber aero very well. As you may know from our previous M2C build blog, we are a huge fan of these wheels on the M2C. This style allows you to view the beautiful brake set up while still keeping a very classic look.

If you haven’t already, check out our previous post about our Hockenheim Silver M2C build.

For more information, BMW modifications, service, repair, or any other questions you may have, feel free to contact us.

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