So I was taking the girlfriend home last night and we pass the local car show that they have every saturday around my town. Around this time alot of these cars are looking to prove something. I happen to pull up to this M3, hes asking me what I got in mine and I asked him he said hes pushing 260 hp stock. I didn't ask him if he had done anything to it though.

Off the line it was more than easy to pull ahead of this car. Although we went from a roll I heard him get on it so I did also a couple seconds later, but I couldnt pull ahead of him. Keep in mind I had a passenger and the passenger window was down. (It was very hot that night).

I think we only went from 40-80 mph, but I was confused why I didn't pull ahead. Keep telling myself those 2 factors of the window being down and having a passenger while he didn't was a major factor?

 

An '88, you should have won IMO. He must have had some serious mods.

 

usually any older performance cars from the 80-90's have been around so long that they more than likely have been modified quite a bit over the years. he probably was pushing 300 hp. Also those old BMW's weight about as much as a Mazda miata, probably 2,500 lbs I think the weight advantage was on his side. remember the 350Z autos have 280 hp yet the base model crossfire is equally as fast at 215 hp.

sounded like a good race.

 

You simply ran out of room to catch and pass him if you only got to 80mph. Even with the Superman Button under the throttle clicked on I am estimating it would take my SRT 2 seconds to go from 40mph to 80mph and since you already gave him this much headstart to begin with then it is not surprising that you can only get even with him before shutting off.
Don't worry about it.....you had fun did you not?

 

You guys are right, probably was moderately modded for all i know. Also there was traffic ahead of us so I cut this little race short.

Things like these shouldn't be taken too seriously, your right it should be just for fun. Was just curiuos what exactly was going on.

Depending on where you live getting lined up at a red light is rare, which is the case for me. Just went home with this face

 

I agree with calxfire in that there is some supercharger lag. I raced a highly moded celica gt today from a rolling 50/55 and he was close till about 80 and then I left him in the dust. At 120 the state trooper went by in the opposite direction but THAT is another story.

 

You can always blame it on the IC pump. Has anyone ever answered the question as to how to tell if one is going bad or has failed?

 

I've seen alot of speculation but nothing concrete.

 

I would like to hear that story. I think we all would I'll tell you my story.


I live on a river that splits two towns. There are two bridges at each end of town. Back when I had my 04 limited I went passed a cop coming the other way at 80 mph on the south bridge, which is 40mph speed limit. The cop just ignored me. And last summer I passed a cop going the other way on the north bridge. Only this time I was in my SRT-6 and punched it out of the on ramp. I hit 100mph in an instant. The cop obviously saw me and turned his lights on. Luckily this bridge is a bit longer with less traffic and a big center divider. I thought for a split second and when I realized the cop would have to take the exit to get back on the bridge, and that he turned his lights on after he passed me, (I could claim I didn't see him) I punched it even harder and got home as quickly as possbile, closed the garage door and stayed home all night. I had some guys from work behind me who saw it and they said the cop never got back on the bridge.

 

I had lag and spoty performance before changing to the Johnsons pump. I didn't think anything was wrong before I switched either. I just switched to avoid the inevitable failure plus I bought a larger HE. I intalled the pump a month before installing the HE and I can honestly say I did have a pump problem before and didn't realize it. Before My car would lag then take off like a rocket and other times it would just take off with no lag. That makes racing unpredictable and sometimes lesser cars will hold up untill the SC finally kicks in. I would recommend changing to the Johnsons for anyone with a SRT6 whether your going to further mod it or not. Bite the bullet and spend the change.

 

Ok so this is going to sound like a really odd question then so bare with me...

Is there any change to the SOUND the car makes when the performance was different from one time another? I noticed that (while it may be all in my head), the times when I feel I am getting the best performance from the car, the exhaust note is strong and unmuffled, whereas when I feel a lag the exhaust hum sounds more "airy" and not as strong.

I have no idea if I am making any sense.

 

I never noticed sounds as I usually have the radio on blast, but I would imagine the exhaust would get muted as there is less pressure it has to expel. Change the IC pump regardless I say. I would almost bet money thats your problem.

 

Quick question about the pump. Has anyone had it professionally installed? I know alot of people have been doing it themselves, but would taking it to a dealer be a possible idea?

I know they are going to mention if they find out a problem occurred due to the pump it would void my warrenty. Not sure if they would install it anyway with my say so.

Also I was thinking, when your pump fails to the dealer its not considered a major issue since the engine can run with a failed pump. (Hence why there is no recall). How can they void a warrenty due to a part they consider "not necessary" per say?

 

I didn't think they could void your entire warranty due to one part change as a result of Magnuson-Moss, but in order for them to actually fix the problem you have to return the car to its stock condition (i.e. put the Bosch pump back in, better yet, put it back in before you ever take the car in for service).

 

Good idea haha.

Most likely the mechanics will know if you modify your car. Especially if its one of the only SRT Xfires being serviced there. Im not sure if I could install the pump on my own. Does it even come with basic instructions?

 

their are several post about this and pic on how too..
the factory IC pump is a really a 10 min change out,
clamp the hoses not to loose antifreeze...

when my IC pump failed i could not go past 80 or about
it would come and go when it goes u will know really big loss
of power

 

I used to have an e30 m3(87-91). Its a 2.3 4cyl and with a chip, exhuast, and intake mine put down 168rwhp. Some of the guys with 2.5 swaps were putting down around 200rwhp.

There is something hes not telling you about. That or your i/c pump is out...lol

 

Or it was a 1998, as that's in the ballpark of the output of BMW's pre-2001 3.2L They don't have the redline (or the engine durability headaches) of the newer 330hp 3.2L M3's, but they were reasonably quick too with strong mid-range torque.

It's not the window being down. I have the convertable. Top up or top down, there's no appreciable acceleration difference at loess than triple digit speeds. But if it was a really hot night, you were likely down a little on power even if the IC pump was working correctly. That's just the reality of driving a boosted vehicle.