Exploding the myth: There’s no such thing as cheap motorsport, just entry level motorsport! There IS a huge difference!
That being said, this car has had a full ‘nut and bolt’ restoration at the same time. ALL suspension and subframes were removed and replaced with either new or reconditioned parts. I’m restoring the car to use long term in endurance racing and with ‘lockdown’ time available it was decided to do a full restoration instead of a continual upgrade process. There are NO labour costs included since I did the work myself and have had 30 years restoring vehicles, all for the cost of the additional tools required listed below. Paying others to do the work would just be prohibitive since there’s well over 300 hours of labour so far involved!
Original Purchase, July 2020
The car was originally purchased as a part built race car for £4,500 in July 2020. It was intended to race in Scotland in the 330 Challenge formula. Build receipts that came with the car (excluding the original car cost) came to £9883, saving me £5383 of build costs and I got a free car into the bargain (you’d expect to pay £2500 for a decent 330Ci Sport), making it a true bargain and worth the effort of travelling 382 miles (by crow) or 470 actual miles by road. This is the advantage of buying a car that has been modified correctly for racing, as opposed to a ‘street’ mod where you would actually bin most of the mods and render them worthless. I got about £12,383 worth of car for £4,500. a good place to start.
As of April 2021 the total cost is £22,699 (excluding the cost of the original car as I don’t know what the previous owner paid for it)
(Cost to me £17,500 including the car)
Broken down as:
- £16,865 of Motorsport (M) upgrades.
- Required safety upgrades £4246
- Engine/drivetrain upgrades £3938
- Suspension/chassis upgrades £4137
- Wheels/`Tyres £1579
- Aerodynamic/Weight reduction £881
- Other upgrades (e.g. data logging) not included in the above £1,898
- £3,513 of Restoration (R) costs.
- £508 of Tools (T)
- £215 of Transport to collect the car.
- £1122 of Racewear.
- £807 of Training Costs
- These costs EXCLUDE the cost of the original car.
These costs can be divided into costs as a result of restoring the car (R) to an acceptable condition, costs due to the upgrades due to the motorsport application (M), and tools (T) that I didn’t have. So Ill attempt to split them by marking an (R), (M) or (T) beside the associated costs. If you’ve a perfectly good car to start with (doubtful as the youngest e46 is at least 14 years old at the time of writing in 2020.)
At the time of purchase in July 2020 for £4500 the car was part built.
Receipts that came with the car for work completed were as follows (all prices include VAT sales tax:)
motorsport upgrades by previous owner, (total £9521)
- (M) £1230 Safety Devices BO45 330 Challenge Roll Cage inc. delivery
- (M) £965 Quaife ATB Limited Slip Differential
- (M) £2250 Roll Cage fitting and rear differential rebuild with Quaife ATB. Front and rear screens removed and refitted. Rear subframe shot blasted and powder coated. Rear differential mounting positions reinforced. Sound deadening removed from interior. Interior painted.
- (M) £66 Seat mounts
- (M) £102 RamAir 330 Spec Induction kit and heat shield
- (M) £450 Klarius Spec Full Race Exhaust System
- (M) £139 Safety Devices 6 Point Harness (out of date end of 2020, now replaced with TRS 6 point)
- (M) £153 Rear Subframe Reinforcement
- (M) £331 Lexan Rear Window Kit – 330 Challenge
- (M) £720 TTV Racing Clutch and lightened flywheel
- (M) £70 Tegiwa Front Cannards
- (M) £100 Tegiwa Front Splitter
- (M) £14 Fuel pump mod to prevent fuel starvation from other side of tank.
- (M) £24 Front window protection film (anti shatter)
- (M) £8 Tow Stickers
- (M) £17 Rollcage Padding
- (M) £80 Carbon Fibre Door Cards
- (M) £170 Alloy Twin Core Radiator
- (M) £30 Expansion Tank
- (M) £80 HEL Braided Brake Lines
- (M) £300 Tegiwa GT Rear Wing (non CSL)
- (M) £115 Racing Battery
- (M) £17 Battery Cut Off
- (M) £70 4x Towing Eyes
- (M) £200 RRS Mechanical 4.25 litre Fire Extinguisher System (has not been serviced in 6 years (required every 2) and now replaced by Fire Marshall system)
- (M) £14 Door Pull Straps
- (M) £127 Ferodo Pads (supplied but not fitted, now upgraded to Ferodo DS1.11)
- (M) £65 lowering springs (now replaced with GAZ Gold Coilovers)
- (M) £40 350mm Steering Wheel (OMP copy)
- (M) £17 Harness Eyes (mounts)
- (M) £21 Horn Button
- (M) £9 Radio Blanking cover
- (M) £348 Powerflex Polyurethane & Aluminium (15pc) Suspension Bush Kit
- (M) £179 Vibra-Technics 362MX Race Engine Mounts
- (M) £18 Boot Springs
- (M) £372 Sparco Circuit II Racing Seat
- (M) £63 Powerflex front wishbone +0.5 degree caster bushes
- (M) £28 Front strut reinforcement plates (supplied but not fitted)
- (M) £145 Eibach +3.0 -1.0 degree rear camber adjustment kit
- (M) £40 Aero Catches (supplied but not fitted)
- (M) £179 Clutch Bearing, Exhaust Rubbers, Exhaust Manifold Gasket, Wiper set
- (M) £155 ECU remap 253bhp, rev limiter 7000rpm, second O2 removal, secondary air pump delete. (removed and replaced for Roadsports series)
restoration costs by previous owner, (total £362)
- (R) £25 Gearbox mount
- (R) £21 Coolant Piping
- (R) £27 Thermostat and Housing
- (R) £11 Hose Clips
- (R) £45 Coolant Hoses
- (R) £18 Hose Clips
- (R) £23 Black Kidney Grills
- (R) £65 DISA Intake valve intake adjuster aluminium upgrade kit
- (R) £12 Differential Oil
- (R) £115 Flocked Dash
Build costs incurred by me after purchase (JULY 2020 to February 2021).
Racewear, total: £948
- £274 V2 Sport Helmet with HANS/FHR fittings
- £247 Schroth EVO HANS/FHR
- £427 OMP First Evo Race Suit
- £174 Sparco Fire proof underwear.
training costs & fees, (total: £807)
- £270 (Training) ARDS Course (half day) at Brands Hatch.
- £289 (Training) pre season track day at Silverstone.
- £98 Registration for 750mc Roadsports series including decals delivered.
- £150 Registration for MSVT Track Day Trophy.
Transport costs, (total: £215)
- £215 Sleeper train from Watford Junction to Fort William one way.
Tools required that i didn’t already have, (total £508)
- (T) £67 Engine Support Beam for front subframe removal.
- (T) £173 Lightweigt racing jack.
- (T) £17 Diagnostic scanner interface (ABS Fault and reprogramming)
- (T) £9 C Spanner for coilovers
- (T) £34 Rivnut tool to fit Willvern Motorsport floor.
- (T) £63 Brake pipe flaring tool
- (T) £58 10lb Slide Hammer for rear hub removal
- (T) £16 US Pro Hub Puller
- (T) £38 Bearing press
- (T) £8 36mm, 12 point socket for rear drive nut removal
- (T) £25 e46 rear axle ball joint remover kit for swing arm bush removal
motorsport upgrades, (total £6260)
- (M) £373 H&R Adjustable Anti Roll Bar Kit
- (M) £127 Cartek Shift Light
- (M) £1325 GAZ Gold Coilover Suspension kit with adjustable top mounts.
- (M) £1024 ATI Harmonic damper and Hack Engineering oil pump mod
- (M) £85 Tegiwa wheel stud conversion
- (M) £199 Eibach 15mm wheel spacers (reduces ET from 47 to 32mm)
- (M) £683 4x Nankang AR-1 Semi Slick Tyres 235/40R17
- (M) £16 Switches
- (M) £18 Circuit breakers
- (M) £116 Ultra Racing Front Strut Brace
- (M) £3 Clock Timer (For timing pit stops, mandatory 1 min stationary in Roadsports)
- (M) £275 Original BMW Style 103 Z4 Wheels (for drys) 17x8J ET 47 for AR-1 semi slicks.
- (M) £25 Rear anti roll bar drop link bushes from Flo-Flex
- (M) £245 Powerflex Black Series rear upper/lower/inner & outer bushes.
- £70 (M) Adjustable drop links rear.
- £50 (M) Adjustable drop links front
- £325 (M) AIM Motorsport Solo 2 GPS Lap Timer
- £225 (M) TRS Magnum 6 point HANS/FHR Harness for driver side.
- £264 (M) Lifeline Firemarshal Mechanical 4.0 Ltr Steel Bottle Fire Extinguisher Kit
- £165 (M) X2 Transponder (required for race timing, includes 1 year subscription)
- £379 (M) Ferodo DS1.11 racing pads front (FCP1073W) & rear (FCP1483W).
- £155 (M) Wilvern Motorsport stainless steel floor
- £33 (M) Bucket seat bolts x8
- £25 (M) Race numbers in high vis yellow.
- £3 (M) Novice Crosses
- £23 (M) Tegiwa Windscreen Banner (Blue)
- £5 (M) Rollbar Camera Mount
- £6 (M) Rear top strut reinforcement
Brake Cooling Modification, (Total £355)
- (M) £155 Burkhart Engineering Brake cooling plates.
- (M) £64 102mm Aluminium Air Inlet and inlet gauze.
- (M) £86 Corvette C6 Front Brake Duct Kit
- (M) £21 1m Flexible Silicone 3″ (76mm) Hose and 4x stainless clamps.
- (M) £29 Millway steering rack limiters (due ram air brake cooling)
Oil Cooler Mod, (total £425)
- £57 (M) used (eBay) Mocal 235mm, 19 row cooler
- £39 (M) Susa ProLine Mounting brackets (suits MoCal)
- £134 (M) BMW M54 oil filter cap adapter for oil cooler.
- £94 (M) Digital 52mm Gauges for Oil Pressure and Temperature
- £24 (M) 20 psi oil pressure switch of driving Cartek shift light warning system.
- £40 (M) 2x 52mm mounting grills for mounting gauges in top air vents.
- £37 (M) AN10 Stainless braided oil line 9ft.
differential cooling mod (Total £97)
- £85 Diff cover with fins (BMW part no. 33117512980)
- £2 1x M10x60 bolt (BMW part no. 161697
-
£10 2x Diff plugs and sealing ring
Differential rebuild including 3.73 final drive (TOtal £799)
- This uses the existing case and Quaife ATB but upgrades the 2.93 final drive.
- £180 3.73 final drive crown and pinion from Gear Lab
- £315 Racing Diffs Crown offset spacer and backlash C-clip kit.
- £54 Genuine BMW diff seals and locking washers.
- £250 Gear Lab rebuild cost.
car restoration costs, (total £3325)
- (R) £75 Headlight level sensor bracket and associated fixings
- (R) £54 Accessory drive belt and spark plugs
- (R) £35 Lightweight Mirrors (mechanical)
- (R) £95 Handbrake shoes, sump plug and gasket, DOT 4 brake fluid
- (R) £32 Handbrake adjuster kit, shoe hardware kit
- (R) £12 Miscellaneous collar
- (R) £336 4x Michelin Pilot Sport 225/45R17 (for wets)
- (R) £193 Front and Rear Brake Callipers, calliper sliders and calliper bolts
- (R) £340 Complete reinforced front wishbone set
- (R) £50 used Front Crossmember
- (R) £285 Original BMW Style 51 Wheels (for wets) 17x8J ET47
- (R) £19 Column Trim
- (R) £15 2x Jacking Pionts
- (R) £175 Front Wheel Bearing Kit
- (R) £435 Original BMW steering knuckles (hubs), brackets and subframe bolts
- (R) £10 Wheel centre caps
- (R) £92 Rear Brake Discs
- (R) £189 Front Brake Discs and service kit (oil, filters sump plug etc)
- (R) £13 Xenon Headlight Level sensor
- (R) £5 Bulbs
- (R) £10 Trim Clips
- (R) £11 Spare Key
- (R) £25 ABS wheel sensors (front)
- (R) £17 handbrake gaiter
- (R) £155 BMW Genuine rear bearing service kit, washers, hex bolts for backing plates.
- (R) £38 Rear brake backing plates non OEM (off eBay) – OEM are £42 each!!!
- (R) £68 2x Rear Wheel Hubs
- (R) £10 New rear calliper bolts.
- £36 (R) Rear inner light cluster.
- £218 (R) Sparco Sprint Steel Frame Seat (for passenger side)
- £16 (R) Race Safety Accessories 1 Inch Harness Eye Bolt
- £92 (R) TRS 4 Point Clubman Harness for the passenger seat.
- £38 (R) used ABS/DSC unit (ABS light was on, due internal fault in old unit)
- £131 (R) Brake line, clips, through bulkhead fittings for routing brake lines internally.