Jump to content
WI BIMMERS - Wisconsin's BMW Community

Jake's Epic BMW 135i Build Thread! (5+ Years of Ownership)


suspenceful

Recommended Posts

I removed that clutch device and returned the lines back to stock and re-bled the system. Glad I got that thing out.
 
After running that 10 second pass in my 135i, I was really curious what it weighed. So, I found a local weigh station and put it on the scale. I even brought my stock BMW 335i to find out the difference in weight between the two.
 
135i weighed 3,300lbs without a driver.
335i weighed 3,600lbs without a driver.
 
For more details, like the weight reduction I've already done on the 135i and how much gas each car had, check out my video below. I ripped the 135i at the beginning, so it's worth watching anyways.
 
48322863841_e2dc422e06_c.jpg
 
48294686726_7d79312a6e_c.jpg
 
48294687041_b316d3df7e_c.jpg

48294686601_4d97d17f49_c.jpg

48294789737_e1b298a037_c.jpg

48294789697_dcf070be63_c.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ghassan Automotive (engine building company) is looking to sponsor their next BMW engine build. As you all know, that's one of the last pieces of the puzzle for this car. To improve my chances of getting sponsored for this build, YOU can help!

Simply just click this link and 'like' my comment: https://www.facebook.com/GhassanAuto/posts/994401244286533?comment_id=994794597580531&comment_tracking={"tn"%3A"R"}

47683914451_6ae3d87a4d_c.jpg

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

As I continue to go down the rabbit hole of weight reduction/track-inspired modifications... bucket seats were next up on the list.

With a budget of $1,000 shipped for a pair of seats and hardware to mount them, I started my search. Ideally, that price would include sliders because other people drive my car and a fixed seat would be inconvenient. I didn’t want fancy, reclining seats because I'm doing this to save weight. I was tempted to go with a pair of cheap NRG seats from eBay, but decided against it. Buying the cheapest possible safety equipment doesn't seem like a good idea.

That's when I stumbled on Corbeau's website and found some attractive, affordable options. I narrowed it down to their FX1 Pro seats for $339 each and E92 (E8X/E9X) brackets with sliders for $119 each. Quality, name brand stuff totaling up to $916, just within my budget!

A few days later and I had a package waiting at home.

48458723791_cddf66e564_c.jpg

48458887102_f8e3d4ae53_c.jpg

48458887062_a3e0bf8fbf_c.jpg

Out with the old...

48458723616_a24e49e4e3_c.jpg

48458886687_36d1e8fbab_c.jpg

Seat installed on bracket and buckle swapped over...

48458723286_955478003b_c.jpg

48458722756_7ea015a9c4_c.jpg

48458885407_6d976f4287_c.jpg

All done!

48458885687_8c9b2ccf3a_c.jpg

48458885292_de7c190a53_c.jpg

I will admit, these seats are pretty comfortable for being a race seat. If I were taking the car on a cross-country road trip, I’d prefer the stock seats… but when will I be taking this car on a cross-country road trip? I’m much happier that my body isn’t flopping around when I’m ripping around the track!

I ordered a pair of 8″ seatbelt extenders so I could snake the belt through the seat. This allows me to buckle up within the seat instead of over the top of the seat.

Surprisingly, the stock seats weigh a massive 59.6 lbs! For comparison, the FX1 Pro and bracket weigh 27.4 lbs. That’s a difference of 32.2 lbs, bringing the total weight loss to 64.4 lbs for the front seats. I’ll take it! I also previously removed the rear seats, which saved about 55 lbs.

Next up; a carbon fiber sunroof delete and carbon fiber door panels!

Oh wait... airbag lights...

seat-belt-light-1024x576.jpg

I used the ProTool app by BimmerGeeks to get rid of these error codes. Simply connect an Android tablet to your car with a K+DCAN cable and OTG adapter, open up ProTools and go to work!

Under the “Safety” section > MRS – Airbag > Coding > Standard, we must deactivate the following options.

  • Seat Mat Sensor (OC3_1)
  • Driver Seat Position Sensor (SPSF_1_CD)
  • Left-Side Airbag (SIDEBAG_LINKS_1)
  • Passenger Seat Position Sensor (SPSBF_1)
  • Right-Side Airbag (SIDEBAG_RECHTS_1)
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Does anyone make a CF replacement roof skin for the 1 series?  Might be a better and cooler mod than just a sunroof skin.  A friend did this to his e39.  It was a lot of work but the weight savings was more than just a delete, and anything you can do to lower the COG is money well spent, almost as valuable as unsprung weight removal.

Cool seats BTW.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 hours ago, REKIII said:

Does anyone make a CF replacement roof skin for the 1 series?  Might be a better and cooler mod than just a sunroof skin.  A friend did this to his e39.  It was a lot of work but the weight savings was more than just a delete, and anything you can do to lower the COG is money well spent, almost as valuable as unsprung weight removal.

Cool seats BTW.

This is almost the exact comment I was going to make. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 hours ago, straight6pwr said:

before i spout something I shouldnt, did Corbeau pay you in anyway in exchange for your review?

Someone didn't watch the video ;)

I explained that I was given a discount, but was intending to purchase anyways. I reached out to them with a sponsorship proposal asking if they'd hook me up with these seats and brackets. They agreed to a partial sponsorship; 10% off up front and an additional discount if I liked the seats enough to share content around them.

18 hours ago, REKIII said:

Does anyone make a CF replacement roof skin for the 1 series?  Might be a better and cooler mod than just a sunroof skin.  A friend did this to his e39.  It was a lot of work but the weight savings was more than just a delete, and anything you can do to lower the COG is money well spent, almost as valuable as unsprung weight removal.

Cool seats BTW.

In an ideal world, I'd love to! It seems like there are a few options available:

https://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-399095-f82-135i-1m-roof-replacement-1x1-weave/

https://www.revozport.com/product/1m-raze/1m-coupe/1m-raze-lightweight-roof-panel/

https://ind-distribution.com/products/rkp-e82-carbon-fiber-roof-panel

All at $1,500... which is out of my budget and out of my installation comfort zone. Between the 3 sites, they claim a 8 - 24lb weight savings (not including the sunroof). Not sure why the range is so large.

The sunroof weighs about 35 lbs, so I will save that weight for a fraction of the price with the CF delete panel.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 minutes ago, suspenceful said:

Someone didn't watch the video ;)

"an additional discount if I liked the seats enough to share content around them."

i didnt watch the whole video. i stopped after "Corbeau hooked me up with these seats" because i really didnt want to watch an advertisement. 

it's getting really old having to tray and decipher if a youtube creator's opinion is bogus because they were paid instead of just trusting them.   do they have to approve your content before giving you the discount? you are great at content creation and cinematography and they've realized they dont have to pay you real $$$$ for a real commercial because youtube creators are willing to sell their credibility for a couple hundred bucks. /oldmanrant

on a happier note - thank you for using very descriptive and non-"click bait" titles!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, straight6pwr said:

i didnt watch the whole video. i stopped after "Corbeau hooked me up with these seats" because i really didnt want to watch an advertisement. 

it's getting really old having to tray and decipher if a youtube creator's opinion is bogus because they were paid instead of just trusting them.   do they have to approve your content before giving you the discount? you are great at content creation and cinematography and they've realized they dont have to pay you real $$$$ for a real commercial because youtube creators are willing to sell their credibility for a couple hundred bucks. /oldmanrant

on a happier note - thank you for using very descriptive and non-"click bait" titles!

A good content creator will disclose a relationship to a product/vendor like I try to. I am not a sellout and I only work with companies or products that I would buy otherwise. I'm sure some other content creators would be fine doing so, but I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I was promoting a product I didn't stand behind. Hell, I exploited expensive MMP products that I got a discount on saying I wouldn't recommend them. MMP got pissed off and re-designed their whole product line. I got emails yesterday asking if I'd be interested in working with Carly app and eManualsOnline, just name my price. I declined because I'm not interested in either of those products.

No, Corbeau didn't have to approve any of my content. I told them what my reach is and what I could do for them and then they gave the initial 10% discount. I sent them links to all of the content today (2 days after posting), and they said they ran a refund for another 30%. We're both happy, and they said they'd be interested in working together when I'm ready to get harnesses.

I'm an open book and have nothing to hide. Trust me, I get scrutinized all the time because of my content. It's part of the game when you open yourself up to public opinion. The amount of hate I get in comments is unreal, you'd be surprised how many people find the smallest things to pick you apart on. I just roll through it because I have a ton of awesome supporters who enjoy reading/watching.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Well, I went back to the drag strip the other day. Made a decent shakedown pass, well on my way to setting a personal best.

48637027511_1a8315f839_c.jpg

Then I snapped an axle. This is the 3rd stock axle that I've snapped.

48636676493_6301f5ce20_c.jpg

48637171307_e1cd1aa413_c.jpg

I'm sick of throwing junkyard axles in it and driving like I'm on glass, so I decided it's time to give the car the parts it really needs.

A lot of content coming soon... will try to break down every install into it's own post. If you haven't already, please subscribe to my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/jakespence135?sub_confirmation=1

I'm also going to gut most of the car, but still make it presentable. Work in progress.

48637026516_649963b3b4_c.jpg

48637026536_cc4aa0cd1e_c.jpg

48637031686_a411307d15_c.jpg

Goal is to have the car completely set up and ready by Sept 20th for NFZ 1/2 mile event.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, B C said:

Exciting update!

Do you preload the drivetrain before launching? 

I half-ass pre-loaded it for my 10.90 pass, but didn't at this outing. Too many things going on and I didn't do it. Turning two cameras on, talking to the cameras, turn on my Dragy and start capturing data, open my tuning app and start a datalog, turn traction control off, worry about cutting a good light in competition, etc.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Is that entire list of parts in your last post all stuff you recently purchased? That must have been an entire warehouse worth of packages on your front door.

I think Drew had said something about some of this stuff awhile back, but maybe that was other things.

Trunk sound deadening and such removed?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, SteelBlue said:

Is that entire list of parts in your last post all stuff you recently purchased? That must have been an entire warehouse worth of packages on your front door.

I think Drew had said something about some of this stuff awhile back, but maybe that was other things.

Trunk sound deadening and such removed?

Half of it showed up already, but it continues to flood in.

Everything has been removed in the rear except for the parcel shelf and the glued on sound deadening, etc. I am going to try to find some dry ice or freeze spray to break off that stuff.

1 hour ago, B C said:

What are those things under the seats that look like Celica-Supra wheels? 

The factory subwoofers. One thing I don't want to give up, a perfectly good sound system.

51 minutes ago, GunMetalGrey said:

Finally diving off the deep end I see! 
I look forward to seeing all of the boxes show up! Should be plenty of work.
If you are getting rid of your current ARC - 8's I may just know a guy...

If I had to take a guess I would guess that Bimmerworld jumped on-board in some capacity? 

Yup! BimmerWorld is sponsoring some parts and I will say I'm impressed with the quality of everything so far. Excited to get things installed.

As far as the ARC-8s, we could probably work something out. I'm not changing the fronts... but if we struck a proper deal, I might be persuaded to get 1M-style front fenders and more concave front wheels.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

I'm gonna be a tease here. I've posted some stuff on IG and YT, but haven't done much on the forums. The car went under the knife and I installed every single part (and more) from the list in one of my previous posts. I've been so busy in the garage and at the track that I haven't been posting much. Here is a picture and some video until I'm able to put together solid content.

48861258461_34b2347e47_c.jpg 48798182903_1d727bbfd5_c.jpg

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.