Build Log: M57 X5

[ucsbwsr]

Originally Posted by bmwboyee

Very interested in your intake design. It doesn't seem like the hood would shut but I'm sure it does. I'm probably going to have to replace my smaller turbo CHRA and then look for an intake design. I don't really want to support the people making them as they seem to have copied your design with no credit.

This latest iteration is certainly the simplest and least expensive option for a custom intake. This velocity stack design, my original cold-air snorkel design, and the OEM intake all have PROs and CONs so it depends on what your goals are and what design fits your needs best. It's nice to have options.

[SupreemN55]

Originally Posted by ucsbwsr

It took me a couple months but I finally realized I live a few miles from a Proper station that has HPR, I go to the same station to fill my wagon with E85. It's nice that they don't over charge for the "performance" diesel, same price as Shell, Chevron, etc.


A fellow X5D owner lend me his JBD to try out until I get deleted/tuned. Running it at 100%. It offers a nice bump in power. [...]

Im new to the green handle and am also located in SoCal. What gas station do you go to?

[ucsbwsr]

Originally Posted by SupreemN55

Im new to the green handle and am also located in SoCal. What gas station do you go to?

Propel in Kearney Mesa area

[pxscu]

Originally Posted by ucsbwsr

Now back to our regularly scheduled nerdy tech, maintenance, and mods content.

I had plans to fit OEM 343M wheels on the X5 but after some issues with wheels not as described and a bunch of time wasted I lost interest and ended up fitting the wheels on my E61, oh well.

May I ask why you didn't continue with the 343M wheels? I was planning on running these wheels on my X5D

[ucsbwsr]

Originally Posted by pxscu

May I ask why you didn't continue with the 343M wheels? I was planning on running these wheels on my X5D

One of the (M5) sets above was damaged from a shitty seller who tried to scam me and I got tired of trying to source another set to build a complete set for the X5. Since the M6 set I had was pretty mint I put it on the E61.

[pxscu]

Originally Posted by ucsbwsr

One of the (M5) sets above was damaged from a shitty seller who tried to scam me and I got tired of trying to source another set to build a complete set for the X5. Since the M6 set I had was pretty mint I put it on the E61.

ahh that’s a shitty situation.. I pulled the trigger on a set from an M6 over the weekend and just got them back from powder coat. Not ready to put them on yet but was a steal and couldn’t stand the spray painted faces haha.

[ucsbwsr]

Winter is wrapping up in Colorado, technically it's Spring but Colorado weather follows plays by it's own rules. 75F, 6" of snow, 75F, more snow...

In March we got ~18" of wet snow, not the typical light/fluffy/dry snow we normally get that can be blown away with a leaf blower. Our neighborhood isn't plowed so I took the opportunity to test the X5s ability to handle deep snow. It didn't go great. I got stuck twice but it was a lot of fun to plow the streets. Ground clearance was the main issue causing the vehicle to high side and get stuck once momentum is lost. The wide 265/305 tires didn't really help but regardless it's fun to test the capability of a vehicle. The wife's Q7 faired better.




X5 plowing and planing the streets...




Love me the little tailgate. Useful for transporting an exterior door.


Snagged some more goodies to throw in the To Do pile of parts to install. OEM Individual Audio speakers and amp. Stinger amp is for an aftermarket subwoofer. Plan is to have the Stinger amp power an Audiomobile Evo 12. System will be processed with an Audio Control DSP.


Short road trip up to Cheyenne Wyoming to collect some steel from Menards. This will be ceiling and wall coverings in my garage. Thunderstorms and strong winds on the drive. 23.5mpg for the 200mile round trip.



For reference here is what it looks like going up


Got some new rubber for the summer wheels. Michelin Pilot All Season 4 295/45/20. I'm excited to try the tires as they seem to be the benchmark for all seasons. I particularly like the performance to longevity ratio they offer.


On paper the Micnelins are 6-7lbs lighter per tire compared to the Hankooks and Toyos I've ran. Once they were mounted I noticed the Michelins definitely appear narrower than the section width suggests and the sidewalls do have a stretched looks which I didn't experience with the other brands. The Michelins "look" more like a 275/285 than a 295 which was surprising but per usual form>function.

The Michelins + Camaro wheels does make for a fairly lightweight setup when you consider the 295/45/20x11 combo.


Swapperoo


Back to business

[Attacking Mid]

I see Pole is going out of business, unfortunately. You seem to have yours set up as a single speed gravel bike in this picture?

AM.

[ucsbwsr]

Originally Posted by Attacking Mid

I see Pole is going out of business, unfortunately. You seem to have yours set up as a single speed gravel bike in this picture?

Yea, too bad as the company did some really cool stuff with geometry and bike design. My first Pole was a Evolink 150 back in 2018, then I added the Taival, then the 150 was replaced with a Evolink 158 w/ EXT coil. I broke the 158 and got my wife an Evolink 140 with the warranty replacement.

I now run a Nicolai G1 as my full squish and after a few thousand miles beating the snot out of the Taival offroad it's been reincarnated as a "road bike" *air quotes* I essentially threw 29" BMX tires on it, dropped the Mezzer's travel down to 140mm, and converted it to single speed. In the winter when the trails are unavailable I will climb this in the Colorado mountains, use it for commuting, gravel-ish riding, and occasionally skate park/pump track/dirt jump action.

It's a lovely frame and the bike overall is extremely competent and doing many things. Single speed is also lovely as I love to suffer.

Leo, Pole's CEO said it was the first (and only) Taival he has seen built as a single speed.

[Deftronix]

Yo Evan! Crazy amount of stuff done since I last read your log. Amazing work.

Considering 8HP swap?

[ucsbwsr]

Originally Posted by Deftronix

Yo Evan! Crazy amount of stuff done since I last read your log. Amazing work.

Considering 8HP swap?

Nice to hear from you and glad you are still lurking around these parts.

I will be doing an 8HP swap. I already have the install kit and have purchased the trans from someone who LS swapped their F15, I just need to get the trans shipped to me but I am wrapping up a garage remodel before diving back into car projects.

In addition to the 8HP swap the X5 will get a refreshed exhaust manifold with new hardware and gaskets to resolve what appears to be broken studs and an exhaust leak. Stereo upgrade, custom headlights, and refreshing some exterior trim are also in the works. Maybe an X5M leather dash and upper door cards if I can find a decent deal.

Oh, and I just snagged a FB Marketplace deal on some OEM 612M wheels which are mainly a referb/flipping project but will run them for a bit.

Hope all is well. My in-laws moved from Arizona to Green Valley so periodically I'll be out there visiting, hoping we cross paths again!

[Deftronix]

Originally Posted by ucsbwsr

Nice to hear from you and glad you are still lurking around these parts.

I will be doing an 8HP swap. I already have the install kit and have purchased the trans from someone who LS swapped their F15, I just need to get the trans shipped to me but I am wrapping up a garage remodel before diving back into car projects.

In addition to the 8HP swap the X5 will get a refreshed exhaust manifold with new hardware and gaskets to resolve what appears to be broken studs and an exhaust leak. Stereo upgrade, custom headlights, and refreshing some exterior trim are also in the works. Maybe an X5M leather dash and upper door cards if I can find a decent deal.

Oh, and I just snagged a FB Marketplace deal on some OEM 612M wheels which are mainly a referb/flipping project but will run them for a bit.

Hope all is well. My in-laws moved from Arizona to Green Valley so periodically I'll be out there visiting, hoping we cross paths again!

Still have the x5 but its been a bit neglected unfortunately. Hope to get my garage organized soon so I can get back to it.

Why am I not surprised you're well into the process. Did you end up going with the CANTCU controller, etc? Interested to know how it will work out with the differential changes you've made.

I hope your X5 knows how good it has it. Not a stone left unturned. Love it!

Moved to Meridian, ID a few years back but still work and travel out there quite often. Green Valley is a nice little spot, much more tolerable weather. My folks have a place off Via Palo Linda.

Congrats on the big garage upgrade! You'll have to PM me where you're at in Montana now. I have a BiL that's in Bozeman

[ucsbwsr]

Originally Posted by Deftronix

Still have the x5 but its been a bit neglected unfortunately. Hope to get my garage organized soon so I can get back to it.

Why am I not surprised you're well into the process. Did you end up going with the CANTCU controller, etc? Interested to know how it will work out with the differential changes you've made.

Congrats on the big garage upgrade! You'll have to PM me where you're at in Montana now. I have a BiL that's in Bozeman

I bought an 8HP kit from Bradley Tourt who is a bit of a BMW Diesel Whisperer, if your unfamiliar he's built an 335D E91 as well as an M57 swapped E82, really clean builds you can dig up on BAT. Of course I was tempted to build my own kit but I decided to take a walk down easy street and buy the kit and support a fellow enthusiast. CAN TCU is the controller and the kit also comes with a adapter place, wiring harness, flywheel, etc. everything but the trans. You also get Brad's install support. Kit was $2,700 but I am not sure if he is still offering them, I think I got one of the last ones.

I moved from CA to CO (Denver area) but my E70 and E61 are owned by my LLC in Montana

My in-laws are just down the road from your folks in Eastridge!

[ucsbwsr]

A set of OEM Style 612M popped up locally and if you go back to page 1 of this build you will see that I previously owned a set when I first acquired the X5. I love the styling and the fact they are forged but when I had my last set I was on worn OEM suspension and then (even worse) lowering springs, 21" tire options were also sparse.

Flash forward to present and I am now on KW V3s with essentially all other suspension components replaced and 21" tires are way more common with the unstoppable invasion of SUV/CUVs with huge wheels. The price was right so I snagged them. The wheels have a fair amount of light-moderate rash, enough to warrant a reconditioning for my standards but after a thorough cleaning they are presentable. Plan is to give them a run to see if I can handle the ride quality and if all goes well I will likely invest in repairing the rash or maybe a full reconditioning + powder coat.

The OEM Pilot Super Sports were in great shape but too thin for my liking and I replaced them with some used, 90% tread, Pirelli Scorpion Verde in a meatier 275/40 315/35/21 configuration.

I love my OEM split 5-spoke wheels!


Aside from the rash the wheels cleaned up nicely


OEM 285/35


OEM 325/30


275/40 Pirelli


315/35 Pirelli


Before and Afters



Lovely

[Deftronix]

Originally Posted by ucsbwsr

I bought an 8HP kit from Bradley Tourt who is a bit of a BMW Diesel Whisperer, if your unfamiliar he's built an 335D E91 as well as an M57 swapped E82, really clean builds you can dig up on BAT. Of course I was tempted to build my own kit but I decided to take a walk down easy street and buy the kit and support a fellow enthusiast. CAN TCU is the controller and the kit also comes with a adapter place, wiring harness, flywheel, etc. everything but the trans. You also get Brad's install support. Kit was $2,700 but I am not sure if he is still offering them, I think I got one of the last ones.

I moved from CA to CO (Denver area) but my E70 and E61 are owned by my LLC in Montana

My in-laws are just down the road from your folks in Eastridge!

Ya, thats how I found out about the swap, came across his installation videos. The plate and fluid in/out adapter look top notch.

Oh, gotcha. My brother is in Fort Collins.

Haha, crazy. Have to go by there to get to their place.
Highly recommend you go to Caymus-Suisun while you're out there sometime, its just down the road a few miles.

Will be keeping an eye out here for your swap update!

[ucsbwsr]

X5 is filthy but some pics anyway:

[Spaceme1117]

Curious about your Camaro wheels. Are they the same size rims and tires front and back?

[ucsbwsr]

Originally Posted by Spaceme1117

Curious about your Camaro wheels. Are they the same size rims and tires front and back?

Camaro wheels are a square setup, 295/45/20x11

[jokers5]

Which program do you use to activate the extras?

[ucsbwsr]

Originally Posted by jokers5

Which program do you use to activate the extras?

I assume you are referring to coding and if so, NCSExpert, INPA, Pro Tools, and ISTAD/P

[jokers5]

Originally Posted by ucsbwsr

I assume you are referring to coding and if so, NCSExpert, INPA, Pro Tools, and ISTAD/P

Yes, for eample folding mirror
Thanks


Where can I buy Morimoto xb LED fog light retrofit?