Rafal

I am sorry to disappoint all my fellow E55 owners, but those two Bavarian upstarts are really quick once they get going!
Yesterday, at Eastern Creek in Sydney, I had the opportunity to race against an M6 as well as witness my friend in his M5 "low-flying" in a different group.
Both these cars easily reached 150 mph+ at the same point on the main straight, where I was only getting to 135-140mph.
It was a different story around the circuit, though. My E55 shod with Dunlop semi slicks made mince-meat of the M6 on stock Pirelli P-Zeros.
I was following the M6, who left the pits 30 sec ahead and could see on every turn how he was just beginning to lose grip whilst I was still holding tight. Everytime that happened, I gained a few feet. Eventually, I caught up with him on Turn12, before the main straight and it was all over.
I just powered out of the exit and overtook him in the first 200m. Once in front, he could never pass me again over the remaining laps!
Verdict: we are better out of the hole, or out of a slow turn or rolling from 40 to 100mph. Once they get to 125mph, we are all toast, fellas!

Attached photos of the three cars. BTW, I killed that M3 too.

Observe my "view in the mirror" track-day license plate and blacked out fog lights (no stone chips on glass lenses!)!

PS. Log onto jpm photo site, select "gallery", and then "O'Neill/Burrows Drive Days- 3 May" for lots more photos.

TopGun32

i would venture to say that a pulley and chip will help. But you will need to replace the IC pump atleast to keep the temps down.

did you experience any heat loss of power? or did the car feel strong throughout the entire race?


It comes down to the 7sp vs 5sp, stock vs stock the M5 will fly above 125+

can't wait to see a E63 and M5 run at a road course. I'm not implying that the M5 will loose, but simply that the 7 spds + and more torque will be able to keep up on the straights and power off corners better. The M5 will probably outbrake and out corner any luxury sport sedan with the CLS63 a close second.

stevebez

Hey Rafal thanks ... I think!

I assume your motor is stock ? ... yeah its the damn tranny that makes us slow >125mph, at least this mostly only shows up on the track thankfully!

Interesting that the M6 could not overhaul you on the straight once you got past him out the bend though !!

How much you think your lowering module helped handling ? Also how did your brakes hold up ? Any warning lights ?

Rgds Steve.

MiamiAMG

Great write up, looks like our E55's can more than hang with the new M's without a problem. I don't see myself going over 125 mph much anyways, so that shouldn't be a problem.

KompressorKev

given the respective powerbands and the way power was achieved, i am not surprised. the 55's have a great advantage down low, but the m5's potential is not manifested until higher speeds, when its gearing and the nature of its powerband are its advantages. the 55's torque advantage, especially in the low and mid range, is not realized as much at higher speeds.

JohnAMG

Yeah, going +125MPH on New York Thruway is not going to happen also, at least only for a few seconds. So I guess the E55 is a keeper for now.

John

Kev04C320

I just went to try out an M6 today. Got stuck in traffic for some time due to the sox game and then opened her up a little bit on Storrow.

I would say it's a very nimble car for its size (it's wider and longer and longer than the E55) and handles very well in the narrow streets of Boston. It's very agile with a lot less body roll than the E55, during high speed turn.

However, the torque at low end is definitely lacking. You'll have to keep the car in high rpm range to get the juice that you need. Since I don't get to drive at 120+mph that often in the States, wifey and I think that our beast would be a keeper until the 63TT debut.

The styling of the M6 is actually pretty good, much better than its brother, the M5. Wifey commented that the hood is a little too high up for her taste and the front looks wider than the back. We then went up stairs to look at some 997. She likes the look of the 997 much better than the M6.

So in the mean time, we're considering getting a P-Car C4S or TT for pleasure driving.

egxpimp

Having the front wider then the back gives the car its stellar handeling...go look at F1 cars for an example...

Rafal

Yes, it is stock, just the Green Filters and heat shielded intake hoses (for show). Every session lasts 20 min,which is about 8-9 x2.5mi laps and the engine temp never budged from 85C/185F = same as in normal suburban driving.

On a couple of laps I let the M6 close in behind me to let him race me down the straight.
Once we got onto the straight, I could not shake him off my rear bumper, but he did not have enough momentum (or guts) to risk passing me before the big sweeping 110mph Turn 1 at the end of the straight.

My "mild" 0.6" lowering works fantastically well and whilst there is still a bit of a roll on tight bends (on Sport 2 of course), watch the M3 behind me, no one can defy the laws of physics!
Brakes held up very well, with the warning light coming on only in the pit lane after each session, but I used them sparingly.
R-compound semi-slick tires give the biggest advantage on circuit. You carry more speed into the corners, they don't overheat as easily as road tires and you don't need to brake so hard before every turn: just a light tap on the brake pedal to shift the weight forward a fraction and on the gas again, squeezing it progressively down as you go around the apex.

CynCarvin32

Looks like great fun Rafal. Your lowering sure seems to have reduced the amount of body roll.

Could you measure your ride height in Sports II sometime and let me know (distance from center of wheel hub (MB star on the center cap) to the fender lip)? I just want to see how your car stacks up to the others out there. I had mine re-set to 13.6 front and 13.3 (inches) rear which is about .5 inches lower than stock in the Sports II setting.

Also what sized wheels and tires do you use for tack days?

I know you had a set of SL55 5 spokes before but clearly you went with the 19's and their more mellow off-set. Did the SL55 wheels work at the track or were they just to prone to rubbing?

Thanks

Rafal

Actually, I am on STOCK 18" split spokes:
8"ET30 F and 9"ET39+5mm H&R spacer = ET34 R.
Front tires 235/40/18, Rear 265/35/18 - These are the only sizes available in the hard compound on the Dunlop DZ02G, a bit small but gearing is good for acceleration.
I use my 19" PS2's only with my street set up.

Measurements with 255/35/19 and 285/30/19 as follows:F 13.2" R 13.1"

Rafal

I have considered K2 but with so many modified cars overheating in normal street driving, let alone lap after lap on the circuit, I cannot risk engine failure on a USD 190K (in Australia) car and no warranty from MB.
With identical race tires these BMW's would be harder to beat, for sure.
With a correct set up the E55 is no push over on the circuit and the only 2cars that overtook me on the bends all day were a Lotus Elise and a Nissan 200SX (Sylvia)Turbo (heavily modified) on Falken Azenis semi slicks.
They are 50% and 65% of E55 weight respectively, and corner much better.
Photos of of those two cars attached.

CynCarvin32

Thanks for the info. As far as the front tires being small, a R-comp tire in 235 very often has a wider section width and a wider tread patch since it is a more aggressive tire. How is understeer with that track set-up?

Your measurements are very nice. That is about where I would be if I did not have to travel on some of the worlds worst roads known to man kind (not quite that bad but some parts of southern california are just terrible). Your car looks very nice a the track and you make me want to take my car out there with some R-comp tires and pick on those smaller and lighter vehicles.

Was the reason you parted with the SL55 + tires wheels rubbing? Or am I dreaming that you did try those at one point?

Rafal

Not at all, I love them and still have them in the garage (my 3rd set). They have a very nice offset (30F and 33R), which, combined with 8.5 " and 9.5" width gives the 245/275 PS2's a great stance! I used them for a whole year before switching to 19" I have now.

I just wanted these 19" wheels with 255/285 PS2 like everybody else!

SoxFan

Seeing that I don't see going over 125, which car is faster 0-60, 40-60, and say 60-90?

Kev04C320

Hands down the E55 in Boston's traffic.

Go try out the one at Herb Chambers on Comm Ave.

Rafal

I would say you are pretty safe at all those speeds, until you hit 125-150mph where the Kompressor runs out of steam and starts using up as much energy as it produces. Also, E55's 5 speed vs. M5's 6 speed does not help.
Our cars, with all that low down torque, are much more flexible and feel much faster around town.