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500 HP BMW M3 goes Hybrid Audio

114K views 257 replies 88 participants last post by  Tonyguy 
#1 ·
So we got a turbocharged BMW E36 M3 in our shop that need a bit of a make over. The customer wants L8's in his kickpanels. No problem. Here is the car:




And here is the preliminary fitting of the L8's:


And guess what? They fit :)

 
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#11 ·
being vented to the outside, does that not pose road noise problems?

a fender, plastic, and then a light paper cone shielding noise from the outside?
We're not done yet. The pic is just the test fitting.

The car is also getting a Second Skin deadening makeover. Road noise will not be an issue.
 
#13 ·
curious about the 500+hp M3 sedan... what's done?

I wish my WRX had a little cavity hidden in the inner fender area like that... I'd be all over 8"s in the kick...

Rob
 
#16 ·
Car details here: Need to Sell -- 500whp M3 for $14,500 ASAP - Bimmerforums - The Ultimate BMW Forum

It's a 500HP turbo'd M3, I'm not thinking that road/engine noise was of very much concern to the owner of that car. :)

Nice car though and I'll be looking forward to seeing the finished install.
This car will be getting quite a bit of sound deadening. Here are some pics of the trunk in progress. I used Second Skin's Spectrum product. It took quite a few coats as well as a coating of Spectrum Sludge in a few areas, but the results are very impressive. It is nice to be able to get deadening in areas you normally cannot reach.









cant wait to see the results :)

but i got you beat in the HP department haha, i am doing a 556 WHP e46 in a month or two...

unfortunately its not going to be an SQ install, he rarely drives it and just need the show points...oh well...cant wait to see the final results mang :)
Not sure you will beat me. There is a 1000HP E46 coming in next. :)
 
#17 ·
I think "urple" is a cool off color for teh m class beemers... One of my fav's from the 90's was the 325 IX (the IX was ALL wheel drive)...:cool:
 
#24 ·
Got a good part of the rest of the car deadened. Also got some work done on the subwoofer enclosure. The car won't need much of it with those L8's, but the owner wants to have some big bass on tap for some occasional fun.

The car will be getting an Image Dynamics IDMAX12v3 in a ported enclosure. It is going in the spare tire well.










The bottom half will be fiberglass and the top is up to 2 1/4" Birch plywood

So far the enclosure is 34.2 lbs, and the spare was 44 lbs. so there has been so significant weight added.
 
#26 ·
Nice work, I always like seeing 8's upfront, and in the kicks - even better. So this will be an outisde venting jobbie?

I had concerns too about the sparks and the paint, but only being able to judge from a youtube video, I'm sure the fireman had a better idea of where the sparks were going. I guess you pulled the carpet up inside too.
 
#27 ·
Thanks,

I would love to vent them to the outside, but with weather issues, it is not going to happen. There are enclosures being made that will be sealing them. They will be as big as possible to try to "fool" the L8 into thinking it is IB. It is a pretty smart speaker, and cannot be fooled easily :)

The car has been mostly "gutted" as it is also getting Second Skin Damping throughout. Also The plasma cutter does not emit sparks on the cutting side. They are thrown pretty much straight out from the air pressure. The door is about 45 degrees off of the cutting plane, so no sparks hit it. I did have a guy there watching to make sure. If there was any chance of damage to the car it wouldn't have been used. Also, the cutter runs very cool, and the sparks are pretty much the same temperature as using a grinding wheel, so not a chance for much damage.
 
#28 ·
Looking good... I gasped when I saw the plasma near paint also.

I've managed to ruin windscreens and paint (on a car that was being repainted anyways) with plasma's and grinders before. Molten metal is the same whether it comes froma welder, plasma or grinder.
 
#29 ·
So what function does the metal you are cutting into have? Does it not reduce rigidity when you cut big holes in the chassis? Is it just an inner fender to prevent road noise and such? I've only gone as far as 2 inch vent holes to keep away from flexing.
 
#31 ·
Some progress pics:

We are building fenderwell enclosures for the L8's. I would love to vent them to the outside, but since this is a daily driver it is not going to be practical. This the first 3 layers of fiberglass applied.



A good portion of the car has been deadened and the subwoofer enclosure is under way.



The amp rack will be built from steel and will be 3 levels high. It will allow some use of the folding back seats for long items. Here is a pic of one of the 3 levels under construction.

 
#33 ·
Looking good - enclosures are looking fantastic. I'm not questioning your ability (far from it because this is a great install) though what's your reasoning for trying at IB instead of making a sealed enclosure? Just not easy enough to get the right volume in the quarter panel?
Keep at it, I can't wait to find out how these L8s go :)
 
#34 ·
Hybrid Audio drivers excel in IB locations. That is actually what they are designed for. Unfortunately this car will get road splash/water in that location and we cannot afford to have leaks or the speakers damaged.

I have had long discussions with the owner of the car and we decided that sacrificing a bit of low end for longevity will be much more practical for this car. The enclosures will be very close to the VAS of the speaker, so they will still sound incredible. In a perfect world it would not rain, you wouldn't have to wash your car and there would be nothing dirty except internet porn. :)
 
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