Technik cams

[BayerischeMW]

i'm looking into getting cams for my non-S/C step 330. technik offers 248/248 and 264/248, and i understand the difference between them, and also that there's a performance difference as well (264/248 is ~20 rwhp IIRC, what are the stats for the 248/248?).

my question is, what are the pros & cons of the 248/248 over the 264/248 and vice versa? are there any problems related to the 264/248 that the 248/248 doesn't/won't have?

thanks in advance.

[Oshin02]

I believe that ZHP cams are 248/248......Someone correct me if I'm wrong

[BayerischeMW]

any info from Samir on this would be helpful, thanks.

[samir@technik]

what are the stats for the 248/248?).

About 15WHP.

my question is, what are the pros & cons of the 248/248 over the 264/248 and vice versa? are there any problems related to the 264/248 that the 248/248 doesn't/won't have?

264 = more duration on the intake side, which means the valve hangs open longer and takes in more air. There really are no negatives. The 248/248 was originally developed for the M52TU engines (2.5/2.8). Then, once the M54 came out, 264/248 was released, primarily for the 3.0. However, this cam can be used on all E46 engines.

[BayerischeMW]

thanks Samir.

so there's no additional wear & tear to speak of with these cams? only added sound and power. wow, where's the trade-off my econ-prof taught me :mischief:

[samir@technik]

so there's no additional wear & tear to speak of with these cams?

Nope.

[BayerischeMW]

that's nice to hear. i've read some stories about idle-problems and sluggish city-driving..?

where is the added power supposed to be found, low, mid or high RPMs? i assume mid to top, but is there any loss to speak of in low RPMs or torque?

i appreciate your help a lot!

[samir@technik]

that's nice to hear. i've read some stories about idle-problems and sluggish city-driving..?

No, not at all. You'll only have issues if they aren't installed right.

where is the added power supposed to be found, low, mid or high RPMs? i assume mid to top, but is there any loss to speak of in low RPMs or torque?

No, you'll feel the gains throughout the powerband, low/mid/topend.

[BayerischeMW]

thanks a lot Samir, great info :thumbsup:

[pei330ci]

I"m running the 264/248 cams, and they idle beautifully about 100 RPM lower than stock.

As far as power goes...I would have to say the biggest difference is in the characteristic of the engine. It simply is smoother at all RPMs, and really revs out nice. The cams were installed with Conforti software already loaded into the ECU, and the car runs very nicely over 6k with no CEL or fault codes to date. (I had the cams installed in September)

I took the car on a long trip just after the cams were put in, and my fuel economy actually improved. On a 1200 Km trip that I've done many many times, I averaged 7.8L / 100kms. Previously I had averaged pretty consistently about 8L / 100 kms.

If you add up the cost of a CAI, Software, and a good exhaust, you'll find the sum to be very close to getting cams after installation costs are included. The cams will give you more power. :)

[BayerischeMW]

thanks a lot pei330ci! very useful first-hand experience. how do you feel the power difference? have you dyno'ed?

[pei330ci]

No Dyno yet...I kind of live in the middle of nowhere. There are actually people that ask me what a BMW is on the street, and if it's Japanese...yeah...that kind of middle of no where. :)

Anyway, yes the Cams make good power. As an example, with the Conforti software I saw 6100 RPM in 5th gear down a certain long straight. With the cams installed, I saw 6600 RPM in 5th gear and I was still pulling.

As a side note, buy from a vendor you can communicate with easily. Cams sometimes need a little "phone" support to help you find the right installer. There are questions you need to ask to find out if the installer know's what they are doing...it's good to know these up front. Personally I recomend doing business with Technic.

Adam

[david05111]

On the technik website, it shows the cams, but it says that they are only for 330s up until '03. Are these cams available for '04 or '05 cars?

[BayerischeMW]

pei330ci: how does the engine sound with the cams?

[pei330ci]

Yes the cams change the sound of the engine....especially above 3000 RPM.

At low RPMs it sounds fairly normal, but at higher RPMs it's about 50% louder than stock. (at least to my ear) And there's a kind of "Blat" to the sound of the engine that sounds a lot like how a Viper V10 sounds.

I can't imagine how loud the car will be when the Technic headers go on with the TSE3.

[samir@technik]

On the technik website, it shows the cams, but it says that they are only for 330s up until '03. Are these cams available for '04 or '05 cars?

Yes, 01-06. New site will be up soon.

[BayerischeMW]

would a port and polished cylinder head give added benefit when combined with the 264/248 cams? thanks

[bmw_chuzo]

so I can put a zhp cam on my 328 (m52tu)?

[samir@technik]

would a port and polished cylinder head give added benefit when combined with the 264/248 cams? thanks

Yes, head and cam are complementary mods that work very well when done together.

[samir@technik]

so I can put a zhp cam on my 328 (m52tu)?

Yes.

[BayerischeMW]

thanks Samir.

since you offer both 248/248 and 264/248 profiles, what would be the reasoning behind people choosing 248/248 (does anyone do this?) on a NA tuned car?

[samir@technik]

since you offer both 248/248 and 264/248 profiles, what would be the reasoning behind people choosing 248/248 (does anyone do this?) on a NA tuned car?

248/248 was the first profile available when the E46 first came out (323/328). It was then superceded by the 264/248 when the 325/330 came out. But since there is still an application for it, we still offer it. As far as reasoning, there isn't any really...the 264s will yield more power, so they are the better choice for an NA application. We used to recommend the 248/248 for FI applications, but those have now been eclipsed by the 248/256 and 260/268 setups.

[BayerischeMW]

good info, thanks :thumbsup:

would you suggest getting custom ECU tuning with cams & head, or will "regular" tuned software (Technik, ESS etc.) be sufficient?

is there anything that *needs* retuning with such a setup, thus making custom tuning necessary? or would custom software just give another couple hp?

thanks

[samir@technik]

good info, thanks :thumbsup:

would you suggest getting custom ECU tuning with cams & head

That depends on what you mean by "custom". The only way to really "tune" a car is on the dyno and that can usually be more expensive than a regular program. If someone is telling you they can "tune" your car over email (or by sending your ECU in), then they're just selling you regular performance software. In the end, a basic performance chip will work perfectly fine with that setup (the stock injectors are good for about 300HP).

[BayerischeMW]

thanks Samir. the custom tuning would be performed with a dyno. i want to make sure the car is healthy, not running rich/lean (could this happen after a cam/head install?) and the likes.

should there be a period with "easy" driving after the cam/head install (such as with a supercharger install)?

[samir@technik]

thanks Samir. the custom tuning would be performed with a dyno. i want to make sure the car is healthy, not running rich/lean (could this happen after a cam/head install?) and the likes.

Not unless something was botched during the install.

should there be a period with "easy" driving after the cam/head install (such as with a supercharger install)?

Not really, but it's always a good idea to get the AFR checked out before you get on it hard.

[BayerischeMW]

isn't dynoing the car right after the install "driving it hard"? i never understood that part. people get a S/C installed, dyno it, but everyone says to keep it cool the first period

[samir@technik]

No, what I meant was since you are unsure of the AFR, before you drive it hard on the streets do a run on the dyno. Not because you need to break anything in. With respect to the SCs, doing one or two pulls after the install isn't going to affect anything, but driving it like a madman will. It's the same with breaking in an engine, it's virtually impossible to keep it under redline the first 1000-1500 miles, there will be a couple times when that happens, but as long as the majority of the breakin is spent in moderate RPMs, you'll be fine.

[BayerischeMW]

ah, i follow you now.

thank you very much for your help & time Samir, i've learned a lot :thumbsup:

[AS007]

I plan on going with FI this summer, so what would be the best cam profile that will yield the most power for me? Also I am wondering how much power I will put down with Ported Head, Cams, plus what I already have.... headers, TSE3 exhaust, Intake, Shark Injector, Pulleys?

[samir@technik]

I plan on going with FI this summer, so what would be the best cam profile that will yield the most power for me?

Depends on boost, but under 10-11psi and stock redline, 248/256 is what you need. The 260/268 needs more boost and RPM to fully take advantage of the profile.

Also I am wondering how much power I will put down with Ported Head, Cams, plus what I already have.... headers, TSE3 exhaust, Intake, Shark Injector, Pulleys?

For which car? 328 or 330?

[BM_power]

Interesting... so if i were to install the 264/248 cams now and decide to s/c my bimmer later can the cam be used?

[samir@technik]

No, because the intake and exhaust cams are different. Since the 248 in this case is the outlet cam, you could not install it as an inlet cam later.

[AS007]

Say I went with more boost than 11psi, and I had low comp pistons installed what could I do to raise the revs? Maybe valvesprings and retainers? And its for the 328ci.

[samir@technik]

Yes, you'll need stiffer springs and titanium retainers. I would also suggest swapping out to oversize valves if you're going to mod the valvetrain.

[Kmhmuboy]

I saw that zhp cams will fit a 328i m52 engine, will it also fit a 323i m52? And just to be sure the zhp cams are 248/248? Thanks.

[samir@technik]

ZHP cams are not 248/248 (they will fit all E46 engines).

[BayerischeMW]

i don't want to create another thread, so i'm bumping this.

with the 264/248 cams, how will the powerband look? will the curve flatten out at 5900 rpm like before, just with a higher power output, or will it keep rising all the way up to 6500 rpm (and possibly beyond)?

as for headers, in europe there's a pretty extensive checkup every other year, and they check for both noise @ 5-6000 rpm, and emissions. so with headers, you need cats if you want it legal. what cats are recommended with your gen 2 headers Samir?

i've heard the ones from Supersprint have a tendency to crack, and they're pretty expensive. or are they reliable? if not, what other brands do you recommend?

thank you :)

[BayerischeMW]

bump

[AS007]

Im pretty sure that the 264/248 cams will give you more top end power so peak power will probably continue on to around 6500 and then start to drop off a little. As for cats just get some high flow cats, supersprint offers them, it doesnt really matter which ones you get as long as they are performance oriented cats.

[BayerischeMW]

are these (http://www.evosport.com/product/proddetail.aspx?partnum=EVO.EXH.ALL.C25) evosport cats decent? only difference between the 2.5" and the 3" is the diameter of the pipes right?

[LAFENGAS]

Very good info in this thread. :thumbup:


ZHP cams are not 248/248 (they will fit all E46 engines).

what are the ZHP cam profiles then? I thought they were 248/248 and i was planning to purhcase a set to throw in with my new S/C kit. Samir, I don't know if you have any opinions to throwing the ZHP cams in with my S/C kit (only 8psi). Headers will be going on well. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts.

[AS007]

Evosport high flow cats are good, I dont think going with 3" would make much of a difference. And ya its only the diameter that changes between the 2.5 and 3.

[LAFENGAS]

what are the ZHP cam profiles then? I thought they were 248/248 and i was planning to purhcase a set to throw in with my new S/C kit. Samir, I don't know if you have any opinions to throwing the ZHP cams in with my S/C kit (only 8psi). Headers will be going on well. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts.

^bump :bump:

[samir@technik]

what are the ZHP cam profiles then? I thought they were 248/248 and i was planning to purhcase a set to throw in with my new S/C kit. Samir, I don't know if you have any opinions to throwing the ZHP cams in with my S/C kit (only 8psi). Headers will be going on well. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts.

Nobody knows for certain what the ZHP cams are, since BMW does not give out that info. However, with a cam doc, the OE cams are 230-240ish, ZHPs are probably slightly more aggressive, but not 248/248. If you are boosted, then our FI cams are a better choice, but more expensive than a used set of ZHPs.

[samir@technik]

with the 264/248 cams, how will the powerband look? will the curve flatten out at 5900 rpm like before, just with a higher power output, or will it keep rising all the way up to 6500 rpm (and possibly beyond)?

The powerband doesn't really change, just get's fatter throughout due to higher lift and duration.

as for headers, in europe there's a pretty extensive checkup every other year, and they check for both noise @ 5-6000 rpm, and emissions. so with headers, you need cats if you want it legal. what cats are recommended with your gen 2 headers Samir?

We use RT's 2" sport cats in a dual staggered config.

[beanfree]

Samir: What's the difference between your cats and the magnaflow stainless cats in performance and price.

[samir@technik]

The Magna cat is just a standard (single-piece, dual in/out) converter. The ones we use are 2 smaller, hi-flow cats that weld into each 2" pipe section...these perform much better, but are also 3x the price.

[BayerischeMW]

Random Technology?

[samir@technik]

Yes

[ilkhan4]

Samir, do you guys have a dyno plot to show what the power curve looks like? I think that would be helpful to see real-world changes.

Also, would it make sense to do just the cam alone, and maybe an exhaust? I think +20 rwhp would be just fine for me. Or do I need to do a chip and intake as well?