All of us we here at BimmerFile are enormous fans of the Nordschleife. Some of us dream of driving there while some of us already have and await the next trip to the Green Hell.
What better way to start your daydreams about speeding around the “Karrusell” than a piece of toast branded with the ‘Ring on it? Heck we can’t think of one better except for having a tall glass of Gerolsteiner and lemon to wash it down.
It seems we are not alone as the Nürburgring fan shop has an officially licensed toaster available for just shy of 30 euros. We know of at least one person out there that should own this piece of machinery… it would match the plate on their Z4- (MB; we’ll get you one if you do not already have it sitting on your counter!)
You asked for it, and now we have it- the official BMW Performance 1 Series accessories price reductions. Pricing has come down across the board for all items. This is thanks in no small part to the new Accessory Development Manager of BMW Performance and Motorsport, Eric Riehle.
Eric, a true enthusiast, was kind enough to take the passenger seat with us for an in-depth interview that will be published soon. Stay tuned for more BMW Performance news during the weeks ahead.
BMWNA recently announced that it was reducing some of the BMW Performance accessories prices for the 1 Series. This is welcomed news, as all along we have felt that the BMW Performance line are a top notch products but the pricing was a bit steep considering the larger market (even for the over-engineered and great looking accessories they are).
Some of the reductions are as follows:
BMW Performance Sport Brakes (P/N- 34 110 443 865)
Original MSRP= $2450
New MSRP= $1868
BMW Performance Black Kidney Grilles (P/N- 51 710 441 920/921)
After the long wait we finally have some more information on the Power Kit for the 135i and 335i. Some of it is good news and some if it not so good. BMW has gone extra lengths to improve cooling with this kit, to keep reliability intact. As with all BMW Performance Accessories the factory warranty remains.
The kit is available for new car purchases as a port installed option. While it is recommended to install the exhaust with the kit is not a requirement, this will also cut down on labor time. Output is increased to levels we all expected, with an added bump in torque to the automatic as the transmission has a higher threshold.
The kit is not currently available as a dealer installed accessory though it is anticipated to be introduced to dealers as soon as it is certified.
Some pricing models are included, but at this point your dealer is the best option for prices as this can only be added to new car sales.
When this kit is given the approval to be installed outside the port there will be different versions of it based on the DME- ECU of the vehicle. There will be an increase cost for dealer installed kits of older pre-LCI vehicles but we will have more on that later.
BMW Performance Power Kit
Aftersales is pleased to announce the launch of the much anticipated BMW Performance Power Kit for the 135i and 335i models. With sporty performance, outstanding driving dynamics and innovative technology, the BMW Performance Power Kit maintains all of BMW’s key attributes but allows our customers to put a personal touch on their BMW.
The effects of the modifications to the engine tuning parameters include:
Increased torque of 317ft-lbs (manual transmission) or 332ft-lbs (automatic transmission) available from just 1,500 rpm.
Increased power output of 20 horsepower from 300 to 320hp
Faster acceleration from 0 to 60m/hour (0.2seconds quicker than the standard model) and from 50 to 75m/hour (0.5seconds quicker than the standard model).
The first N54 engine kit has reached the US and is currently at BMWNA. The kit will be available to consumers in about 3-5 weeks. There have been numerous hold ups with this kit not originating in the US. The final numbers have not been officially announced but expect an “underated” power increase of 25 hp and a similar torque bump. We also have additional BMW Performance news that we will report on soon.
Last week I had the privilege of spending some time with Stephen Zoepf, behind the wheel of a 135i equipped with many of the latest offerings from BMW Performance. Stephen is the Accessory Development Manager – Performance, at BMW of North America. Aside from the wonderful car I was able to experience, Stephen helped shed some light on the BMW Performance program in general.
Since it is hard to conduct a full interview from behind the wheel of a car with an intoxicating exhaust, some of this information may be paraphrased. Enjoy!
BimmerFile: Can you tell me a little about yourself and how you became involved with BMW Performance?
Stephen Zoepf: I was born in Brussels, Belgium in 1979 and graduated from MIT in 2001 with a degree in electrical engineering. As a product development engineer with the Ford Motor Company, I acquired my taste for performance tuning as a member of the Ford Focus SVT development team. Started with BMWNA in 2004 as an accessory development engineer, and in 2007 began my position within BMW Performance.
BimmerFile is dedicated to bringing you the most interesting news, links and reviews related to the BMW brand and it's vehicles.
We believe in the old school BMW ownership experience. We believe in garage nights with a six pack and some friends. We believe in 2002s, in E30 M3s and E34 540s with the 6 speed. We believe in progress in both design and engineering but we haven't lost sight of what made the brand and its products great all those years ago. And yes, we believe in the manual transmission.
We long for the days of the wave and for the days of roll-up windows. Yet we love the gadgets on the inside and the xenons on the outside.
In short, we can't get enough of BMWs. This is BimmerFile.
Sections: Accessories Feb 24th, 2010 3 Comments 
