.: Landshark Automotive :.

Projects
This area of our website is dedicated to all past and current projects, for both our personal and clients' cars. Check back often as information is updated regularly and new pictures will be added as well.

2004 BMW 325XiA (return to top)
Tek has brought in his immaculate 325Xi for routine maintenance and asked about performance options for his car. E46 325, while not a slush in stock form, surely could use some more oopmh with automatic AND all-wheel drive. We contacted ESS Tuning in Norway to find out if they had a supercharging system that would not only deliever a significant increase in power, but would to it safely for both automatic transmission and AWD components of the car. Luckily, ESS had exactly what we needed: TS1 twin-screw supercharger system that had been detuned slightly to work for automatic transmission and/or AWD components. After only 5 days in the shop, supercharger is in the car. The results are absolutely astonishing: power delivery, linear increase in acceleration, overtaking power in ANY gear at ANY RPM, all while maintaining factory-like look and feel of the car.

See below for pictures of the end result:

(click on each image to open a larger version)

and short video of the car at idle and few WOT runs:

2001 BMW M5 / 2000 BMW Z8 (return to top)
Gordon H. has brought in his M5 to do a Clutch Delay Valve install as well as Eisenhaus Race exhaust system. He loved the result so much that next came his immaculate silver Z8 roadster. Hand-made Eisenhaus Race exhaust system sporting 4x83mm round tips was sourced directly from Germany and installed. Since BMW NA played a rather mean trick on Z8 owners, leaving their cars with open differential, a 3.64 Quaife Automatic Torque Biasing differential was custom-built by Brett Anderson from Koala Motorsport and promptly installed. Result is amazing: car feels incredibly faster off the line with increased traction and absolutely no wheel slip, while throaty sound of Eisenhaus exhaust completing the picture. In our opinion, simply the best upgrade for Z8 owners!

1997 BMW M3/4 (return to top)
Jim S. originally brought his then newly-purchased M3 sedan to us to do some scheduled maintenance work. Being a Skip Barber racing school graduate, Jim spent some time on the track and appreciated his car's excellent dynamics, balance and precision. With this in mind, we came up with a list of recent upgrades that turned this already magnificent super-salon into a true ultimate driving machine.
Rear shock mounts were replaced with JT Designs ones, accompanied by JT Designs' own underpanel. UUC Evo3 short shift kit and DSSR were installed, accompanied by UUC's stainless steel brake and clutch lines. Fluidyne racing radiator was installed in place of heavy OEM unit, along with new water pump and thermostat. JT Designs oil block was installed with custom senders to provide for console-mounted VDO gauges. BMW LTW x-brace and UUC StrutBarbarian were installed to keep the front chassis flex to minimum; 3.46 40% limited-slip differential was dropped in the tail to provide neck-snapping acceleration. Set of 4 forged BMW LTW wheels and Michelin PilotSport v3 tires were installed to keep the car planted to the ground.

Recent upgrades to Jim's immaculate M3 now include: KW Suspension Variant1 coil-over system, Stewart water pump with fan delete, custom front-mounted lightweight Spal fan in place of bulky (and expensive) stock auxiliary fan assembly. Inside there's a custom hand-made interior that is out of this world. Don't take our words for it, see for yourself!

2001 BMW Z3 2.8 Supercharged (return to top)
Joe R. brought his blown roadster to us to investigate an oil leak issue. Incorrect (to say the least) fitment of the supercharger setup by a well-known installer and a missing oil catch can/valve were to blame and were promptly resolved. Vortech blower was rebuilt as internal seal developed a leak and the entire system was reinstalled with new vacuum lines being put in place.
Max Velocity's custom-built oil cooler was added at the time with front-mounted air-to-air intercooler. UUC's Evo3 short shift kit was installed along with DSSR and UUC underdrive pulleys. BMW E46 330 front calipers were fitted in the front (330mm vs stock 280mm) along with Brembo cross-drilled/slotted/plated rotors, StopTech stainless steel brake lines and Porterfield R4S pads on all four corners. Custom-built 3.46 50% limited-slip differential with plated discs was installed at that time as well.
Future upgrades include RMS air-to-water aftercooler (whenever available), Ignition Solutions' plasma coils with colder NGK spark plugs, accompanied by ECU reprogram, larger injectors and crank pulley upgrade to raise the boost to 9PSI. BMW Z4 6-speed transmission and custom driveshaft are also in the works, so stay tuned!

1996 BMW 318tiA Sport (return to top)
This is the car that started it all.. Originally purchased as a daily driver for Dimitri's wife (hence the automatic transmission), it was already a competent, if a little underpowered, package to start from. It was then modified further to highlight vehicle's excellent driving dynamics and balance while retaining "civilized" feel and road manners, enough for it to be still used daily.
Future plans are top-end rebuild whenever needed (currently 110k mi and still running new) that would be followed by Downing Atlanta supercharger.

.: Suspension :.
- Bilstein Touring struts and shocks
- OEM Sport springs
- M3 lower control arm bushings
- Sparco front strut tower bar
- LTW x-brace bar

.: Engine :.
- Kirban Cold Air Intake
- Dinan AT chip
- Bosal Brospeed sport exhaust with custom Ansa resonator

.: Brakes :.
- Zimmerman cross-drilled rotors
- Axxis Ultimate pads

.: Wheels/Tires :.
- Fittipaldi Tubolare 17x7.5 with Nankang NS-1 225/45Z-17 tires

.: Exterior/Interior :.
- Euro clear turn signals
- Sylvania SylverStar high/low/fog lights
- Black-out grille

.: Convenience and Entertainment :.
- Blaupunkt CD50 CD-Player
- Clifford alarm with remote starter

1997 BMW 328iA (return to top)
This was purchased as a second car to serve as Dimitri's source of transportation in the winter months as well as backup for gracefully aging 318ti.
A lot of though was put into improving this car's handling and dynamics and we are extremely pleased with the results: with only minor engine upgrades, our car delivers almost an M3-level of performance while maintaining bullet-proof factory-like reliability and enjoying much improved handling that is usable for both street and track.
Due to the fact that we wanted to stay with normally-aspirated engine, future upgrades are limited to Rouge Engineering pulleys and Dinan AT software.

.: Suspension :.
- Tokico Illumina externally adjustable struts and shocks
- Tokico sport springs
- M3 lower control arm bushings
- Sparco front strut tower bar
- AA Tuning rear tower bar
- LTW x-brace bar

.: Engine :.
- M50 OBD-I Intake Manifold
- S52 Cams
- Shark Injector Programming
- BenFer Performance Cold Air Intake
- HKS Klasse sport exhaust

.: Brakes :.
- Brembo cross-drilled/slotted rotors
- Stainless steel brake lines
- Axxis Ultimate pads

.: Wheels/Tires :.
- RRS S5 17x8.5 with Nankang NS-1 235/40Z-17 tires

.: Exterior/Interior :.
- Euro clear turn signals
- ZKW Euro ellipsoid headlights
- Hoen xenonmatch plus high/low/fog lights
- Racing Dynamics front bumper cover
- e46 M3 trunk lip spoiler
- Rieger roof spoiler

.: Convenience and Entertainment :.
- OEM 6-Disk CD-Changer
- Stellar alarm

1995 BMW 540iA (return to top)
Jonathan L. has brought his car to us hoping to diagnose slipping third gear in his '95 540 automatic. With car being auto-crossed frequently, we suggested a manual transmission swap that was not only a financially-friendly option but also allowed the owner to spend more time enjoying his car on the track, shaving seconds off of his lap times.
6-speed transmission off of a E34 540 Sport was accompanied by 3.15 LSD from '88 750iL for added zip on the track without giving up too much top end (and gas mileage) on the highway.

1994 BMW 530iA (return to top)
After a complete engine/tranny swap, Garth B. had a perfect track car: an e34 530 with 540 engine and 6-speed manual transmission. Stock (open) differential gearing was too high for everyday use, though, so yet another e32 3.15 LSD was provisioned and installed, giving a car much needed extra traction and civilized road manners.
Future plans include Shrick camshafts, under drive pulleys and ESS supercharger system. Stay tuned.