BMW e90 M3 LSL - Refresh

Primary concern was the engine and its health. Oil analysis of what was inside when purchased was perfect, and now, about 5 oil changes later, its still consistently clean with no sign of excessive wear. The actuators were slowly failing and I replaced those with new units. All else on the engine is clean, with no leaks or issues.

I serviced the vehicle fully with new Motul engine oil (Xcess 10w60) and now most recently with Torco SR-5R with which it runs great. Have yet to do an oil test with the Torco, but seeing how it performs in the Porsche engines - I don't think there is much to worry about, especially with its MPZ chemistry.

Replaced the differential fluid with Motul and had a full DCT flush, filter and pan refresh done by the experts at Performance Technic when I visited the Bay Area along with a full alignment check.

Installed new plugs, cabin filters and new engine air filter on the pre-existing AFE intake as well. Suspension showed normal wear and tear and is slated for upgraded anyway. Brakes were worn out and I just recently overhauled the whole setup.

The felt undertray thing was pretty beat up and was missing one side. It seemed only logical to go with a metal unit and I opted for the Turner part. Very strong unit thats well designed and rigidly mounts to the bottom of the car. I've now scraped it a few times, but it holds up well.

The car is driven 70ish miles a day and runs like clockwork. Only major things left would be a coolant flush (with a cooling system upgrade) and power steering flush. Need to get the GTS DCT calibration done as well.

A full paint correction and ceramic pro treatment was completed by Polished Detail in Orange County which brought the Silverstone paint back to showroom look along with a deep shine. All the gloss black elements are back to new as well. Being skeptical at first - the ceramic pro layers really do wonders for keeping the LA dust and elements from sticking to the surface. A quick wash every week or two is a much easier affair with the right soaps. The wheels got a treatment too and its night and day with keeping them free of brake dust. 

BMW e90 M3 LSL - Intro

BMW e90 M3 LSL
Limousine Sport Leichtbau
2009-10-21

2010 BMW M3 Sedan
4.0L V8
DCT
Silverstone Metallic II
Novillo Palladium Silver

The BMW CSL vehicles were based on coupes with performance and weight reduction enhancements. Over the years BMW has made a few special sedans like the E90 CRT and now the F80 CS which follow the same mentality. I was always attracted by the notion of minimal, performance oriented machines like the E46 CSL and the spartan GT3 Porsche which maintained street sensibility with full track readiness.

While the E90 M3 CRT was a great technical exercise in carbon technologies it was still a fully loaded sedan which, in my mind, contradicted its purpose. It is also unobtainable. The sedans are unique, well proportioned vehicles.  The S65B40 is a phenomenal engine, clearly built with purpose with the large intake, port matched individual throttle bodies and equal length headers. When paired with the DCT makes for quite the driving machine. Being around the Porsche PDKs brought me over to the double clutch world. The BMW DCT is a very solid unit, especially with the GTS update. My only real preference when seeking out the E90 M3 was to have minimal options along with the DCT transmission. I also liked the Silverstone Metallic II color as its less common and quite elegant in person. A 2010 sedan with 85k miles popped up with the sunroof and the leather seats as the only things I didn't care for. The car had failing throttle actuators which were an easy replacement and needed some general maintenance to refresh critical components. It came with lowering springs, primary cat delete and “exhaust mod”. It’s almost the perfect platform to start with to build the e90 M3 LSL (Limousine Sport Leichtbau). Its a sedan based nod to the CSL and how I believe the CRT could’ve been to some extent.

I am a professional working in the automotive aftermarket and motorsport industry and this is my personal R&D project building an e90 M3 LSL.