Trappy,

Given your comments above about gearing would you mind providing the BHP figures for

30-70
20-50

as well?

Again, to give an E46 M3 equivalent coupe?

Next time I see you at Rog's perhaps you will take me for a spin in your coupe so I can feel the power - never been in a modified car?

Thanks
Steve

20-50mph. E46 M3 1.9s
You aren't going to beat an M3. Using road tyres the M3 can simply put down more force. The coop's low down speed is limited, and as you increase the power, you increase the 'feathered throttle period'. You see my calculator gives every car a max force it can deploy. For the coop it's 5.13Gs, the M3 5.99Gs.

30-70mph. E46 M3 4.4s
It isn't possible to give a 'required bhp to match' because of the reasons Barnacle and I outlined above. It's even more complicated than that though as the mean power needs to reflect power that is being affected more and more by drag. It would be fair to say that 265bhp might be enough to level peg with an E46 M3 from 30-70mph, but as the speed of the increments rises, the required power also rise. Hence to match the M3s top speed of 168-173mph, you'd need to modify the gear ratios (or rev limit) and be making around 310-315bhp at the fly at the redline. Of course you's then hammer the M3 from 40mph on though.

When you have two cars with different CDAs and different weights, there is no way you can make them perform the same from standstill to top speed. The closest you can get is an overlap somewhere in the middle.

(power@wheels-aerodynamic drag)/ weight

That formula explains it all really.

Just let me know when you're booked in over there on a Saturday. I'm only 10 mins away and can usually spare 30 mins so I'll pop over and take you for a spin

For those of you doing all calculations to work this out seriously man get a life or a girlfriend... lol

Id say 300bhp on the safe side.

Just ask this guy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpoa9iFabD8

Thats an early model 3.0L E36...quite a bit of difference in performance to an E46!

Well it's not an BMW M3 E46, but this is what is required for a 2005 Mercedes E55 AMG @ 480bhp

Amazingly, I have a life, a family, and a full time job, and yet I still manage to find time to create a calculator to shed a little light on the subject of many petrolheads' questions that arise on motoring forums.



If that is your estimate as to the required peak bhp to give a 20vT the performance of an E46 M3, then you'd be wrong for the reasons I've outlined above.

Truely massive performance from the coupe there. I love our cars.

dyslexia sucks