[dragon43]

Hello all, I have an affinity for the forum, though I have been relatively inactive until this point. That all changes now, as I welcome my M2 to the world of Bimmerpost. I will document every modification, experience, and the (hopefully few) problems I incur. Cool cars are a commonality between us, so I am excited to share the car and give/receive knowledge about these cars to add to the immense and growing information pool surrounding them. After all, connecting with other like-minded individuals is a considerable factor in purchasing and owning enthusiast cars, so I’m looking forward to getting personal opinions, criticisms, and feedback in general.

With that, some details about the car are in order. It is a 2016 BMW M2 finished in Black Sapphire Metallic with the Executive Package and, of course, the 6-speed manual transmission. I purchased the car from a local enthusiast, who modified the car extensively after purchasing it bone stock in September 2019 from an Audi dealer in Omaha with 18,412 miles. I took delivery of the car with 27,114 miles. It is one of 180 US cars in this specification, making it the rarest combination for all (pre-LCI + LCI model) OG M2s, according to the SickFinga thread:

https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1404565

At the time of writing this, this is the 4th BMW I’ve owned. In order: 2014 BMW M5 (F10), 2015 BMW M4 (F82), 2011 BMW M3 (E92). I’m excited to try the M2, with its size and dynamics, I think it demonstrates the quintessence of a sports car. Also, I did not enjoy the sound and feel of the S55 in the M4, so the N55 affords me the ability to enjoy this wonderful chassis without being jaded by the engine. All said I welcome you members and viewers with open arms to be a part of my ownership. Thank you for checking it out and I hope you find some utility and/or amusement in this journal!

[dragon43]

3/25/2023
This is where the journey begins. I met the owner at his credit union to pay into the account to initiate the title release process. Shown here when I met up with my grandfather in his 991 C2 to let him check it out shortly after. The car is pretty dirty, but that will soon change…



As mentioned in the OP, I bought the car extensively modified. Luckily for me, all of the stock parts, minus the wheels were included. I tend to modify cars in stages and hope to have this one for the long haul, so we’ll call this…

Version 1:

Cosmetic
- Suvneer GTS-style painted aluminum hood
- Aeroluxe carbon rear diffuser
- Kies Motorsports PSM carbon rear spoiler
- MTC Design carbon front lip
- RKP carbon side skirt extensions
- AutoTecknic carbon mirror housings
- AutoTecknic sequential LED turn signals
- RW Carbon front grille trim inserts
- M Performance carbon/gloss black side markers
- AutoTecknic carbon headlight covers
- Goldenwrench Blackline reverse light tint overlays
- Automotive Passion carbon wheel-arch guards
- IND painted front reflector set
- IND painted keyhole cover
- IND painted front and rear roundels
- IND painted wheel center caps
- IND painted M2 trunk emblem
- Acexxon gloss black rear reflector inserts

Drivetrain/engine bay
- Valvetronic Designs Sport exhaust
- VRSF catless downpipe
- BM3 stage 2 ECU flash tune
- VRSF charge pipe upgrade kit
- VRSF front mount intercooler
- Burger Motorsports billet oil filter cap

Wheels/suspension/brakes
- Apex EC-7 Satin Bronze wheels - 18x10 ET33 (square F+R)
- Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires - 275/35R18 (square F+R)
- Apex 12mm front and rear wheel spacers
- Apex 75mm wheel stud/lug conversion kit
- Bilstein B16 PSS10 coilovers
- Vorshlag 5-bolt camber plates
- Pagid RSL29 racing brake pads
- Stoptech stainless steel brake lines

Interior/electronics
- Zeus Steering custom dry carbon steering wheel
- M Performance carbon shift knob
- IND Polar Blue stitched alcantara shifter boot
- P3 Gauges A/C-vent oil temperature digital gauge
- IND Polar Blue start/stop button
- BimmerCode programmed auto-folding mirrors on locking

Detailing
- 3M front fenders/bumper/headlights/OE hood PPF (installed by original owner)
- STEK DYNOshield PPF on painted GTS hood (03/2021)
- 2-stage paint correction polish (03/2021)
- Gtechniq Crystal Serum Ultra ceramic coating (03/2021)
- CarPro DLUX wheel ceramic coating (04/2020)
- XPEL Prime XR Black ceramic window tint - 20% sides/back

[dragon43]

3/26/2023
As hinted at, albeit subtly, in the previous entry, it’s time for the first wash. Something to know about me is that I enjoy detailing my car as I do driving or modifying it. Plus, the first wash with any new car I get is a time to understand further and recognize nuances and issues the car has, that I may not have picked up previously. At some point, I will share my full washing procedure, but I’ll keep it simple for now.



It is also worth mentioning I am a fan and frequent customer of Obsessed Garage. My wash process is entirely adopted from them, to “honor the source” as Matt would say. Coincidentally, this was my first wash using Koch Chemie GSF soap, which is great; pH neutral, relatively low viscosity, and incredibly slick on the car using a foam cannon.

My takeaways from the car: it’s pretty freaking nice! No originally unnoticed paint flaws, there is a small dent in the driver’s door, however. The wheels are perfect, have no curb rash or chips, and are ceramic coated as I previously stated. The problem, and I suspect it’s the same with any 18” wheels on these cars, is using a wheel brush (I have the large and small variants of the EZ Detail brush) sucks. There is not enough clearance for the brush to fit around the brake calipers and dust shields. Ultimately this only adds 5 extra minutes to the total time but was something I haven’t had a problem with before.

[dragon43]

3/31/2023
So, over the first week with the car, I think I curated a complete list of additional modifications and swaps for stuff on the car currently. In the same format as the complete list I already posted, here is what I will do:

Tentative Modification Plan:

Cosmetic
- Vorsteiner VRS or AA Concepts M2 CS carbon front lip
- M Performance carbon rear diffuser
- OE M2 CS carbon lip spoiler
- M Performance carbon winglets
- M Performance gloss black front grilles
- Upgrade HID/LED headlight and turn signal bulb replacements
- OE LCI LED tail lights

Drivetrain/engine bay
- Eventuri black carbon intake
- OE F80 carbon strut tower brace
- Turner Motorsport carbon engine cover
- Goldenwrench Blackline red engine caps (full set)

Wheels/suspension/brakes
- BBS or Titan 7 19” staggered wheels
- Dinan or Hotchkis front & rear sway bars
- Fall Line or SPL sway bar end links
- Fall Line or Turner Motorsport rear toe arms
- Fall Line or Dinan thrust arm/monoball bushings
- Akebono Euro Ceramic brake pads
- Paint OE M2 brake calipers red

Interior/electronics
- M Performance V1 alcantara steering wheel
- M Performance M2 carbon steering wheel trim
- Dinan aluminum pedal covers
- OE European sun visors
- Uniden R7 hardwired w/ Blendmount
- iDrive 6.0 w/ Apple CarPlay enabled by BimmerCode

Detailing
- STEK DYNOshield PPF on rest of front clip (fenders & bumper)
- Gtechniq CSL & 2 layers of EXO ceramic coatings
- XPEL or STEK ceramic windshield tint - 70%

Needless to say, that’s many things…especially given that I’ve had the car for a week. But, I’m in the camp who believes a huge advantage to choosing BMW is the aftermarket support they have. Once completed, this will become 'Version 2', but don’t think that doesn’t mean the car will be in its final form (it probably will never be). I’m still thinking of the next steps, like an F80 CCB swap, Recaros, LCI Icon headlights, etc.

A question that has been plaguing my mind since creating this list is: am I making the car 'too' stock? After some deliberation, I’ve decided that since my preferences are in line with the OEM+ and the fact it will still be insane looking, thinking the car will be too close to stock is asinine. I do also realize I’m kind of borrowing a lot of parts and styling cues from the M2 CS, but I feel it’s natural with any car we modify to bridge the gap between our car and the top model of that chassis.



Those eagle-eyed viewers will also notice I removed the rear "M2" emblem. Just a preference thing, some hate it, I think it makes the rear end look clean and symmetrical.

[dragon43]

4/2/2023
Decided to clean up the interior and grab some pictures of the “starting point” for the car, as it undergoes the subtle transformation I have in store for it. With a quick vacuum, glass cleaning, and wipedown, the interior looks pretty spiffy.





There are very nice looking and high-quality pieces in here, but the steering wheel isn’t my style, and I’ve been wanting an alcantara wheel for a while now. So, stay tuned for that install down the line. Overall, I think it will be fun to look back at this post with the few things I have in store soon, but also once I make this interior as close to perfect as I can make it.

[dragon43]

4/8/2023
This was a satisfying day. I cleaned up the exhaust tips such that I could convince anyone they were brand new. I now really regret not taking a before photo, so you’ll have to take my word for it. The tips were ruined, to the point where I accepted I would have to buy replacements. They were significantly heat-tinted a warm gold color, and the inner walls were completely enveloped in carbon buildup, the downpipe is the culprit. I understand that I am more detailed-oriented than most, so I asked myself, "how much better can I make it?" And oh boy, I’m glad I tried.

Credit to Matt for passing along this magical product for public consumption, using his words. I used something called Ospho to clean the tips, which is a dilute orthophosphoric acid solution with a few other products. This stuff dissolves any oxidation on different metal surfaces. I’ve used it on titanium, Inconel, and both 304 & 416 variants of stainless steel. I used a combination of #0000 steel wool and white (fine) Scotch-Brite from 3M. Watch the OG video if this interests you, but you can restore an exhaust you’re selling or just look to bring back the luster of the exhaust on your car.

[Kevin_The_Clean1]

I will have to try some of this to clean the exhaust on my X3 M soon.

[dragon43]

Originally Posted by Kevin_The_Clean1

I will have to try some of this to clean the exhaust on my X3 M soon.

If you watch the video, you'll almost be in disbelief at how quickly it looks brand new again!

[dragon43]

4/8/2023
Later in the day after re-installing the now-clean exhaust tips, I added a couple of interior touches. I consider these to be the most essential as I ordered them within the first 24 hours of having the car.



First, something I think everyone needs. A radar detector. Even if you’re not a street racer, we’ve all had the tendency to be heavy-footed on an empty backroad, and all it took for me was one close encounter to realize I need to get some countermeasures. I use the Uniden R7, I bought it for my M4 and absolutely love it. Since it had been out of a car for a few months, I did a firmware upgrade in anticipation of installing it in my next car. I had a Mirrormount in the last 2 cars because I hadn’t learned of Blendmount. I’m sold, this high-quality aluminum piece looks and functions fantastically. I coupled that with the MirrorTap RJ-11 power cord using power from the rearview mirror compass.

P/Ns:
- Blendmount BR7-2017
- MirrorTap MT-4015
Both were purchased through: https://blendmount.com/



Secondly, I want to preface this by saying these are purely a luxury good, it is pretty darn hard to justify spending almost $300 for sun visors. That said, I did it on my M4 and it made the interior feel so much more complete and clean…so I decided to do it again, and it had the same effect. These were really simple to install with no issues or caveats. It’s understandable that these are relatively unpopular, but I can’t recommend them more. I bought mine from IND.

https://ind-distribution.com/product...-sun-visor-set



Finally, I quickly swapped out the M Performance shift knob and IND boot for the stock versions. I just prefer the look and feel of the stock shifter. When I was looking for my E92 M3, a common upgrade was to put in the F10 M5 weighted & illuminated shift knob. While the M2 one looks the same, my only gripe is the weight, I did like the slightly more substantial weight of the M Performance.

[dragon43]

4/10/2023
Wash #2 is in the books. Annoyingly, my original MTM Original foam cannon broke. For cleaning the wheels, I use P&S Brake Buster, which I love, but a downside is that its high-pH (alkaline) qualities tend to degrade things. I have Brake Buster in both a Pressol Household sprayer and the foam cannon…it has already eaten through one of the Pressol heads, and now my foam cannon assembly.

Ok, rant and advisory out of the way…this car looks better by the day. The tires have been prepped and dressed, twice now, and are properly saturated. Once again, my full washing procedure will be posted, as I feel it’s the only way to wash any car you care about. Or, just watch any ‘Wash and Talk’ episode on the Obsessed Garage YouTube channel. Speaking of which, all products I mentioned are available here:

https://www.obsessedgarage.com/



Once I finished up, we shuffled the cars around for a one-time photo opportunity – the E92 was sold and leaving the next morning, just picked up the F90 M5 a week prior, and of course, the lovely ol’ M2. It didn’t last long, but this is a pretty sweet 3-car garage.

[dragon43]

4/14/2023
Alright folks, today is all about the lights. These are both pretty minute differences, but they are worth sharing.




We’ll start with the tail lights. I mentioned before the car came with Goldenwrench Blackline tint overlays for the reverse light. I really do not like tinted lights on cars and these were fine at first, but I thought it would look better without them. Upon taking them off, I have two takeaways. First, I certainly like it more, it somehow made the whole car seem less dark and more detailed. Secondly, and I knew this would happen…I need to get some LCI tail lights. It’s not an urgent matter, but the halogen bulbs and general design aren’t tickling my fancy.







Next, this one was pretty rewarding. I got rid of the AutoTecknic carbon headlight covers. This is possibly a controversial move, but I think these are a bit of a "ricer mod". So I prefer steam cleaner machines to heat guns for automotive applications, it seems to heat stuff less intensely and more evenly. Both of which make it the safer option. I’ve got a Wagner 915e power steamer and it works pretty well. I usually use it to remove old, tattered PPF and it always does the trick. Much the same with the eyebrows, they came off with ease and the 3M tape came up as well with no surprises. A bit of waterless wash for the bulk dirt deposits and isopropyl alcohol-dipped Q-tips for the crevices and they look good as new.

[dragon43]

4/15/2023
Less formal post here, just wanted to share a good-looking pic from when I had it street-parked for a night out. It does get quite a bit of attention!

[OG Shark]

Beautiful already and looking forward to the revamp you're planning! Did you ever sale the E92?

[dragon43]

Originally Posted by OG Shark

Beautiful already and looking forward to the revamp you're planning! Did you ever sale the E92?

Yes, sold it about 2 weeks ago officially. The new owner is excited to build it...before the car arrived he bought BBS RI-As, Recaro PPs, and POM GT4 lip. He's just like me! Lol

[dragon43]

4/23/2023
I’ve got it all ripped apart awaiting parts, and it’s not looking so hot, covered in palm prints and dust. Said parts I am so patiently waiting on include:

- AeroLuxe M2 CS-style carbon fiber front lip
- AeroLuxe VRS carbon fiber rear diffuser
- M Performance V1 alcantara steering wheel
- M Performance V2 alcantara steering wheel (yes, I got them both)
- Akebono Euro Ceramic brake pads
- ///M logo brake caliper decals from Etsy




Alright, let’s break some of that stuff down. Fun stuff first, the carbon front lip. I went with AeroLuxe because they are one of the few companies that make a CS front lip. I also didn’t want something that was ultra high-quality (that means expensive), like 3D Design or Vorsteiner. This is a perfect segment for the rear diffuser…so I love the look of the one on the car now, but it is warped from heat and has a few rough spots in the weave. I went ahead and got a new one, the quality is hopefully much better. As the pictures show, I removed the side skirt extensions. I really dig the M Performance winglets, and ultimately think I still want them. But now the side skirts are off and the lower section is clean, I’m not quite sure if I like anything at all on the side of the car. More to come on the winglets, I'll probably get them...we'll see.




This is some fuzzy logic, but it was a good opportunity profit-wise, and because it’s cool. So I ordered a V1 alcantara wheel brand new from IND. Shortly after, I listed my Zeus carbon wheel up for sale here on BP and it looked like it was going to go fast. Sure enough, I got an offer from a forum member offering his used V2 alcantara wheel plus money for the Zeus. I deliberated before placing my order for the V1 on which one I want, so now I have both (on their way currently). My plan is to test fit them both, decide which I like more, and sell/return the other. And yes - I’m using a wooden dresser as a workbench, we will be doing a complete garage makeover throughout the next few months. I’ll be sure to share that on here as well.



Finally, I’m gearing up for a refresh to the brake calipers. I’ll do a full post when I do this, in summary, I will be changing the blue calipers with slightly faded ///M logos for red with the white decal. Just the same as BMW is offering on many of their newer models, including the steel brakes for the CS. Please look past the dust, these race pads are driving me nuts, more on that in a bit.

[dragon43]

5/23/2023
Bimmerpost, it’s been a minute. The car has been sort of neglected in the last couple of weeks, but I have certainly not been lazy. We are working on getting the house ready for sale, so I’ve been spending my days, usually into the nights, working on the projects to make it as presentable as possible.

Onto the car, though I haven’t dedicated as much time working on it, I still have been ordering some parts throughout the last month and am just now installing some. I have received and ceramic-coated the front lip and diffuser from AeroLuxe and am waiting for a prime few hours to take my time to install them properly. I also have the brake pads and caliper stickers, need to pick up some red high-temp paint, Castrol SRF, and a Motive pressure bleeder for the installation. On the way is an AutoTecknic CS-style carbon rear spoiler from IND, I’ll probably install it when I do the rest of the carbon kit, assuming it’s here in time. Also, the M Performance V1 steering wheel with the M2 carbon trim is due to arrive tomorrow!



Since the steering wheel was removed in the last post, of course, it was something I had to install the day I got it. So here is the V2 wheel installed with the factory wheel trim. Having both wheels is an experiment, and I didn’t want to wait 3-4 weeks before driving the car again, so I threw the V2 on with its temporary trim. So far, I absolutely love the shape, and it is in immaculate condition for being a used alcantara part.





Next to go on was the gloss black M Performance grilles I got from ECS. I really thought the RW Carbon grilles looked kind of tacky, and as shown, they have a sizable rock chip. Also, you may remember that I removed the rear badge from the car, however, the absence of a front badge actually bothered me…maybe because it is not as natural to replace the grille slats. At any rate, this was a very worthwhile update. She’s starting to come together now!

[dragon43]

5/29/2023
Finally washed the thing. It was disgusting but now looks fantastic. In fact, it was in such a rough state, my wash time almost doubled…dealing with the insane brake dust and interior vacuuming. Annoyingly, I noticed some minor bubbling on one of the carbon mirror caps. I first thought they were AutoTecknic, but the design is different, and now the quality is less than what I have come to expect from them. So I’ll grab a set of those from IND probably after posting this.



Not too much else is going on. I’m set to do the brakes anytime in the next week or two, just need to grab the last couple of things on Amazon. I have received the AutoTecknic CS spoiler, so that and the rest of the carbon stuff will be going on shortly.

Happy Memorial Day, all!

[dragon43]

5/31/2023
The spoiler is here so I plan to throw on all the new carbon bits shortly, I also want to go a bit lower now that the side skirts and arch guards are gone. I can’t wait to swap on the Akebono pads as well, just need the pad wear sensor I ordered from FCP a couple of nights ago.

Sure does make a pretty good post office runner!

[OG Shark]

Originally Posted by dragon43

5/31/2023
The spoiler is here so I plan to throw on all the new carbon bits shortly, I also want to go a bit lower now that the side skirts and arch guards are gone. I can’t wait to swap on the Akebono pads as well, just need the pad wear sensor I ordered from FCP a couple of nights ago.

Sure does make a pretty good post office runner!

Really dig the black sapphire. Didn't really appreciate it until I just picked one up myself a couple of weeks ago. The color is amazing. Your car is looking good!

[dragon43]

Originally Posted by OG Shark

Really dig the black sapphire. Didn't really appreciate it until I just picked one up myself a couple of weeks ago. The color is amazing. Your car is looking good!

Yup, I tend to stay away from black cars since they always look dirty, but BSM fits the M2 so well

[OG Shark]

Originally Posted by dragon43

Yup, I tend to stay away from black cars since they always look dirty, but BSM fits the M2 so well

Me too - and I hate keeping up with them all the time. But BSM looks amazing on this car like you said. I did just install stealth ppf though - just so much easier to take care of and also a bit of protection since this car will be tracked a decent amount. I like how it turned out but the BSM on it alone looked just phenomenal too. Can see a bit of the flake still through the film which is kind of cool.

[dragon43]

Originally Posted by OG Shark

Me too - and I hate keeping up with them all the time. But BSM looks amazing on this car like you said. I did just install stealth ppf though - just so much easier to take care of and also a bit of protection since this car will be tracked a decent amount. I like how it turned out but the BSM on it alone looked just phenomenal too. Can see a bit of the flake still through the film which is kind of cool.

Sweet, I've wanted to try a matte/satin paint car before, it seems like a very different experience