Upon delivery, the M3 sat on Eibach springs, which Ronnie combined with Koni adjustable dampers. He contributes much of the car's ride comfort to these struts.
When Ronnie took possession of the car it was mechanically complete, so most of his energy has been devoted to giving the M3 some visual muscle to match.
19" powdercoated Kinesis with...
19" powdercoated Kinesis with Brembo GT big-brakes
One of his first tasks was to select 19" Kinesis K19R wheels. He had the centers powdercoated Phantom black, which gives off a slight pinkish tone in the light. This started off the car's red/black theme, but they aren't purely for show; at 10" wide on the rear, it's allowed the new owner to fit meaty 285/30 Toyos under the rear to control those rampant ponies.
Since he'd chosen to contrast the red paintwork with black accents, it was inevitable that carbon fiber would figure somewhere. In fact, it's everywhere, from the vented Vorsteiner hood and rear diffuser to the MVR front lip. You'll even find it on the kidney grilles and side gills.
Carbon has also infected the interior like a rash. You find it on the instrument surround, door handles, dash and console. It's also on the e-brake handle, shift knob and the shift console, and found its way onto the SMG shift paddles and the steering wheel they sit behind.
European Auto Source supplied much of the carbon, with additional items coming from JLevi Streetwerks. Although Ronnie confessed he'd shopped around so much he'd forgotten several suppliers.
Talking to the owner, it's obvious that despite it's impressive spec, the project isn't in full swing yet. We learned of plans to add side skirts; "But I haven't found any I like yet."
He's also working on an audio system, which he hoped to have fitted for our photos. But the most ambitious plan calls for a widebody conversion in the future, at which point we may well see Ronnie's supercharged M3 3.4 return to these pages
TECH SPEC
2002 BMW M3
Owner: Ronnie Cheung
Location: Sunnyvale, CA
Occupation: Scientist
Engine: S54 3.2 liter i-6 stroked to 3.4 liters with custom CP pistons and rings (9.5:1 compression), Eagle lightened and shaved rods, ported and polished head with three-angle valve job on Ferrara valves and springs, Axiom Tuning titanium retainers, Vortech V2 supercharger system, air-to-water aftercooler with front-mount heat exchanger with Bosch water pump, new Bosch oil and water pumps, Fluidyne Racing radiator, Motorsport low temperature thermostat, custom oil cooler with auxiliary cooling fans, Ignition Solutions plasma coils with active LEDs, six secondary RC440 injectors with Split Second AIC1 injector controller, Supersprint headers, race catalytic converters, X-pipe and stainless steel lightweight muffler, modified ECU ignition timing, Split Second PSC1 for fuel tuning, carbon intake tube and valve covers, painted aftercooler
Sexy Vorsteiner carbon hood...
Sexy Vorsteiner carbon hood with carbon grilles to match
Drivetrain: BMW SMG II transmission, lightweight aluminum flywheel, Axiom carbon/kevlar clutch, Sachs Racing pressure plate and bearing, Quaife 3.91:1 gear set
Brakes: Brembo 355mm front and 345mm rear two-piece cross-drilled rotors with four-piston calipers
Suspension: Koni struts, Eibach springs and sway bars
Wheels & Tires: 19x8.5" front, 19x10" rear Kinesis K19R three-piece wheels powdercoated Phantom black with polished lips, 255/35 front, 285/30-19 rear Toyo Proxes T1R tires
Double-DIN head unti is fitted...
Double-DIN head unti is fitted in custom housing, as are gauges behind the carbon SMG console
Exterior: MVR carbon front lip, Vorsteiner GTP red carbon vented hood and rear valance, carbon kidney grilles, washer grille, side gills and roundels, Schnitzer roof and trunk spoilers, painted eyebrows, 10% tint, carbon headlight housings, Phillips 6000k head- and foglight bulbs, Depo clear corners, Hyper-white side markers, Euro tail lights
Interior: SPA boost and temp gauge, AEM Lambda gauge in custom pod, carbon instrument surround, door handles, dash and console kit, e-brake handle, shift knob and surround, SMG paddles, and steering wheel trim, aluminum pedals, Pioneer AVIC-D3 head unit in custom mount
Thanks: Jeff Zusman at Eurobahn Performance (www.eurobahn.us), Axiom Tuning, Lawrence Bogert, Bo Zweig at Bay Car Stereo, Jason Rigor and Ian Sutherland at East Bay BMW, my family, Margaret, Team Jinsoku, Dennis Matsunaga, Justin Choi, Ravi Bhatia, Stephen Chan, Karen Choy, Alex Yao, Greg Gong, www.jlevistreetwerks.com, www.europeanautosource.com.