[Biginboca]

I got the control arm aero covers on. This was a very easy job took about an hour. Cut the posts down so they are out of the way and drill holes in them for zip ties...



Then align them to the control arm where you like and sick a sharpie up inside each post to mark the holes on the control arm. Drill 4 holes in each control arm...



Put a zip tie in each hole and then install to the control arm...



Tighten them all carefully and evenly so the cover doesn’t shift and it’s good to go!









They look like they were made for this chassis. Once the posts are trimmed the fitment is very good. Not sure they add much but it’s a process of small subtle changes over time maybe amount to something larger that’s meaningful. Either way it was only $20 and an hour of time tinkering so not a big cost here.


Next up I’m making a plate out of 0.1” thick aluminum to cover this big void around my muffler...

[Biginboca]

So calling it a day. Here’s a few more pics from my aero tinkering today. This is how the control arm covers look at ride height. Forgive the less than ideal lighting...



And I finished making a template for the cover to go around the muffler area. This is pretty much done I tweaked it a bit more after this pic but I am now ready to start cutting aluminum next week...

[NoGuru]

Originally Posted by Biginboca

Ok, well I did some more digging and ordered the Toyota covers. The Toyota ones for the Supra are $10 ea and the BMW ones for the Z4 are $45ea.

So that’s really something! The cars use the same rear lower control arms btw.

Here’s the info to order the Toyota ones...

Suspension Control Arm Cover (Right, Rear, Lower)
This Fits Your 2020 Toyota Supra 3.0L AT
Part Number: 48737WAA01

Suspension Control Arm Cover (Left, Rear, Lower)
This Fits Your 2020 Toyota Supra 3.0L AT
Part Number: 48738WAA01

Just ordered these to see how they fit my 335is. I race half miles so any improvement to Aero is welcome.

[Biginboca]

Originally Posted by NoGuru

Just ordered these to see how they fit my 335is. I race half miles so any improvement to Aero is welcome.

At the speeds you are hitting they definitely can’t hurt. With a 328 like me, it’s iffy at best lol

Have you don’t any other aero mods to the undercarriage?

[NoGuru]

Originally Posted by Biginboca

At the speeds you are hitting they definitely can’t hurt. With a 328 like me, it’s iffy at best lol

Have you don’t any other aero mods to the undercarriage?

Only Aero mods I have done is an Arkym front dam and rear spoiler.
Most of the underside is covered anyway. I am interested in the muffler area that you are covering too. Rear defuses can be more harmful if not done correctly but I think as long as you are stopping the parachute situation it should help.

[Biginboca]

Originally Posted by NoGuru

Only Aero mods I have done is an Arkym front dam and rear spoiler.
Most of the underside is covered anyway. I am interested in the muffler area that you are covering too. Rear defuses can be more harmful if not done correctly but I think as long as you are stopping the parachute situation it should help.

Yeah I’m not looking to do a diffuser really. This is a daily driver not a time attack build. I might add a couple small vertical pieces like this picture below which is pretty much the inspiration for what I’m doing. My thought process is more to lower drag than add downforce:

[E91Swagger]

Originally Posted by Biginboca

Christmas in August! Took a month to arrive and one day to install lol. I was very eager to put these in. When I first sat in them I thought, wow seats are pretty intense. They felt kind of weird until I grabbed the wheel and the shifter... and then they felt amazing!!





I was toying with doing a rear seat delete to take off another 65lbs because I figured my 11 year old little guy might not be able to get back there any more, but when I put the seat all the way forward he can still get in. So that will wait a while until we add another 4 door probably early next year.

Nice seats! Can you get them without the logo? Do you mind pm me the source and price for them?

[Biginboca]

Originally Posted by E91Swagger

Nice seats! Can you get them without the logo? Do you mind pm me the source and price for them?

Thanks! Really happy with them. I bought them from a seller in Germany on eBay...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/RECARO-POLE...-/223753879523

[200,000 club]

Ever thought of wrapping the interior trim?

[Biginboca]

Originally Posted by 200,000 club

Ever thought of wrapping the interior trim?

I get asked that a lot lol.

About 2 years ago I purchased all brushed aluminum trim off this forum and when I unpacked it to install I decided I liked my trim and want to keep that part of the car original.

[309xi]

Originally Posted by Biginboca

I get asked that a lot lol.

About 2 years ago I purchased all brushed aluminum trim off this forum and when I unpacked it to install I decided I liked my trim and want to keep that part of the car original.

I think it's a good choice. Your burl or whatever it may be is a nice mix of light and dark and that picture in the OP shows it even looks great compared to the ARC8's.

I'm keeping my dark walnut burl trim for sure, but I do like the OEM silver trim a lot too. If I had a red interior I'd have to have the silver trim.

[E91Swagger]

Originally Posted by Biginboca

Thanks! Really happy with them. I bought them from a seller in Germany on eBay...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/RECARO-POLE...-/223753879523

Thanks! Can you please also share info on the specific mounts/sliders needed for the install? How difficult was it to install the seats?

[Biginboca]

Originally Posted by E91Swagger

Thanks! Can you please also share info on the specific mounts/sliders needed for the install? How difficult was it to install the seats?

Seat install was very straightforward except you might have to do the install/removal a couple times before you get an angle and height you like. I used the OEM sliders that were attached to the bottom of my sport seats along with Bey-Krause adapters. Because I used oem sliders the seat belt buckle kept its original mount on the oem slider so I didn’t have to mess with that.

Order 1 of Part# R-9280 wide mount and 1 of Part# R-9281 standard mount. Use One of the wide mounts on the side of the seat facing the trans tunnel and one of the standard mounts on the side facing the door. This will pretty much perfectly center the seats in line with the steering wheel and oem location.

If you have power seats (power sliders) you can use that functionality still with the BK mounts and they provide instructions for wiring and brackets for mounting a switch along with their brackets.

Recaro doesn’t supply mounting bolts unless you buy their brackets. If you want to use the same set up I used do yourself a favor and order this off amazon:

MINHER M8-1.25 x 20mm Socket Head Cap Screws Metric, Allen Socket Drive, 12.9 Grade Alloy Steel, Black Oxide Finish, Machine Thread, 15 PCS

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B088LPWB6D..._Cz6uFbWHSJK2Q

Also grab some washers to go under the bolt heads. It amazes me that Recaro won’t include 4 bolts with a $1200 seat lol

The reason I wanted to reuse the factory sliders with the BK brackets is the oem sliders offer the longest travel and most adjustments, plus they are known for not becoming loose (developing play) over time. Reusing the oem slider I was able to keep back seat functionality for my kids where the aftermarket sliders (or fixed brackets) you will entirely lose back seat access in a coupe. This may not be a consideration for you.

With the set up I have the lowest mounting height I can achieve puts the seats about 1.5” lower than the lowest I was able to adjust my oem manual sport seats to. So if you want to go super low and sit on the floor then this might not work for you.

I was able to code out the airbag lights using Bimmergeeks Pro Tool. The coding for my car was go through these menus:

Safety > MRS-Airbag > Coding > Standard

Then Deactivate these items:

Seat Mat Sensor (OC3_1)
Driver Seat Position Sensor (SPSF_1_CD)
Left Side Airbag (SIDEBAG_LINKS_1)
Passenger Seat Position Sensor (SPSBF_1)
Right Side Airbag (SIDEBAG_REICHTS_1)
And lastly I had to deactivate both left and right side active head restraints in the same menu section. (I didn’t record the coding for that part.)

[Biginboca]

Here’s a few pictures of the install it’s just 4 bolts holding the oem seats in.



As you can see there is 1 wiring harness under the seat that you disconnect by pulling the black retainer clip on the side of it towards the center of the car. A flat head will pry it open easily I have circled it in red in this pic (showing a test fit of the BK Brackets and OEM Sliders. You must bolt the seats to the brackets before installing everything into the car obviously.)



The part of that yellow plug that stays attached to the seat you took out actually contains like 3 or 4 separate plugs inside it. You have to disassemble it and take just the seat belt sensor plug out and then reassemble it on the new seat with just that single seat belt plug that you will still use. Then it can be installed back into the car.

This shows it under new driver seat:



And here’s a few more pics to show how the new seats are sitting in the car:







There weren’t really any hurdles to the install. It took me a few days behind the wheel and 3 times total mounting the seats to get them exactly how I wanted for angle and height, but since it’s just 4 bolts and a wiring harness it’s not a huge pita to get them in and out of the car. If you want to see a pic of anything in detail or have questions I’m happy to help.

[E91Swagger]

Thank you sir!

[Biginboca]

I started working on the aluminum panel for covering the rear bumper area today. A 36” square sheet of 0.063” thick aluminum is $50 on amazon. I priced a piece of carbon fiber the same size from 3 vendors and it was $300. So I’m using aluminum lol



It probably weighs about 3lbs after cutting/sizing it. I feel like it’s worth adding a little weight to cover this huge cavity.



I got the panel cut and fitted today, but need to order some more and longer screws before I can mount it. I was able to test fit though...

[Bimmer_Engineer]

Looks like you need some new rear tires...

[Tambohamilton]

You mean his lightweight racing slicks?

[Biginboca]

Originally Posted by Bimmer_Engineer

Looks like you need some new rear tires...

Not just rears lol. New tires coming tomorrow!

[NoGuru]

What did you use to make the bends in the Aluminum?

[Biginboca]

Originally Posted by NoGuru

What did you use to make the bends in the Aluminum?

When you don’t have a pressbrake... you improvise

[NoGuru]

This is awesome sauce.