If a little of something will fix it, a lot will fix the hell out of it. Initially, Steven Fasick had simple plans for the E46 M3 he bought new in 2002. He envisioned some bolt-on power-adders, suspension upgrades, and a couple of visual touches here and there to personalize the car. His three sons-Chris, Ryan, and Kevin-had different plans. It became a nightly bench-racing session that culminated with the building of what has to be one of the fastest supercharged M3s in the world.
II Overblown
Fasick started the usual way with basic modifications. Software and aftermarket exhausts were about all that was on the market at the time. He settled on a full European-spec exhaust and underdrive pulleys, which gave the car a great sound, but didn't add that much in the way of power.
He was introduced to the Evosport Web site by his sons and that's where the story really begins. After hours of conversation with Brad Otoupalik, one of the masterminds behind Evosport, Fasick's M3 was put on a truck and headed west. Otoupalik had outlined a plan to supercharge the straight six to gain huge power while still retaining factory reliability.
Evosport has a sort of mental illness when it comes to powerful BMWs. The company isn't happy with just being better than average. It takes average, roughs it up, knocks it on the ground, and gives it the boot.
This affliction seems to be contagious; it soon infected Fasick. He determined that an off-the-shelf supercharger kit wasn't going to cut it. First, the engine would need a complete rebuild with lower compression and heavy-duty components to achieve the numbers everyone wanted to see. So it was torn down and then hand-built to exacting specifications. Forged 9:1-compression pistons and forged rods were installed, while all rotating and reciprocating mass in the engine was blueprinted and balanced.
Every consumable item in the engine was replaced, from gaskets to bearings to oil pump. Evosport performance headers dump into freer-flowing cats and exit through the European-spec cat-back. On the cool side of the head, bigger throttle bodies are used to handle the extra intake charge while bigger injectors flow extra fuel for the fire.
For the blower itself, Evosport sourced a specially developed unit from VF Engineering. The standard stage one kit uses a V2-SC-trim centrifugal unit good for 400 hp at the wheels. But all the stops came out when VF decided on a monster V2-T unit. Good for 1,200 CFM, it can boost an engine to a theoretical 825 hp.
The factory mass airflow sensor wasn't capable of flowing enough air to feed the monster blower, so a Hitachi unit was sourced and the software tuned by GIAC. Hours spent on GIAC's Dynojet have resulted in a car that runs great at any throttle angle. With GIAC and VF's near-fanatical level of attention to detail and Evosport's bulletproof internals, this engine will likely outlast many stock counterparts, even at such enormous power levels.
With this much urge on tap, the chassis couldn't be ignored. Besides being staffed with horsepower junkies, Evosport also happens to be a well-established race car builder. The car rides on H&R/Evosport coilovers, but that's just the beginning. Spring rates and damping mean nothing if the contact patches can't be kept as big as possible. Stiffer bushings and bearings have replaced the soft factory rubber units to keep everything in place. This is something that's often overlooked by the average enthusiast.
Even with all that handling ability, it's still necessary to slow down sometimes. The already good factory brakes were upgraded with huge Brembos: 14-inch front rotors and 13.5-inch rear rotors handle even the most obscene velocities achieved by this blown six. Toyo T1R tires mounted on SSR GT3 wheels transfer the improved braking power to the ground. Anything short of the ultra-high-performance Toyos wouldn't be appropriate.