The Hunt for Horses – Part 1

DTM, or Design Technik Motorsports is the performance arm of local motor shop Autotechnika. Headed by tuner Tommy Teng, DTM specializes in modifying European makes, mostly those hailing from Deutschland. Armed with up-to-date automotive technology and a pool of tuning capabilities thanks to its extensive partners here and abroad, DTM does one thing pretty clear: make that bloody car of yours go faster.

As far as European cars go, it’s hard to get any better than BMWs. The task becomes even harder when they come with an M-badge. For this installment of Autoindustriya’s Tuned, we take a look at DTM’s Project M6. Can DTM improve upon Bavarian greatness? Let’s find out…

The BMW M6 comes packed with what we all look for in a car. Power. Power. And more power! Who cares about leg room or trunk space when you’re baby’s motivated by the M-division built 5 liter V-10? This 40-valve dual overhead beast-of-an-engine spits out a hair-raising 507 hp and 520 lb-ft, enough muscle to propel such a heavy car from rest to 100 kmh in a brief 4.6 secs.

Customary with all aftermarket tuners, DTM saw obvious room for improvement. Since the owner of this Bimmer can’t seem to get enough of a good thing, DTM supplied the commodity it deals best… power!

Part 1 of project M6 is all about extracting more push from the V10 mill. Tommy of DTM gives a very succinct game plan, “We don’t want to mess around with what the factory intended this car to be, a luxury GT-cruiser. Our goal is to simply enhance what this car does best, and that’s hitting high velocities in as little time possible.”

In the hunt for greater horses, better breathing is essential. First on the go-fast list was a Gruppe-M Ram Air System. The pair of bigger lungs allows the 5.0 naturally-aspirated engine to draw huge gulps of oxygen upon every application of the throttle. It’s also designed to channel in cooler air that results to more explosive combustion. The Gruppe M intake kit is comprised of two conical air filters and proprietary carbon fiber housing for each piece. The carbon bits are beauties any racing fan will appreciate, as they sit so prominently in the engine bay. Pop that hood, flash the exotic looking hardware perched on both sides, and show onlookers that your machine’s packing some heat!

Caution to the DIYs out there, this job isn’t as simple as it looks. Contrary to the intake systems found in smaller engines, the M6′s procedure required the entire front bumper to be taken out. Only then could the stock pieces be swapped for the Gruppe M, as this kit also comes with larger plumbing all throughout. It was worth all the trouble though as the finished product just speaks for itself.

Inhale. Exhale. With more air coming in, naturally you want more air coming out. Step 2 in the modification process was revising the flow of spent gases. Eliminating unwanted backpressure is a sure way to gaining more performance, so a less restrictive exhaust system from Supersprint was procured. DTM went with the entire gamut the Italian brand offered consisting of the exhaust manifold, front pipe with a metallic catalytic converter on both sides, and center “X” pipes that lead to the dual round rear exhaust pipes. All this bent tubing doesn’t come cheap mind you, as the whole package racked up close to half a million in Philippine currency. Before you blurt out expletives, the exhaust system does showcase pretty extensive engineering. The headers alone look like the ones you see in Formula-1 with numerous bending pieces molding into a single chamber. Remember, we’re dealing with a 10 cylinder. “The manifold reminds me of something out of the Alien movie, it looks freakishly out of the ordinary. I wanted to hang it on my office wall like a piece of art,” expressed Tommy.

Getting all of the parts installed was quite a challenge as the tight confines beneath the engine meant a lot of precision was needed. When all was done though, the Supersprint exhaust endowed the M6 with a whole new set of vocals. It was like someone had pissed it off, and all of a sudden the Bimmer had an angrier tone. Racy but not obnoxious, the new exhaust lends the M6 with a sense of subdued aggression. You get the feeling a storm is bottled up somewhere, just waiting on that right foot to unleash it, but until it does, a calm baritone idle is enough hint of its might.

DTM is one of the few tuning houses locally that can tinker with a vehicle’s ECU, or what you would call the car’s electronic brain. Flash tuning is its forte, and the M6 had its circuitry reconfigured for more power. It’s wasn’t like normal projects though since squeezing that last bit of juice from an M-motor is truly a challenge in itself. M-engines have optimized tolerances already in stock form, which is testament to BMW’s standards. “This is probably the most difficult vehicle I’ve done so far,” shares Tommy who had to reach deep in his bag of tricks to further extend the gains out of the tuning. Though he doesn’t want to disclose specifics on what he exactly worked on (it’s a trade secret), part of what he adjusted involved improving the air-fuel mixture and the timing. Tommy claims that flash tuning by DTM allows you to enjoy results tailor-fit to your car, compared to an ECU program acquired from abroad. Things like fuel quality and ambient temperature specific to local conditions affect the engine’s performance, so gains claimed by the programmer abroad may not necessarily reflect gains once tested locally.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating as they say, and the results are hard to argue with. Project M6 was baseline dyno’d at 336 whp. With the Gruppe M intake installed, power went up to 352 hp at the wheels (increase of 16 whp). With the M6 enjoying the new Supersprint exhaust system and the Gruppe M intake, the dyno registered 375 whp ( a further increase of 25 whp). Finally with the flash tuning and the bolt-on parts completed, Project M6 pulled 396 whp (increase of 21 whp), for a total of 60 whp gained from a naturally aspirated M-engine.

Is this the culmination of the hunt for more horses? What’s next for Project M6? We never said forced induction was out of the question. Or perhaps some handling enhancements? Catch us next time for Part 2 of DTM’s Project M6…

Very much a part of today’s pop culture, the new MINI Cooper enjoys cult status among car fans and non-car fans alike. With the nostalgia for the cute little cruiser echoed by this modern iteration, the new MINI Cooper, much like the New Beetle, is living proof that classics can indeed be reinvented.

So popular is this new version that its appeal crosses genders, making it lovable not just for hardcore Cooper loyalists but also for casual motorists who simply want to look cool in it. Which begs me to ask the question, has the new MINI Cooper been relegated to new-age chick-car status? Can it be? Has this cunning two-door devolved into a modern day girlie ride?

One look at the MINI Cooper S GP puts all those questions to rest. Look at it. Take a minute. In fact, take two. Now you know what I mean? This is what the new MINI Cooper S should have looked like from day 1.

Purposeful. Muscular. Distinguished. The MINI Cooper S GP is not ashamed to look the part of the most powerful Cooper ever produced. The attention grabbing exterior is spearheaded by the handsome lightweight 18-inch wheels, finished in black to create some aesthetic contrast with the metallic blue-grey paint. As a limited edition model, the Cooper S GP only comes in this color. The ride height has been lowered by 10mm, rendering the sports-coupe with a very taut stance. The front bumper has been reworked for better visual impact and aerodynamics, with a black mesh insert and side slats thrown into the design. If the standard MINIi Cooper S seems to be smiling at a standstill, the GP on the other hand wears a mean scowl. Over at the rear, a touring car-esque wing gives it increased downforce at high speed, not to mention a true track toy persona.

The play on colors is also a huge attraction in this car, and one of the methods employed by MINI is installing red side mirrors into all of the 2000 units that came out of Oxford. The roof is also made different by painting it silver, and on the side, one can appreciate the model number of the unit as it is loudly embossed, affirming the car’s rarity.

But what really makes the MINI Cooper S GP special is the substance beneath the form. Under the bonnet is the same supercharged 1.6 inline-4 found in the garden variety Cooper S. However, the Brits (or is it the Germans since BMW was really behind this) squeezed more power from the motor by tinkering with the intercooler and the engine settings. What you get is a stouter mill that makes an advertised 218 hp at the flywheel, significantly more than the 170 hp on the normal variant. The added grunt is paired with a leaner body, as the GP is about 50 kg lighter than its portlier sibling. The pounds are shed mainly by tossing the rear seats, and in place is a rear strut bar that tightens up the chassis. The aforementioned rims also contribute to less pounds.

Being the specialist when it comes to European makes, Design Technik Motorsports (DTM), headed by Tommy Teng, worked on making the Cooper GP an even wilder animal. Baseline testing the MINI, Tommy found that in stock form, it made a healthy 167 hp and 151 lb-ft at the wheels (Remember, wheel hp figures are always lower than the manufacturer quoted flywheel numbers). Working first on the exhaust system, DTM glued in a handsome set of Supersprint pipes from the exhaust manifold, center pipe, and all the way to the racing muffler. Result? A car that sounds more at home in a track than in the street. The GP lets out a wild shriek when gunned, and really is not for the faint of heart. But if waking up the neighbors pleases you, look no further. Since the car makes use of a supercharger, making more power meant de-loading the blower with unnecessary stress. This is why a lighter supercharger pulley was installed. The mod yields a 15% decreased load on the charger, and when paired with DTM’s flash tuning program, allows the motor to unleash its true potential. With the new modifications in place, DTM’s work on the ECU optimizes the engine for improved real-world performance. The special John Cooper Works painted red calipers have been reinforced with the use of Hawk Performance brake pads, and steel braided brake lines allow fluid to be coursed uninterruptedly.

After all the wrenching was done, the Dynapack Dynamometer registered a notable increase of 28 hp and 23 lb-ft of torque at the wheels, with the official figures being 194 whp and 174 lb-ft respectively.

Puttering around town, it’s obvious the MINI Cooper GP, now with its improved repertoire, is unhappy being driven so politely. Entering a wider piece of road, we uncork the blown beauty and it rips at the tarmac angrily. MINI Coopers were never meant to wow with their muscle, but the GP defies that ethos and temps you to plant the throttle even deeper. It’s in the corners though where the GP is best enjoyed, as intimate connection between car and driver is exemplified. Non-existent body roll means you can lean faster and tighter into turns, perfect for timed laps in the track. What amazed me the most though wasn’t the go-kart like reflexes, as this was to be expected. Rather, it was the pliant ride that the GP returned, making it utterly livable for everyday motoring. No kidney shattering ride here folks. Now only if that muffler could drop the decibel count a bit…its just way too loud for everyday use.

The Mini Cooper GP. Exciting at its core, and even when tuned for higher thrills, remains a docile two-seater for Manila’s less than ideal roads. Too bad they only made a couple of thousand of these… since this is what every MINI Cooper S should be like!