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Originally Posted by wannabe
HorsepowerFreak, I really think you need to do a lot of market research on this one. Judging from some of the posters on this forum and what I've seen on the road...most people buy a Bimmer for 'status'...sure performance is also a consideration, but how much into performance can U.S. BMW owners be if most of them opt for the automatic?
Sure there are lots of BMW's sold and market share is huge...that tells me that people are already happy with the car's performance. There are a lot of things to consider when adding a turbo to a car not designed to be turboed. Does the car really need that much power? Will it upset the balance of the car? Will the car's drivetrain be able to handle the added power?
Not only that, but I'm guessing most people lease a Bimmer...these people would most likely not even consider a turbo. Considering how expensive the car is, and the possibility that the warranty could be voided would also scare away the minority of people that buy the car straight out.
Also, people have to think about the possibility that if you get into an accident and the insurance company discovers that you turboed the car...they will not give you ANY money. If you were honest enough to pay the extra insurance for the turbo...your premiums would increase by a lot.
I currently drive a 2002 Honda Civic Si...a truly underpowered car. If any car ever produced needed to be turboed...it would be the Si. But I was on the forums 2 years ago when Turbo kits started coming out and there were only a small number of people that did it. Most people opted to keep the motor naturally aspirated.
Believe me, being a performance oriented guy...it would be a dream to have 300-400 HP at the rear wheels of a BMW...but guys like me and the people that have posted on this thread are rare. To be honest...I think the people that have posted on this thread that said they would get it...only half would really consider it.
Just letting you know of my doubts...I would hate to see you spend a lot of money on R&D and not get it back in return. I think you need to read through this forum a little more and you'll start to see what I see.
I think you should take a poll, you can do that on this forum...and ask people if they would honestly spend $$$ on a turbo kit and install. Let them know about the possibilities of voided warranties and the insurance company not paying up. This would be interesting to see.
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Points well taken. There are DEFINITELY people that would not want to modify their BMW in any way. Especially if it voided their warranty and insurance claims. I like the poll idea and will post a poll shortly.
By law, insurance must cover your vehicle, whether you've modified it or not. They don't have a choice. I recently had a wheel come off on a 1,000rwhp Supra and ended up in a ditch. It was no where near stock, it had a roll cage, gauges everywhere, and more bling in the motor than I'm sure they're used to seeing. Not only did they cover the car, but also made it a no-fault accident since the vehicle actually sheered all 5 wheel studs off the wheel hub.
Most dealerships will warranty a modified vehicle because they make a ton of money on warranty claims.
We sell turbo and supercharger kits for nearly every vehicle known to man, and trust me, where there's a car, somebody has built a turbo kit for it.
The feedback I'm looking for is not whether people will buy it. I believe I already know the answer to that question. The questions I have are 1) would you want the option to remove your catalytic converter for a test pipe for an additional 35rwhp? 2) would you want the wastegate to outlet into the atmosphere instead of back into the exhaust for an additional 20rhwp? 3) if reliability was not an issue, what price would you pay to get to 300rwhp, 350rwhp and 400rwhp?
Thanks again for all the feedback.
Chris.