BMW 1 Series model Tuning

"Thanks for reading my BMW 1 Series tuning article."

We look at 1 series model tuning and point out the ultimate modifications. BMW 1 series models are popular cars and with a few sensible sports modifications you can assuredly enhance your driving enjoyment.

Famed for it's great handling, superb range of engines and very smart styling the 1 series forms the basis of many great car tuning projects. There are few factory cars that are as well equipped for a track day out there, but most 1 series models can hold their own on a track day, due in part to the light body, and great chassis design.

Many people get confused at the version numbers offered in the 1 series range, so we've pulled together all of the model designations and years here for reference, and noted significant changes to the 1 series over the years.

The 1 Series is a good car modification project to play with. The key to 1 Series tuning is choosing the right mods you can waste loads of money if you do it wrong.

Tuning tips and articles

Engine tuning Transmission tuning Care care Intake & exhaust mods Improve handling Forums

Top end torque should be your overall aim with a nice fat wide peak torque band.

Following our tips for tuning your 1 Series you will attain a practical but sporty car that will potentially out perform bigger cars.

Smaller engines do not provide much of a return in terms of power so start with a bigger engine. Engine swaps are a good option if you have a small engine size.

Engine tuning Transmission tuning Care care Intake & exhaust mods Improve handling Forums
  • First Generation (E81/E82/E87/E88; 2004–2011) smallest and most affordable vehicle in the BMW range released in 2004, the rear wheel drive configuration was unusual in a car in this class and that won it many fans. When launched the 1 series comprise around 20% of BMW's total car sales.
  •  Second Generation (F20/F21; 2011–2019) available as 3 or 5 door versions, thankfully the rear wheel drive was retained we all see an xdrive all wheel drive version on this year.

BMW 1 series things to look out for

Coil pack issues are quite common, and the fault identifies itself as rough running, a petrol smell inside the car in some cases and erratic engine temperature. You can also experience engine vibration, loss of power or end up in limp home mode. Replacing a faulty coil pack will clear the fault.

(DTC ) Traction control Warning light comes on, which usually means the traction control unit needs replacing.

Idling from a cold start can be an issue, if this is the case make sure the ECU is updated to the latest version which should address this issue in the software.

The N47 engine had an timin chain issue, so if it starts making a grinding noise get it checked out ASAP or you'll need to replace the engine. We would recommend that you get the timing chain checked at your next service as a precaution.

Random warning lights on the dashboard flashing on and off. Check the PDC unit in the boot is dry and that the filters in the wheel wells have been fitted the correct way up. A damp PDC will fire off all kinds of warning lights.

Power mods.

These mods motorsport modifications are usually installed by our members, decide how far you wish to go in your tuning project before you get started.

Getting the right tuning parts for your planned usage of the car is a time and money saver. Stage 3 motor sport parts just don't work well on the road hard to control in slow traffic.

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Guide to the Best Tuning Mods & Upgrades

  1. Mods that Remove a Restriction

    If the intake or exhaust are restricted in any way this will have an impact on your cars performance, so use an induction kit/filter upgrade and better flowing exhaust whenever your tuning creates a flow restriction.

  2. Mods that Improve Handling

    Braking, Suspension and general alignment of the suspension components is vital for any tuning project even before you start increasing power.

  3. Fit Stronger Parts

    Tuned cars will show up weaknesses, typically in the turbochargers, clutch and internal engine components. Whilst most engines can cope with mild tuning mods, TorqueCars recommend that you upgrade the internal components before these weak spots manifest themselves.

  4. ECU Tunes & Remapping

    While some cars can be easily remapped, others may require piggyback ECU's or aftermarket ECU's but this is the most vital step of your tuning project as it fully releases the power from all of your mods and upgrades. Expect 10-20% on NASP engines and 30-40% on turbocharged units.

  5. More Power Needs More Fuel & Air

    Every tuning project will aim to increase the air supply, but fuel supply is just as vital and will need to match the air the engine can utilise. Fuel to Air ratio is vital so upgrade the fuel pump & injectors. Also you can look to perform head mods (flowing and porting), bigger valves, fast road cams and forced induction upgrades to improve fuel.

Stages of Tune

Stage 1 mods: Remap, Lighter flywheel, Alloy wheels, Suspension upgrade (drop 30-40mm), Sports exhaust, Panel air filter.

Stage 2 mods: high flow fuel injector, Ported and polished head, Power/Sport clutch, Fast road cam, fuel pump upgrades.

Stage 3 mods: Engine balancing, Internal engine upgrades (pistons/head/valves), Adding or upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Competition cam, Sports gearbox.

You need to keep as much low end torque as you can and aim for a wide power band rather than a narrow top end power spike.

In this article we shall give a little insight into the world to the best modifications for your car, but we'd encourage you to spend some time on the site looking into the details of each type of performance part.Fast road cams offer one of the biggest power gains for your money as far as a single sports modifications goes on a NASP engine.

The exhaust & intake durations play a large part in your cars power band, but be careful here, getting this wrong can upset the idle and make the car impossible to drive in traffic. You'd need to follow a camshaft upgrade with other mods and finish with a performance chip to fully release the power gain.

Don't forget to pay attention to the fuelling when you are increasing the power - it makes the car more thirsty.

Using high octane fuel is another option if you find you are suffering from detonation or premature ignition on your BMW project after fitting other motorsport parts. Uprated injectors will enable you to supply sufficient fuel to the engine.

Uprate the fuel pump to cope with the extra fuel requirements of your tuned 1 series's uprated injectors.

Intake and Exhaust Tuning.

The next area for modification is the intake and exhaust. Please note that WE DO NOT FEEL YOU GET POWER GAINS FROM INDUCTION KITS, unless you have tuned your car massively and are finding that the standard air intake has become a restriction.

Derestricting the airflow into the engine is a primary goal of car tuners so get a better flowing air filter if you find that the car is running lean only if you find the car is running lean. Induction kits can sound great but due to the warm air in the engine bay they will not really increase power and often rob you of power on most cars.

Do not go with the largest exhaust you can buy this will slow the exhaust rate - the best exhausts for power gains are usually between 1.5 to 2.5 inches. It is the shape and material more than the bore size.

Airflow through the head can be dramatically increased with some professional head porting and polishing. These should match and be setup to take into account any other engine mods. When you heavily modify your 1 Series you will reach a point that the standard clutch starts to slip so get an uprated clutch. The best mods we would do for your 1 Series are fast road camshaft, remap, induction and exhaust, suspension.

Turbo engines are just pleading to be Reprogrammed. You will see impressive power gains on most modern turbo engined cars including diesels making a remap one of the most cost effective and impressive modifications for your money.

We've also come across some owners experimenting with twincharging applications and making some seriously high power gains.

Despite the large cost involved adding forced induction to a NASP engine will give large power gains. Superchargers are often easier to add than turbos. Turbos give boost in exponential proportion to rising engine speed and this can make mapping difficult.

It is more straightforward to map a supercharger because the boost is correlating to engine speed on a linear curve. Alternatively you could fit water injection to control knock.

Handling/Suspension upgrades

Many 1 Series owners uprate the handling of their cars with sports suspension mods as a priority, this will certainly increase your enjoyment of the car.

Adding a small amount of negative camber to the front and a degree or two of toe out, will substantially improve your 1 Series in handling and cornering.

We would go to a maximum drop of 22mm - 37 mm on most models. You risk rubbing on the arches if you go lower than this.

Alloy wheel upgrades.

Alloy wheels will help the brake cooling and are generally lighter than steel ones.

We can't go into too much detail here about tires but they are how the car puts the power down on the road so are a critical choice. directional tread pattern tires work well on 1 Series, and make a big difference over budget tires. Large 1 Series alloy wheels can decrease performance. If you get big alloy wheels you will be changing your final drive ratio.

Due to this fact we would advise sticking to a maximum wheel size of 18 inches, although we know some of our members have with bigger wheels with no problems.

There is a more updated version of this 1 Series Tuning article on TorqueCars.com.

For more information on Tuning your car please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss 1 Series options in more detail with our 1 Series owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased BMW tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

We need your help improving this article, so please send us your feedback in the comments box below and pass on any tips, points or facts we have wrong or have not covered.

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