Tuning the BMW S58B30T0

"Comprehensive guide to tuning the BMW S58B30T0 engine!"

We are always seeing threads requesting info on the premier S58B30T0 upgrades. So let us look into BMW S58B30T0 modifications and outline the best modifications on this great engine and point out some problems along the way.

Here we consider S58B30T0 tuning and report on the best upgrades. BMW S58B30T0 offer good returns when tuned and with carefully chosen tuning upgrades like ECU maps, turbo upgrades and camshafts you will increase your driving experience.

The best S58B30T0 parts on an engine are usually the ones that give the best power gain for you spend.

We won't be swayed by popular S58B30T0 parts, they need to be cost effective.

Altering your S58B30T0 camshaft will make a dramatic difference to the engine bhp. Choosing a higher performance camshaft profile raises the bhp accordingly.

NB: Fast road camshafts usually increase the bhp and torque across the rpm band, you may lose a little low end power but your top end will improve.

Motorsport camshafts, increase the top end band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.

For a road car should ideally to match your engines power to your usage of the car.

I'd be surprised if you have ever thought a S58B30T0 Race cam is a pleasure to live with when on the daily commute.

Different S58B30T0 engines respond better to mild cam durations so view each engine as unique.

The ecu map and fuelling also will make differences on the power gains you'll make.

Extending exhaust or intake durations can alter the power band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.

S58B30T0 Tuning Stages

Stage 1 S58B30T0 modifications: Fast road camshaft, Panel air filters, Drilled & smoothed airbox, Intake headers, Remaps/piggy back ECU, Sports exhaust manifold.

Stage 2 S58B30T0 modifications: Fast road cam, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, induction kit, high flow fuel injectors, fuel pump upgrades, Ported and polished head.

Stage 3 S58B30T0 modifications: Engine balancing & blueprinting, Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Twin charging conversions, Competition cam.

Remaps should help to unlock the full potential of all the parts you've done to your S58B30T0.

It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NASP engines, but power output will rely on the parts you've carried out and the condition of your engine.

Shoving more air into each cylinder is the main goal to any engine tuning task.

Intake headers flow the air during the suck phase from the filter and allow it to be fed into the engine cylinders with fuel for the squish phase.

Structure and rate of flow of the Plenum can make a big change to fuel mixing and power on the S58B30T0.

Most air intake manifolds are ripe for an upgrade, although some manufacturers provide fairly well optimized air intake manifolds.

Larger S58B30T0 valves, carrying out S58B30T0 port enlargement and head flowing will also improve power, and as an added benefit will allow you to get a greater power increase on other modifications.

Turbo upgrades for the S58B30T0

NASP engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your S58B30T0

The more air you can get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes major power gains.

If the engine has a turbo already fitted upgrades are more reliable and you will discover turbo engines are made using strengthened components.

There are practical limits for every engine, with some being incredibly solid and some only able to handle stock power

See where you'll find these limits and fit more solid crank and pistons to handle the power.

It's not unheard of people spending a loads on turbo upgrades on the S58B30T0 only to watch the engine catastrophically fail when it's finished.

Larger upgraded turbos will usually suffer no power at low rpm, and low capacity turbos spool up really quickly but won't have the peak end torque gains.

In recent times the selection of turbo units is always moving on and we commonly find variable vane turbo units, where the vane profile is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end bhp.

Twin scroll turbo units divert the exhaust gases into a couple of channels and direct these at differently designed vanes in the turbo. They also help the scavenging effect of the engine.

It is not unusual that there's a limitation in the air flow sensor MAP/MAF/AFM on the S58B30T0 when a lot more air is being pulled into the engine.

We note 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor was restricting bhp and torque at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large bhp gains, although more complex to setup. We have this feature on twinchargers if you want to read more.

Uprating S58B30T0 fuel injectors

When you boost the torque you will need to look at to the fuel system.

More torque needs more fuel. We strongly recommend you to over specify your injectors flow rate.

The rule of thumb is to add 20% capacity when fitting an injector, this takes into account injector deterioration and provides a little spare capacity should the engine need more fuel.

We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.

Best S58B30T0 performance exhausts

You only need to to replace your exhaust if your exhaust is actually causing a restriction.

On most factory exhausts you should find that the flow rate is ok even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Sports exhausts increase the flow of gases through the engine.

But if your exhaust is too large, ie: it's over 2.5 inches bore, you will lose a lot of the flow rate and end up losing power and torque.

Typically exhaust restrictions come around the catalyst and filters installed, so adding a higher flowing high performance alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Problems and issues to look out for on the S58B30T0

The S58B30T0 engines, if regularly serviced and maintained, are generally very reliable and have few issues.

Regular oil changes are vital on the S58B30T0, particularly when the engine has been modified and is putting down more power than the manufacturer intended.

For more information on Tuning your S58B30T0 engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our S58B30T0 owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

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This article is flagged for an update, so please pass on specific tips below that I can include. All articles, and content was written by me, Waynne Smith TorqueCars founder. Some outlines are just too general so I appreciate your feedback and suggestions. This entry was filed under BMW. You can leave a response below or join our forum to discuss this article and car modification in detail with our members.

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