Materials to Maintain Your ZHP IIIII Hand Protection IIIII Tools to Maintain Your ZHP
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  1. #11
    Join Date
    Nov 2016
    Location
    Charlotte, NC
    Posts
    3,130
    Damn this is cool. Love seeing how perfectly tuned the S54 head is in comparison. I'm a little shocked at how much lower the flow is on the N54 than the S54, especially given the power that those things can produce.

  2. #12
    Right! Fresh out of the wrapper, the S54 is a beast. It probably can get massaged too. I'd love to give it a shot after I ruin a few M54 heads.

    So the N54 is a strange case, because turbo. I believe BMW kept the flow low to increase port velocity for better throttle response and to make it feel more like a large NA engine.

    I have a total of 4 engine airflow/cylinder head modding books. Let me study a bit and I'll be back.

    Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
    -Corey

    2003 Blue ZHP Sedan @ 210k
    Dead due to damaged valve. Parts are being transferred to a wagon:

    2003 325iT Japanrot 6MT @ 230k

  3. #13
    Join Date
    Nov 2016
    Location
    Charlotte, NC
    Posts
    3,130
    Quote Originally Posted by DeathTrap View Post
    So the N54 is a strange case, because turbo. I believe BMW kept the flow low to increase port velocity for better throttle response and to make it feel more like a large NA engine.
    Ah yeah I think you nailed it there - their goal was to make it feel like a N/A V8. Good stuff!

  4. #14
    Join Date
    Oct 2016
    Location
    Sydney, Australia
    Posts
    179
    Awesome project - yes Adam will has done a lot of work for it.

    Side question - what technical background do you have? Will be interesting to see different perspectives/approaches to the problem (or optimisation, as you will).

    '03 325i 6MT Individual - Estoril Blue

  5. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by KendrickC View Post
    Awesome project - yes Adam will has done a lot of work for it.

    Side question - what technical background do you have? Will be interesting to see different perspectives/approaches to the problem (or optimisation, as you will).
    Thanks!

    I have my education in Electrical Engineering, but I've been too far removed from my craft for a long time. School was more rigorous than my current work, so this "problem" will give me a chance to stretch my legs out.

    The funny thing is, airflow seems to behave very similarly to electrical current...which would make sense, since they are both matter that's moving per unit time.

    I guess I may as well throw my perspective out there.

    Airflow requires a pressure differential to induce air movement, similar to how current flow requires a voltage differential in order for electrons to flow. A wire has a ton of electrons but they aren't going move unless a voltage is applied. Easy so far.

    The higher the voltage/pressure diff, the more flow happens.

    Current/airflow can increase, but too much current in an electrical conductor causes heat and a voltage drop due to friction. Similarly, too much air flow through an orifice or pipe causes friction and a pressure drop.

    A restriction is something that resists the flow of the air and causes a pressure drop. A resistor is the electrical equivalent. These restrictions can be precisely controlled for a plethora of uses...like flow benches. *Hint*

    Funny enough, the vacuum industry uses the term "airwatts" which is pressure times flow... similar to real "watts" which is voltage times current. Both represent power or the usefulness of the energy.

    I have to think about an analogy for velocity...lol

    But, that's my thought process and how I will go about looking at the air movement. Technically, I could model the system as an electrical circuit (SN: some mechanical engineers will model systems as electrical circuits because they have the exact same equations describing them...and circuit simulations are very reliable and cheap)

    Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
    -Corey

    2003 Blue ZHP Sedan @ 210k
    Dead due to damaged valve. Parts are being transferred to a wagon:

    2003 325iT Japanrot 6MT @ 230k

  6. #16
    Join Date
    Oct 2016
    Location
    Sydney, Australia
    Posts
    179
    Excellent :D

    I'm a mech eng now doing systems engineering. I'm always itching to do more hands on engineering. You're right that some mech engs will use some electrical 'styles' too

    Sent from my SM-N960F using Tapatalk

    '03 325i 6MT Individual - Estoril Blue

  7. #17
    Join Date
    Nov 2016
    Location
    Charlotte, NC
    Posts
    3,130
    That was great. I'm a mech eng as well and fluid flow easily clicked for me, but I never found a good way to visualize electricity. I think you just helped me understand things a lot better - wish I had seen that a dozen years ago!

  8. #18
    I'm doing a job rotation to SE. I feel like it has nothing to do engineering and more to do with project management. It'll be nice on the resume though.

    Glad I could paint a picture!

    So a minor update, I have purchased an engine simulation software called Pipemax. Apparently it's supposed to be really good. There's a few parameters I'm not too sure about, but I'll make sure to get screenshots and post them here when I get it up and running.

    2. There is a complete engine in Charlotte that just needs a headgasket. I may pick that up, freshen it up and throw it in the car. Then I can really take my time and even experiment a bit more with my old engine...
    -Corey

    2003 Blue ZHP Sedan @ 210k
    Dead due to damaged valve. Parts are being transferred to a wagon:

    2003 325iT Japanrot 6MT @ 230k

  9. #19
    Bump. I actually did get that engine. My RX7 is eating up my time now but I hope to get back to this soon.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    -Corey

    2003 Blue ZHP Sedan @ 210k
    Dead due to damaged valve. Parts are being transferred to a wagon:

    2003 325iT Japanrot 6MT @ 230k

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