DFWRaider

Wasn't meant to be inflammatory, it was meant to describe my experience between the two cars. The torque in the flashed 535 provides head jerking acceleration that you don't get in a stock 550. As for 0-60 numbers, I've seen comments made that show the flashed car at 4.8 to 5.0. Those really don't mean squat to me since I really don't have any good way to measure that.

In my experience, the torque of the Dinan 535 is what blows away the 550 from a performance standpoint. You just don't get the rush in a 550 that the flashed turbo engine provides.

Cosmetically the 550 offers far and away the best looks with the M-Sport package (though the 535 sport isn't shabby), and I don't think there is anyone here who wouldn't prefer to have a 550 badge on their car vs. a 535 from a status perspective. But for pure, adreniline-rushing acceleration for the closet stop light racer the flashed 535 wins hands down in my experience.

As has been said here many times, both are great cars. Some people don't care about torque, some do. It all comes down to what the OP wants out of his new car, and if he wants great performance and can save some cash from the base price to put toward extra toys like HUD, Nav, etc then the flashed twin turbo is a great option.

But with all that said, when the V8tt comes out I'm all over it.

kscarrol

That's fair. Again, times I've seen for the 550 are 5.0-5.2 so I don't consider that blowing away. I test drove both cars (stock 535, not Dinan) and found them very similar in terms of acceleration and general handling. No neck snapping in the 535 that was not present in the 550, but again it was not a Dinan 535. I did not get to really throw either car around in terms of handling, but I'm sure the lighter 535 is more nimble. Oh well, different strokes. I just have a different perspective as to what blowing way means...

TX Buzzard

Call Dinan (408-779-7544) and ask to speak with Phillip Briseno. Software and other goodies for the '08 models are about ready for distribution. Get information from the source, rumors suck!

bobster52

I think we are just learning how to tune the N54 engine. Apparently (confirmed by many sources) BMW is trying to block the tuning of the TT engines. The problem for them is that they are now coming out with a TT V8 and we will all want to tune that car too. When you install the Dinan flash you effectively void a good part of your BMW drive train warranty. Some people were using piggy backs so they could pull the piggyback out and turn the car in for warrany repair should they have a failure. I think the new ECU is designed to recognize and log any funny business like piggy backs (just my opinion). If you have a Dinan (or any other tuner) flash you have already made the decision to void your factory warranty. With Dinan you receive their warranty in lieu of the factory waranty. This is a good concept as long as Dinan is in business and honors their waranties. As far as HP, I find 384hp and 421 ft/lb of TQ pretty optimistic at the boost levels reported. Obviously those are numbers at the crank, not at the wheels. I own a 335i and a 535i. I drove a 550i with the intention of buying it but honestly I like the way the power comes on (in around town driving) better with the TT engine. At partial throttle settings in the mid RPM's the TT cars feel faster to me. By the way, my two cars are within less than a 1/10th of a second for the quarter and 0-60 on my Gforce, same day and same road. On an uphill stretch of road in 80 deg weather they both did 5.3 0-60 and 13.9 @ 101mph with 60' times of 2.1 to 2.2 sec. For comparison my Buddies Evo 9 MR did 5.1, 13.8 and 2.0 60 ft and that was the best he could do with 3 or 4 tries. the Bimmers are very consistent, no need for multiple tries. Like many others on this board, I'm waiting for the new 555i or maybe even a 655i since the kids have all left home.

DFWRaider

Which sources have confirmed this? My Service Advisor said he has not heard this, and my dealership is one of the largest in the country. In fact, they highly recommend "safe" mods such as those from Dinan (they don't, however, recommend piggybacks that have no warranty coverage).

As many have mentioned on here, there are piggybacks that can make the 535i even faster than Dinan, but Dinan does it with a safe harbor designed not to overtax the engine architecture which is why so many dealerships recommend it and a number of them sell it as well.

If you have sources that are saying differently, it would be great if you could list them on here so I could let my dealership know. Or feel free to private me if you have such information. Thanks.

bimmerturn

Ok my 2 cents

I drove 335, 535, and 550 (I had the 335 for about 6 months before I switched back to 550i) and I felt the turbo lag with no doubt in both the 335 and 535. Both 335 and 535 have great power once they hook in but not close to the immediate power of the 550i.

All are great cars for different minds, I choose 550i for power, looks, V8 sound, handling, and best of all no need to modify in any way or shape.

pennetta

You are very ill informed. The warranty does not get voided, BMW is not blocking upgrades, the hp and torque ratings that Dinan claims are fairly consistant with other tuners results.

bimmerturn

The warranty does get voided by BMW if the problems with car are caused by the Dinan upgrade and that is when the Dinan warranty kicks in. Of course, just hope there are no back and forth going on meanwhile to prove what actually caused the problem while the car sits.

Just to be fair, I have not seen any threads or heard anything to this effect but you'll never know ...

Gwilkie

You don't know what you're talking about. Maybe you're a 550 owner who is uncomfortable knowing the 535 with Dinan is a beast compared to your own car. Whatever the reason might be, you are making it up as you go along.

Anyone else on here can call BMWNA to get their input on the Dinan modification for the 3 and 5 series twin turbo engines. I have a hunch they and the individual dealerships know quite a bit more than bobster and his "many sources".

By the way Bobster, who are these many sources you speak of?

bobster52

Simply go on E90post.com or N54tech.com forums and you can see for yourself. There have been on going discussions about this by everyone including Vishnu, JB, SSTT for days. If you read my post you would know that I chose to buy not only a 335i but also a 535i because i like the N54 so much. I would say that I'm one of the greatest proponents of the 535i you will find. By the way, both of my local authorized BMW dealers (Phoenix,AZ) have stopped doing Dinan Flashes on 335's and 535's!