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r a b e h t g n i s i a R s cs ha i m a Dyn cing onster a R e V10 epower m r t i l s .0 5’s 5 a 650 hor M e ith th o create atte w t n onte apacity t phy: John B c t o c ra N d its also Photog e p p u Cad x s: Ale Word
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hen the engineers at Bavarian Motor Works Munich headquarters finished the E60 M5 they must have undoubtedly felt they had the best high performance luxury saloon in its class. The M5 is a magnificent beast, powerful and stately, a machine equally at home on the track or in the parking lot of a Fortune 500 company. The E60 embodies the latest evolutionary step in M-series cars. Its lines are liquid, curvy, and it looks sculpted by the gods, not bolted together by man. I expect performance gains from the latest advances in centuries of internal combustion engine refinement, but BMW’s decades of research, design and
W
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experience produced a vehicle like no other. Some of the new features, like the Head-Up Display (HUD), are otherworldly, seemingly ripped from tomorrow’s headlines; I never glanced at my dash while I was weaving in and out of traffic on California’s 5 freeway; all the information – speed, revs and navigation directions – was splayed across the dashboard like a scene out of Minority Report or the Matrix. After returning to my own car with its antique dashboard and gauges, I felt like I had stepped back in time. BMW calls the M5 a “top athlete, ready for the most astounding performance” and it’s right. However, like any good trainer unsatisfied with his prize fighters’ conditioning, no matter how
exceptional, Federico Pavoncelli and his crew at Racing Dynamics (known as RDSport in America and Canada) took BMW’s finished product and added a bit more polish, and a lot more performance. The RS 58 is its comprehensive, upgraded E60 M5. Racing Dynamics parts start as sketches and evolve into detailed drawings, then graphic renderings and eventually prototype parts. It tests all its products in a wind tunnel to maximize aerodynamic efficiency. Pavoncelli says he tests his products side by side with many of the top F1 and WSC teams, and taps top specialists in vehicle aerodynamics for their experience. But before any of this happens, before so much as a lug nut is modified, the Racing Dynamics
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RACING DYNAMICS RS58
crew spends hours testing, inspecting and cataloging each stock vehicle. “Our goal is to deliver the best,” he says emphatically, “because we believe that our customers deserve only the best, and this is why our products are not as affordable as many others on the market.“ Fortunately we don’t drive in wind tunnels, so Federico gave me the keys to the RS58 and let me take it for a run on Southern California’s highways. Racing Dynamics stays faithful to the M tradition and stuck with a naturally aspirated motor instead of a forced-induction model. Rather than add the weight of a forced-induction system, Racing Dynamics subtract weight from the engine wherever possible.
Pavoncelli says he doesn’t want Racing Dynamics known as a “boy-racer” tuning company that caters to the crowd of “racer wannabes that fancy the gull wing doors, the double-decker wings, the fake air intakes, and the carbon fibre plastered all over.” “Although we recognize that there is a flourishing market for these products,” he says, “this is not what Racing Dynamics is about. Our first approach to modifying a BMW starts with the engine. After that, we need to modify the drive train and the chassis to deliver the increase in horsepower to the ground in an efficient manner. As this usually requires wider wheels and tires, there is a need to revise the overall dimensions of the body components to cover the
larger tyre sections and restore, if not improve, the original aerodynamic drag coefficient.” At the heart of Racing Dynamics RS58 then is a ‘stroker motor’ (an enlarged capacity unit as us Europeans would call it) conversion that uses much of the same technology found in the latest F1 motors and it claims its billet crankshaft, billet rods and forged pistons are among the lightest to ever find their way into a production-based engine. It uses larger valves and modified cam profiles for the ported cylinder heads to net a 17 per cent efficiency boost over stock cylinders. An additional, unforeseen bonus, is that the stroker motor conversion doesn‘t look any different externally, so you might possibly get away with
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convincing your local dealership that it’s a standard unit – until they drive it of course! The numbers, and they’re impressive numbers – gains of 142hp and 98lb ft are not to be sniffed at – only tell part of the story. The car tells the rest in its own earthy, low rumble and pleasant tone of voice; a distinctive growl from a well-tuned machine. Step on the gas and the RS58 howls as it pushes you into your headrest. When you hear it coming down the street from inside a building, it sounds like someone’s launching a rocket ship. I was awestruck when I saw the M5 parked out front instead of a Ferrari. Racing Dynamics’ complete exhaust system includes exhaust manifolds, metal matrix catalytic converters, an X-flow midpipe and rear silencers. The stainless steel competition tubular exhaust manifolds (CTEMs) are equal length tubular headers handmade in Italy. Simply swapping the M5’s OE manifold with the Racing Dynamics manifold results in nigh on a 40 horsepower performance gain. Installation requires a new set of catalytic converters to replace the OE units which were integrated into the original manifolds. The rear silencers deliver the aural pleasure. The quad 85x90 chrome stainless steel tips give the RS58 its signature growl and menacing appearance. The Competition versions feature smaller silencers than the sport system for a roaring sound that rivals one of Maranello’s V12s. The car drew many bewildered looks, enthusiastic howls and sympathetic honks from my fellow drivers. BMW owners were particularly impressed and I fielded many questions about Racing Dynamics and its modifications while driving around town. I opened up the throttle heading south on the 5
freeway and started to put the car through its paces. It’s safe to say the RS58 blew every other car right off the road: it’s like bringing a gun to a knife fight. You’ll only realize the RS58’s full power on the track or in a controlled driving environment, but you’ll have a lot of fun toying with everyone else on the way. Racing Dynamics says the scavenging effect generated by the 304 stainless steel X-Flow downpipe improves torque in the 3500-4500rpm range, and it increases the pipe diameter to 75mm in order to reduce back pressure and increase throttle response. It maximizes the performance of its parts by reflashing the ECU with a custom map through the OBD2 port. The RS58 feels stiffer than the M5 and the car really excelled, and accelerated, in and out of turns. Racing Dynamics anti-roll bars are designed to compliment its springs. Mandrel bent out of hollow heat-treated steel, it says these units deliver 30 per cent more rigidity than the stock units, weigh 12 per cent less, and swivel through urethane bushings firm enough to be used on the track; each spring is tempered and tested prior to delivery. The Racing Dynamics spring kits are designed as an entry level suspension tuning modification. Many enthusiasts put on larger wheels and want an aggressive, lowered car to complete the look, while RD also offers a competition spring kit which lowers the car. A car with loads of power and standard brakes is functional like a runaway train, so Racing Dynamics upgrade the stoppers accordingly. The RS58 is equipped with larger drilled, grooved and slotted discs to increase braking power and shorten stopping distances. The RS58 runs like the wind and stops on a dime. The brake pedal is much more responsive
than standard and the stiffer calipers improve performance during hard braking. The result is a set of anchors that are sensitive and responsive without feeling touchy. Many tuners forsake form for function, and since the M5’s dynamic curves make it more bombshell knockout than ugly duckling, I can’t fault them for leaving well enough alone. However, Federico and Racing Dynamics thankfully didn’t stop with the engine. The RS58 elicited a ‘shiny object’ response in my primitive brain in a way I never thought the E60 could. Personally, I did not care for the lines of the E60. The latest design is a fairly significant break from previous looks, a style I feel too closely resembles some of Lexus’ recent offerings. The lines might be ‘powerful’ but they aren’t aggressive; I didn’t lust after the E60 like I did over E39. Until now. Racing Dynamics’ subtle embellishments give the RS58 an aggressive look a car of this caliber deserves. The car has a gripping, sleek, neo-futurist appearance; because of the HUD, the speed and the looks I felt like I was in the Batmobile. The carbon-kevlar add-on sections to the front bumper are welcome additions that stay faithful to the M design. The mean looking fins of the carbonkevlar rear bumper add-ons coupled with the roof and boot spoilers really spice up the M5’s back end. All the pieces improve the overall aerodynamics of the car and are tasteful upgrades that add a lot to the car’s profile without taking anything away from the overall look. The RS58 sports Racing Dynamics’ custom fivespoke RS2-F wheels, designed for the M5, the newest addition to its growing wheel family. It’s designed a racy, yet classy performance wheel to
The numbers, and they’re impressive numbers – gains of 142hp and 98lb ft are not to be sniffed at – only tell part of the story
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RACING DYNAMICS RS58 Racing Dynamic RS58 ENGINE: V10, 40-valve, normally aspirated CAPACITY: 5799cc MAX POWER: 649hp @ 7500rpm MAX TORQUE: 482lb ft @ 5900rpm 0-62MPH: 3.8 seconds TOP SPEED: 200mph
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compliment the overall design of the car rather than some ostentatious chunk of chrome. The stainless steel outer is only 2.5mm thick and weighs the same as the 6mm aluminum outer it replaces. The test car featured the 20-inch model (a 21-inch version is also available) that weighs a mere 11.3 kilos. In pursuit of any weight-saving option, it uses titanium fasteners to complete the three-piece forged wheel making it among the lightest wheels in its size. It offers other wheel models for the M5 but insists on the RS2-F for the RS58 conversion. The centre piece of the wheels on the test model was painted anthracite, and both the brake caliper visible through the spoke gaps and the RDSport logo on the wheel were painted in Racing Dynamics’ signature blue, which was a nice touch. The RS58 offers improvements over the M5 in virtually every performance category – acceleration, handling, torque, and top speed. Racing Dynamics’ body kit is tasteful, understated and complimentary.
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The wheels are beautiful and customizable. The RS58 is an extensive, comprehensive upgrade package for a car that leaves little room for performance upgrades. Still, Federico Pavoncelli and Racing Dynamics manage to trim even more fat and squeeze even more performance from the stock M5. Federico isn’t just passionate about cars, he’s passionate about maximizing performance in BMWs and strongly believes in the brand. He says that some of Racing Dynamics designs were incorporated and advanced in future releases. “These similarities are a testament to the fact that we are on the right path to preserving BMW’s original identity when we design our aerodynamic components, and we are one of the few companies who’s products could sit in a BMW showroom, next to BMW’s own vehicles, and not look out of place.” Racing Dynamics claims this is the fastest naturally aspirated S85 motor on the road and I believe them
after everything I’ve seen. From start to finish everything about this car is faster and more efficient than its already formidable M5 incarnation. If this transformation took place on a late night infomercial, the before picture looks like your college girlfriend who was too good for you and comes back in the after photo looking like Claudia Schiffer. This sounds trivial, but finding an extra 140 plus horses in such a high performance vehicle is astounding and very, very fun to drive ●
CONTACT: UK Racing Dynamics UK Tel: 0845 6435 361 Web: www.superlativeautosport.co.uk USA RD Sport Tel: 949 325 4100 Web: www.rdsport.com