Doug Rowse’s 2003 BMW 330I E46

You don’t typically expect to see a BMW splashed on the pages of Modified. In the scheme of things here in our tuner corner of the world, does the marque of the Roundel really belong in the same book that covers Subies, EVOs and blown Hondas? If you look at it from the perspective of racing, well, then Bimmer definitely belongs here. Take a gander at the race action in the SPEED World Challenge Touring Car series or Grand-Am KONI Challenge competition, and you’ll see 3-series BMWs competing right alongside Honda TSXs, RSXs and Civics, as well as Dodge SRT-4s, Chevy Cobalt SSs and even a Hyundai Tiburon or two. Of course, the sanctioning bodies try to ensure parity among the cars so there’s an actual race going on between the machines of a like class, and truth be known, a legal and well-prepped entry of any of these machines in the hands of a capable driver will all turn similar lap times. The point of placing these cars together is to attract a wider demographic, as such, the Bavarian make is a very welcome addition to such racing competition and to our group of drive evaluation vehicles in Modified.

The particular BMW in question for this month’s installment is an E46 chassis BMW 330i model owned by local Phoenix autocrosser and track day aficionado Doug Rowse. I will always hold a soft spot for the four-door 330, as I raced a street stock version of one in the KONI Challenge at Daytona in 2007, and it really was an easy car to drive quickly. I was hoping that when I heard about Doug’s car that it would bring back some of the feeling of that V-Pak prepared hot rod that I had raced.

Doug’s semi-street-driven 330 came rolling down the Bondurant track driveway on a cool January day that was threatening rain, so we got to work straight away, wanting to be sure to get a good flavor for what the car could do before the desert heavens opened up. Rowse’s silver Bimmer looked low and wide and bore some subtle damage on the rolled fenders either from contact on track or from big rub from the absolutely gargantuan 305/30R18 Kumho V710 meats wrapped around 18x10 D-Force LTW5 wheels. The intense Phoenix summer sun clearly had taken a bit of a toll on the silver roof of Doug’s 330 and with help from Cortez Visual Communications, he covered the back quarter of the car in the familiar BMW “M” Sport red and blue checkered flag scheme. Perhaps a bit too in-your-face for a street-driven vehicle, but right on the money for a track car, and a fitting homage to the original M1 as well as to the all-conquering PTG and Schnitzer racing team BMWs of the more recent past.

Doug’s 330, although a wonderful track car, was not a purpose-built race car and the interior was left almost completely stock, save for the practical form-fitting Sparco Pro2000 seats. The Sparcos also allowed for a much lower seating position and gave the 330 that unmistakable feel of a lower center of gravity. Although vision is certainly reduced and judging the external dimensions of the car becomes more difficult, I’ve always liked to sit as low as possible in the car. Climbing behind the wheel of the this four-door sedan felt right at home to me.

Doug bought his ’03 330i in September of 2004 under a salvage title. Clearly, he purchased the car as a track machine, and in fact, it saw its first competitive events almost immediately with HPDE and autocross becoming its regular weekend workload. After getting time in the car to help make some educated decisions on what would be best for increasing performance in the Bimmer, Doug began slowly making changes and enhancements to the car that would still keep it legal in the classes he wanted to continue to compete in. Following strong showings in SCCA Solo autocross competition and several events in NASA time trials and track days, Doug had developed a car that became increasingly competitive.