Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, the name TWCompetition shouldn’t be foreign to you. Tearing across the nation with some of the top show cars, TWCompetition specializes in high end European vehicles. Eric Shih’s E46 M3 is one of those top show cars, with a list of modifications to make any car aficionado drool. His E46 M3 has received a huge handful of custom modifications that really set it apart from the crowd, showing off the true nature of TWCompetition’s foundation for their success.
On the exterior, this E46 M3 is arguably one of the most beautiful ones out there. A custom wide body was built for the car with a 1.5-inch flare in the front and a 2-inch flare in the rear. To make everything flow seamlessly from front to rear, the Euro Spec M3 front bumper was widebodied as well to match the flow of the fenders. To step it up a notch, a Strassentech carbon fiber front splitter was molded onto the front bumper, the first M3 to ever have this done. Hamann air ducts were also molded to the front bumper, further personalizing the look. Finishing off the body modifications on the front of the car is an ATR carbon fiber GTR race hood, accenting the already aggressive lines of the E46. On the sides, carbon fiber GTR side skirts were molded onto the car, along with carbon fiber M3 side grills. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist at this point to see that Shih loves carbon fiber – and who wouldn’t, its lightweight construction fits the M3’s race heritage just perfectly. Onto the rear of the car, the rear bumper was custom widebodied to match the fenders, along with a CSL diffuser molded on. Complementing the change up front in the form of a carbon fiber hood, Shih swapped out the stock trunk lid for an OEM CSL M3 unit. Accenting the roof is a Straasentech carbon fiber roof spoiler. All these modifications along with the subtle accents and customization in the paint scheme make the aesthetics of this E46 M3 one of a kind and very appealing to the eyes.
With the widebody in place, any true enthusiast knows a standard set of wheels won’t finish the job. As icing on the cake, Shih went for a super wide and super large setup from Kinesis Motorsports. His K1020 wheels are bolted on in a 20×10 and 20×11.5 variety, custom painted glossy black with a blue anodized lip. The front wheels are wrapped with none other than high quality Yokohama Advan sport tires in a 255/30/20 variety in the front and a much wider pair of 305/25/20 in the rear.
Under the hood, the potent M3 powerplant has received plenty of additional ponies thanks to a stage 1 supercharger from VFE. A Gruppe M carbon fiber intake along with a Dixis titanium race exhaust keeps the force induced air flowing in and out with ease. If that wasn’t enough, Shih also had a custom NOS setup installed with a 13lb carbon fiber NOS bottle handy. Keeping with the performance theme of this article, the M3’s suspension has been further stiffened and enhanced with a set of KW Variant II coilovers. This not only gives Shih the handling capabilities he desires while driving his M3 but also the stance he needs to attract the masses at the shows. A big brake kit from Brembo helps stop the huge 20-inch wheels. Up front is a 380mm Grand Turismo big brake kit with a custom painted Lamborghini Blue caliper and Le Mans GT rotors. In the rear is a tamer 345mm upgrade, in the same variety from Brembo.
Winning shows takes more than looking good and running fast. Interior and in car electronics are all part of the package and Shih lacks neither in his E46 M3. Status Racing came into the picture with their Ring racing seats in a carbon fiber backing, wrapped with alcantara fabric for the ultimate in luxury and comfort. An Autopower roll cage fully equipped with a camera mount along with Schroth Rallye 4-point harnesses keeps to the M3’s race form. Accents in the interior include a custom blue/black suede interior matching the outside of the car, titanium carbon fiber dash trim, OEM CSL M3 carbon fiber door panels and a Dixis titanium pedal set. If that wasn’t enough to please the judges and make Shih’s driving more comfortable, a collection of car audio goods from Diamond Audio fills the cabin with more music than your eyes can listen to. An Eclipse double DIN navigation was flush mounted into the dash, while four 12-inch Diamond Audio subwoofers provides the majority of the bass. All this has been installed in a custom blue enclosure that is as clean as the rest of the car.
While most of us can only wish of owning a beauty such as this one day, we can’t help but appreciate the work and effort Shih has put into customizing his E46 M3 to be one of the nicest ones in the nation. Its modifications are perfectly done to not be too aggressive or too subtle, but perfectly aligned with the M3’s original design.
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