The Spreadsheet X3 Build

Built With Quality Parts From Our Partners

This build wouldn't exist without the assistance of some incredible partners along the way and we extend a special thank you to our friends at

BMW G01 X3 Build Overview

Whether you’re looking for a grocery-getter or canyon-carver, the BMW G01 X3 and G02 X4 offer wonderful duality at a reasonable price. Our X3 M40i project takes that duality to new heights, exposing the value proposition of the X3, and forgoing the debt-inducing X3M.

With maintenance must-do’s like front control arms, the infamous oil filter housing, and water pump out of the way, we were ready to turn the dials up on our X3. A Dinan intake, turbo inlet, and valved exhaust persuade the senses of a Supra lurking beneath your right foot. The KW V3 coilovers provide a more liveable ride than the M-cars, and added adjustability to dial in the perfect stance without running out of suspension travel. The V3’s damping and rebound adjustment allows us to dial in how the car sets up under braking, and into the bends.

Once you’re ready to fire out of a corner in the X3, the Dinantronics sport tuner on our M40i adds ample shove, deployed in smooth factory-style. Approaching X3M speeds, we can haul-down more consistently with upgraded brakes. Using the rotors from the X3M, paired with F90 M5 6-piston brake calipers, giving our M40i what the X3M should have had from the factory.

All of this makes for the ultimate one-car solution. Open the hatch for the IKEA run, tread on show-grounds with friends, and pursue the tail of an M3 on the Dragon.

From 2018-2024, the G01 X3 greatly benefited from shared platform architecture, inheriting numerous features from the G12 7-series and G30 5-series released in 2016. Cooled and heated seats, self-parking, gesture control, light carpets, digital instrument clusters, and ambient lighting, just to name a few.

The Build At A Glance

Dinan BMW Accelerator Pedal Kit

Stylish aluminum and rubber pedal pads add a great high performance look to the interior of your BMW while providing plenty of grip

Genuine BMW X3M Spoiler

Add X3M styling to your G01 X3 with this Genuine X3M spoiler

3D Design Carbon Fiber Front Lip

Disrupt and redirect air to help improve stability, enhance traction, and in some designs, even reduce drag

Dinan DINANTRONICS Tuner

DINANTRONICS Sport Maximum Gains (B58): Up to 40 HP, 50 lb-ft of torque. DINANTRONICS Sport Maximum Gains (B46/B48): Up to 25 HP, 50 lb-ft of torque

Dinan Ignition Service Kit

This Dinan Ignition Service Kit is designed to keep your engine running at peak performance by combining NGK SILZKGR8E8S spark plugs, and Dinan ignition coils. Dinan ignition coils offer a direct plug-and-play solution for replacing or upgrading your factory coils

Dinan Cold Air Intake

Unleash the full potential of your 2020 + BMW X3/X4 M40i with this complete Dinan Carbon Fiber Intake and Turbo Inlet Kit - featuring all three essential components for installation

Dinan Turbo Inlet Pipe

Dinan turbo inlet replaces the weak, and failure prone, plastic factory inlet with a more robust carbon fiber one

KW Variant 3 Coilover Kit

These coilovers are adjustable, allowing you to change ride height, stiffness, and sometimes damping settings, depending on the model

Genuine BMW Comprehensive Rear Suspension Control Arm Kit

Complete Genuine BMW Rear Suspension Refresh Kit for your BMW G01 X3 & G02 X4

FCP Euro G86 Big Brake Upgrade

Never worry about brake fade again with 395mm M5 stopping power on your G01 X3 or G02 X4, includes larger blue caliper carriers for cars with standard M Sport Brakes

BBS LM Wheels

21x10 et40 square w/ 12.5mm spacers

Toyo Proxes Sport 2 Tires

265/40/21

Why The Spreadsheet Livery?

You may remember the “Parts Car” livery on our F82 M4 project car, in which we took inspiration from an 80’s BMW X-ray design. Showcasing what’s under the skin of a modern BMW allowed us to break-through the noise surrounding modern M cars and their nuances. It reminds us that it’s still a car made of parts that can be serviced, improved, and enjoyed with your own two hands.

Taking this very literal approach a step further, and acknowledging the opportunities and challenges that come with a ubiquitous SUV canvas, we set to the drawing board. When we approach a platform such as X3, we don’t just create content, or list a few parts, but create a haven for owners. What seems like individual steps that any one of competitors could take, amount to something greater than the sum of its parts at FCP Euro. And all you have to do to see exactly what separates us from the rest, is take one look at the car.

Building Our X3 M40i Into the Perfect Modern BMW That Does It All

As BMW’s sedans have grown bigger, heavier, and more complicated, long-time enthusiasts have taken to social media and car meets alike to decry the end of the ultimate driving machine. The average buyer wants a small, tall-riding SUV with room for five and a spacious cargo area, and BMW delivered with the G01 X3, but in the process, gave the world the blueprint for a model more emblematic of that no-longer-used slogan than any before it. Equipped with the turbocharged B58 straight-six engine, a quick-shifting transmission, an advanced xDrive system, and sedan-like agility, the X3 M40i could truly be the ultimate driving machine, capable of supercar acceleration while filled with the family and the dog—or so thought our Automotive Design Engineer, Alex Nelson.