New Product: Non-M BMW E46 3-Series Front and Rear AP Racing by Essex Competition Brake Kits!

New Product Release: Competition Brake Kits for the BMW E46

We continue to expand our lineup of Competition Brake Kits for BMWs, and next up is the E46 3-Series. The standard E46 platform has long been a favorite among BMW track day enthusiasts and club racers. A bit lighter than the M3 variant, supremely balanced and robust, it’s a brilliant platform for everything from learning car control to racing competitively. However, like many street cars pushed into heavy track use, the factory sliding calipers, road discs, and pads quickly reveal their limitations—especially when fitted with sticky tires and driven hard. That’s where our new front and rear Competition Brake Kits come in...

Race-Proven Hardware, Optimized for the 3-Series

At the heart of these kits is a perennial favorite: the AP Racing CP8350 caliper. Initially developed for R2 rally competition in Europe, it has since been battle-tested on everything from late model stock cars to NASA championship-winning Corvettes. This 4-piston forged aluminum unit has rightly earned a reputation for extreme toughness and consistent performance on the race track, and yet it weighs less than 5 pounds! For the E46 application, we pair them with a stout 325mm 2-piece full-floating J Hook discs, custom anodized aluminum brackets, and all the hardware needed for a straightforward installation. The result is a bolt-on solution that sheds unsprung weight, dramatically improves heat management, and delivers confidence-inspiring performance lap after lap.

Key Features:

• Front kit saves roughly 15 lbs. of unsprung weight versus OE, while adding a much stiffer 4-piston caliper and 7mm thickness to the disc
• Front and rear kits use an identical pad shape and iron disc, allowing front-to-rear swaps as parts get worn and reducing needed inventory of spares
• Rear kit saves approximately 5 lbs. versus stock, despite increasing disc diameter by 5mm and thickness by 10mm
• CP8350 calipers are more rigid yet lightweight at 4.8 lbs. each versus 7.5 lbs. to 12+ lbs. for OE E46 calipers
• Full-floating 2-piece AP Racing J Hook discs offer superior durability, cooling performance and pad knockback control
• Change pads with only a single bolt while leaving the calipers in place
• Pistons sized properly to allow for seamless integration with OEM master cylinder and ABS system
• Every component designed to resist the heat of extended track sessions
• Track-focused- rear kit eliminates OE parking brake to maximize fitment options and reduce weight
• Designed to fit rear-wheel-drive North American non-M E46 models- 330i, 330ci, 328i, 328ci, 325i, 325ci, 323i, and 323ci (AWD xi model fitment has not been verified)

Links:

Front - AP Racing By Essex Competition Brake Kit (Front CP8350/325mm)- BMW E46 3-Series

Rear - AP Racing By Essex Competition Brake Kit (Rear CP8350/325mm)- BMW E46 3-Series