Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Suspension overhaul

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Suspension overhaul

    Right, I'm after some advice...

    My coupe's done about 75,000 miles and the suspension is just too worn and soft. The body rolls both laterally and logitudually making the car feel unbalanced on accelleration / braking and cornering. I already know both rear top mounts are badly worn and need replacing but I'm pretty sure all the bushes and/or some of the shocks might also be knackered and need replacing too.

    Should I get the suspension overhauled back to the original setup or go for a new set up altogether? I've got about a grand to spend but that's got to include fitting too as I don't know one end of a spanner from another . I don't really want to harden or lower the car just stop the body roll. As I live in Oxford where do people think I should get the work done (Munich Legends maybe...).

    Any advice much appreciated
    99T Estoril Blue, Sunroof, HK Speakers, Cruise
    Read my M Coupe experience @ Auto-Journals.com

  • #2
    if you want something that would be good on the track then KW is a good choice

    the rogues are about £70 for the rear, the fronts are about £80-100 from BMW

    if you cant be doing with setting up the KW's then H&R would be the way to go, you can still adjust the height but they are not as harsh as the KW's.
    they are also a bit cheaper

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by BEN View Post
      if you want something that would be good on the track then KW is a good choice

      the rogues are about £70 for the rear, the fronts are about £80-100 from BMW

      if you cant be doing with setting up the KW's then H&R would be the way to go, you can still adjust the height but they are not as harsh as the KW's.
      they are also a bit cheaper
      There are three different KW variants, and KW V2 is total shit. FACT! KW V3 costs about £1,200 + the cost of fitting, so that's way over Jules' budget. Since KW V3 is 3-way adjustable then it shouldn't be harsh if you set it up properly.

      To achieve Jules' objective, I would suggest: Bilstein suspension, Rogue rear top mounts and H&R ARBs. You should be able to get this set up for well within a grand.
      /// Exdos ///
      "Men who try the impossible and fail spectacularly are infinitely superior to those who reach for nothing and succeed" --Napoleon Bonapart

      Comment


      • #4
        Originally posted by exdos View Post
        There are three different KW variants, and KW V2 is total shit. FACT! KW V3 costs about £1,200 + the cost of fitting, so that's way over Jules' budget. Since KW V3 is 3-way adjustable then it shouldn't be harsh if you set it up properly.

        To achieve Jules' objective, I would suggest: Bilstein suspension, Rogue rear top mounts and H&R ARBs. You should be able to get this set up for well within a grand.
        £1200! not at my prices!;)!

        the only option from bilstein is a B6 and B8 shock, but then you will need to get some springs, either way the full kit from them will be about £5-600, for the money i would go for the H&R including front and rear top mounts under a grand no problem

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by BEN View Post
          £1200! not at my prices!;)!
          So, what do you sell KW V3 at?
          /// Exdos ///
          "Men who try the impossible and fail spectacularly are infinitely superior to those who reach for nothing and succeed" --Napoleon Bonapart

          Comment


          • #6
            Improve the roadholding+++

            I have a Bilstein Sprintline kit fitted which lowers the height by 30mm and found the handling transformed for road & track.Not so harsh that it gets your fillings loosened up and a middle choice between OEM and KW3.

            Months later I had a set of H & R ARBs fitted and again they transformed what I thought was a good handling--and found the improvement had moved roadholding on to another level.I decided to renew rear top mounts and check all bushes last year and Rogue mounts were fitted, all the seals were as new so left as is.

            I go to Munich Motors in Wokingham, and while clive was doing the rogues biz he found one of the petrol tank straps had lost its rubber packing, which turned out to be a rattle noise that drove me nuts trying to locate.The drive home was quiet and the backend seemed more planted, all the mods were good individually, but together they are great for my style of driving.All the power in the world means zero if you are not able to use it because the car is in control.

            All the work was over the past 2 years,so may just be over the 1K now, depends who you use for fitting.Europarts are the official Bilstein concession in uk and good value.
            safetyfast

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by ZZZEMMCO View Post
              I go to Munich Motors in Wokingham
              this garage is local to me - is it any good ? I might use him for my next service if he is ok.
              Ex 2001 S54
              New cars:
              Lotus Carlton
              350Z

              Comment


              • #8
                THE Indy BMW Service

                Have been going to MM for 5 years for my Alpina and 3 years since warranty ripoff for Z.Clive is a perfectionist for BMW and see,s things others dont. 12 years with dealer and can even build and convert cars, as his E30 M3 with 6cyl engine shows.Pleasure to go for service.If it aint broke--dont pretend it is and dont ripoff people is his mantra.

                Very Clever and precise man. 0118 9772236.
                safetyfast

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by exdos View Post
                  So, what do you sell KW V3 at?
                  £997, but i can always do a deal!

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by ZZZEMMCO View Post
                    Have been going to MM for 5 years for my Alpina and 3 years since warranty ripoff for Z.Clive is a perfectionist for BMW and see,s things others dont. 12 years with dealer and can even build and convert cars, as his E30 M3 with 6cyl engine shows.Pleasure to go for service.If it aint broke--dont pretend it is and dont ripoff people is his mantra.

                    Very Clever and precise man. 0118 9772236.
                    Thats good news this is litterally 30 secs drive from where I live so would be really convienient.

                    I don't think i'll be taking my car to BMW for its next service.. ~ £900 is a joke assuming the chap can do just as good a job for around half price. I'll give it a try see what I think.
                    Ex 2001 S54
                    New cars:
                    Lotus Carlton
                    350Z

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      I'd definitely take the opportunity to upgrade the suspension. I've got the ACS stuff which is pretty similar if not identical to what zzzemmco has, and it's a huge improvement. Obviously it's a bit firmer, but not unpleasantly so, even on Oxford's finest pot holes and it's well worth it to get rid of the crazy pitch and roll on the standard stuff. I now use Munich Motors, not exactly local but easy enough to get to/from on the train. I had the ACS kit fitted by Rossiters. Definitely not local, but they did it while I waited (about 4 hours), gave me a spare office, coffee etc so I just got some work done then drove back. If I was doing it today I'd fit it myself, but I've learnt a bit about spanners in the last couple of years.

                      Replacing all the top mounts makes sense. My rears were knackered at about 50k (not sure if they'd ever been done before). My fronts were a bit worn when I took them a couple of weeks ago at around 60k.

                      Paul

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Jules,

                        I would keep it original. Get a good indy to assess and replace any worn bits.

                        I'm likely at odds with others, but the OEM setup is fine for road use.
                        S54 Titan Silver metallic. Black leather, most factory options including sunroof, Becker Cascade and Becker Silverstone changer.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          I think where you drive the car could have some bearing on your decision here.

                          I use mine daily on country roads for a 40 mile round trip to work. I have the ACS suspension and although the ride is quite harsh its not too bad - it certainly doesn't ride like an OEM set up though. I find it acceptable though even when using it on back roads. Its fine on the motorways etc but again not as good as OEM in terms of ride quality.

                          One thing to consider is ride height / ground clearance. I am fine in mine 90% of the time but there is a particularly bad section of road / gravel track I must go down to get to work and here I have to be very careful not to ground out. I now know where I might so avoid these areas but it is a thing to consider when changing from OEM.

                          might be worth going for a ride in one with different suspension see what you think ?
                          Last edited by MGR; 24-02-2008, 03:03 PM. Reason: spelling
                          Ex 2001 S54
                          New cars:
                          Lotus Carlton
                          350Z

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by exdos View Post
                            There are three different KW variants, and KW V2 is total shit. FACT! KW V3 costs about £1,200 + the cost of fitting, so that's way over Jules' budget. Since KW V3 is 3-way adjustable then it shouldn't be harsh if you set it up properly.

                            To achieve Jules' objective, I would suggest: Bilstein suspension, Rogue rear top mounts and H&R ARBs. You should be able to get this set up for well within a grand.
                            I don't understand KWs pricing for these kits, the pricing I've seen they vary only a few hundred pounds from boggo V1 (£750) to fully adjustable V3 (£1000)! it makes no sense to look at the standard V1 or V2 so it either makes the V1/V2 very expensive or the V3 good value!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Jules, you have pm.
                              Russ

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X