[Jaronbwall]

I'm looking to overhaul my worn out suspension. Turner Motorsports has a sale right now and my shopping cart is full of parts including the OEM Lemforder 3-series shock mount kit.
I have sport suspension with a blown strut and bad ride quality. I'd like to drop the car 0.5-1'' and achieve a sport+ driving feel. I already have front sway bar and M3 control arms.
Any advice on what to tackle first?
Pros and cons for the Bilstein kits? I'm looking at B12 or B14 kit. Seem stupid to replace 1 strut just so everything else can slowly fail.
Tips or tricks to watch out for when removing the old stuff? Don't do it? Burn the car down? Sell it? Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks

[crashoverride]

B12 and B14 seems like they would be pretty harsh ride for daily driving and more geared for a track car... One of the few times cost/price doesn't equal better... just different use need

[Jaronbwall]

Originally Posted by crashoverride

B12 and B14 seems like they would be pretty harsh ride for daily driving and more geared for a track car... One of the few times cost/price doesn't equal better... just different use need

Interesting opinion. I've read other posts saying both kits are not as harsh as other coil-over brands. If it's 20% firmer (give or take) that's what I'm chasing.
Right now my suspension is crashing and bouncing on rough roads, brake diving, rear squatting on hard acceleration, etc. Any replacement would be night and day
The cost to replace the struts with B8 and reuse my springs seems dumb. I'd rather lower the car an inch and get new parts unless someone talks me out of that logic. Plus with all new bushings and shock mounts my car in theory will be HIGHER. Nobody wants new suspension and more fender gap LOL

[crashoverride]

Yea when they fail they FAIL and not a fun ride... You getting the replacement mounting kits as well..? Sounds fun I look forward to hearing the results. Please give us an update.

[Jaronbwall]

Originally Posted by crashoverride

Yea when they fail they FAIL and not a fun ride... You getting the replacement mounting kits as well..? Sounds fun I look forward to hearing the results. Please give us an update.

My fear is rusted bolts and spending money. The Bilstein B14 kit is $905 + mounting refresh kit $146. I can't find anything cheaper than replacing the struts only and just accepting the stock ride height.

[crashoverride]

I'm in the process of renewing my under carriage bits as I reverted to calling all that stuff. The control arms with the rubber bushings that wear out I'm doing at the same time as the shocks. Which I think will make a huge difference.

[ppointer]

I can't help you with your desire to lower the car.

But +1 on Bilstein's. I use them extensively. However, I have no experience with B8, B12 or better. I only have the B4 and B6 on my cars.

Regarding the installation kits, I definitely agree with that approach. I have used them myself. Also, my independent mechanic requires those kits when I farm out the work.

[Jaronbwall]

ppointer I want that stance boy style. Just kidding.
All my mounts and bushings are dry rotted to s**t. I have a leaking strut as well. It's not a fun driving experience. Either I spend some $$$ or leave it parked in the garage.

[ppointer]

Originally Posted by Jaronbwall

ppointer I want that stance boy style. Just kidding.
All my mounts and bushings are dry rotted to s**t. I have a leaking strut as well. It's not a fun driving experience. Either I spend some $$$ or leave it parked in the garage.

Yep, I have been there. I ran my e46 wagon to about 200k miles when the struts and shocks all lost fluid. There was no compliance left and it was painful to drive. Kept stock sport springs but did B4s. Was better than new after that.

[Jaronbwall]

Originally Posted by ppointer

Yep, I have been there. I ran my e46 wagon to about 200k miles when the struts and shocks all lost fluid. There was no compliance left and it was painful to drive. Kept stock sport springs but did B4s. Was better than new after that.

I will compare B4 replacements vs. a full kit. Thanks man!

[335i54n]

b14 cause it adjustable but @max height sit little lower than oem msport. i thought the b14 with better monotube damper rode better than just b4 oem replacements

[Jaronbwall]

Originally Posted by 335i54n

b14 cause it adjustable but @max height sit little lower than oem msport. i thought the b14 with better monotube damper rode better than just b4 oem replacements

That's my thought process. It's a great car but it handles like a boat. I've dumped money into this car over the years so why not spend a little more? For $900 I can get better fitment than OEM.

[335i54n]

do you have a front swaybar and square/wider fronts, those on oe refresh suspension helped a lot but i always hated the b4/twintube feel and rear squat

also if ur in a rust area check ur rear alignment bolt condition and definitely lube up the adjustable threaded sleeve collar

[Jaronbwall]

Originally Posted by 335i54n

do you have a front swaybar and square/wider fronts, those on oe refresh suspension helped a lot but i always hated the b4/twintube feel and rear squat

also if ur in a rust area check ur rear alignment bolt condition and definitely lube up the adjustable threaded sleeve collar

I have an ECS Tuning front sway (28mm), 225 front tires, and 255 rears. Mid west rust belt but parked inside. Good idea about those bolts. I'll be sure to clean those and hit it with anti-seize on threads. The car need an alignment. I got alignment specs from Firestone and it was garbage. The leaking strut is throwing everything off but I think my original alignment also sucked. The full Bilstein kit is winning this battle.

[wrevilo]

I think the B14 look like a great option for the height adjustability. One thing to be aware of is that the B14 is stiffer than the B12 - you can see this when comparing the images and looking at the springs. Bilstein have also confirmed this to me in the past.

[fleetfoot]

I had a similar situation to OP 5 years ago. However the B12 kit was temporarily out of stock, so I just put in the B8 dampers with the original sport springs. The ride was slightly better than brand new after that. Fast forward to this year, and I decided that I wanted to tighten up the aesthetics of my car, so I bought the Eibach Pro Kit springs that would have come with the B12 Pro Kit and had them installed. I wish I had done this in the first place. The appearance is perfect and the handling performance is significantly improved. Turn in is very crisp and steering feel is improved. The only downside is that I have to be even more careful going over speed bumps and the ride is quite a bit more stiff. The OEM spring ride quality was very pleasant, while the B12 kit is very sporty. It now feels close to my M2 in a lot of ways.

Check out this thread I created for more details (especially the last few posts where I added the springs): https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1885214

[oVeRdOsE.]

depends of the budget, imo the E90 already have a very good suspension system OEM, and most cases you only degrade ride quality.
Depends how you drive it, summer? daily? track? mix?

I had KW V1, hated it.

Went back to B4 shocks + h&R + thicker (and larger) tires (1 size above OEM in 18'').

[whyzee125]

Originally Posted by oVeRdOsE.

depends of the budget, imo the E90 already have a very good suspension system OEM, and most cases you only degrade ride quality.
Depends how you drive it, summer? daily? track? mix?

I had KW V1, hated it.

Went back to B4 shocks + h&R + thicker (and larger) tires (1 size above OEM in 18'').

Interesting experience, not that I disagree, could you expand on your opinion of those setups a bit more?

[whyzee125]

OP, I think your shopping cart sounds good. Bilsteins monotube shocks will feel stiffer than OEM obviously but those kits are completely street oriented and last basically forever. Eibach springs are also the softest you can get so it won't be uncomfortable. If you want a bit more refinement over the little bumps in the road, get Koni yellows with the same springs.

[oVeRdOsE.]

Originally Posted by whyzee125

Interesting experience, not that I disagree, could you expand on your opinion of those setups a bit more?

nothing special. KW V1 is like running the car on wood blocs. And I didnt really feel, or had any change to enjoy the ''better handling'' on a daily basis.
Also, replacement part would be hard and expensive to get. So I sold the kit after 1000 km.

My other e90 was on stock suspension and I both drive the car in alternance, and the handling difference did not worth the comfort.

I say comfort, but it was more like ''cheap car feeling''.

So going on new B4 shock, with H&R for the look, is a good compromise.

And I'm use to drive low cars with no tires. Here my flush audi with 235-35-19 on h&r and sport suspension. It was more comfy than my 335 on KW1 and 245-45-17.

[vester86]

having my previous car (E91 330i) on B4's with OEM sport springs, vs KW Street Comfort on my current car (E91 330D) i can say the KW Street comfort is better dampened and only very slightly less comfotable compared to B4. B4 was a big upgrade compared to worn out OEM sport dampers. but on big bumps the B4 was a bit underdamped, but likeable firm on short bumps. the KW SC is a bit less firm on short bumps but firmer on big bumps, way more balanced.

[Jaronbwall]

fleetfoot I really appreciate the link to your "328i suspension experience" and refresh! My wife would never let me spend that amount so learning from others and doing it once is my only option. I've basically DIY'd everything so what's another project?... I never thought to get the M3 spec alignment. That's freaking smart. That's exactly what I'm trying to achieve. It's a spirited driving car at this point but I do daily it sometimes. I also want to hit a track day which is why I upgraded my radiator. That's where you really learn to drive.