[chrispitude]

Hi everyone,

Has anyone put Bilstein HDs on an E91 2006 325xiT wagon? The car has 115k miles on it and the factory suspension is pretty dead. I don't need it to be any lower or stiffer than factory. The car is used daily to take my 1-year-old son to daycare, and the ground clearance is useful in the winter.

I like Bilsteins for their longevity and their lifetime warranty for the original purchaser. My thinking is that fresh Bilstein HDs with the factory springs is the way to go.

I'm not sure if the E91 2006 X-drive wagon shares suspension with any other E9X cars or not. Anyone been there, done that? If so, how did it turn out?

Thanks!

[Navacellus]

Originally Posted by chrispitude

Hi everyone,

Has anyone put Bilstein HDs on an E91 2006 325xiT wagon? The car has 115k miles on it and the factory suspension is pretty dead. I don't need it to be any lower or stiffer than factory. The car is used daily to take my 1-year-old son to daycare, and the ground clearance is useful in the winter.

I like Bilsteins for their longevity and their lifetime warranty for the original purchaser. My thinking is that fresh Bilstein HDs with the factory springs is the way to go.

I'm not sure if the E91 2006 X-drive wagon shares suspension with any other E9X cars or not. Anyone been there, done that? If so, how did it turn out?

Thanks!

I went with HDs for my 2007 E91 (daily driver) last summer and have loved life since. The HDs will be stiffer than stock but definitely not harsh. In my opinoion they are what the car should have been spec'd with from the factory. I did and would advise you to replaced all the shock/strut mounts front and rear; mine were badly worn after 100K miles. I copy/pasted my order with part numbers from allshocks.com(Turner Motorsport) below for your reference...

Item 1
Product ID: 2102011105647
Product Name: BMW(35-142454)
Quantity: 1

Item 2
Product ID: 210201111524
Product Name: BMW(35-142461)
Quantity: 1

Item 3
Product ID: 210201111616
Product Name: BMW(BE5-C039-H1)
Quantity: 2

[chrispitude]

Originally Posted by Navacellus

I went with HDs for my 2007 E91 (daily driver) last summer and have loved life since. The HDs will be stiffer than stock but definitely not harsh. In my opinoion they are what the car should have been spec'd with from the factory. I did and would advise you to replaced all the shock/strut mounts front and rear; mine were badly worn after 100K miles. I copy/pasted my order with part numbers from allshocks.com(Turner Motorsport) below for your reference...

Thank you! I just ordered a set (Bavarian Auto has them on sale through June). I'll take your advice and replace all the mounts too.

How tired were the factory shocks/struts themselves at 100k? When I did suspension on my E36 at 80k miles, the factory stuff was pretty much dead.

[Navacellus]

Originally Posted by chrispitude

Thank you! I just ordered a set (Bavarian Auto has them on sale through June). I'll take your advice and replace all the mounts too.

How tired were the factory shocks/struts themselves at 100k? When I did suspension on my E36 at 80k miles, the factory stuff was pretty much dead.

My right rear was blown and the others were near death. I placed my order in April last year and found out the rears were back ordered with no reliable ETA to the US. I bought a set of used OEM rears from a fellow forum member as a temp fix until Bilstein could fulfill my order. Finally got them late summer/early fall after a frustrating wait...

[chrispitude]

Originally Posted by Navacellus

My right rear was blown and the others were near death. I placed my order in April last year and found out the rears were back ordered with no reliable ETA to the US. I bought a set of used OEM rears from a fellow forum member as a temp fix until Bilstein could fulfill my order. Finally got them late summer/early fall after a frustrating wait...

Oh boy. Bavarian Auto didn't have the fronts in stock at the warehouse, plus they had to special-order the rears from Germany...