Quote:
Originally Posted by tomahawk997
I have heard of someone else on the forum experiencing slight rubbing with the 235 tires up front. As a result, I went with the 225 size just to be safe and haven't experienced any.
However, I am curious about the NVH associated with m3 control arms though. Getting ready to have those done soon since the overall experience that most report here is positive.
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There are a couple of reasons people rave about M3 arms. The first is that they add negative camber, which helps with front end grip. The car turns in better and feels more neutral. Second, they have firmer bushings which transmit more road feel to the steering wheel. You can really feel a lot more of what is happening with the front tires when you have the M3 arms on. This is important when pushing the car hard, but less important when cruising around.
The flipside that people don't talk about is that you will
notice a lot more road bumps with M3 arms, and you'll hear more road noise. Every bump is a touch sharper because the firmer bushings don't absorb as much of the impact. And if you're already rubbing the front fender, you will rub even more with M3 arms, all else equal. Nothing is without compromise... if M3 arms made the car handle so much better with no difference in NVH, our cars would have had M3 arms from the factory. Most people buying a non-M BMW are looking for "luxury" so the lower NVH of the rubbery stock bushings is preferred.
If you like the isolation (i.e. comfort) your car currently gives you, a set of fixed Dinan camber plates might be a better option than M3 arms. These will give you some negative camber and reduce the likelihood of rubbing, but will add 1/4" of ride height to the front of the car. They shouldn't affect NVH much.