Coil-over ride height spacer

[Ginger_Extract]

Hey all, I recall a thread a while back talking about but I can't find it. Does anyone make ride height spacers that slot in between the the strut top/camber plate and the strut tower? Or, if they aren't commonly made, does anyone have measurements for them before I disassemble the front end to measure and make them myself?

My TCK struts don't have independent pre-load adjustability, so the only way I can get the car up to a moderate front ride height is to bind the crap out of the front springs, reducing max travel.

UPDATE: See post #13

[asbrr]

Check this thread - custom height addition using cheap E36 camber plates, would these work?

https://www.1addicts.com/forums/show...0&postcount=33

Also - there is a BMW part that is similar, it's part of the "rough road kit" or something, pretty sure if you google that you'll find what is effectively a height spacer...

[gmx]

51717180143 is the PN for "rough road kit" strut support. I never measured it, from memory it's about 3mm thick.
31306772226 - paper gasket

[ShocknAwe]

fe1rx

[Ginger_Extract]

Update: In case anyone else is interested in this issue, BMW offers a 20mm ride height spacer PN 31306779671. Pricey, but cheaper than the cost of designing one-offs and having a machine shop make them for me. Ordering them and will update accordingly.

[fe1rx]

Originally Posted by ShocknAwe

fe1rx

I have always wondered how to hyperlink a forum member name. Looks like "@" then start typing their name.

ShocknAwe

Thanks for that. I needed your one word post to figure that out.

[fe1rx]

Originally Posted by Ginger_Extract

Update: In case anyone else is interested in this issue, BMW offers a 20mm ride height spacer PN 31306779671. Pricey, but cheaper than the cost of designing one-offs and having a machine shop make them for me. Ordering them and will update accordingly.

Looks like fair pricing to me. I have made spacers for another forum member to raise their camber plates, but the BMW solution looks pretty slick.

[houtan]

Originally Posted by Ginger_Extract

Hey all, I recall a thread a while back talking about but I can't find it. Does anyone make ride height spacers that slot in between the the strut top/camber plate and the strut tower? Or, if they aren't commonly made, does anyone have measurements for them before I disassemble the front end to measure and make them myself?

My TCK struts don't have independent pre-load adjustability, so the only way I can get the car up to a moderate front ride height is to bind the crap out of the front springs, reducing max travel.

you still have your car? suhweet. Why did i think you sold it for some reason?

[ShocknAwe]

Originally Posted by Ginger_Extract

Update: In case anyone else is interested in this issue, BMW offers a 20mm ride height spacer PN 31306779671. Pricey, but cheaper than the cost of designing one-offs and having a machine shop make them for me. Ordering them and will update accordingly.

That looks totally reasonable btw. Hopefully it works. Look forward to your findings.

[Ginger_Extract]

Originally Posted by houtan

you still have your car? suhweet. Why did i think you sold it for some reason?

No longer tracking it, it's just a daily beater now. Tracking my Civic and drifting my E46.

[spidertri]

Would you mind measuring the ID of that 20mm spacer when you get it, I'm wondering how that ID matches up to the strut tower opening.

[bbnks2]

Originally Posted by spidertri

Would you mind measuring the ID of that 20mm spacer when you get it, I'm wondering how that ID matches up to the strut tower opening.

Yeah I'm wondering this too. My guess is the ID is the same as the opening. It is a bmw part after-all and they would engineer it so the top hat and suspension can be serviced. Looks really interesting because I wouldn't have to run my coilovers at max height. I would also have more space up top to actually adjust rebound without removing my strut brace. Not that I like to ever touch rebound once I found a good settings, but, it would be nice. Changing camber plate settings would be easier too.

Studs would have to be pressed out...

[Ginger_Extract]

Update: BMW 31306779671 works! I am now able to achieve near-neutral/ideal spring preload and still have moderate ride height, even with the super soft DD-friendly spring rates I now use on my TCK dampers. This would also work for KW, Bilstein, etc, or any front coilover strut that lacks independent spring preload and shock length/ride height adjustability. The car's ride quality is better than ever, as I now have maximum available suspension travel (coil bind = bad).

However, there are a few tricks and caveats I figured out that are required to make this part work with adjustable camber plates, as the part was originally designed for OEM strut tops. I made a video showcasing my findings here: