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      08-27-2018, 09:10 PM   #1
duder13
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Is this a good start for suspension?

Hi. I've been reading endless threads about suspension upgrades for my 2012 135i, and I think I've finally figured out my shopping list. The majority of my driving is mountain twisties with a half dozen or so track days per year. Does this seem like a good list to button this car down?

- Whiteline 2-piece rear subframe bushings
- Koni Sport shocks/struts
- Dinan rear shock mounting kit
- M3/TRW front control arm kit
- 26.5mm M3 front roll bar

My last couple of cars were Porsches, and I'm not expecting to get this car to that level of handling, but what do you think of this list? My other consideration is springs. I don't mind the ride height of my car, and I have the linear springs, but should I go for Swift R springs, performance-wise? Thanks!
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      08-28-2018, 12:55 AM   #2
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That's very close to my setup except I have M performance suspension and M control arms front and rear. The handling is finally how I want it. It now handles like a sports car. My only complaint is the ride is now a little harsh at times. If you have decent roads where you live it will be very liveable. Here in Edmonton there are some very shitty roads. I'm considering changing my shocks to Koni Special Active (FSD) to see if they work as advertised. It was the M3 arms that added the harshness. Before that the ride was very liveable. I still wouldn't go back to the standard arms though.
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      08-28-2018, 05:38 AM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by duder13 View Post
Hi. I've been reading endless threads about suspension upgrades for my 2012 135i, and I think I've finally figured out my shopping list. The majority of my driving is mountain twisties with a half dozen or so track days per year. Does this seem like a good list to button this car down?

- Whiteline 2-piece rear subframe bushings
- Koni Sport shocks/struts
- Dinan rear shock mounting kit
- M3/TRW front control arm kit
- 26.5mm M3 front roll bar

My last couple of cars were Porsches, and I'm not expecting to get this car to that level of handling, but what do you think of this list? My other consideration is springs. I don't mind the ride height of my car, and I have the linear springs, but should I go for Swift R springs, performance-wise? Thanks!
This is almost my exact setup, I did all of the above except for the sway bar and I have the Dinan camber plates.

It made the car much much better at the track, and with very little compromise for the road.

If I were to do it over, I would probably go with stiffer springs. I put my M sport springs on the koni yellows because I didn't want to affect the daily driving too much, but whenever I'm at the track I'm fighting a fair amount of body roll and wishing I'd have gone with something a little more stiff.

Your preferences may vary, but that definitely seems like a good start!
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      08-28-2018, 02:25 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by crowtrobot View Post
This is almost my exact setup, I did all of the above except for the sway bar and I have the Dinan camber plates.

It made the car much much better at the track, and with very little compromise for the road.

If I were to do it over, I would probably go with stiffer springs. I put my M sport springs on the koni yellows because I didn't want to affect the daily driving too much, but whenever I'm at the track I'm fighting a fair amount of body roll and wishing I'd have gone with something a little more stiff.

Your preferences may vary, but that definitely seems like a good start!
Thanks. Do you happen to know whether you have progressive or linear springs?
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      08-28-2018, 10:05 PM   #5
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Make sure you get camber plates you'll destroy tires within 2-3 track days without them. Regardless of your strut spring combo, I'm running vorschlag no issues getting -2ish degrees any less is meh.

I'm not sure of your budget or aspirations but you could get a decent coilover/spring/camber plate setup for a bit more like TCK singles, Ground Control or Ohlins.

I personally went from stock msport to Ohlins doing a handful of trackdays a year and daily drive it. Dropped lap times 2-3 seconds on a good day . Planning to do subframe / FS and arms next year.

Hope this helps vs makes you to consider other options!
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      08-29-2018, 02:26 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by duder13 View Post
Thanks. Do you happen to know whether you have progressive or linear springs?
Linear.

I'll second the suggestion of camber plates, made a huge difference for me. Tires wear much more evenly now.

I'd also suggest considering buying the Dinan rear struts if you go with Koni yellows. They are basically the same, but they are valved so you can adjust the strut from the top rather than pulling it off the a-arm. You still need to pull your trunk apart if you want to adjust them, but it saves a little bit of time.

hth!
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      08-29-2018, 04:29 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by beattiecj View Post
Make sure you get camber plates you'll destroy tires within 2-3 track days without them. Regardless of your strut spring combo, I'm running vorschlag no issues getting -2ish degrees any less is meh.

I'm not sure of your budget or aspirations but you could get a decent coilover/spring/camber plate setup for a bit more like TCK singles, Ground Control or Ohlins.

I personally went from stock msport to Ohlins doing a handful of trackdays a year and daily drive it. Dropped lap times 2-3 seconds on a good day . Planning to do subframe / FS and arms next year.

Hope this helps vs makes you to consider other options!
I was a little worried about NVH and the raise in height using camber plates. Removing the tower pins and getting M3 arms was the direction I wanted to go for some camber, but maybe I'm wrong.
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      08-29-2018, 05:03 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by duder13 View Post
I was a little worried about NVH and the raise in height using camber plates. Removing the tower pins and getting M3 arms was the direction I wanted to go for some camber, but maybe I'm wrong.
Fixed Dinan camber plates will not increase NVH, since the factory strut bearing is still used. THey are simply a plate that goes in between to change the camber angle. You will gain about 5mm of ride height at the front, which can help even out rake that is seen with some spring kits.

I have the B12 Bilstein kit (B8 shocks and EIbach pro kit springs), and my car is very even front to back with the Dinan camber plates.
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      08-29-2018, 06:08 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by asbrr View Post
Fixed Dinan camber plates will not increase NVH, since the factory strut bearing is still used. THey are simply a plate that goes in between to change the camber angle. You will gain about 5mm of ride height at the front, which can help even out rake that is seen with some spring kits.

I have the B12 Bilstein kit (B8 shocks and EIbach pro kit springs), and my car is very even front to back with the Dinan camber plates.

Great point. I was looking at the B12s, was concerned about the rake.

If I get the plates, how necessary are the M3 front arms, do you think?
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      08-30-2018, 12:11 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by duder13 View Post
Great point. I was looking at the B12s, was concerned about the rake.

If I get the plates, how necessary are the M3 front arms, do you think?
Really depends - my current alignment is set to -1.9 at the front...that is plenty of camber for the street IMO. The current amount of camber should even allow a pretty wide tire to fit up front with no issues (maybe a 245).

With M3 arms you could get to -2.5 and perhaps more. Of course the M3 arms will change feel due to the stiffer bushing design. I read a post the other day of someone actually complaining about the added NVH....only time I've heard that but I guess it's possible
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      08-30-2018, 03:36 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by asbrr View Post
Really depends - my current alignment is set to -1.9 at the front...that is plenty of camber for the street IMO. The current amount of camber should even allow a pretty wide tire to fit up front with no issues (maybe a 245).

With M3 arms you could get to -2.5 and perhaps more. Of course the M3 arms will change feel due to the stiffer bushing design. I read a post the other day of someone actually complaining about the added NVH....only time I've heard that but I guess it's possible
Thanks. Any idea if people are still having issues with the B12 setup's reliability? That was a common topic for a while, so I'm a little nervous about them.
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      08-30-2018, 09:24 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by duder13 View Post
Thanks. Any idea if people are still having issues with the B12 setup's reliability? That was a common topic for a while, so I'm a little nervous about them.
I was one of the people with blown shocks (front). My second shock is coming in next week, then I'm going to go through the warranty process with Bilstein and see how it goes.

I've driven my car daily for about 50,000 kms since I had the suspension installed, including through the winter, and about 4 driver education days. The shocks were fine until this winter, I suspect some harsh impacts I had on bad roads blew through some of the seals...I was worried about bending rims/busting sidewalls but it looks like the damper took all the beating (rims/tires were fine).

Would the same have happened to a Koni shock? My guess is probably...I don't think the B8 dampers are "weaker" or "poor quality" - their reputation has been built over a long period of time. It's just one of those things, they will break in some circumstances..
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      09-08-2018, 12:15 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by asbrr View Post
I was one of the people with blown shocks (front). My second shock is coming in next week, then I'm going to go through the warranty process with Bilstein and see how it goes.

I've driven my car daily for about 50,000 kms since I had the suspension installed, including through the winter, and about 4 driver education days. The shocks were fine until this winter, I suspect some harsh impacts I had on bad roads blew through some of the seals...I was worried about bending rims/busting sidewalls but it looks like the damper took all the beating (rims/tires were fine).

Would the same have happened to a Koni shock? My guess is probably...I don't think the B8 dampers are "weaker" or "poor quality" - their reputation has been built over a long period of time. It's just one of those things, they will break in some circumstances..
Yeah, there just seems to be a higher incidence of failure with these in the last few years, which is why I asked. It's just anecdotal, though, so who knows??
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