[speedyb]

Hi All,

I just signed up for the forums today, although admittidely I have been reading them for years (even when I did not own a BMW!).

I have a 2008 335i Coupe (6MT) and have always though the suspension was bit soft, and since I plan to do lots of auto-xing this year as well as the Autocross school, I figured now would be a good time to tighten things up on my car.

I like my warranty and plan to keep my car for many more years, so if I do anything it will be with BMW parts.

My plan is to do the following:

BMW Performance Suspension
M3 Front Control Arm/Tension Strut Retrofit Set

Base on reading all the posts I can find on the forum, the tools I will need to do this would be:

(I Already own these tools)

Impact Wrench
Impact Sockets
Car Jack

(Things I don't have but will have to buy)

Spring Compressor
Jack Stands

And finally, I will need to have my car aligned - will probably do that at Auto Engineering in Lexington as it is really close to my house.

Anyways...am I crazy to think I can do this myself? I am pretty mechanically inclined but have never done anything like this before. I don't want to end up having the car towed with parts falling off because I could not get this done myself.

Anybody out there that had done this before that can ease my concerns?

Many thanks,
speedyb

[Derek Zoolander]

If you need a hand, I'm willing to help out. I've done a dozen or so suspension installs. I have spring compressors I can lend you too.
The first time you do it, it will take you ALL day, maybe 2.

[DJKhan85]

I just did my first suspension install on my BMW today(not first on cars in general). As long as you have the tools you should be all set(or a 2nd car and a close sears). 1 thing to note, just cause they are m3 pieces doesn't mean the dealer won't use that to void your warranty. Those parts were not designed with the 335 in mind at all(despite being the same chasis). Not trying to scare you just point out something that might bite you later on.

[speedyb]

Thanks for the tips and offers of assistance.

Good point about the M3 parts and the warranty. I guess they could void some parts of the warranty over that, but these seem less risky than modifying the engine software (I really want to, but can't afford a new engine if anything ever went wrong). I don't see the suspension pieces as a high risk item but I guess time will tell, especially if they fall off due to my poor installation technique.

Funny enough Sears is about 5 minutes from the house, and I have been over 3 times! Needed a 16MM wrench and grabbed some jack stands for $20.

So far I have gotten the rear strut, rear springs, and front swaybar. The front springs were not include in the kit by accident, and they arrive tomorrow, so at least I have plans for tomorrow once Fedex drops off.

Cheers,
Speedyb

[DJKhan85]

I think I'm going to grab the front wishbone and tension struts for my car as well. I could use with some more feedback with the wider summertires I have one. Let us know how your install goes!