[supermann125]

Looking to do a suspension upgrade over the holidays. I auto cross and HPDE my 335d. I'm not looking to go fully adjustable, as I'm just not knowledgeable enough to "fine tune" my dampers. Besides the shocks, I'm going to be putting on a larger front roll bar (still undecided, thinking white line for bang for the buck) and M3 control arms up front.

Any opinions are much appreciated on the two. Or, if you have other suggestions, please let me know

[m3driver999]

bump...

Have similar needs and questions...335d sport

BMW Perf Springs + BMW M3 struts/shocks + front M3 e92 28mm rollbar

or
BMW M3 springs + Koni FSD + front M3 e92 28mm rollbar

or
335d M sport dampers + M3 springs?

The current sport stock suspension has too much roll and floaty damping..partly due to mileage.. though objective it does handle..

TIA

[CantCatchMe]

BMW PS with FSD shocks along with the roll bar.

[nanceman]

Yellow/sport, not FSD's with increased rate springs or decreased travel.

[feuer]

Originally Posted by m3driver999

bump...

Have similar needs and questions...335d sport

BMW Perf Springs + BMW M3 struts/shocks + front M3 e92 28mm rollbar

or
BMW M3 springs + Koni FSD + front M3 e92 28mm rollbar

or
335d M sport dampers + M3 springs?

The current sport stock suspension has too much roll and floaty damping..partly due to mileage.. though objective it does handle..

TIA

m3 springs, m3 struts/shocks don't fit non m,

[m3driver999]

thanks for the tip...the front strut looks slightly different,

What would it require for swap from E90 LCI to E90 M3 :
M3 spindle? M3 top hat?

Exploring pricing and alternatives,

OE: 335d M sport strut/shock/springs + M3 control arms
Bilstein : B8 shocks/struts+ BMW PS springs + M3 control arms
Koni : Yellow + (?TBD) springs + M3 control arms.

Koni Yellow, not completely sold on them, I have a E46 M3 (Koni Yellow + Eibach Pro springs) and its handling improvement over stock OE was only incremental. The stock E46 M3 suspension is well tuned, it does make good handling numbers objectively in an AutoX setting, but subjectively not as crisp/taught in roll/pitch as a say 2016 M3.

For the right mix of handling and ride, it seems to be a narrow window of dampers + springs.

TIA

[feuer]

Originally Posted by m3driver999

What would it require for swap from E90 LCI to E90 M3 :
M3 spindle? M3 top hat?

All of those.

Originally Posted by m3driver999

OE: 335d M sport strut/shock/springs + M3 control arms
Bilstein : B8 shocks/struts+ BMW PS springs + M3 control arms
Koni : Yellow + (?TBD) springs + M3 control arms.

I have Koni Yellow with BMW PS and M3 control arms. Handles very well

Originally Posted by m3driver999

Koni Yellow, not completely sold on them, I have a E46 M3 (Koni Yellow + Eibach Pro springs) and its handling improvement over stock OE was only incremental. The stock E46 M3 suspension is well tuned, it does make good handling numbers objectively in an AutoX setting, but subjectively not as crisp/taught in roll/pitch as a say 2016 M3.

That's 2 generations and 15 years gap, from e46 to f82, newer parts, better electronic gimmicks and technology stuff. 15 years old f82 wouldn't be as sharp as it is now. You can replace the springs/struts/shocks but the chassis will loose its rigidity over the years. Understand that.

Besides, well sorted e36 will out handle both

[supermann125]

I ended up going with Bilstein PSS , M3 control arms, Whiteline sway bars and rear subframe bushings. I'll be doing auto cross in beginning of January and HODE in the end of January. Will post a review after that

[m3driver999]

Originally Posted by feuer

............
That's 2 generations and 15 years gap, from e46 to f82, newer parts, better electronic gimmicks and technology stuff. 15 years old f82 wouldn't be as sharp as it is now. You can replace the springs/struts/shocks but the chassis will loose its rigidity over the years. Understand that.

Besides, well sorted e36 will out handle both

.....

Yes, some evolution has taken place, didn't account for body flex impact to handling....right now looking to make the E90 335d sport take on some traits of the E46 M3..

I am familiar with the E36's outhandling the E46..I run autox with E46 M3 and a well setup E36 can be quick...right now my setup of the E46 M3 is a hybrid mix dampers and springs of f:koni/ground control r:eibach/koni.

So, going back to E90 topic, looking for a 'matched set' of dampers and springs...by matched I mean either OE developed or with good results from here..my E46 M3 experiment yielded just little better handling than stock, and have introduced some new quirks..

Been reading other thread..makes sense..made of a few of those mistakes...lower car..stiff springs..toe in = major understeer...

What is good 'matched set' for good handling..and some level of confort.
Based in California so we have some good back roads..though car needs to be blend of daily driver, and auto cross/track.

I am leaning towards these setups from reading here,

a. damping(B8) springs(BMW PS)
b. damping (B8) springs(335d M sport)
c. damping(Koni w/ Dinan valving) springs (Dinan) = Dinan kit
d. damping (BMW PS) springs (BMW PS)

Also, for autocross tires would be like RS-3's or NT-01 square setup 255/40/17..increasing grip also works the suspension more, and dampers/springs need to match grip/loads..

All above with also M3 arms, front sway 28mm, rear Monroe mounts.
Going for lower cost $, bang for buck, and minimize work (ie no rear sway or bushings)..though when all is said and done..it is probably the cost of a lower end coil over kit..

If I do b), I can re-use my springs, and then later on evolve to a)...but double labor..

I do my own DYI, so labor cost is free :-), aiming for a turn key set-up that works.

TIA

[tlow98]

Tires first, and an alignment to mazimize your current hardware. The alignment will help you maximize tire life as well.

This should have you smiling until you need more. These are the basics and always good to start there.

[boro92]

Originally Posted by tlow98

Tires first, and an alignment to mazimize your current hardware. The alignment will help you maximize tire life as well.

This should have you smiling until you need more. These are the basics and always good to start there.

This. Go out, have fun and learn. Take notes on how the car drives (where, and how, and under what driver inputs). Take notes on tire pressures and tweak those FIRST.

Until you are so intimate with the car that you can pick out precisely what the car isn't doing to your liking in all phases of a corner (braking, entry, middle, exit, on throttle, off throttle, transitions, what it's doing while it's being loaded up, what it's doing when it's fully loaded up etc etc).......then don't fiddle too much with that stuff.

There are good baseline alignments to get great performance out of the car. The rest is driving...and tire pressures (did i say tire pressures?). Throwing more parts on it is not going to help without first being able to extract the most of what you can from the car, and understanding what it isn't doing that is impeding you as a driver. Tuning is all about that last part.

[tdavis42]

Originally Posted by m3driver999

.....

Yes, some evolution has taken place, didn't account for body flex impact to handling....right now looking to make the E90 335d sport take on some traits of the E46 M3..

I am familiar with the E36's outhandling the E46..I run autox with E46 M3 and a well setup E36 can be quick...right now my setup of the E46 M3 is a hybrid mix dampers and springs of f:koni/ground control r:eibach/koni.

So, going back to E90 topic, looking for a 'matched set' of dampers and springs...by matched I mean either OE developed or with good results from here..my E46 M3 experiment yielded just little better handling than stock, and have introduced some new quirks..

Been reading other thread..makes sense..made of a few of those mistakes...lower car..stiff springs..toe in = major understeer...

What is good 'matched set' for good handling..and some level of confort.
Based in California so we have some good back roads..though car needs to be blend of daily driver, and auto cross/track.

I am leaning towards these setups from reading here,

a. damping(B8) springs(BMW PS)
b. damping (B8) springs(335d M sport)
c. damping(Koni w/ Dinan valving) springs (Dinan) = Dinan kit
d. damping (BMW PS) springs (BMW PS)

Also, for autocross tires would be like RS-3's or NT-01 square setup 255/40/17..increasing grip also works the suspension more, and dampers/springs need to match grip/loads..

All above with also M3 arms, front sway 28mm, rear Monroe mounts.
Going for lower cost $, bang for buck, and minimize work (ie no rear sway or bushings)..though when all is said and done..it is probably the cost of a lower end coil over kit..

If I do b), I can re-use my springs, and then later on evolve to a)...but double labor..

I do my own DYI, so labor cost is free :-), aiming for a turn key set-up that works.

TIA

You sound like me.

I have done the M3 front sway and arms, the sway made a huge difference in front body roll where the arms made a huge difference in turn in. I also did the white line subframe inserts my self and it was pretty easy. For $50 a set I think it was worth it the rear feels stiffer than stock but it's no solid subframe feel. I am going with that same square setup on ark-8s et30. At 250 a wheel it's a steal for such a light weight rim.

[3002 tii]

When I had my 135is I ran Dinan springs, BMW PS shocks, m3 front sway, m3 control arms, and Dinan fixed camber. Car handled really well and felt well planted but had enough ground clearance for everyday driving in Tri-state roads. Actually thought the drop was perfect, anything more would seem excessive.

Before:


After: