[Basis swap]

Got lowered on springs today. I must admit, this was forced decision. NYC roads have destroyed my shocks and struts. The last winter was the most brutal I have ever seen. Consequently, the state of our roads was that of a bombed out third world country, with very little exaggeration. To drive on NYC roads, with all of their holes and imperfections - is downright dangerous. Car was getting thrown around and impacts were sometimes scary. I'ts hard to describe how sloppy the car felt.

I initially ordered Bilstein Sport and Eibach springs from Tirerack (Bilstein B12 kit). A month later, when Tirerack still did not have an ETA for me (supposedly Bilstein moved their manufacturing facilities and is having problems with meeting orders) I decided to switch to what was available. Went with the Koni Yellows and H &R Sport springs, a total of a grand, shipped.


CAR:

2008 E93 335i with 53k miles.



WAS:

1. All stock, no suspension mods.
2. M Sport suspension, 4.5 inch clearance at the bottom of the jack pads.
3. Style 230 wheels, standard 225/255 setup with the Bridgestone RFTs


First impressions:

1. Holy crap! The car looks lowered. M Sport was fairly low but this is even lower. I'll measure the exact height and will update in a week when the springs have settled. Now to figure out how to navigate the
speed bumps in my neighborhood...

2. Very taught ride, too harsh for NYC roads, IMO. Will have to set the shocks/struts to a softer setting. After break-in I suppose I can better judge. Still, initial impressions are positive.

3. The front gap became much, much smaller. Wheel looks almost tucked in. I had the factory spacer which came on the original setup, removed. Figure I sit another 1/8 inch lower as a result. Yes, H &R is
known for dropping the front more than the rear.

4. As others have mentioned many times, you feel every pebble on the road. Excellent feedback, but this is not for everybody. For a place like New York City, this can get very, very annoying.


5. Very little body roll. I feel like I can defy physics (but know better than to try).

6. This is a no-brainer if the roads where you live are good. The car feels planted and secured to the asphalt.

7. I kept the standard M Sport bump stops, front and rear. Comparing side by side, the Konis and the M Sport BMW struts/shocks look to be of identical size. Of course, just to be safe, I had all of the mounting
hardware replaced with new pieces. It's a piece of mind-kind-of-a-thing. Do it.

8. Because I had been riding on springs alone, my springs are actually bent! Never thought it'd be possible, but with the basketball rebounds caused by holes...the tips of the M Sport springs are slightly bent (I call it the iphone 6 effect )


WAS:




This was with 2 people sitting in the rear:




NOW:

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For comparison....

This is a 428i on KW V1 coilovers.





Spacers may be the next step.

[JP.Williams]

Sounds like a good upgrade! pretty much the same upgrade i have on my E93!

If you finding it to hard around down just soften up the rebound on the front. Only takes a minute or so per side.

i set the back once and haven't changed it since due to it being awkward

From the looks of your photos there is still a fair bit to go once the suspension has fully settled. The front of mine seems a tad lower.

[Blindside_137]

Very nice!

My sport suspension E93 sits perfectly in the rear but I have a huge gap up front.

I'm trying to decide between eibach or H&R springs. I definitely like how H&R does more up front.

Thanks for sharing.

[redline2001]

Do you mind telling me who did your install

[Eat.Sleep.Race]

Drop is good, love my H&R sports!

[Basis swap]

Originally Posted by redline2001

Do you mind telling me who did your install

MOTORCEPTS in Queens. I've done a number of things with them. They know what they're doing AND they show that they care.