Coil Overs

GazHyde

GazHyde

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My advice is to not buy cheap coilovers, been there done that with a more recognisable brand around the £200 mark on my Z3. It was a Welsh cruise that taught me the lesson. Fine on smooth flat roads, but any bump at even relatively low speeds was intolerable. I even mentioned to Lee at one of the breaks that the car was almost undrivable on some of the roads we went on. It was the worst experience of any cruise I've ever been on, and they were off the car within a week and replaced with Eibach Pros.

If you want to go the coil over route, a reputable (and inevitibly more expensive) brand will see you right and won't ruin your enjoyment.

From a different viewpoint I don't see what advantage they would give you over Eibach Pros and decent shocks, unless you are looking to lower it more than 30mm.
 
5harp3y

5harp3y

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They are so cheap i cant imagine them being great.

however, that is cheaper than going for shocks and springs, so if you just want to go low then they might work.
 
Ianmc

Ianmc

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Some one once said that "if you pay a bit too much you lose a little. If you pay too little, you may lose everything".:)
 
mm13

mm13

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DaveP

DaveP

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Buy cheap buy twice is a common term used.

I went coilovers from BC Racing which so far have been very good. I needed the drop and flexibility due to what I’m doing to my Zed.

If you want about 30mm drop the eibachs and bilsteins always come very highly regarded.

Dave
 
g8jka

g8jka

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I've got cheap ones on mine, they aren't great but do the job I want. They are very harsh over bumps and the ride is bouncy at times but I've put up with it for a few years now. I had Eibachs on before which are great but they just weren't low enough for me. I think mine are coming to an end soon as the back now is rock hard when I hit a bump and I'm getting worried something is going to get damaged soon.

You are better off spending a little more if you definitely want coilovers, if not go for Eibachs.
 
gookah

gookah

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g8jka said:
I've got cheap ones on mine, they aren't great but do the job I want. They are very harsh over bumps and the ride is bouncy at times but I've put up with it for a few years now. I had Eibachs on before which are great but they just weren't low enough for me. I think mine are coming to an end soon as the back now is rock hard when I hit a bump and I'm getting worried something is going to get damaged soon.

You are better off spending a little more if you definitely want coilovers, if not go for Eibachs.
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Extra weight of the hardtop I reckon. Mine is the same, and mine were the dearer AP coilover set.
Sounds like the bottom is going to fall out. I think it hits the bump stops more easily.



Those Stance coilovers in the first post look better built than the TA Technic ones I first had.


I would like the Bilstein/Eibach set up..
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Bilstein...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

I need to save some pennies, and stop spending on guitars.
 
peteslag

peteslag

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Eh up Jim. Cheap coilovers are fantastic for track use, awful for road use. Even the expensive ones can be a bit harsh for road use, depending on the spring rates. The best suspension upgrade I ever did on my old Z3 by far was progressive Eibach springs. They were supple enough for good road manners and tightened up nicely when ragging around a track. If your Z4 has the sport suspension, Eibachs will only be 15mm lower than standard so the existing shocks should cope. I upgraded my old VX220 with really good quality Quantum coilovers on the softest springs that were available. It was noticeably more "crashy" over poor road surfaces than the standard OEM Bilsteins.

It is horses for courses with something like this but for me, I do the occasional track day I have have no plans what so ever to spoil the ride with coilovers. When my suspension needs to be replaced I'll be sticking with the OEM sport suspension.
 
TaffZee

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peteslag said:
Eh up Jim. Cheap coilovers are fantastic for track use, awful for road use. Even the expensive ones can be a bit harsh for road use, depending on the spring rates. The best suspension upgrade I ever did on my old Z3 by far was progressive Eibach springs. They were supple enough for good road manners and tightened up nicely when ragging around a track. If your Z4 has the sport suspension, Eibachs will only be 15mm lower than standard so the existing shocks should cope. I upgraded my old VX220 with really good quality Quantum coilovers on the softest springs that were available. It was noticeably more "crashy" over poor road surfaces than the standard OEM Bilsteins.

It is horses for courses with something like this but for me, I do the occasional track day I have have no plans what so ever to spoil the ride with coilovers. When my suspension needs to be replaced I'll be sticking with the OEM sport suspension.
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Hi Pete, I have done nothing to the 4 since I bought it (most of the work was done for me) so was just playing with the idea, came across the Stance coil overs, and done some research on them and found they were getting great reviews from different car forums here and in the USA (even though they are stupidly cheap), So just thought I would throw the comment out there (I Knew what the reaction would be before I posted)
, and Yes my zed already has the sports suspension on it, but as far as I know nothing has been done since it was new, still rides great sticks well to the road and as I don't use it as much as I did, just back and too to works 5 days a week around 100 miles per week thought it may be worth a try (can always bin them a go back to what I know) As you know I miss the fly by the seat of your pants of the Z3 experience. How are you getting along with the 4? Love mine but so Boring not had any heart in mouth moments with it yet (I Have tried Believe me) but never had any dramas with it, used to have them nearly every time I took the 3 out for a session. Life's a bit mundane since I sold the 3. would I go back to one "No" is the answer, getting old and need a little bit of comfort now...
 
hard top

hard top

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See you there Boyo's .... :D

England's Six Nations fixtures
Saturday 10 February Wales (h)

 
peteslag

peteslag

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TaffZee said:
Hi Pete, I have done nothing to the 4 since I bought it (most of the work was done for me) so was just playing with the idea, came across the Stance coil overs, and done some research on them and found they were getting great reviews from different car forums here and in the USA (even though they are stupidly cheap), So just thought I would throw the comment out there (I Knew what the reaction would be before I posted)
, and Yes my zed already has the sports suspension on it, but as far as I know nothing has been done since it was new, still rides great sticks well to the road and as I don't use it as much as I did, just back and too to works 5 days a week around 100 miles per week thought it may be worth a try (can always bin them a go back to what I know) As you know I miss the fly by the seat of your pants of the Z3 experience. How are you getting along with the 4? Love mine but so Boring not had any heart in mouth moments with it yet (I Have tried Believe me) but never had any dramas with it, used to have them nearly every time I took the 3 out for a session. Life's a bit mundane since I sold the 3. would I go back to one "No" is the answer, getting old and need a little bit of comfort now...
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I love my Z4, My Z3 was a hoot, especially after all the suspension work I did to it but I don't miss it even slightly. The only thing about the 4 that pees me off is it's tendency to understeer and melt it's front tyres. It makes for very predictable handling but like you say......BORING!

Luckily I have a BMW specialist close to me that is very good at making Z4's go much faster around a track. The guy I spoke said that the rear ARB is a bit soft and that BMW designed the handling to be this way to make it safer. He said that the sport suspension is actually fairly good, it just needs a bit of help to not roll all over the place. This tallies up perfectly with my experience:



The rear of the car appears to be hitching it's skirt on the inside quite a lot and putting far too much stress on the outside front tyre (hence the ridiculous understeer). I've got a H&R ARB kit ready to go on the car, I'll know exactly how well it performs at Cadwell on the 14th May.

I'm not after tail happy fast and furious type handling, I just want it a bit more balanced. The bars are adjustable so i should be able to tune it exactly how I want it. I would have put Eibach springs on but I already find the Z4 a bit low at the front.

Basically, I'm trying to achieve handling that suits my driving style without making it horrible on the road.
 
peteslag

peteslag

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g8jka said:
Who do you use?
Click to expand...
These guys:

http://www.autotechperformance.co.uk/?page_id=42

Brett is the man to speak to, he really knows his stuff. I took my car in to have the brake fluid done and asked him to have a look at the front suspension while he was there. He carried out a full alignment check and only charged me for the brake fluid change. Great garage.
 
peteslag

peteslag

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TaffZee said:
OK So what is everone's opinion on these seem like a good price? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Eibach-E...985951?hash=item3d56a9fcdf:g:xrQAAOSwXsFaUNqO
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That is a great price and the Eibach/Bilstein combo is proven to be good by many members on here. If you are just after a bit of a drop in height then this will probably do the job. I still think it will feel a bit safe and understeery though mate, I don't know how much of that "seat of the pants" feel you'll get by doing this.
 
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