Soft suspension wanted! Awful ride!

Wed Apr 15, 2009 6:12 pm

Hi guys! I 've installed bilstein sport with H&R springs and the ride is killing me and the car!

I'm desperate to find the softest possible shocks, as i don't want to replace the springs, for my E30.

I had previously put KYB shocks and they were much softer than the bilstein ones..

so any suggestions?

thank you!

Wed Apr 15, 2009 7:14 pm

just buy euro parts shocks or speak to chris-w he has some shocks in stock that have been run in nicely

Wed Apr 15, 2009 7:53 pm

If you keep harsh springs and underdamp them you're just going to pogo your way into the chiropractor's office....try 14" bottletops until you get a good setup!

Thu Apr 16, 2009 12:48 am

Yep, the springs are what gives a harsh ride.

Bilsteins are hard but they're not too hard either...
I have them with Eibach springs and the ride isn't a huge amount harsher than Mtec supension really...

What size wheels and tyres are you using?

Thu Apr 16, 2009 1:15 pm

my wheels are 15" with 205/50 tires..i know the springs make the most difference but when i had KYB shocks on, the ride was "reasonable"...but with bilstein it's unbearable!

so the softest shocks possible?

Thu Apr 16, 2009 1:19 pm

H+R SPRINGS AREN'T ToO STIFF YOU NEED boge mtec shocks from ecp or h+r shocks which are boge anyway

Thu Apr 16, 2009 2:01 pm

Would 205/55 tires help?

Thu Apr 16, 2009 2:09 pm

Ive got bilstein sports and the ride is good as factory.
Im also running 205/40/17 tyres.
Im using eibach springs.

Thu Apr 16, 2009 2:32 pm

thank you all for the replies. i forgot to tell you that im living in greece so lowering the car was a nightmare in the first place..with bilstein shocks it got even worse..!

blitz, i can't afford to change the tires because they are 6 months old so..

pnd, from your experience, are boge shocks at least softer than the bilstein ones? and do you happen to know if they are even softer than the KYB ones?

thanks!

Thu Apr 16, 2009 2:46 pm

boge are definitely softer than bilsteins the shocks on the second gen sport are boge and they ride much softer than the bilsteins on the first sport. I have h+R shocks on mine which are made by boge and these give a very good ride and i don't like a stiff ride (not in a car anyway!)

Thu Apr 16, 2009 6:30 pm

so boge it is

thank you all... i think they are quite cheaper too

Thu Apr 16, 2009 6:32 pm

Knowing how bad Greek roads can be , surley getting a standard mtech set would be a better option?

Thu Apr 16, 2009 8:16 pm

Taller profile tyres will be your best bet imo. Changing between bottletops (195/60/14) and BBS (205/55/15) makes a lot of difference even on the same suspension. See if you can get a go with some 205/55 tyres for a compromise.

Thu Apr 16, 2009 8:41 pm

thanx morat! all the replies are appreciated, but as i told earlier, i cant afford to change the tires or the wheels because they are almost brand new....

Thu Apr 16, 2009 9:30 pm

You can afford new shocks but can't afford new tyres?!?

I live in Ireland and the roads here are terrible too and I'm of the same oppinion as SUMPCRACKER.
I had 214/40 R17s and the ride was better with the Bilstein B8s and Eibach springs than it was with the fcuked Boge shocks and cheap harsh springs.

Thu Apr 16, 2009 9:42 pm

the tires with the rims are going to cost around 800euros whereas the shocks around 250euros

Thu Apr 16, 2009 9:58 pm

you don't need to get new rims!

Just put 205/55 profile tyres on them, which is what's suppose to be on E30s with 15" wheels from the factory. People only that want sharper handling use 50s

Thu Apr 16, 2009 10:19 pm

Fit a heavier engine? Like an M50? Its a win win situation

Thu Apr 16, 2009 11:07 pm

Dante wrote:so boge it is thank you all... i think they are quite cheaper too

you'd want the boge turbo ones out of the range.

Fri Apr 17, 2009 1:32 am

Give the set up a week or two and see how it feels then.
I fitted a Koni kit to an Astra MK2 years ago and it was horrific, so bad I was going to take it all back out. After a week or two it was fine.

Either I got used to it or they dampers softened up a bit.

Fri Apr 17, 2009 10:59 am

magpie, what do mean "out of the range"?

tomstickland, i have the bilstein shocks for about 5 months now...in every road bump the suspension is almost bottoming..

Fri Apr 17, 2009 11:03 am

You go to Ikea and buy one of these, it cost £3 and its easy installation because you just put it on your seat and you sitt on it in the same way like short people or old ladies

Fri Apr 17, 2009 11:52 am

Dante wrote:magpie, what do mean "out of the range"?

tomstickland, i have the bilstein shocks for about 5 months now...in every road bump the suspension is almost bottoming..

boge do different shocks same as billy's do ie b4/b6 etc.
the turbo ones are the best imo from boge .

Fri Apr 17, 2009 11:53 am

78dude wrote:You go to Ikea and buy one of these, it cost £3 and its easy installation because you just put it on your seat and you sitt on it in the same way like short people or old ladies

Fri Apr 17, 2009 12:05 pm

magpie wrote:
78dude wrote:You go to Ikea and buy one of these, it cost £3 and its easy installation because you just put it on your seat and you sitt on it in the same way like short people or old ladies

This technique saved my arse one time, literally.

I was doing a rally with a 17 year old driver I'd never met before. Turned up at his parents place and went to look at the car; low and behold I don't fit in the bucket seat, at all. Drove from Oxford to Chelmsford on the bolsters, resulting in crippling pain. One holiday inn custom seat pad later and a weekend's rallying was actually possible.