Discuss this rubbing issue?

General E30 related discussions -
Please put technical questions in E30 Tech Help forum below

Moderator: martauto

Post Reply
User avatar
reepers13
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 116
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2012 11:00 pm
Location: Surrey

Sun Oct 07, 2012 10:40 pm

please help me out.

E30 with M60b40 conversion done, sitting on brand new BC coilovers with camber top mounts and powerflex eccentric wishbone bushes.

front wheels; 8.6x17 et20 (225-45-17)

problem;
drivers side tyre on full lock (right hand turn) rubs badly on the chassis rail near where the wing and door join.

camber is maxed out on both sides but no issue with passenger side.

obviously from this pic below the issue is caster is not high enough and from looking underneath the wishbone doesnt go allthe way through the lollipop bush like the passenger side does (about 5mm too short).

Image

question;
what could be causing this on one side and the more negative camber?

can the wishbone be damaged - how to tell?

thanks
User avatar
harry_p
Engaged to the E30 Zone
Engaged to the E30 Zone
Posts: 5313
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2006 11:00 pm
Location: norfolk

Sun Oct 07, 2012 10:59 pm

What's the full suspension setup you're using? What arms, bushes etc?

A difference side to side could be a slightly bent arm, or the car could have had a knock at some point and shifted the subframe or lollipop mountin points.

I would also suggest that your tyres are too big for an e30, 225 45 17 are e36 sized, and they generally run larger tyres than e30s ( base models run 205 60 15 vs e30s 205 55 15 )

A 215 40 or 225 35 would give a fair bit more clearance. I've run 215 40 and 215 45 17 on the front of an e30 m3 with no issues.
cheers,

harry
bss325i
E30 Zone Team Member
E30 Zone Team Member
Posts: 24536
Joined: Sat Jan 20, 2007 11:00 pm
Location: London/Surrey

Sun Oct 07, 2012 11:10 pm

205/45/17 front tyre size is what you need to be using on a non M3 E30.

Also, do you have adjustable front top mounts? If so the adjust the drivers side on to even up the camber to 3 degrees as there is half a degree extra neg camber on the drivers side.

Castor is also out by over half a degree as well, possible bent wishbone or strut.
http://www.bmrperformance.co.uk

BMW and MINI specialist - Gatwick
User avatar
reepers13
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 116
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2012 11:00 pm
Location: Surrey

Sun Oct 07, 2012 11:11 pm

As it stands as stated above is the setup mate

Powerflex front lollipop bushes eccentric
Bc coilovers 10kg F 10kg R
No arb front.

I could switch to 215 40 17 but then I won't have the grip I'm after and not to mention they clear fronts fine on passenger side

Oh and I forgot conversion spacers are 20mm so that makes an et of 0 upfront
bss325i
E30 Zone Team Member
E30 Zone Team Member
Posts: 24536
Joined: Sat Jan 20, 2007 11:00 pm
Location: London/Surrey

Sun Oct 07, 2012 11:18 pm

Well, if that tyre size with that combination of parts doesn't touch on the passenger side then it shouldn't on the drivers but as said, the camber needs adjusting on the drivers side and the castor issue looking at.
http://www.bmrperformance.co.uk

BMW and MINI specialist - Gatwick
User avatar
reepers13
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 116
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2012 11:00 pm
Location: Surrey

Sun Oct 07, 2012 11:22 pm

bss325i wrote:Well, if that tyre size with that combination of parts doesn't touch on the passenger side then it shouldn't on the drivers but as said, the camber needs adjusting on the drivers side and the castor issue looking at.
this is what im trying to work out mate?

i know its because of the caster its rubbing on the drivers side however i dont know how to rectify it - im not buying caster top mounts just yet as ive spent alot on these coilovers with adjustable camber top mounts and they have proved to be sufficant.

i can see the wishbone is not sitting all the way through the eccentri bush on drivers side however can it be fitted incorrectly - dont think so??

i could try a new wishbone but this one honestly looks fine, or i could drill turret holes slightly bigger (slotted effect like e46 m3) and move the caster up this way... anyone ever tried this one?
User avatar
harry_p
Engaged to the E30 Zone
Engaged to the E30 Zone
Posts: 5313
Joined: Thu Oct 12, 2006 11:00 pm
Location: norfolk

Mon Oct 08, 2012 12:31 am

I know there shouldn't be a difference side to side, but the big tyres aren't going to help.

E30 m3s which use the same geometry wishbones, have the same body structure and turret layout got offset lower arm bushes when they moved to 16in wheels to get extra clearance front the back of the arch, and that was with 225 45 16 tyres.

I've never seen e30 bc coilovers, who made them? We're they done from the factory or has a third party welded them onto cutdown used struts? It could be that theyve not been set and welded perfectly square.
cheers,

harry
User avatar
reepers13
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 116
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2012 11:00 pm
Location: Surrey

Mon Oct 08, 2012 1:26 am

harry_p wrote:I know there shouldn't be a difference side to side, but the big tyres aren't going to help.

E30 m3s which use the same geometry wishbones, have the same body structure and turret layout got offset lower arm bushes when they moved to 16in wheels to get extra clearance front the back of the arch, and that was with 225 45 16 tyres.

I've never seen e30 bc coilovers, who made them? We're they done from the factory or has a third party welded them onto cutdown used struts? It could be that theyve not been set and welded perfectly square.
This may help show the setup with pics

http://www.e30zone.net/modules.php?name ... c&t=225509
User avatar
ajay
E30 Zone Camper
E30 Zone Camper
Posts: 1041
Joined: Fri Nov 24, 2006 11:00 pm

Mon Oct 08, 2012 7:22 am

A bit of a long shot, along with the above advice is your steering rack centered ? Worth checking that lock to lock is even. By the sounds of it that would have to be done with the front wheels off. By the way whats the benefit of removing the front arb?
User avatar
alan1272
E30 Zone Regular
E30 Zone Regular
Posts: 414
Joined: Sat Mar 04, 2006 11:00 pm
Location: dyserth, north wales

Mon Oct 08, 2012 11:23 am

reepers13 wrote:i can see the wishbone is not sitting all the way through the eccentri bush on drivers side however can it be fitted incorrectly - dont think so??
are you using genuine/quality wishbones? i had this problem when building my rally car that on some of the cheaper wishbones the 'fin' is thicker so it wont go into the bush fully.
Image
Image
capnmchl
E30 Zone Camper
E30 Zone Camper
Posts: 1141
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 11:00 pm
Location: Exeter, Devon

Mon Oct 08, 2012 11:41 am

Are you sure you've installed your rear wishbone bush the right way round? And that it hasn't slipped?
User avatar
reepers13
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 116
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2012 11:00 pm
Location: Surrey

Mon Oct 08, 2012 2:11 pm

I'll try and get some pics this week but the fin certainly does not go all the way in the bush


Image
User avatar
alan1272
E30 Zone Regular
E30 Zone Regular
Posts: 414
Joined: Sat Mar 04, 2006 11:00 pm
Location: dyserth, north wales

Mon Oct 08, 2012 6:21 pm

here's a picture of mine not fully going in the bush, does yours look similar?
Image
Image
BATTS91
E30 Zone Squatter
E30 Zone Squatter
Posts: 1764
Joined: Sat May 01, 2010 11:00 pm
Location: clacton on sea essex

Mon Oct 08, 2012 6:50 pm

Errrm , isnt the bush ment to be in the lollipop lol :/ correct me if im wrong if its a completly diffrent setup from standard ! :/
User avatar
alan1272
E30 Zone Regular
E30 Zone Regular
Posts: 414
Joined: Sat Mar 04, 2006 11:00 pm
Location: dyserth, north wales

Mon Oct 08, 2012 7:14 pm

BATTS91 wrote:Errrm , isnt the bush ment to be in the lollipop lol :/ correct me if im wrong if its a completly diffrent setup from standard ! :/
it's a powerflex two-piece bush; very different to standard.
Image
BATTS91
E30 Zone Squatter
E30 Zone Squatter
Posts: 1764
Joined: Sat May 01, 2010 11:00 pm
Location: clacton on sea essex

Mon Oct 08, 2012 7:35 pm

Ahh 2 piece i see , so in turn using two = less movement in the arm in and out of the normal bush ?
User avatar
reepers13
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 116
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2012 11:00 pm
Location: Surrey

Mon Oct 08, 2012 8:11 pm

what i can also add to the pic above is that when fitting the wishbone back in place on the drivers side it was a right bitch to get the bracket (lollipop) holes to line up for the bolts to go through - passenger side piece of piss but drivers side which is the problem side took some real effort to line up and bolt back up...

thinking possible bent wish bone - maybe that would also account for the more negative cmber?
E30BeemerLad
Married to the E30 Zone
Married to the E30 Zone
Posts: 16806
Joined: Mon Mar 28, 2005 11:00 pm
Location: Norfolk

Mon Oct 08, 2012 8:12 pm

You are aware that the wording is wrong on the powerflex bushes and the one that says "right" goes on the other side?

At least that's what the crack was when I had a set fitted. I used Lemforder brand new arms which are OEM quality and they didn't want to fit over the fin. I had to smack the purple parts on with a rubber mallet.
User avatar
reepers13
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 116
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2012 11:00 pm
Location: Surrey

Mon Oct 08, 2012 9:23 pm

E30BeemerLad wrote:You are aware that the wording is wrong on the powerflex bushes and the one that says "right" goes on the other side?

At least that's what the crack was when I had a set fitted. I used Lemforder brand new arms which are OEM quality and they didn't want to fit over the fin. I had to smack the purple parts on with a rubber mallet.
wording is wrong? what you mean a misprint from factory or something?
Post Reply