Suspension ride height... Bilstein... Coil over nightmares

[BristolE30]

Hey zone,

I was wondering if people with Bilstein B6 or B8's could chime in with their experience. I've always wanted to lower my ride slightly (few cm only) just to hug the arches a little better, but have always been scared to due to some nightmare experiences with coilovers. Roads in Bristol are pretty bad, and had a 316 and a golf mk2 with shitty cheap coilovers. Driving around in them just made me very very angry.

I dont want that for my 325i and have always stuck with stock so far. But curiosity has got me looking at some HnR and Bilstein B8 upgrades. Want to know if the ride is still smooth enough?

Any input appreciated

[DanThe]

B8 and H&R is the very firm end of the scale for a road car, if you want a sensible civilised ride quality then buy a set of B4 dampers and Eibach springs

[JungleGus]

Personally, I've found the H&R Sports (The US version, not the UK version) + Bilstein to be perfect for all round use. I found Eibach's a little too soft.

http://e30performance.info/viewtopic.php?t=1357 - this is a decent starting point

I have J-Stocks and they are almost livable for the road...I would say they would be livable if the roads weren't shit (which they are) - the stiffness gives them a not hugely dissimilar ride height to an H&R Sport or most lowered springs. They are not captive though, so not a good option. I'm using them as a high-tide mark for about as stiff as you would/could go with non-coilovers.

I would GUESS that H&R Races would be good too - I have a set but never mounted. For what it's worth as a weird internet opinion - I find my H&R Sport Springs (US) and Bilsteins to have a somewhat similar feel to my 986 Boxster. That my just be me being a bit daft, but it doesn't feel miles off.

As a reference - I've never had coilovers on the car, but I've had Eibach, E30 M3, H&R Sport Springs with the Bilsteins, E30 325i Sport Springs with Sport shocks (newish) and the J-Stock Springs/Dampers (J-Stock are a copy of an old H&R race spring and Bilsteins re-valved) to compare against.

[BristolE30]

B8 and H&R is the very firm end of the scale for a road car, if you want a sensible civilised ride quality then buy a set of B4 dampers and Eibach springs

Isn’t that just going to feel the same as I have now ie stock?

[BristolE30]

Personally, I've found the H&R Sports (The US version, not the UK version) + Bilstein to be perfect for all round use. I found Eibach's a little too soft.

http://e30performance.info/viewtopic.php?t=1357 - this is a decent starting point

I have J-Stocks and they are almost livable for the road...I would say they would be livable if the roads weren't shit (which they are) - the stiffness gives them a not hugely dissimilar ride height to an H&R Sport or most lowered springs. They are not captive though, so not a good option. I'm using them as a high-tide mark for about as stiff as you would/could go with non-coilovers.

I would GUESS that H&R Races would be good too - I have a set but never mounted. For what it's worth as a weird internet opinion - I find my H&R Sport Springs (US) and Bilsteins to have a somewhat similar feel to my 986 Boxster. That my just be me being a bit daft, but it doesn't feel miles off.

As a reference - I've never had coilovers on the car, but I've had Eibach, E30 M3, H&R Sport Springs with the Bilsteins, E30 325i Sport Springs with Sport shocks (newish) and the J-Stock Springs/Dampers (J-Stock are a copy of an old H&R race spring and Bilsteins re-valved) to compare against.

List is helpful thanks! More searching tonight has led me to thinking the B12 kit is the best value for money. The Eibach pro springs that come with don’t seems to have a much higher spring rate than stock which should make more a smoother ride?

[DanThe]

B8 and H&R is the very firm end of the scale for a road car, if you want a sensible civilised ride quality then buy a set of B4 dampers and Eibach springs

Isn’t that just going to feel the same as I have now ie stock?

If your stock parts are brand new then maybe so, but im guessing they are more likely to have a few decades of wear in them? Eibach springs are stiffer than standard and are lowered
Dont rule out your tyre choice either, it has a big effect on the suspension if you have a smaller aspect ratio

[BristolE30]

B8 and H&R is the very firm end of the scale for a road car, if you want a sensible civilised ride quality then buy a set of B4 dampers and Eibach springs

Isn’t that just going to feel the same as I have now ie stock?

If your stock parts are brand new then maybe so, but im guessing they are more likely to have a few decades of wear in them? Eibach springs are stiffer than standard and are lowered
Dont rule out your tyre choice either, it has a big effect on the suspension if you have a smaller aspect ratio

Front dampers are new but don’t think rear has been changed ever.

That’s interesting, one thing I did hear about using OE or B4/B6with lowered springs is that you’ll get premature wear as they are always compressed. And that’s why B8 has a shorter shaft tube?

[DanThe]

B6 has a shorter stroke, the marketing is backwards in the case of E30's
Dampers dont wear from being compressed, otherwise they wouldn't store them compressed

[tha881]

I've been running B4s for 5 years almost, with Eibach pro kit springs and they're fine for road use. I had the softer pre facelift springs so it may have sat a bit lower than usual. I'm now using Vogtland springs which are stiffer than eibach, very minimal dive under braking and acceleration, and they are still perfectly fine with the B4s. But I do have some correct facelift Eibachs to test fit soon which I think will be perfect for a road setup.

[BristolE30]

B6 has a shorter stroke, the marketing is backwards in the case of E30's
Dampers dont wear from being compressed, otherwise they wouldn't store them compressed

This is confusing - so your saying the B12 kit that includes the b8 and springs, is incorrect? Everywhere online it says the B8 has the shorter stroke