SHOCK ABSORBERS

Swild

Swild

New member
 Cumbria
Hello, I own Z4E89 on a 2016, has anyone fitted front and rear shock absorbers, it is something I’m considering to improve the handling, although my car is only done 15,000 miles from you one owner I’m not happy with the handling 60 -70 mile an hour on a uneven road surface Road
Any thought would be appreciated, thank you. Steve.
 

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Do you mean new ones? It'll already have them fitted and at the mileage they don't need changing. What tyres do you have?
 
Mileage is not the only variable when it comes to suspension components, or in fact many components on cars. At 10 years old your factory shocks will be past their best, irrespective of usage.

It’s one of the main reasons I don’t care for low mileage on an older vehicle; you just end up doing much of the same maintenance whilst having paid a premium.
 
I disagree. They don't deteriorate if they are not being used. BMW don't specify a time interval for them to be changed.
 
Rockhopper said:
I disagree. They don't deteriorate if they are not being used. BMW don't specify a time interval for them to be changed.
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That’s fine, you can disagree but they do degrade with age. Theres plenty of other things on the car that degrade over time that BMW don’t give you an age based interval for.
 
Matt.rowley.1990 said:
That’s fine, you can disagree but they do degrade with age. Theres plenty of other things on the car that degrade over time that BMW don’t give you an age based interval for.
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In simple terms, dampers fail because the seals no longer seal effectively.
Wear and tear through mileage is how we normally experience their needing replacing.
But, time, atmospheric conditions, storage (in a static position for extended periods) all contribute.
That said, at 10 years old, I would expect them to still be in reasonable condition.
But a new pair of Bilstein B6 or B8 will unquestionably be an improvement, especially if you do the springs, top mounts etc also.
 
One of the things that I find irritating about the Z4 - mine is non Msport 35i from 2009- is that the ride is quite harsh picking up too many surface imperfections and it’s not clear to me if what I am experiencing is simply worn out dampers or just a poorer version because of age of a poor suspension to start with. British roads need more compliance so that the car can settle more…. Does anyone have experience of Bilstein B4s as an alternative to the passive non msport dampers?
 
I'm happy with the B4 on my 23i on country lanes.
I ditched the B6 that look better quality for the extra cost.
But you don't see them on a daily basis.
Ride is not vastly softer.
 
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