Best Suspension Setup for Value

H

highgrade00

Member
 Miami, FL (USA)
Best Suspension for Value

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Here is where you list the setups that you have had experience with, and comment. Ultimately, I would like to find out the best setup for value on the Z4 (I don’t know if setups vary for Coupes and Roadsters, but feel free to list both).

I’ll kick it off....

I purchased my 2003 3.0i Z4 used with the factory sport suspension. It was alright. Nothing spectacular, yet nothing to be horribly ashamed of. I came out of a 2001 Toyota Celica with Tein S-Tech springs... and sad to say, the Celica felt FAR more stable. On the same note, my brother has a 2004 G35 also with Tein springs (H-Tech), and again, his ride quality is as close to stock as you can get--handling is very solid (again, a little embarrassing for the Z4).

This brings me to my current setup... Eibach pro-kit with the factory sport struts. This seemed to be a pretty popular one on z4um, but unlike other before me, I couldn’t recommend this setup. Ride quality is a bit on the poor side (a bit bouncy). As far as performance gain, turning obviously feels a bit more solid and improved over stock, but not quite what I hoped for. As for appearance, this setup was right on point. Exactly the drop that I was looking for, without scraping every groove in the road (you will still scrape on high speed bumps and steep inclines). In hindsight, though it was inexpensive (around $250 for springs), the looks alone didn't outweigh the lack in ride quality and miniscule performance gains.

The plan is to move into a Z4 Coupe early next year—thus far, my plans are to keep the factory sport suspension. I’m pretty curious on how it compares to the Z4 Roadster with the factory sport suspension.
 
Unless you plan on tracking your car. I would stick with spring and strut combinations. The reason you may have felt the "bounciness" in the combo mentioned above is that the struts were not rated to the springs. When you go for such combinations it's really worth the extra money to upgrade both your springs and stuts at the same time. Coilovers are a great option for the adjustability. But again it's a waste of money. Typically when you run on public streets you end up setting the suspension once and not messing with it again. There are also coilover sets that have adjustable dampening and some that come set from the factory. From your post above about stability, it may not be the springs you need to upgrade. I would look into upgrading your strut tower braces to stiffen up your vehicle.

Another consideration is your strut tower (F and R) and sway bar (F and R) combination. Various diameters in both front and rear can significantly affect the vehicle's behavior when going into and coming out of turns.

In the past I've had great success with KW supension components. I've used both their KW V2 and KW V1 Inox coilover line of products. They also have spring and stut combos available.
http://www.kw-suspension.com/en/30_Products/10_KW_Suspensions/25_Suspension_Kits/index.php
 
I tried the Eibach springs on my '04 3.0i and experienced the same thing you did. The problem you're having with the bouncy ride is because of the stock dampers. I'd recommend the Koni struts/shocks and you'll have a much more firm, stable ride without losing the ride comfort.
 
I guess I should have included that I did upgrade to the Alutec Front Strut Tower Bar. That thing is A+ for looks, and for performance. I have notice a nice improvement entering turns.
 
If you really want even more improvement. I suppose you can add a rear strut tower bar. But I'm not sure if anyone makes those for our cars.
 
I would like to know if lowering with a kit such as eibach disrupts the rear camber to intrude badly on tyre wear, is it adviseable to have fitted adjustable camber mounts and top mounts to set up camber/castor so as to ensure correct settings :?
 
As you lower a vehicle you should allow for a little more camber than stock. For the most part if you are lowering about 1"-2". You should still have enough movement to get the camber back very close to stock. Unless you're going extremely low I don't think you'll need adjustable camber mounts.
 
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