Bilstein B12 - thoughts?

R

Roundozo

Senior member
 Hampshire
Hi all,

So I was planning on a suspension overhaul on the coupe (77k and on original shocks etc) and to keep costs down I was going to replace like for like but with looking at the cost for oem shocks and springs it isn't far off the B12 kit. Having a search on Google Germany I found this;

http://www.mk-fahrwerkstechnik.de/BILSTEIN-B12-Pro-Kit-Sportfahrwerk-fuer-BMW-Z4-Coupe-E86-30-si-46-181251

Seems like a good buy. What are peoples thoughts on these?

Will also be replacing all bushings and top mounts. With the kit above will I still need dust boots and bump stops and can I use the oem ones or will I need to get special ones?

Thanks in advance. :thumbsup:
 
Hi,

I just fitted the B12 kit to my 2007 Coupe last weekend and so far am very happy with the ride. Height is only a little lower than OEM and there seems to be more compliance over bumps/pot holes.
I replaced rear topmounts and also lollipop bushes when I did mine. I did buy front top mounts as well but realised when I came to fit them that they were the wrong ones even though the Meyle website says that they fit so be careful if you go with Meyle parts.

The front shocks from the B12 kit come with dust boots and have internal bump stops, the rears you need to reuse the OEM boots and bumpstop which are one piece. I didnt realise this and fitted without at first but was mentioned when I posted in this thread http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=77672 that I have missed them so I put them on yesterday.

Replacing the rear springs and shocks is very easy and replacing the fronts is not too difficult if you have spring compressors. Just a word of warning if you do change the fronts yourself the first set of spring compressors I borrowed from a friend did not compress the spring enough so I ended up having to use two sets before there was no tension on the topmounts.

If you are going to replace the bushes yourself it is quite difficult to remove the OEM ones without a proper press. I ended up hacksawing most of the old bush out and chiselling the outer collar out which took longer than fitting the whole B12 kit!

if you do go Meyle for topmounts make sure you buy these ones http://web2.carparts-cat.com/defaul...42B7F4953591418091C546253745F524348004&12=140 for the front as they are the correct ones.

I went with a powerflex polybush for the lollipops which I got from nfbr on here so if your going that route drop him a PM
 
Out of curiosity are you still on the original rear springs at 77K? The reason I went for the B12 kit is because one of my springs broke and the other rear spring had been replaced by the previous owner just last year. I didn't want to put OEM springs back on but thought that the shocks might not last too long if I used them with eibach springs so ended up going for the whole kit
 
It appears so. They may have been replaced but I can’t see any notes or paperwork for it in any of its history which is surprising considering how often they seem to go. I had the rear up in the air and wheels of not too long ago and inspected the springs and they look fine. However as the millage is piling up because I use it as a fun daily I can feel that the general suspension is becoming lose and as I can do all of this work myself it actually shouldn’t cost too much. I think I can do it all for under 1k.

What I plan to replace is……

Front and rear shocks and springs (Its why the B12 kit is very appealing)
Top mounts – front and rear
Drop links (lollipop) – front and rear
Anti-roll bar bushes – front and rear
Rear trailing arm bushes
Front wishbones – I will replace the whole unit with Meyle HD one as I’ve used these before on my old 3 series and thought they were good. I have actually already replaced the rear bush of the front wishbone but it was with OEM as it was an emergency fix. I know it’s got a lot of life left in it but it’s just hassle. Ended up using an angle grinder to get the old ones off, very stubborn indeed.

I do want to do more like the rear sub frame bushes but I don’t have the time to be removing that much of my car and still be able to use it for work. I think that changing the above will tighten it all up nicely. I may approach the rear wishbone bushes if they look tired when I get there.

Thanks for the info about the front top mount as I was wondering if they would be slightly different on the coupe. There seem to be two mounts for the coupe on that page however so do you know which one it is or do you have the part number? Thanks also for the spring compressor hint. I don’t actually own that tool so was either going to borrow the local garages (I’m good friends with them) or just rent some for a tool hire company.
 
The front top mounts that I bought were part number 3003133601 they do not fit as the camber pin is at a different orientation to the ones of the Z4. The correct on to buy is the part number 3146410001.

The problem with the spring compressors is that the front srings only have 4 coils and the top and bottom ones are in contact with the mounts so you can only really get the compressors around the middle two coils which doesn't compress the spring very much. We ended up using the first set on the middle two coils then when compressed adding the second set on the outer sets of coils as close to the mounts as we could get them.
Hope that makes sense, unfortunately I didn't take a picture.

I think I should have replaced my RTAB as there is a slight knocking sound from the rear over very uneven ground and I have double checked all of the new parts and everything seems to be tight.
 
Roundozo if you fancy coming over to see what it's like I've just done b12s, powerflex front and rear arb bushes, powerflex RTAB bushes, polybush lollipop bushes, top mounts front and rear (lemforders), and geo. It's MEGA! I did quite a bit if research before buying and ended up sourcing the powerflex stuff from TWG automotive in Camberley, who fitted them also. I got the lollipop bushes off ebay, and the Bilstein kit. The B12s only cost £550 delivered too...

Drop me a pm and we can sort something out :) and I'll link you to the gear I bought through eBay too ;) Alternatively if you're going to go troll the roadie brigade at Soft top Sunday down at Goodwood next weekend I'll be there anyway! :P
 
Ed, that sounds like a plan. Don't know if I can make soft top Sunday but you've basically described what I want to do. Did you do four wheel Hunter alignment? How much in total did the parts alone cost? The B12's in the link above work out at 450 (ish) plus 20 postage so if I can get all the other bits for relatively cheaply I'll be a happy man.

P.s long time no speak. How have you been?
 
Ive got the B12 kit on my Alpina and its great. Nice ride, not too hard, but sticks like **** to a blanket
 
Roundozo said:
Ed, that sounds like a plan. Don't know if I can make soft top Sunday but you've basically described what I want to do. Did you do four wheel Hunter alignment? How much in total did the parts alone cost? The B12's in the link above work out at 450 (ish) plus 20 postage so if I can get all the other bits for relatively cheaply I'll be a happy man.

P.s long time no speak. How have you been?
Click to expand...

Not bad cheers man, yourself? Finally I've been able to drive the zed again after my accident before Christmas - It's so good to be driving it again! :D

Yeah TWG have a proper laser 4-wheel alignment tool :) I've sent you a pm with an itemised list of the bits I had done and the cost. IIRC TWG offered a discount on the parts and labour for gettng the lot done at once, so well worth enquiring! Tell Will I recommended them :)

Let me know if you do decide to go to Goodwood, be good to catch up :)
 
Really interested to know how you get on. I'm already on eibachs so just thinking of going down the B8 route but would like to know if you think it's worth it.
 
That's the thing. I didn't want to put eibachs on my tired shocks because at 77k they won't be their best and I don't think I'd feel the full benefits of the eibachs. Started looking and the B12 kit seems to have good reviews and for €620 odd it seems a bargain. I don't track the car but could do with a better setup.
 
Well in the week I've driven mine since getting them fitted you definitely won't be disappointed!!
 
Ed, Number5 do either of you have xenon headlights? Just asking as my zed does and since fitting the b12 kit I noticed that it doesn't seem to auto adjust. I had a look at the auto adjustment box and arm in the drivers wheel arch and it looks like the arm is no longer horizontal due to the lower ride height. Was just wondering if anyone else noticed this and had any ideas how to fix it
 
Mine has Xenons and is going in to have this kit fitted at the end of June so may be able to help at that point, must be a way around it as it won't be the first lowered car with auto adjusting headlights!
 
Have done a bit of research into this today and think it may be the level sensor on the rear that could be the problem. When installing the B12s I didnt realise that there was a sensor at the rear as well as the front, so I didn't disconnect it when fitting the new springs. I need to take a look and see if I damaged it by accident. Will update when I get chance.
 
So it's being booked in with TWG for the 2nd July. Can't wait. Will be doing a few things beforehand to keep costs down. So before she goes for the B12 kit, RTAB and Top mounts I will fit new F&R drop links, New F&R arb bushes along with some new Meyle HD wishbones. Wooooooo!! :driving: :thumbsup: :D
 
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