H&R/Bilstien or Koni feedback wanted

[Anton CH.]

How stiff is this setup on the street (as in do girlfriends/wife complain) and how does the car feel on corners? Does it eliminate the sloppy cornering?

I would also be interested in hearing some feedback from someone who has done sways upgrade. M-tech and RD seems to be the most popular upgrades. I found on BMWe34.net that m-tech uses 25/18mm while RD uses 27/19!!

[632 Regal]

I have H&R/bilstein combo...blew a shock in less than a year and the warranty isnt a warranty. The ride is firmer and bumpy, chicks dig it anyways cause its a Bimmer.

[Misha]

About a year ago i sold my '90 535i 5 speed. I had a Bilstein sports/ H&R setup, also m-tech sways. With 18" Schnitzer wheels it handled very nice, no complains. But the ride was very rough. With stock 15" wheels it was nicer of course but still feel every hole. Then i got my '91 M5 i elliminated self leveling and installed again Bilstein sport shocks(i dont know why) with schnitzer springs, added RD stress bar and stock 17" rims. Again rough ride on the streets of LA. But it handles very nice on the track at Willow Springs.
I will never put bilsteins again, If you have more $ to spend but a complete Dinan stage I or III suspension. My instructor at track had '95 540 with dinan III stage and it handled much much better then my car and the ride was better. On my silver '91 M5 i have dinan stage I suspension and it is great.

Of course Dinan is much more expensive but i would recomend saving some cash and not waisting it. But you can always get a Sachs kit from BMA for about $700 i think i heard it is pretty good too.

Hope this helps,
Michael

[Robin-535im]

I've got Koni adj. and H&R springs on my 535 and I think it's great. Nice drop but not too much, adjustable Koni's are fun, and the ride is nice and firm but not harsh at all (to me). I've got 17's and RD adjustable sways set as stiff as I can while still being neutral in corners. The car sticks like glue in the corners, unless I tell it not to that is!

I owned the car for three months and never even noticed it was firm until I was taking my very-pregnant wife to the hospital for the delivery... then I realized how tight it was. Firm really, not too bouncy. I have no desires to change anything about the setup, which is saying a lot because I'm the type who likes to tweak things.

I doubt you can go wrong with H&R springs, and I personally liked the bilsteins on my other 535. Since the koni's are adjustable I figured I'd keep those instead of putting bilsteins in.

HTH

- Robin

[Anton CH.]

I think I may go with Konis instead just from what I am reading. As my car is lighter than your cars, HR/bilstein may be overkill for mine. Dinan is overpriced in my opinion, even though their office is right around here. Now does the car ever bottom out? I also noticed that H&R creates quiete a drop, do the front tires ever rub?

Robin: Where do you have your shocks set to? Can they be adjusted easily? I think I am going to go with your setup. How are you liking the RD sways? I am probably going install them together while I have my suspension apart.

[genphreak]

Remember its all subjective. Konis are almost as hard as Bilstein Sports, but completely different in drive characterstics... a lot of people report using Konis on the lightest setting and still feel it too harsh a ride. Depends whether you want to change your cars stock feel a lot. After all, the e34 was never a race car- its a luxo autobahn cruiser and unlike many cars the stock suspension is pretty firm to achieve a balanced ride at 200kmh (not when worn out of course)...

Just saying be careful. You will end up hating your car if you turn it from a daily driver into a daily rattler with fasteners falling out of the dashboard every week... (and plenty do, I sure had to learn this the hard way...) GP

[Jason]

I have the bilstein's and H&Rs and the 17s and the RD sways. If you have bumpy roads and you drive alot, you might get tired of the ride.

[Robin-535im]

Robin: Where do you have your shocks set to? Can they be adjusted easily? I think I am going to go with your setup. How are you liking the RD sways? I am probably going install them together while I have my suspension apart.

With my setup, the tires rub the front RD sways at full lock, but only a little. Don't know the tire size, 235 or 245 maybe? Normal tire size for a 17'' tire, nothing outrageous.

I initially had the Koni's at full soft, and it was fine. Then I put the fronts to medium (1/2 way from lock to lock) and at first I noticed how tight the turn in was and I liked it... now it feels normal to me but I bet if I softened it up it would feel too soft. Fronts adjust from inside the engine compartment with a twist of the little tool that comes with them.

Rears have to be removed to be adjusted so they're at whatever the PO set them to, probably full soft. I would love to stiffen them up a bit but it's a PITA to take them off just for that!

I like the RD's. I would like it stiffer if possible... but right now the car is nicely balanced in corners with a wee bit of understeer so that I can just push the rear out a bit with the throttle. Car settles right in after a hard corner with no side-to-side rocking.