@#$! BavAuto Springs!!

[Kalevera]

Guys,

Prior to knowing about this board, an ignorant me bought a set of BavAuto springs for my 535i. I installed them about 1000 miles ago and was initially satisfied with them....BUT:

Handling sucks (also is affected by my dead shocks and loose steering box).

The rear seems to be too low. The front is okay in terms of height as it is, althought sometimes the plastic front chassis/engine cover rubs the ground. The rear is whack though - the camber is WAY off, the tires sit up in the wheel wells way too high. So, I want to take them off in favor of something else.

In terms of the other options (ie - H&R/SACHS): how badly is rear camber affected? My rear tires look splayed out as it is - the negative camber is visible. Also, how low does rear ride height go? The BavAutos are, by my conjecture, too low.


Whit

[califblue]

You mean you changed springs without changing your old shocks?
Why?
No wonder your camber “is whack though - the camber is WAY off” you have sacked shocks with lowered springs!
You should have Bucked up and did the Sachs kit even if it meant waiting until you had the $ ( you should replace all front end components at the same time my.02)

[Kalevera]

Indeed, I did replace everything in the front end.

Well, I did change the front shocks, but the ones that went on weren't new. The rears were old. I would've bought the sachs kit had I known that it existed - it was never a function of money, more of a problem of timing ;)

Does anyone have any pics of how it lowers the rear? I just want to make sure that I'm not setting myself up to be disappointed.

Best, Whit

[Incantation]

i do.. email me if u want pics. Incantation@novus-tele.net and plz capitalize the topic

[Derek A.]

What about the rear subfram mounts ? I would make sure that the entire suspension is in good working order before adding speed parts to the mix.

[John B.]

The factory M-Tech springs are another nice option for lowering the 535i. They lower the car without destroying the ride quality & are designed to work with the popular M-Tech sway bars.

[pmlmotorsports]

Again, I must inform everyone about a lesser known company Vogtland. the kit they offer lowers the REAR of the car the least (.8"), while lowering the front 1.6", and the ride is far better than H&R, EIBACH, or BAVAUTO which are too soft. As for shocks or struts, I recommend the stock units as I find Bilsteins too stiff, and Koni to expensive, but if you want the best, the Koni product is adjustable and can provide both comfort and/or handling depending on your mood that day. Hope this helps. One last thing, the people here seem to worship the Sachs kit, but they fail to mention the pathetic 1 year warranty that is offered by Sachs. I'll take the Vogtland/Koni package which offers a lifetime warranty on both products....just my 2 cents worth.

[Kalevera]

PML - I read your earlier post about Vogtland and I've seen them for sale at very reasonable prices. It's an attractive option. My question to you is -- how stiff are they? I'm not looking for a bone jarring ride. Do you have any pics of them on your car? Thanks! Lowell

[gale]

I suffered with BavAuto/Bilstein Tourings for 2 tortuous years til I couldn't take it any longer & put M-Techs & stock Boges on it which is a nice ride. With the BavAutos, the front barely sat 4" above the ground & I had to pre-lift the side of the car just to get my floorjack under the front.

I since went from an automatic to a 5-spd & the front is a bit bouncy going thru the gears so will be putting Koni adjustables on the front soon.

[Kalevera]

Don - what do the M-Tech's cost/where do you buy them? I assume that BMA doesn't deal them... I'll be doing Konis regardless of what spring I end up switching in there.

[632 Regal]

I had the Bav autos, didnt think they were that bad except for how low the front sat, I have H & Rs now which helped the front, the rears seem about the same though. Handlung seemed a bit tighter with the Bavautos but that could be from the lower front.

[gale]

I bought the M-techs from Maximillian's, www.bimmer.com
I believe they were on the order of $349 shipped for a set of 4. They were special ordered & had to come from Germany & took nearly a month to get here but worth the wait. I'm sure BMA could order them if you had a specific BMW part number, maybe someone who has them can supply that info. My local dealer can't even decipher the ETK spring tables but Maximillian's is very familiar with them, just tell him what factory equipment your car has -- a/c, etc. since there are a bezillian different springs depending on weight.

The Vogtland deal sounds pretty good. I would have tried them if I knew about them at the time. Dinan's are good also but around $400 for a set & I don't think he sells just the fronts. Maximillian's will let you order individually, but best to do all 4. The BavAutos were too soft & sagged over time. It lowered it 1.75" in front initially & kept dropping. Looked great but rode for crap. Two years later it had dropped 2-3/8" & bottomed out all the time. Suspension is one area best left up to the Bavarian engineers, it gets expensive to do it trial & error, not to mention repeated labor. If I put Koni's up front, it will be the 3rd time I'll have messed with it in less than 15k miles.

[kngpen]

I bought the M-techs from Maximillian's, www.bimmer.com
I believe they were on the order of $349 shipped for a set of 4. They were special ordered & had to come from Germany & took nearly a month to get here but worth the wait. I'm sure BMA could order them if you had a specific BMW part number, maybe someone who has them can supply that info. My local dealer can't even decipher the ETK spring tables but Maximillian's is very familiar with them, just tell him what factory equipment your car has -- a/c, etc. since there are a bezillian different springs depending on weight.

The Vogtland deal sounds pretty good. I would have tried them if I knew about them at the time. Dinan's are good also but around $400 for a set & I don't think he sells just the fronts. Maximillian's will let you order individually, but best to do all 4. The BavAutos were too soft & sagged over time. It lowered it 1.75" in front initially & kept dropping. Looked great but rode for crap. Two years later it had dropped 2-3/8" & bottomed out all the time. Suspension is one area best left up to the Bavarian engineers, it gets expensive to do it trial & error, not to mention repeated labor. If I put Koni's up front, it will be the 3rd time I'll have messed with it in less than 15k miles.

I have a pair of front Sachs performance sport struts (sitting in my room) that will fit your car. They retail for $179 each from BMA. I will let you have both of them for $125 shipped. If your interested email me or message me on here. Mrjoe83@satx.rr.com

[John B.]

Don - what do the M-Tech's cost/where do you buy them? I assume that BMA doesn't deal them... I'll be doing Konis regardless of what spring I end up switching in there.

I bought the M-Tech springs & sways from BMA as I have just about everything else I've bought for my car. They were good enough to match another suppliers lower price as I had given them quite a bit of business. Patrick has all the part numbers but may need your cars date of mfgr.

[Kalevera]

Jeff - what kind of strut inserts are you using with your H&R's?

[ejhiggins]

do the M-tech's get rid of the fender gap in the front, and how do they affect negative camber on the rears (tire wear) ?

[632 Regal]

I an using the Belstein Sports all around, they stiffened the ride up quite a bit but hey if I wanted a land yacht I would have bougt a cadillac. With the sports you dont need to use the stock bumpstops which gives you a little bit more travel. They also have thicker spring seats (rubber deals) which I read about after the past spring switcheroo, think I might get some thicker ones to pop in next time i'm into the front end...idonno.

[John B.]

do the M-tech's get rid of the fender gap in the front, and how do they affect negative camber on the rears (tire wear) ?

Yes, they clean up the tire gap nicely and I have had no problems with rear tire wear. I've put 12K+ on my summer & snow tires since installing the springs with no signs of odd rear tire wear.

[avitt2]

do the M-tech's get rid of the fender gap in the front, and how do they affect negative camber on the rears (tire wear) ?

The answer to your question will vary by car model and spring P/N. I went with the MTechs that Maximillian's recommended for my '94 540i, and I got very little drop in the front (about .5 inch). The feel is outstanding, but if you're looking for a greater drop, you should probably go with Sachs.

[Paul in NZ]

do the M-tech's get rid of the fender gap in the front, and how do they affect negative camber on the rears (tire wear) ?

http://www.bimmer.info/bmw/kiwi535/feft%20side.jpg
std factory mtech(sport) set up with 17;s added later.I still get tyre wer on the inside edges,did get more than 30,000km though,i rotate tyres and align regularly

[ejhiggins]

could i use bilstein hd's with the M-Tech springs, i alredy have the hd's on my car with the stock springs and like how they feel