e39 TOO tall after wheel swap...

[1gr8e39]

I just bought a facelift 01 525i to daily drive. It was ugly so I bought and bolted up a set of M parallel 66's (17's). Put fresh tread on, now the car sits way taller than stock. I have an extra set of H&R sport springs for an e39, BUT, I bought this thing to daily drive. Will these H&R's ruin the ride quality? I plan to leave stock struts and such, but it needs to come down. What can I do?








How do I maintain good daily driver and improve the stance?

[pDubs]

What size tires did you put on them? 235/45r17 are the correct size tire. With those sizes it shouldn't "sit way taller than stock."

I don't think running springs would ruin the ride quality at all. I would absolutely put those on.

First thing though is to make sure you are running the correct tire sizes. What exact tires did you put on?

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It's not like you are putting coilovers on and making the ride quality very harsh. Often times lowering springs are hardly noticeable at all.

[RyansBMW]

How many miles on the car? Are those the original shocks? Putting lowering springs on the OEM shocks will quickly wear them out (if they arent already blown) since they werent designed for that that amount of travel. I would save up and swap in a set of Koni Yellow to go with those springs. You can adjust the dampers and make it ride just as smooth as OEM if you want.

[1gr8e39]

I put the tires that were called for on the 540i sport the wheels came off. The fronts are 235/45/17 and the rears are 255/40/17. I already have the H&R springs and i would 100% put new struts on if I put the springs on. Its easier than having to pull apart the stock springs/ struts and put the new springs on. Just pull the factory spring strut assembly and put in the new spring strut assembly, nobody likes the extra work and new struts are cheap. What struts should I do then? and where can I get a good deal? Any recommendations what strut would go well with the H&R sports? the car has 147k I'm assuming they are original but they dont have any play or ca-clunk over quick bumps. Id hate to pull the front end apart again to do the stuts in 5k. Those Koni yellows expensive? Another thing I should mention is I only paid 4k for the car so spending big money would defeaqt the purpose of a cheap dd. I appreciate the input you gave already. The car runs and drives 9.5/10, its actually impressive, other than needing rear sway bar links. Actually<! I have another question. On the highway when I hit bumps or pavement cahnges, I get a 1/2 secong wiggle out of the tail of the car, I assumed it was the sway bar end links, which I already oredered and have from Bavarian Motorsport. Heard of this berfore? any input?

[RyansBMW]

There are lots of places to get the Koni Yellow. I havent looked at prices in a while so Im not sure who has the current best deal. I would look at EACEuroParts, ECSTuning as well as the group buy section here in the forums. Some of the supported vendors are always having suspenion sales going. Just post up what you are looking for and they will get back to you (keep your PM box clear because thats how they will respond back to you.)

Cost depends on how much you want to put into the car. It can get pricey.When installing new suspension parts with older parts, the new pieces quickly find the weakest link in the system. Older parts will wear faster and need to be replaced. A lot of people, myself included, saved and replaced the entire front or rear, or both all at once to ensure everthing was brand new and we wouldnt be chasing down vibrations and clunks forever after. If you want this to be a cheap DD, this probably isnt your best option. I would start with the springs, struts/shocks and new mounts and spring pads. it would suck to have all new springs and shocks put in and rip it out just to put new mounts in and redo all the work. All the other things (thrust arms, control arms, tie rods, etc...) are pretty simple to replace after the fact.

With regards to your wiggle, it could be the sway bar links, but it also could be the guide links, integral links, or control arms. I would have it checked out by a indy just so you arent throwing money at the wrong parts. Im going to venture a guess that at 147k miles, unless the PO refreshed the suspension, its a combination of all those parts. If you think the car drives 9.5/10 now with everything worn out, you will be in for a surprise when you start freshening it up


Heres a link that shows all the suspension components to your car. I used it a few years ago when I refreshed the entire suspension on my car to make sure I had everything. Might be helpful for you as well.
http://www.eaceuroparts.com/content/...on-parts-list/

[pDubs]

In regards to the tire sizes your car isn't sitting way higher than stock because of those. The fronts are OEM sized and the 255/40r17 you have on the rears are actually slightly shorter. They are still within 3% and okay to use but they aren't taller.

[1gr8e39]

What I am referring to is the stock 15's that came off the car must have had a shorter overall diameter, because the stock NON sport 525 wheels are ugly, and small. The car definitely sat lower on the factory 15's. As far as the rears being 40 series vs. the front being 45's, thats what BMW originally put on those 540's that came with those wheels.

RyansBMW, I can appreciate replacing the majority of the suspension and bushings while its apart, I 100% ought to while I do the springs. I guess I just need to order everything. I've done e39 front struts before, I was surprised to see the rears called for 3.5 hrs a side? Seems nuts? Both fronts in the past have taken maybe 6 with hand tools. So My LAST question, I will do the struts, I havent even looked at the rears to see how they are setup, but your saying replace the bearing plates, mounts, and spring pads? That will save me time from having to dismount/ disassemble the old strut/ spring. Are there any bushings I have access to while i'm in there? I know the tie rod ends will be free and ill need an alignment anyway, Ill check into the yellows, I know KYB makes good stuff. Ill look into it and PM if I get confused. Thanks. F&%k I thought I was a decent mechanic til I got on the forums.

[RyansBMW]

If this is your first time doing the rear, plan on 3.5 hours a side. You need to take remove the rear seats and deck lid to gain access to the shocks which is a PITA. Yes, replacing the strut, mount and spring pads at the same time can save you headaches down the road. You wont need to disassemble the old strut/spring assembly and can just remove it all as one piece. It will also prevent you from having to rip apart the interior later on if you find out the mount is shot.

[1gr8e39]

The rear seats and deck lid? What?!?!? Never anticipated that. German engineers are the best and the... Ugh. K. Ill look up the DIY

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Do I need to pull the interior and such to do the springs, or the shocks, or is it similar to the front where its an assembly? I was under the assumption I could swap the springs without doing all this, and would need to for the shocks, but I am known to be wrong frequently. I just need to go out and climb under the car. Aww laziness, how I love thee, let me count the ways...

[RyansBMW]

On the rear, you need to remove the backseat and rear deck (not exterior deck lid) on the inside of the car to get access to the shock mounts. The spring, shock and mount is all one assembly and can be removed all together. You cant replace the spring without pulling out the shock.

[1gr8e39]

Right on, im going to get it done thursday. I have to start after work (7pm) so in the event id only get 2 done, and would have to drive the car potentially, should I start with the front or the rear? Im thinking the rear since I wont need to worry about the alignment, and the rear springs are only 3/4 inch drop, and the fronts are 1 1/4. Last time I remember pulling the tie rod ends OFF not just popping them off the hub. Rears first, or fronts? HMMM. what to do what to do?

[1gr8e39]

HERE IT IS, I threw the H&R springs on, along with KYB struts and bearing plates, total is was 1.3 inch front and .75 inch rear. All I wish is that the rear was another 1/4 to 1/2 inch lower, but a full tank will fix that. The ride quality is great, little sharper than the non sport stock suspension, but drives just like a stock sport package. Very Happy with the car now. I didnt like how much it came up with the 540 M parallels. Now its at schwabby getting a 4 wheel alignment. Found a broken rear sway bar end link, anybody heard of these things breaking? I ordered a pair from Bavarian Motorsport they were cheap but I was surprised to see it busted in half.