Bilstein Sport or not..? Bagged Bmw E36 Shock / Strut help...

[R3VN R3D]

Hey all,

I have a Bagged '95 BMW E36 and I need to upgrade the Shocks.
I am leaning towards Bilsteins.
What I am not sure about is whether to get Sport's, HD's or Tourings.
If I understand correctly, the Bilstein Sports are engineered for lowered cars.
So that would make the HD's and Touring's for stock height cars, right?
Will the Sport's limit how high the bags can go? Or will the HD's & Touring's limit the drop?
I'm thinking I should get the Heavy Duty's to handle the Air Suspension.

I found some Touring's in the local Junk Yard... Should I go back and get 'em..?

Any advice?

Thanks.

[solom200]

Well i have the bilstein sports. But i lowered my car with h and r springs. So i guess that's why. I have urethane bushings so its a bit of a rougher drive but handling is great.

[scooper]

I have bilstein sports on hr sports and treehouse fca brackets. Ride is a bit rough with the TH brackets but it's tolerable. If you're on stock bushings the ride will be more than tolerable. btw, what is bagging? Your e36 looks slammed and will ride super rough and handle like shit. Lose the 19s while you're at. Heavy and those rims will be prone to damage.

The handling is pretty good, but I'm putting some coilovers on so my billy hr set will be up for sale in the next 2 weeks. PM if interested.

[low36]

Pics of your setup? Struts would vary depending on if you are running BOC or what not.

[R3VN R3D]

Well i have the bilstein sports. But i lowered my car with h and r springs. So i guess that's why. I have urethane bushings so its a bit of a rougher drive but handling is great.

Bilstein Sport's would be my choice if my car was Static, but I have Air Suspension so it can go higher than stock and then drop to the ground.
So, I am not sure if the HD's, TC's or the Sport's would be best for my application.


I have bilstein sports on hr sports and treehouse fca brackets. Ride is a bit rough with the TH brackets but it's tolerable. If you're on stock bushings the ride will be more than tolerable. btw, what is bagging? Your e36 looks slammed and will ride super rough and handle like shit. Lose the 19s while you're at. Heavy and those rims will be prone to damage.

The handling is pretty good, but I'm putting some coilovers on so my billy hr set will be up for sale in the next 2 weeks. PM if interested.

Thanks. If I decide on the Sport's, I'll hit you up in a few weeks.
'Bagging' just means I have Air Suspension. I can lower or raise the car with the flip of a switch.

Also, I have 18"s, not 19's. I think 18's are the perfect size for this body style. I think 19's would be too much. I am looking for a nice set of 17's to have as an extra set which would also drop the car to the ground when paired with low profile tires and the Air Suspension..


Pics of your setup? Struts would vary depending on if you are running BOC or what not.

I am wrestling with the fronts right now..
I have Universal Air's Aero Sport's over Stock Struts in the front....
Rides like shit and the passenger side has a persistent knock..
I have taken the fronts apart, inspected, re-enforced, experimented and re-assembled three times with no luck.
Damn knock won't go away on that side...
I have cheap Camber Plates as well, but I'm pretty sure I have those tightened down enough with grade 8 Hardware, Lock Washers and loctight.
I think I have narrowed it down to one of two (or both) possible things...
One, the Shock Absorber Arm is knocking around the Upper Bag Plate Center Hole. The passenger side has some play, but the driver side is snug.
Or two, the Shock Tube is knocking around the inside of the Aero Sport's inner metal tube. Again, their is play on the passenger side, but not on the driver's.
I'm thinking if I put some Jounce Bumpers in the Aero Sport's inner tube, below the Upper Plate, it might cushion the forces.
I might also weld on a Bearing to the underside of the Top Bag Plate to hold the Macpherson Strut Arm in place as I turn the Steering Wheel.

Anyway, below is a link to the build...
http://www.stanceworks.com/forums/showthread.php?t=21185

[chadb08]

i'd go with 17. seems like thats the perfect size for these cars. the ones in your sig arnt bad. but a little to big for a lotta taste. air suspension must be nice. with the roads around TN and speed bumps every 5 feet, i'd love to have them to lift it up when needed. as for the shocks, Bilsteins is the way i would go. or Tein if you have the extra cash to spend. cant go wrong with putting money into a good suspension. thats how it is for me. i hate spending lots of money on car parts. but after having something on and seeing how much it improves im glad i did it:)

[low36]

When you say stock coils, do you mean stock struts with bags over them? Or basic coilovers running UVAIRS BOC? I would need to know what style of front shock you run to make a recommendation.

Also, I thought you were selling your car a bit ago. Thought I saw that on Airsociety.

[R3VN R3D]

i'd go with 17. seems like thats the perfect size for these cars. the ones in your sig arnt bad. but a little to big for a lotta taste. air suspension must be nice. with the roads around TN and speed bumps every 5 feet, i'd love to have them to lift it up when needed. as for the shocks, Bilsteins is the way i would go. or Tein if you have the extra cash to spend. cant go wrong with putting money into a good suspension. thats how it is for me. i hate spending lots of money on car parts. but after having something on and seeing how much it improves im glad i did it:)

Ya, I think I've decided on Bilstein's for now. Just trying to research the best Model for my application right now.


When you say stock coils, do you mean stock struts with bags over them? Or basic coilovers running UVAIRS BOC? I would need to know what style of front shock you run to make a recommendation.

Also, I thought you were selling your car a bit ago. Thought I saw that on Airsociety.

Bag over Stock Strut. So I guess not BOC, but BOS... or maybe POS... :)
You can check out the Build Link above for pics of the setup.

It is for sale, although I don't want to sell it. I want to fix the knock before I sell.

[Nomade30]

Bilstein Sports = Bilstein HD's that are shortened.

Do you want to ride at stock height or at slammed height?

[R3VN R3D]

Bilstein Sports = Bilstein HD's that are shortened.

Do you want to ride at stock height or at slammed height?

Thanks for that tip...
Well, I guess Sport's it is...
After all, I didn't Bag the car to drive it at stock height...

[low36]

You can also look into running stock MK4 VW struts with the mounting brackets custom welded to the new struts like I am running. They are a few inches shorter than the stock struts and should ride well. PM me if you would like more info.

[R3VN R3D]

You can also look into running stock MK4 VW struts with the mounting brackets custom welded to the new struts like I am running. They are a few inches shorter than the stock struts and should ride well. PM me if you would like more info.

Interesting..
FWIW, I think I am reconsidering Bilsteins for some Koni Yellow's up front...
Thinking about getting some M3 Strut Housings with Sway Bar Mounts and the Koni Cartridges...