BC Racing Coilover Review

[Jesus Freak]

You're so wrong it hurts my head. I hate the internet. Your argument carries no engineering points and is as relevant to me saying chocolate chip cookies cure cancer.

Sorry you feel that way.

Crap is gonna fail, no avoiding it. You could pay more for bilstiens and maybe get a bad one. So why not take less financial risk? And what's the point in spending 2k on shocks? You gonna be able to re-sell them for that much?

Some people have bad experiences with every brand.

And no, I have no "engineering" background, but where I work, half the time I'm correcting "engineering" mistakes. It's a Fing piece of paper that says you know something, and paid way to damn much to figure that out.

Flame on.. Couldn't care less.

[Schitzo]

What you need to ask yourselves, for the majority of E39s (street cars) do you really think you can objectively tell the difference between a $900 and $2500 set of coilovers (Besides the dollar figures, of course)

[Doru]

I don't think Bilstein PSS go very low, only PSS9 which is double the price. Somebody please prove me wrong because I would love Bilstein's over these

Try to contact Doug Mahar at Turner (dugmar@turnermotorsport.com), I snagged a set of PSS9 when they had them on sale last year (winter-ish) for about 1500. I know they had a sale a few weeks ago for the same price. Ask Doug if he can do something, or when they will have the next sale on them. You will need the v8 bearing support guide.

I never experienced a better ride since I have the PSS9 on the car.

[anthony85]

[quote=PRO;23650341]You still moving up to Atlanta?


No sir I'm not anymore. I'm actually starting a new job in the morning in my new career... I will still probably drive up but just don't know when now...

What you need to ask yourselves, for the majority of E39s (street cars) do you really think you can objectively tell the difference between a $900 and $2500 set of coilovers (Besides the dollar figures, of course)

thank you I'm not picky because my car is a daily driver. But I do know BC coilovers from being the sc300/supra game for the past three years and we loved them. They handle the load of power onto the rear wheels when the cars would go into boost and give you the confidence you want when 28lbs of boost wants send your car sideways...

[Jason5driver]

I would also talk to Ground Control, TC Kline, and KW.
All are fairly reputable IMO.

[Chigga]

Whats the obsession with these coilovers that are destined to be short lived when you can get bilstein pss for about the same price? You guys just want adjustability settings?

From everything i have read here these things fall apart way too fast and have so many negative reviews but people just keeping buying them.

Enlighten me before i purchase my coilovers this spring.

There's no enlightening if your mind is already made up, if you want the facts, then do some research and see actual feedbacks or read on to what I got to say below, people are happy with BC products and their services, I've got 2 cars on their coilovers and can't be happier, one car is an all-year-round car that goes through winter as well and track duties, and they don't fall apart for the record, when one thing goes wrong, someone will blast it to everyone, but when something is right, he/she says nothing at all.

I've had 2 Pirelli Pzeros blew up on me on different occasions, they were $400/tire, shit happens, it doesn't mean Pirelli is a horrible company, but I had bad experience with them, my worst suspension experience are with Bilsteins, but at the same time, its still doesn't mean they are a bad company.

You're so wrong it hurts my head. I hate the internet. Your argument carries no engineering points and is as relevant to me saying chocolate chip cookies cure cancer.

Then call BC, they can provide shock dyno graph, I don't really know what is that you do for a living, but I can tell you I've known BC for a long time, before they had their own brand back in 98, they've been working in the suspension industry for a while, I'm not an employee/shareholder in the company, but as a customer and someone who works in the industry, I can tell you that they ARE a responsible company, if you wish to understand why I say that, you must bear open mind to read my argument, that means by not reading it with a racial-based-argument, I know a lot of you guys on the forums are very quickly to base a product's quality on the manufacture's origin, which is pure ignorance, this is a discussion about BC Racing, NOT about countries or politics.

BC Racing started out as Bor Chuann Ltd in Taiwan, they are specialized in suspension components and kits, both manufacturing and sub-contracting, that means they've made kits and components for a lot of well known companies that you guys like, they actually have shock dyno in house, and all shocks that are pair with springs that are 2k over standard rate are re-valve, BC Racing NA in Florida is their NA main distributor/office/warehouse, and the guys there have nothing but professional since the initial conception, it took me close to 4 months to get replacement shock from Tein when I had to sent the original one back to California, while a friend needed a replacement shock from BC and it took 3 days to receive new one.

If you think they lack Engineering, here's their main website for the parent company, the factory has ISO9001 rating from TUV for all suspension components, and JWTC certification for their wheels.

http://www.bcec.com.tw/chinese_versi...rtificate.html

It all comes down to what swings your boat, I've had experience with quite a bit of suspension manufacture/companies out there, from FK, KW, Bilstein, Koni, Ground Control, BC, D2, K-sport, Moton/AST, Ohlin, Apex, GAZ, and custom one off suspension, I'm not saying BC IS THE BEST, but they are far from the worst, they are definitely the better ones out there, for the money, you can't go wrong with BC Racing, or even ST line from KW, as I had great experience with KW, I liked my Ground Control as well, but it just wasn't for me.

I understand good quality products costs a lot to make, I deal with that every single day, as its my job, but just because someone was charging $3000 for a coilover kit doesn't mean a $1000 kit would be crap, by that definition, the ST line from KW is crap too, not to mention SuperSprint's $3000 headers are crap with their stupid spring clamps that fail as well.

[mattmartindrift]

What you need to ask yourselves, for the majority of E39s (street cars) do you really think you can objectively tell the difference between a $900 and $2500 set of coilovers (Besides the dollar figures, of course)

absolutely. surely, there are some flukes out there which may give good rides in a few scenarios.

too many low-dollar coilovers are over-damped, over-sprung and the adjusters often are just arbitrary knobs with a metric f*ck-ton of cross talk.


/nerd

[CLKFAN]

Update: All is smooth with my set. I found my sweet spot on the shock adjustment. Now to see how long they will last but unfortunately I may end up selling the Touring and moving on to another project.

[anthony85]

Three more days till I am officially on BC coils. I feel like a kid waiting on christmas to come!!!!!

[SilberE39]

I want to chime in on this thread in regards to BC Coilovers for the E39. I actually went ahead and purcahsed them because of this thread. I had been considering coil overs for awhile for my E39 and I decided to pull the trigger and go with it. I am fortunate enough to have a local retailer by my work that was able to get me a set from Miami in 3 days.

Install was pretty easy, if you've done a suspension install before on another car you can problably figure out how to go about doing in on your E39.

What was interesting though is my front right coilover mechanically siezed. I do not blame BC for this though. What was strange about this situation is my front right corner could not be aligned (I adjusted the ride height before taking it for an alignment) and when I got back to my house I could no longer adjust that corner. I'm not sure if the alignment tech damaged this somehow but it was an aggravating situation considering I had just bought this setup.

As of yesterday I finally was able to put everything back in the car. BC stepped up and sent me a new shock and lower sleeve (that's what was stuck) and I disassembled the rest of the coilover and swapped over the parts to the new shock. I threw it in last night after work and have the ride height almost to where I want it right now.

My initial impressions of the BC's is as follows:

I ran Bilstein sports and H&R lowering springs for 3 years (blew two Bilsteins during that time BTW) and while I do find the BC ride slightly harsher on bumpier roads it isn't uncomfortable. I find the BC's to actually have better composure over dips in the road than my old setup. The only area where the BC's are not as good as my old setup is at slower speeds where the ride is slightly bumpy and might I say: clumsy.

However, I've only put about 100 miles on these as of now so I am still in the process of dialing in the suspensions ride height and damping settings. I will have videos of the install and pictures up soon.

[anthony85]

I have just over a 1000 miles on mine so far and I have to agree somewhat about ride quality. But all I did with mine is keep playing with the dampening settings.... I have tweaked with them so much that I can't for the life remember how many clicks I have moved them... Lol. But I have them perfect right where I want them along with the right ride height....

[SilberE39]

Car looks dope BTW. Nice color choice too lol. Only difference I'm seeing between out cars is you have black impact strips and no M5 mirrors...and different wheels lol.

[CLKFAN]

I want to chime in on this thread in regards to BC Coilovers for the E39. I actually went ahead and purcahsed them because of this thread. I had been considering coil overs for awhile for my E39 and I decided to pull the trigger and go with it. I am fortunate enough to have a local retailer by my work that was able to get me a set from Miami in 3 days.

Install was pretty easy, if you've done a suspension install before on another car you can problably figure out how to go about doing in on your E39.

What was interesting though is my front right coilover mechanically siezed. I do not blame BC for this though. What was strange about this situation is my front right corner could not be aligned (I adjusted the ride height before taking it for an alignment) and when I got back to my house I could no longer adjust that corner. I'm not sure if the alignment tech damaged this somehow but it was an aggravating situation considering I had just bought this setup.

As of yesterday I finally was able to put everything back in the car. BC stepped up and sent me a new shock and lower sleeve (that's what was stuck) and I disassembled the rest of the coilover and swapped over the parts to the new shock. I threw it in last night after work and have the ride height almost to where I want it right now.

My initial impressions of the BC's is as follows:

I ran Bilstein sports and H&R lowering springs for 3 years (blew two Bilsteins during that time BTW) and while I do find the BC ride slightly harsher on bumpier roads it isn't uncomfortable. I find the BC's to actually have better composure over dips in the road than my old setup. The only area where the BC's are not as good as my old setup is at slower speeds where the ride is slightly bumpy and might I say: clumsy.

However, I've only put about 100 miles on these as of now so I am still in the process of dialing in the suspensions ride height and damping settings. I will have videos of the install and pictures up soon.

I think the bumpiness you're talking about is the pillow ball mount feel when you are rolling over imperfections on the road at low speeds.

I feel I should have gone with the higher spring rates rather than the 6k

[VacMan]

What spring rates did you go with? I'm at 13 from full soft front and 15 rear with 8k/6k springs and they aren't clumsy at all. However, when I had it set too soft I definitely felt that wobbly, underdamped feeling. Play with them and report back.

[SilberE39]

I think the bumpiness you're talking about is the pillow ball mount feel when you are rolling over imperfections on the road at low speeds.

I feel I should have gone with the higher spring rates rather than the 6k

That's a good point. I never thought of that. This is the first time I've ever had pillowball mounts on any car I've owned. I feel like I'm relearning the car to an extent.

[anthony85]

[QUOTE=SilberE39;24132839]Car looks dope BTW. Nice color choice too lol. Only difference I'm seeing between out cars is you have black impact strips and no M5 mirrors...and different wheels lol.[/QUOTE

THanks man... But yeah I would love to have those mirrors though

[SilberE39]

What spring rates did you go with? I'm at 13 from full soft front and 15 rear with 8k/6k springs and they aren't clumsy at all. However, when I had it set too soft I definitely felt that wobbly, underdamped feeling. Play with them and report back.

I'm running standard spring rates, so 6K/6K. I was thinking about 8K on the front but I wasn't sure if it was worth it or not with a 6 cylinder out front. If I had a V8 I probably would have gone that route. I started with everything set at 15 and I cranked it up in the front a little bit to see if I could feel a difference. I'll likely run it firmer in the rear and softer up front anyway.

And IDK if I would say it feels super cumsy, I definitely feel more than I used to with the sport struts and lowering springs. Obviously, this is a much different setup and I have to adjust to it. The only way to do that is to drive...alot.

[anthony85]

What spring rates did you go with? I'm at 13 from full soft front and 15 rear with 8k/6k springs and they aren't clumsy at all. However, when I had it set too soft I definitely felt that wobbly, underdamped feeling. Play with them and report back.

Vacman I went with the same spring rates as you did..... Even though I have played with them as much as i did to where I dont remember t he clicks I should be around 12 front and around 13 rear...

[CLKFAN]

That's a good point. I never thought of that. This is the first time I've ever had pillowball mounts on any car I've owned. I feel like I'm relearning the car to an extent.

Also, if you want you can use your stock rubber tops. My mechanic told me I could do that if it bothered me to much but what I've done is adjust my tire psi at 35psi and it's better now. I'm also at 15 clicks from soft. When you up the shock settings is when you feel it more. My car is for daily driving so I don't need to set my shocks up unless I know I want to do it for a reason or just for fun. I think I'm dialed in now.

[SilberE39]

Car looks dope BTW. Nice color choice too lol. Only difference I'm seeing between out cars is you have black impact strips and no M5 mirrors...and different wheels lol.

THanks man... But yeah I would love to have those mirrors though

I would love to have my impact strips black again...that's up next after I replace my front bumper with a fresh one.

Also, if you want you can use your stock rubber tops. My mechanic told me I could do that if it bothered me to much but what I've done is adjust my tire psi at 35psi and it's better now. I'm also at 15 clicks from soft. When you up the shock settings is when you feel it more. My car is for daily driving so I don't need to set my shocks up unless I know I want to do it for a reason or just for fun. I think I'm dialed in now.

Another thing happening right now to is I used to have 18" wheels with 40/35 series profile tires (decent sidewall). Now I have 19x9.5's and 19x11's on my car and I run a 245/35-19 front and 275/30-19 out back. I have the rears inflated to 40PSI because the tire is stretched. I've removed all ride quality possibilities with this setup. It looks good though lol.

I'm pretty happy with the ride quality overall. It's just different from what I've become used to. I work in downtown Hartford right now and that is where I was getting killed this morning. Manhole covers, expansion joints, potholes, dips and rises in the road...there's only so much crap I can realistically avoid lol.

[anthony85]

Silbere39 did you cut or roll your rears to fit the 275's? Because I have 265's on my rears and im trying my best not to cut the rear fenders. I slighty rub over hard dips in the road...

[CLKFAN]

Silbere39 did you cut or roll your rears to fit the 275's? Because I have 265's on my rears and im trying my best not to cut the rear fenders. I slighty rub over hard dips in the road...

I have a touring which has less room to work with and I have 285/30/20. My fenders are rolled a bit but I ended up pushing the very rear end portion of the fender where it meets the bumper for clearance. I'm trying to figure out why you guys can't fit 275's?

Pushing your fenders out a bit will do the trick with a hydraulic press from the inside.

[anthony85]

offset most likely... Eventhough my wheels are only 19x9.5 widths they are a +20 offset on the rear wheels... I had 275"s for a week and then went back and bought 265's just because of the rubbing was getting to me.

[Narvin]

offset most likely... Eventhough my wheels are only 19x9.5 widths they are a +20 offset on the rear wheels... I had 275"s for a week and then went back and bought 265's just because of the rubbing was getting to me.

holy jesus 265 on a 9.5????? all i can say is DAYUM

[Giancarlo976]

You're so wrong it hurts my head. I hate the internet. Your argument carries no engineering points and is as relevant to me saying chocolate chip cookies cure cancer.

Oh my god. Why can't I go through one thread without seeing you post "Back it up with numbers on paper!". Please just give it a rest already. You cant even back up your claims with data on paper either. You are a massive hypocrite. Do YOU have an engineering degree? Even so, having that degree doesn't make you a master of the world my friend. Realize this - Half the people on this forum think they are engineers when in fact they majored or work in something unrelated to mechanics or how things work. I have only seen about 3 real engineers on here and even they are not sure about a lot of things. The other half are giving their honest opinion through experience. On this scale, those numbers you request have no meaning. If you want to do hardcore practical math and data analysis, apply at Formula 1 or NASA, where it REALLY counts. This really isn't rocket science, guy.