Vogtland Springs from JDM for $199

[Graham E39 528i]

Just did the rear springs yesterday. Sadly, I'm not so sure Vogtlands actually do much to lower the rear of a sport suspension E39 I6. I'll put pictures up of the ride height difference, but from my unscientific finger measurements I would say there is no diff after the install. Granted, I haven't driven it at all, but I'm not expecting much. here's a spring comparison:



Seems like they're the same height?!?

They are indeed about the same length (uncompressed). The spring rate of a steel coil spring is dependent on 3 variables:

1. Coil diameter (here they are both the same)
2. Number of active turns (ditto)
3. Wire diameter (?)

The paint on the Vogtland spring is very thick. It is possible the wire diameter is slightly smaller than the 'Sport' spring. This is a very sensitive parameter (goes as the 4th power of the wire diameter in the equation). If this is correct, then the Vogtland spring is softer and compresses more, thus giving the drop.

The Vogtland drop is supposed to be 1.2" for a non-Sport i6. Since a 'Sport' is 0.5" lower than a non-Sport, you are therefore expecting a drop at the rear of 0.7". First of all, in my case, the rear dropped a little over quarter of an inch over about a month following the install. That still means you are missing about 0.4" of drop. Question: are your bushings pre-loaded? Did you slacken all the nuts on the bolts that are associated with rubber bushes? Something to check.

Has your rear camber changed (for whatever reason). Believe it or not, changing camber will rotate the plane of the rear wheel and alter the wheel to fender gap. 10 minutes doing some high school trig. on the back of an envelope will convince you of this. The effect is such that less negative camber will increase the gap.

[gnilson]

Just did the rear springs yesterday. Sadly, I'm not so sure Vogtlands actually do much to lower the rear of a sport suspension E39 I6. I'll put pictures up of the ride height difference, but from my unscientific finger measurements I would say there is no diff after the install. Granted, I haven't driven it at all, but I'm not expecting much. here's a spring comparison:



Seems like they're the same height?!?

That said, the rear install actually not that bad if you take your time. I used the Beisan Guide and in that guide it recommends using a 9 1/2" piece of 2x4 wood to hold the lower control arm down so that when you remove the strut, the orientation remains the same. This makes it easier to put the strut with the new spring back in.

Before



Well, that didn't work for me. The wood slipped and caused the control arm to move, which made it impossible to put the bolt back through the lower part of the strut, so I used this



That's the scissor jack and it works great. Plus you have tons of control in setting the control arm to the height you need to put the strut back in and it doesn't get in the way of the strut either.

Otherwise, I followed the Beisan guide to a T.

LOVE IT!!! That's Yankee ingenuity at its best. I am definitely going to go with it because of the adjustability, if nothing else. Thanks for posting the pictures.

Geoff

[WHITE E39]

Thanks to Graham E39 528i for the new sig.

aa240sx
I think as soon as you drive the car and get an alignment you will see that the car will be lower. Don't forget to fill your gas tank up, it does make a diff.

[aa240sx]

Question: are your bushings pre-loaded? Did you slacken all the nuts on the bolts that are associated with rubber bushes? Something to check.

Has your rear camber changed (for whatever reason). Believe it or not, changing camber will rotate the plane of the rear wheel and alter the wheel to fender gap. 10 minutes doing some high school trig. on the back of an envelope will convince you of this. The effect is such that less negative camber will increase the gap.

Took me a second re: bushings pre-loaded? No, they aren't. I never touched any of the bushings when I removed the strut. The Beisan procedure for the rear doesn't call for it, so I didn't need to touch them.

As for the camber, I'll need to check that. Thanks for letting me know about what the sport drop is from stock. I was trying to figure out just how much drop these Vogtlands will ultimately result in. I think I'll just drive it around for a couple weeks as others have suggested and let it settle.

Oh and I did the work with the gas tank full again as the Beisan procedures call for.

[WHITE E39]

now we need some side pics

[Graham E39 528i]

now we need some side pics

Mornin' Freddie!

Yeah, let's see some pics.

As for the camber, I'll need to check that. Thanks for letting me know about what the sport drop is from stock. I was trying to figure out just how much drop these Vogtlands will ultimately result in. I think I'll just drive it around for a couple weeks as others have suggested and let it settle.

You can measure the camber with a digital clinometer:

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum....php?t=1373419

Another question: Did you trim your bumpstops?

G.

[aa240sx]

Mornin' Freddie!



Another question: Did you trim your bumpstops?

G.

Nope - never touched the bumpstops either in the front or rear. Would that really affect the height though? I assume with springs that are 'at rest' there's still some room before the suspension has bottomed on the bump stop right?

Pics soon, I promise!

[Graham E39 528i]

Nope - never touched the bumpstops either in the front or rear. Would that really affect the height though? I assume with springs that are 'at rest' there's still some room before the suspension has bottomed on the bump stop right?

The Beisan procedures are primarily written for the replacement of worn shocks. You will need to go back in there and shorten the bumpstops by an amount indicated by the advertised Vogtland drop relative to your old ride height.

Question: Have you driven on this new suspension yet?

[NNY528I]

The Beisan procedures are primarily written for the replacement of worn shocks. You will need to go back in there and shorten the bumpstops by an amount indicated by the advertised Vogtland drop relative to your old ride height.

Question: Have you driven on this new suspension yet?

has never been a problem for me, didnt cut any bump stops.

[Graham E39 528i]

has never been a problem for me, didnt cut any bump stops.

Have YOU driven on your suspension yet?

[aa240sx]

The Beisan procedures are primarily written for the replacement of worn shocks. You will need to go back in there and shorten the bumpstops by an amount indicated by the advertised Vogtland drop relative to your old ride height.

Question: Have you driven on this new suspension yet?

Not being a suspension expert, why do I need to cut the bumpstops by the same amount as the height difference provided by Vogtland springs vs stock and/or sport? I've driven my car around quite a bit this weekend and not once did I encounter any jarring effects commonly associated with bottoming out on bump stops.

has never been a problem for me, didnt cut any bump stops.

Considering that you are currently at 4000 posts (congrats btw), I would assume you have some experience on the matter. I really would like to know if cutting bump stops are necessary.

[Graham E39 528i]

Not being a suspension expert, why do I need to cut the bumpstops by the same amount as the height difference provided by Vogtland springs vs stock and/or sport? I've driven my car around quite a bit this weekend and not once did I encounter any jarring effects commonly associated with bottoming out on bump stops.

Well, the world will not come to an end. When you compress your new springs, the likelihood of riding on the bump stops will increase greatly. However, an ounce of experiment is worth a ton of theory, so if you like your new suspension then don't worry.

Do you still have no drop at the rear?

[Mark@EAC]

if you actually want to lower your sport package e39 go with the B&G springs.

[aa240sx]

Well, the world will not come to an end. When you compress your new springs, the likelihood of riding on the bump stops will increase greatly. However, an ounce of experiment is worth a ton of theory, so if you like your new suspension then don't worry.

Do you still have no drop at the rear?

Success! Actually it has dropped. Did some spirited driving this weekend and I can scientifically state that the drop in suspension height from sport is for the rear about 1/2" and for the front a little over 1/2" or roughly less than a 1 finger gap all around. It's a little less of a drop on the left hand side which I think has something to do with the battery. I expect there will be further settling over the next 30 days, but doubt I'll see more drop at this point. I think what should be realized here in my specific case is that the previous springs had 107K miles on them before being replaced so they probably were pretty settled in if not past it, so I guess I just needed to be a little more patient. Very satisfied with the ride and the drop but will likely hit up EAC or someone else for some coilovers down the road, maybe Megans, D2, Nexx, etc.

[Graham E39 528i]

Success! Actually it has dropped. Did some spirited driving this weekend and I can scientifically state that the drop in suspension height from sport is for the rear about 1/2" and for the front a little over 1/2" or roughly less than a 1 finger gap all around. It's a little less on the left hand side which I think has something to do with the battery. I expect there will be further settling over the next 30 days, but doubt I'll see more drop at this point. Very satisfied with the ride and the drop but will likely hit up EAC or someone else for some coilovers down the road, maybe Megans, D2, Nexx, etc.

Excellent! Well done! It might come down a bit more too. Pics?

The bump stop issue might rear its ugly head when you ride with five adults and a full trunk etc.......

[indy525]

quick question...is it necessary to replace my bump stops or just trim my existing ones? Seems kinda pointless to spend $40 on something that doesn't need it.

[WHITE E39]

i cut the stops because i always have 4 people in the car and didn't want any proplems with not having enough travel for the strut/shock.

1 finger gap all around is great. to have a some-what of even drop with out a big rake with a nice ride is what Vogtland springs gives you.

this is what it should look like:

non-sport - 4 finger gap

sport - +2 finger gap

Vogtland - 1 finger gap

for those looking for a lower drop then i agree with Mark, call him about the B&G's springs.

[indy525]

did you buy new bumpstops? Your car has about the same miles as mine.

[Graham E39 528i]

quick question...is it necessary to replace my bump stops or just trim my existing ones? Seems kinda pointless to spend $40 on something that doesn't need it.

Trimming the old bump stops is fine. Reduce the length by the amount the lowering springs are lowering that end of the car. So, if the spring will lower the front by 1/2", take 1/2" off the front bump stop. I found that a serrated bread knife cuts the bump stops admirably.

[WHITE E39]

i didn't need new bumpstops, everything was good.

[rocae38]

i dropped with Vogtland springs (last week) on my 528i and the front looks great but the rear looks like it needs to settle. this is the second time i used vogtland spring (e39 & e38)

[WHITE E39]

rocae38

we want to see some pics

[gnilson]

i didn't need new bumpstops, everything was good.

OK, based on the general consesus and the fact that I can always go back and cut them, I will leave the bumpstops alone. Makes life just that much easier.

[gnilson]

I spent the last 2 days/afternoons installing the springs and struts. In some ways it was easier and some ways harder. Here are a couple of points:

-ALWAYS get all the spring pads BEFORE you start, don't ask me why.

-Follow the afore mentioned steps to the letter for doing the rears as there are no shortcuts. That being said, it was not that difficult and I used the jack with great success.

-Remember to disconnect the sway bar link in the front FIRST!! After that, loosen the clamping bolt, then undo the top and drop her down.

I went with the Monroe struts as I really did not want a harsh ride and WOW! I'm super impressed and very pleased with the results. In fact, the car is quieter an more rattle free than my 300c was 3months after I bought it. I am very impressed with the build qualitiy on this particular car. My '95 E34 was no where near as nice. Only 1 year difference in age and MANY more miles on the E39, but what a difference.

[WHITE E39]

I don't see any pics