How do I tell if my shocks are shot......I can easily push the front of my car down with my hands.
Also can anyone recommend a stock set up for my 95??
My local guy is recomending bilsteins..
Thanks guys.
your springs are fine, which on my 95 M3 @ 78K are at about 80%. go with Ground Control rear shock mounts
Shocks and struts are likely dead.
Mine need replacing (rr's done) and I can hardly get the front end to move downward.
I don't bottom out even at 90K, but they need replacing
once i get my strut reinforcement plates from MRob (MPact M/s).
The springs are probably doing all the work at this point in your case.
Walk a mile in my shoes and you are a mile away in someone else's shoes.
Goodridge*UUC sways* Black TME's and mounts( switched from Red)* x-brace*brembo rotors*Zimmerman rear*Pagid*Riken Raptors* Roja Formula 7's (Bronze)* Stromung*Powdercoated AA DSB* OMP strut bar*GC RSM's* M3 alum/leather knob*JTD underpanel *Traffic PRO (sold) *Black hella Ellipsoids w/celis rings * ACS Pedals*ACS handbrake*RE Octane SSK*Wheelskins Eurotones S/ Wheel Cover( tossed-replaced with new one)* Totally Covers Front seat velour covers with custom styling *Rieger roof spoiler-lost it on fwy Stock A/B*URI CP (ditched years ago)*540 HFM (sold) Stock HFM (BeckArnley)*FMS 24 lb inj*Alum rad and some other stuff*Konis w/adj rr's*Vogtland springs ** Passport 8500(sold)*Passpprt 7500 (sold V1-1.8 with POP) No detectors at all.
Coming...nada
BMWCCA-303681
I did spring and struts after hearing mine were "dead" at 69,000 miles.
Now the car is tighter and has less roll, but the difference is very subjective in my opinion. Yes it is a clear difference, but it is more of an apples and apples difference, vs. and apples and oranges difference, if that makes any sense.
The challenge is you don't know if your suspension is truly worn out. For someone here to say it is shot for sure is nothing more than speculation.
Here's an idea: You can very easily remove your rear shocks and check them out. It's a good time to beef up the RSMs with some Z3 plates for $30. Maybe put in some E46 M3 RSMs.
I should have checked mine first, because they were not dead.
That said, I will be keeping the car for 150,000 miles plus, and I am set for a long time from now. (Freaking H&R spring issues aside.) The shocks would have likely not lasted much longer, based on wht people here say. But to simply assume yours are shot just because somebody says they are without examining them is not a safe bet.
best,
JO
Johno
-- 2003 e46 M3
-- 2018 e90 M5
-- Warm memories of 99 M3 w/ Eurosport Twin Screw, 2007 335i, 1970 Cutlass, 1989 328is, 1990 328i, 2012 S4, 2018 S4
Just because the rr's are gone doesn't mean the struts are and vice versa.
My rr's were in bad shape. Hardly any resistance at all when i took them off and pushed on them.
Although impulse dependent, they didn't firm up appreciably regardless of how fast i applied the force.
The new konis made all the difference in the world at full soft which is where they are set for the time being.
Walk a mile in my shoes and you are a mile away in someone else's shoes.
Goodridge*UUC sways* Black TME's and mounts( switched from Red)* x-brace*brembo rotors*Zimmerman rear*Pagid*Riken Raptors* Roja Formula 7's (Bronze)* Stromung*Powdercoated AA DSB* OMP strut bar*GC RSM's* M3 alum/leather knob*JTD underpanel *Traffic PRO (sold) *Black hella Ellipsoids w/celis rings * ACS Pedals*ACS handbrake*RE Octane SSK*Wheelskins Eurotones S/ Wheel Cover( tossed-replaced with new one)* Totally Covers Front seat velour covers with custom styling *Rieger roof spoiler-lost it on fwy Stock A/B*URI CP (ditched years ago)*540 HFM (sold) Stock HFM (BeckArnley)*FMS 24 lb inj*Alum rad and some other stuff*Konis w/adj rr's*Vogtland springs ** Passport 8500(sold)*Passpprt 7500 (sold V1-1.8 with POP) No detectors at all.
Coming...nada
BMWCCA-303681
go with H&R coilovers, after putting those in i cant even get my car to push down or have any kind of body roll, but yeah if you can to yours its definitely time for new suspension.. another good way to find out is a brake test, when u going slow and u slam your brake, if your car feels like its about to flip forward and then rocks back and forth for half an hour then yeah, u need shocks... and of course since u replacing that go with the billet alluminum shock mounts..
Just because you can push the bumper down doesn't mean they are blown. Observe if it bounces after pushing it down. The m3 chassis is pretty good at hiding blown shocks struts. At 70k mine were completely shot, but the ride wasn't all that bad. It seemed pretty rough over large bumps since the shocks were doing any dampening, but overall it still handled well. To test out the rear shocks just unbolt the bottom bolt and seeing how easily they compress by hand. There was absolutely no pressure in mine. I could compress them with one finger and they would decompress if I just left them hanging there.
1995 M3: Custom turbo Click here for writeup
MLS headgasket, ARP studs, Vanos timing write up: Click here
What exactly does the z3 reinforcment plate look like? are these something i can make myself?
1/4 mile in 13.1 @ 106++ (calculators put this at 0-60 in "4.21" seconds.)
You can just buy a rear strut bar, well most of the rear shock mounts have reinforcement plates on them
Check out my all Organic clothing line: www.BonsaiApparel.com
It's shaped like the shock mount. It's brass-colored, and about 1/4 inch thick. Oval. Big hole in the middle. Two holes on each end of the oval that the shock mount bolts insert rhrough.What exactly does the z3 reinforcment plate look like
It is shaped a lot like a thermostat gasket for an old car -- such as a GM 350 engine. But thicker.
I just put a set on my car, and it was easy. It looks like the mounting point will be much more secure now, because there is a 1/4 inch plate to absorb force, vs. body sheet metal with holes in it. Making them yourself would not be time efficient unless you have access to machine tools.
They cost $30 a set at the dealer, and it would be wise to call ahead to see if they are in stock.
Johno
-- 2003 e46 M3
-- 2018 e90 M5
-- Warm memories of 99 M3 w/ Eurosport Twin Screw, 2007 335i, 1970 Cutlass, 1989 328is, 1990 328i, 2012 S4, 2018 S4
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