Suspension options for lowering the E39 Touring

[gonzilla]

My car doesn't have SLS.

So you already removed it?

[RVAE34]

It never had SLS

[gonzilla]

It never had SLS

I realized that, hence the winky face. I gotta remember to use that sarcasm font next time!

[jp5Touring]

i know, i know... they sent me the wrong set so im waiting for the correct set to show up. I will install them as soon as I get them, go drive hard and take some photos of the stance with the 18 breytons and the 19 Mpars. Sorry all for the wait.

Flycaper Have they sent you the correct rear shocks yet ?? If so Installed ?

Very curious on how they ride,handle..

I was thinking Koni,s and H & R front springs. But thats like $950. Not much more im into Coilovers... ST or maybe the Fortunes or ????

Need Opinions Please

[Flycaper]

Flycaper Have they sent you the correct rear shocks yet ?? If so Installed ?

Very curious on how they ride,handle..

I was thinking Koni,s and H & R front springs. But thats like $950. Not much more im into Coilovers... ST or maybe the Fortunes or ????

Need Opinions Please

Hey guys, KW called me today. They said I should have the correct set of ST coilovers tomorrow. I will install them with the 19mpars hopefully by the end of the week. From what I have read I will need to roll the fenders as I am running 275 in the back so for now I will go down just slightly. I will post pictures as soon as possible.

[geargrinder]

Hey guys, KW called me today. They said I should have the correct set of ST coilovers tomorrow. I will install them with the 19mpars hopefully by the end of the week. From what I have read I will need to roll the fenders as I am running 275 in the back so for now I will go down just slightly. I will post pictures as soon as possible.

I'm about to order STs for the touring so will be letting my shop know about yer glitch and be sure they get the right thing fo sho. Hopefully no hassles...

[RVAE34]

Update My shocks won't be done until next week. Motor comes out this weekend so I won't be able to report back on them until my car is driving again which might not be until April/May.

[jp5Touring]

RVAE34 Can you give a little more info on your front Coilovers ?? Are they the 500 series ?? Did You go with the Swift springs or Rollerbearing option ? How,s the ride say compared to stock set up ? Comfort/Performance

thx jp

[gonzilla]

At this point, I've found the following options for coilovers for my 540 w/SLS. I'm only looking for full matched sets, so no BC fronts with stock rears or anything like that.

Height adjustable only:
- KW V1 (~$1799) - INOX stainless steel, 1.4-2.5"F/1.2-2.3"R of height adjustability, limited lifetime warranty
- ST (~$979) - galvanized steel, 1.4-2.6"F/1.2-2.4"R of height adjustment, 5 yr limited warranty
- FK Silverline (~$899) - stainless steel, 1.4-2.3" of height adjustability, 2 yr limited warranty

Height adjustable and adjustable dampening:
- KW V2 (~$2199) - INOX stainless steel, 1.4-2.5"F/1.2-2.3"R of height adjustability, limited lifetime warranty
- KW Street Comfort (~$1999) - INOX stainless steel, 0.8-1.8"F/R of height adjustability, limited lifetime warranty
- FK Silverline X (~1099) - stainless steel, 1.4-2.3" of height adjustability, use adjustable Koni shocks, 2 yr limited warranty

Right now I've got ~110k miles on my car. I use it as a DD commuter/kid hauler. I know the subframe bushings are shot. It's rough and wallows and floats a bit at speed. I think the shocks are done in front too, so I figured I might as well do those along with the bushings. I'm not planning on slamming my car, I just want to tighten everything up, decrease roll and get my center of gravity a little closer to the ground. I've still got the 17" Style 32s that came on the car on there with PS2s and have no plans to change any time soon.

My only experience with coilovers is with the PSS-9s on my 993 and I've enjoyed tinkering with them. Their dampening adjustment knob is fairly easy to get to and can be turned without even taking the wheels off the car. I'd like to get something like this in my touring, but I'm not familiar with KW's or FK's adjustment knobs and would hate to get them only to realize they're not easily adjustable.

Right now, the KW Street Comforts seem to be a pretty good alternative. I won't have the slammed to the ground option, but I don't really want it. However, again I'm not sure how easy it is to adjust the dampening on these. If I have to take the shock out of the car, it's pointless. At that point, the STs seem like a good alternative. But the FK Silverline X looks interesting too. I know, you get what you pay for and all that. But they do have Koni shocks, so how bad can they really be? (yes, please answer that!)

Does anyone have any firsthand experience with any of these for our cars? Anyone in the Los Angeles area have any of these on a touring? Please let me know. There's a lunch/beer in it for you if you take me for a ride. Thanks in advance!

[RVAE34]

RVAE34 Can you give a little more info on your front Coilovers ?? Are they the 500 series ?? Did You go with the Swift springs or Rollerbearing option ? How,s the ride say compared to stock set up ? Comfort/Performance

thx jp

They are the 500's. Very happy so far but I really need those rear shocks for the full experience. Right now the front feels a whole lot better than the rear. I decided not to go with Swift's as I had been told those are more for racing. Considering it still. I also did not get the roller bearings as I didn't even know about them at first. Oddly enough, my fronts just started making the pinging noise so I have added a set to my rear shock order for next week

Really hard to compare to stock until I have the rear shocks. The fronts are very comfortable over all types of roads.

As far as what gonzilla mentioned, the Fortunes are really easy to adjust and are really nice quality. The front shocks are 32 way adjustable and I am not sure what the rears are yet. Fortune does all their building in house and use a shock dyno. They can re-build or re-valve depending on the need/use therefore you have a lot of flexibility with them. I don't know if the other manufacturers are the same.

[RVAE34]

My Fortune Auto 500 series rear shocks arrived today. They came setup as coilovers but I only need them as shocks. I might want to use the springs for the rear anyway as I am all the way down as is with the 200mm 8k springs. These are 170mm 8k's.

I love that the shock height is now fully adjustable without altering shock output in addition to my spring perch height. And the shocks themselves are 25 way adjustable. I can already tell a huge difference b/t full soft and full firm by rocking the car back and forth. I cannot wait to drive it now. I will be able to really dial in the suspension.

Sorry that the latter photos were taken with the cell. Will update with some better ones later.

[KnudsonsM3]

Right now, the KW Street Comforts seem to be a pretty good alternative. I won't have the slammed to the ground option, but I don't really want it. However, again I'm not sure how easy it is to adjust the dampening on these. If I have to take the shock out of the car, it's pointless. At that point, the STs seem like a good alternative. But the FK Silverline X looks interesting too. I know, you get what you pay for and all that. But they do have Koni shocks, so how bad can they really be? (yes, please answer that!)

Does anyone have any firsthand experience with any of these for our cars? Anyone in the Los Angeles area have any of these on a touring? Please let me know. There's a lunch/beer in it for you if you take me for a ride. Thanks in advance!

I have the KW comforts and they ROCK! Super smooth and can take corners at a good speed with ease and comfort. I can take a pic of the ride height if you want to see what she looks like with them on.

I have the rear set on one notch away from full soft and run the front at 9 clicks which is the middle.

If you have more specific questions, please ask.

[RVAE34]

I installed both rear Fortune 500 shocks and can already feel a huge difference just rocking/pushing on the car and/or sitting in the cargo area. Cannot wait to drive it again!!

[Bimmergal]

Anybody tried the Bavauto lowering springs and rear links? Priced at $200 but kinda skeptical.

[Laning92]

So I'm a college student, with little to no money. And I ordered NNR front coilovers on sale for $200 and ordered the adjustable sls links. And my car is low. Ride is good, nothing amazing but much better than stock. And I can go a whole hell of a lot lower. Probably more in the front, I've been thinking about slightly modifying the links so the rear can be lower. But I'm still tucking tire.

All in all what I'm trying to say is. If you are financially limited try this out. You won't be disappointed in your $275 purchase

[jp5Touring]

Anybody tried the Bavauto lowering springs and rear links? Priced at $200 but kinda skeptical.

My touring has the Bavauto setup. Its good wont say great though,, This was installed by previous owner. The rear links are rusting and looked pretty cheap,

The Car does fill planted and rides decent.. I have Bilsteins on the front and there shot so hard to really tell. No need for the rear links if you have air bags. There are better quality springs for not much more out there,,, H & R maybe ??

[Bimmergal]

Thanks for the feedback. yeah the right air spring has a whole so I was considering lowering it while I'm in there and since I'm replacing both air springs @$200 each wanted to be cheap on the drop.

[wheelgarage]

My touring has the Bavauto setup. Its good wont say great though

Can you post a pic of your ride? I want to see how that looks. I called Bav a few weeks ago, and told me that it will drop it 1" (have sports suspension)... I could not find any pics of an installed set up.

Thanks.

[e30polak]

I have the FK Silverline X on my touring and the car rides great! While the E39 doesn't feel as nimble as my E34 touring did in the streets, it feels very solid at speed especially on on ramps.

I highly recommend the FKs to anyone with SLS!

[CLKFAN]

Hey guys, KW called me today. They said I should have the correct set of ST coilovers tomorrow. I will install them with the 19mpars hopefully by the end of the week. From what I have read I will need to roll the fenders as I am running 275 in the back so for now I will go down just slightly. I will post pictures as soon as possible.

I'm interested in the outcome after the complete install. If your feedback is good I may end up getting a set since it's a full complete front and rear shock set. My BC's are good for the front but I'd like to try something new that's complete.

[RVAE34]

You should wait until I report back on the Fortune's as well. I think I am all in around $1300 as I ordered them as parts.

[jp5Touring]

I have the FK Silverline X on my touring and the car rides great! While the E39 doesn't feel as nimble as my E34 touring did in the streets, it feels very solid at speed especially on on ramps.

I highly recommend the FKs to anyone with SLS!

Are the FK's a set of two front or a complete set of all four ???

[CLKFAN]

Are the FK's a set of two front or a complete set of all four ???

From what I've read yes. But I heard that they are prone to early failure.

[bigMphan]

I'm a little troubled at how sexy those fortune shocks look. You're using them with Billy sports in the front?

[jp5Touring]

Can you post a pic of your ride? I want to see how that looks. I called Bav a few weeks ago, and told me that it will drop it 1" (have sports suspension)... I could not find any pics of an installed set up.

Thanks.

I dont have any full side shots. The car has a bit of a rack to it. More than I like .The rear is closer to stock height.. The front is lowered more than a inch I would think,never have measured it..I think there are better options out there..