FK coilover review

[speedf50]

I recently installed a set of FK Konigsport coilovers on my E36 M3 and thought I'd post a short review of them so far.

Installation was easy, no instructions to speak of, but none were really needed.

All the parts looked great, the welds, metals, and galvanized coating seemed top notch. Plus they came with a corrosion resistant spray to for the threads and shock body, which I thought was a nice touch, plus new shortened sway bar endlinks aided with clearance in the front.

I installed the coilovers along with Rouge RSMs, ECS 5mm spacers (you NEED these to clear stock wheels, I would recommend hubcentric 12.5mm), and swapped the front tophats for added negative camber.

Initial impressions are great. I took the car for a shakedown drive the night I finished the instal and the car's responsiveness and newfound feeling of control was amazing. I am comparing these to very old stock shocks and springs, but have used different coilover setups on quite a few different cars to give me some frame of reference.

The front end feels perfect, soaking up uneven surfaces and transferring weight smoothly at turn in. The added camber definitely aids the turn in and front end grip, but I am very happy with the damping settings and spring rate. As for the rear, it is much better than before and feels very smooth over rough surfaces, but I am not a fan of the progressive rear spring rates that come standard with the FK, and am already looking into swapping in TCK 500 in/lb rear springs to even out the feeling of the car. I also emailed FK Germany directly to try and confirm that the front spring is 450 in/lbs. There is nothing horribly wrong with the rear spring from FK, I am just not a fan of progressive springs even on a road car, as I feel they offer limited travel once the center coils bind (which they almost do with just the load of the car on them). Apart from the rear spring, this setup feels great on twisty mountain roads, soft enough to stay planted over transitions, but stiff enough to greatly reduce body roll, and inspire confidence entering a turn. I look forward to testing this setup on the track later this year.

On the street the Konigsports ride very well. As with any lowered car I slow down for train tracks, bumps, and potholes, but the car is far from unbearable when I do hit uneven pavement and the odd pothole. The ride is much better than the previous old stock setup, especially when soaking up large bumps where the stock suspension just bottomed out with a jarring smash. On the freeway it is much of the same, the new suspension is compliant and keeps the car from bouncing over transitions. The car feels much more agile at high speed as my inputs are received faster by the suspension now.

As I mentioned, you need at least a 5mm spacer even to clear stock wheels up front. I would recommend getting a 12.5mm hubcentric spacer that clears the stock brake hub and has a new centering hub built in to reduce vibration. My 5mm spacer has been causing a 60mph vibration because it cuts down the hub size to about 6mm, which seems to be too short to get my wheel on perfectly true (I've tried re-torquing, cleaning surfaces, nothing seems to work). This is only a slight clearance issue which could be helped by removing the helper springs on the front shock, but for now I'm just waiting for my new 12.5mm hubcentric spacer to arrive.

I'm running a pretty conservative ride height close to 13"F, 12.25"R - hub center to fender, the collars are close to the top of their adjustment. If you wanted moar low you could get it, but would probably sacrifice ride and bump travel.



Spark notes: The car rides very well, the Koni shocks do a great job on the street, and make the car extremely enjoyable in the twisties. Very good street setup, progressive rear springs are dumb, track test coming soon.

[propcar]

glad to hear you like em, do you know what rear springs you'll be able to accommodate on the ride height adjusters? if you ever swap the fronts out, it seems like 525# or thereabouts may be a good rate to start with if you're planning on track/autocross. Rears at least 550?

[speedf50]

I'm taking a little bit of a gamble and ordered the TCK 6.5" normal length rear springs as I thought the "shorty" 5.5" springs won't give me the ride height I want, they're all 60mm ID so they should fit. Assuming the fronts are 450 in/lbs stock I'm going to try out 450F 500R to start, and will stiffen up the front springs if I feel it is needed. Again, this is primarily a street car, so I'll try these rates until I feel the need to go stiffer, or I have tires that need the extra spring rate. I feel this setup would also benefit from a larger front sway bar.

I'm also playing with the idea of removing weight from the car... which would let the 450/500 setup work a little better.

*update, I heard back from FK, the front springs are 80 N/mm, or 457 lb/in! Great news, my new 500 in/lb rear springs should give the car a good balance for the street.

[propcar]

I'd consider 550, you often see a 100# spring rate or more towards the rear because of the motion ratio... look at the factory springs. 550 isn't really that much stiffer.

[AlpineM3e92]

Are these the fk with or without dampening adjustments?

[speedf50]

These are the FK Konigsport which are rebound adjustable and use koni shock inserts. The "Highsport" are the non adjustable version which I believe uses an fk made shock.

And procar, I'll probably end up getting a stiffer set of springs front and rear in the future if I become serious about tracking the car. I just happened to find a really good deal on the 500 in/lb springs right when I was looking for linear rear springs.

Also, I ditched those stupid 5mm spacers and installed 12.5mm ones instead, thanks to the second hubcentric ring all of my irritating vibrations are gone!

[FISEVEN]

Nice example of an E36 M and great review. And remember the E36 GTR can weigh 2350lbs and weight reduction keeping it 50/50 is a great step forward in performance.

[speedf50]

Woah! I did not know the GTR was that light, that gives me hope to get this 3100lb+ beast on a diet. If only I had more storage I could start ripping out the interior.

I want to remove the spare tire, jack, rear speakers, rear carpets, and other easy to remove items, but fear it will remove more weight from the rear than the front (fog lights, under hood insulation, washer fluid reservoir, ...??). Ideally I want to remove things I don't totally need, but retain streetability as it's my only car and I drive 200 miles from slo to LA regularly.

Another update, I swapped in the TCK 500 in/lb rear springs and wow! These are sooooo much better than the stupid progressive ones FK gives you. The car no longer feels soft then stiff, and the rear doesn't squat down nearly as much from the weight of the car over small bumps. On the local canyon roads the car feels even better, with a more stable, predictable, and planted rear end. With the 450/500 setup the car feels soft enough on the street, but stiff enough to rarely bottom out or run out of travel. I am very satisfied with the performance of this setup for what it cost, and can't wait to see how it performs on the track!

[ECSTuning]

Glad you're liking the set up still! Can't wait to hear your track review.

These are the FK Konigsport which are rebound adjustable and use koni shock inserts. The "Highsport" are the non adjustable version which I believe uses an fk made shock

This is correct.

[zipaquira]

These are the FK Konigsport which are rebound adjustable and use koni shock inserts. The "Highsport" are the non adjustable version which I believe uses an fk made shock.

And procar, I'll probably end up getting a stiffer set of springs front and rear in the future if I become serious about tracking the car. I just happened to find a really good deal on the 500 in/lb springs right when I was looking for linear rear springs.

Also, I ditched those stupid 5mm spacers and installed 12.5mm ones instead, thanks to the second hubcentric ring all of my irritating vibrations are gone!

Which12.5mm hubcentric spacers did you end up going with?

[BMWM3325]

Those FK's look good but i dont think there worth the money imo. I have recently purchased a 97 M3 that had the exact set up on it. After a year, the seals on the coilovers started leaking and shortly after this, the dampening feature was completely lost. Tried contacting the company and they said their employees were on strike so no replacements could be purchased at this time??? Wtf is this Mickey Mouse bullshit!! I hope things work out better for you. Im honeslty going with a set of racelands until i can go back to the PSS9 system.

[M3X]

Hi
Since I saw your nice write up I thought you or someone on this post might be able to help me out

I also have the FK Coil overs
One of my friends recommended it about 6-7 years ago, and I got them
Been very happy with them

Recently took my car to a mechanic and he recommended that replace the Rear shocks.
I called ECS tuning, I was told they don't offer it anymore (fk).

Also, I'm not sure if fk at the time offered a different version or, is the same one that you have on your right up. Basically I'm not sure what I have no the car...I have attached some pictures... if anyone could help with some recommendations and where I can buy the replacement shocks I would greatly appreciate it thank you!IMAG0355-20160328-10154524.jpgIMAG0355-20160328-10154524.jpgIMAG0354-20160328-101547149.jpgIMAG0356-20160328-101543251.jpg

[ECSTuning]

M3X, those look like FK Koni based systems. Koni Sports work well in the rear as replacements for those.

-James

[M3X]

I need a Set of adjustable front end links for the coilover. Which brands do you guys recommend. I am shooting for Best quality and longevity of the parts.

[M3X]

Hey there,

I was wondering if you still have your car and
Do you remember where you bought the set from? I need a set of adjustable front sway bar end links. Could you help recommend a place ?
And also did you use spacers? I just replaced the stock wheels with BBSs and inner portion of the tires are rubbing!


Shop i took my car to, was Not worthy. He never checked my car even went back twice for similar issues! That's another story

[ZEKTI]

Hey there,

I was wondering if you still have your car and
Do you remember where you bought the set from? I need a set of adjustable front sway bar end links. Could you help recommend a place ?
And also did you use spacers? I just replaced the stock wheels with BBSs and inner portion of the tires are rubbing!


Shop i took my car to, was Not worthy. He never checked my car even went back twice for similar issues! That's another story

I know this is a late bump, however FK still sells the links separately. https://www.fk-shop.de/en/Suspension...earchparam=e36

If the link is dead here are their specs.

Item No.: FKKSS01-03

• for BMW 3 series E36
• From ball head center to ball head center 158mm
• Thread M10
• Angle 180 °
• Coupling rod set consisting of 2 pieces