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      04-17-2013, 05:47 PM   #1
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H&R sport springs installed

just had a set of H&R sport springs installed. WOW. This is the F25 BMW should of made in the first place. Now it really drives like a sedan and still has good ride quality. Steering even feels firmer as a result. Completely transforms the car!

Note: I do not work for H&R, this is real world experience.
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      04-17-2013, 06:00 PM   #2
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Sounds cool, congrats. According to the H&R website the springs lower the front and rear of the vehicle by 1.3" and 1.4". Do you like how that looks? Have any pics to post? Also, do you have DHP or M Sport or Sport package?
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      04-17-2013, 08:23 PM   #3
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Looks great. There are before/after pics on Turner Motorsports website (where I had the install done) of someone else's vehicle. I have the base package on my 28i, no M sport or DHP.
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      04-17-2013, 08:34 PM   #4
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Isn't DHP and/or M sport just stiffer dampers? No changes to the springs or sway bars? Looking at some M sport pics, I'd say the ride height looks the same and the H&R are clearly lower. I bet the stiffer dampers give a better highway ride, but the comfort is probably less too. Road in Massachusetts are horrible, so I don't want M3 like suspension or the super low profile tires that just get bent from potholes.

I probably would of got DHP, but my dealer didn't have any available for test drive and I got mine fairly early in the production sequence...just couldn't wait to replace my E83.
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      04-17-2013, 09:17 PM   #5
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DHP is adjustable dampers... I assume the adjustable dampers would work with the replacement springs??
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      04-17-2013, 09:21 PM   #6
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They should work with the springs, but it probably depends if there's any dependency of the position of the damper as it will have a new nominal position. I don't know enough about DHP to tell if they vary the damping overall, or also by the position of the damper.

For what it's worth, the service manager at Turner has a 35i with DHP, that's the one in the pics on their website.
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      04-17-2013, 09:38 PM   #7
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hmm, I'm interested but I need more info about compatibility with Dynamic Dampers.

Also would the alignment have to be done after the springs are installed?
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      04-17-2013, 09:41 PM   #8
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Yup, alignment is needed. I had it done right after the springs were installed. I'm pretty sure the alignment was out before the install anyway as my highway stability was very poor, not like the day I bought it. Both the front and rear toe on one wheel, not both sides was out of spec...much better now.
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      04-20-2013, 05:35 PM   #9
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So after a few days of real world driving, I'm going to withdraw my endorsement on these springs. While on glass smooth roads they are great, in the typical poorly maintained New England roads they are too stiff and give too much of a punishing ride. I'm not talking just potholes, "wavy" highway roads can develop a motion that starts to make you feel like you want to hurl. I'm going to put the original springs back on...FAIL!
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      04-20-2013, 10:08 PM   #10
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could be related to mismatched shock absorbers. I get the same sensation sometimes on my Audi.
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      04-21-2013, 05:54 AM   #11
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I hear ya, but H&R doesn't say requires changing the shocks. Bilsteins are available for the F25, but adding shocks with higher bump and rebound to stiff springs are not going to make the ride much smoother in all aspects. Agreed some of the motion will improve with more damping to better match the higher spring rates, just not the direction I want to take the ride quality. I put Bilsteins on my E36 328iS (sport package) years ago...also not approved for New England roads, and they were on the softest settings.

Another side effect I forgot to mention was when coming to a stop, instead of the slight brake dive that goes down then up, with the H&R's there's a forward backward forward backward forward oscillation, very annoying. I even tried messing with different tire pressures to help "tune" everything a little better and it made little difference.
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      04-21-2013, 09:46 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 2008_BMW_328xi View Post
I hear ya, but H&R doesn't say requires changing the shocks. Bilsteins are available for the F25, but adding shocks with higher bump and rebound to stiff springs are not going to make the ride much smoother in all aspects. Agreed some of the motion will improve with more damping to better match the higher spring rates, just not the direction I want to take the ride quality. I put Bilsteins on my E36 328iS (sport package) years ago...also not approved for New England roads, and they were on the softest settings.

Another side effect I forgot to mention was when coming to a stop, instead of the slight brake dive that goes down then up, with the H&R's there's a forward backward forward backward forward oscillation, very annoying. I even tried messing with different tire pressures to help "tune" everything a little better and it made little difference.
What does the dealer/garage say who installed the springs? Cannot imagine that the effects you describe are "normal". So, perhaps you better check or get a second opinion first before going back to the old set up?? PS: Changing tyre pressure is definitely not a solution in such situations.
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      04-21-2013, 12:34 PM   #13
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Shame they aren't what you expected but hats off to you for being honest about them. Our roads are pretty crap here and I'm not sure anything but a Rolls Royce would do lol!!

Last edited by Booty; 04-22-2013 at 12:38 AM..
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      04-21-2013, 03:16 PM   #14
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You should message the original poster to see if he is having problems with his H&R springs.....

http://x3.xbimmers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=780009
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      04-22-2013, 06:05 AM   #15
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We have bought a SUV. Who wants to lower the car??
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      04-22-2013, 05:22 PM   #16
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You bought a jacked up station wagon not a SUV.

If you wanted a SUV you should have bought something with a body on frame like a Toyota Land Cruiser or a Jeep Wrangler.

I appreciate the taller stance but would love slightly better corner ability.

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We have bought a SUV. Who wants to lower the car??
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      04-22-2013, 07:28 PM   #17
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He lives in El Paso, TX. I've been to Texas...they don't get frost heaves in El Paso, or snow where the plows damage the roads, so the road quality is much better.

Having DHP (which I don't) may also make a difference in the ride.
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      04-22-2013, 07:30 PM   #18
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I bought a SUV for the large rear door opening and storage space. Dropping the height 1.3" with the springs doesn't make it much harder to put kids in/out of car seats, but sedan/wagon height is a pain, but the car is still much higher than that.

...and it's a SAV, not a SUV.
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      04-22-2013, 07:39 PM   #19
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Also, to put things into perspective. I've put Eibachs on an old '88 Ford Escort back in '93...same problems. But Bilsteins on both a '98 Ford Contour SVT and '97 BMW 328iS, ride quality degraded too much too.

After this, even though I have two degrees in mechanical engineering, I'm done with trying to do better than the thousands of hours BMW spends in making the ultimate driving machine in tuning their suspension...hard to compete with that.

On smooth roads, you can get away with almost anything, but physics are a pain, there's only so much you can do between spring rates, damping and bushings...active suspension is an attempt to cheat physics, which may be why DHP is the route BMW went with the X3. If there was a way to make an M3 take bumps like a 7 series, it would be done...but it can't be done, until active suspension advances a bit more where the front shocks can react in real time.
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      04-22-2013, 08:08 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 2008_BMW_328xi View Post
Also, to put things into perspective. I've put Eibachs on an old '88 Ford Escort back in '93...same problems. But Bilsteins on both a '98 Ford Contour SVT and '97 BMW 328iS, ride quality degraded too much too.

After this, even though I have two degrees in mechanical engineering, I'm done with trying to do better than the thousands of hours BMW spends in making the ultimate driving machine in tuning their suspension...hard to compete with that.

On smooth roads, you can get away with almost anything, but physics are a pain, there's only so much you can do between spring rates, damping and bushings...active suspension is an attempt to cheat physics, which may be why DHP is the route BMW went with the X3. If there was a way to make an M3 take bumps like a 7 series, it would be done...but it can't be done, until active suspension advances a bit more where the front shocks can react in real time.
Read up on the McLaren MP4-12. That suspension and damping system is out of this world.
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      04-22-2013, 08:16 PM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by xDrive35i View Post
Read up on the McLaren MP4-12. That suspension and damping system is out of this world.
Yeah, I saw that a couple years ago...pretty sweet.
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      04-22-2013, 09:37 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 2008_BMW_328xi View Post
Yeah, I saw that a couple years ago...pretty sweet.
Indeed. My point is that it is possible to achieve high levels of dynamic prowess while accommodating for a wide range of comfort-oriented tasks. This is a suspension system that is elastic both in execution and in concept.
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