[pokerface]

I've only seen springs for the N55 models. Does anybody know if HR and Eibach are working on versions for the 4 cylinder?

[hhgolf]

Turner Motorsports is selling H&R sport springs for the xDrive2.8i.
I'm not sure if Eibach has product for the 2014 F25 . But either way, the stock struts shocks may not be compatible with sport springs even if they don't lower drastically.
I'm looking myself since I don't have the dynamic handling package. I don't know if the DHP setup allow for sport springs. Base suspension does not- sport dampers are recommended. Bilstein has no plans to develop their B8 shocks anytime soon. Their HDs are available and compatible with stock springs.

No good option yet, from what I understand .

[pokerface]

Eibach says they have it for the N20 out in Europe but can't confirm if they're compatible with our shocks. I've been bugging them to bring it over here...

[hhgolf]

And I've been reaching out to Bilstein US and guys at TurnerMotoelrsport and Autoanything
For advise and market predictions .

I have asked about the compatibility of the B6 setup with the Eibach springs that may not lower as harshly as H&R - comments pending

Just may be a slow process. Same wait for 2013 and 2014 models- same F25 chassis.

[pokerface]

Bilstein is recommending the 4600 struts. Not sure if that's the B6 you referred to

[pokerface]

Eibach.de part number for the Pro Kit spring is E10-20-024-01-22

[pokerface]

So after much hem and hawing we decided to give the Eibach Pro Kit a try. Eibach sent over the 35i kit. The difference between the 28i and the 35i kit is that the spring rates on the front pair on the 35i is higher. It's going to be a bit stiffer, as I was told.

I've had this for about 1000kms so far over three weeks (I do mostly city driving).

What are my thoughts?

The 35i springs work fine. If anything, the stiffer fronts are better as it helps mitigate the nose from diving while hard braking. That seems to help with braking performance (I think there's more weight shifted to the back onto the rear brakes)

The ride is stiffer. I recently went from 18" All Season RFT to the 20" Pirelli PZero RFT. That was about a 20% difference in ride stiffness. Putting the Eibach springs on top was probably another 10%. Comfortwise, still pretty good. Rough roads and broken pavement, yea it's noticeable but not uncomfortable. No intention of doing offroading with this vehicle so I think it's fine.

I had 18" summer RFTs and Eibachs on my E90 and ya, that car would beat you up. Tramlining and KAPOW! over road imperfections. Nothing like that on the X3.

Handling. I think it's equal weight between the tires and the springs. The Pirelli PZero Summer tires gave it the grip of a proper BMW. The springs cut down on the lean. The summer tires are not as good in the wet, and they seem to have a very bad treadwear rating, but that's outside of this discussion. There seems to be a bit more weight to the steering now that I didn't feel when I went to the summer tires. Overall, this takes the X3 closer to what I've been used to in BMW.

Ride Height.. where it was a 6 finger gap before, it is now a 4 finger gap. Pretty mild. It would take a trained eye to notice the difference vs stock.. heck you'd probably have to line up two X3s to notice the difference.

Car has been dirty for a long time - will try to put up pics next time.

[Tjalle]

Thanks guys!

My reading: only experience is from Eibach and for 35i - which is what I have.
If anything, H&R is stiffer - which I don`t need.

Performance OK.

Goes from 6 to 4 fingers - which is what I need. I do have a trained eye

Next question: apart from toe-in - do I need to have wheel alignment? In my book, there are few - if any - other adjustments.

[pokerface]

Unfortunately I don't have much downtime to take pictures. Here's a quick before/after shot with the 20s and springs.

For those interested, the Eibach part number is 20119.540

[Bimar]

Can't notice the difference in height maybe angle of photo.

[pokerface]

Bump since there's a lot of traffic on springs recently

[Lotus99]

So, how much of a drop did you get?

And can you please remind me if you have DDC on your car or not? How much harsher did the ride get after? You ok with it?

[pokerface]

No DDC. The ride is firmer. Keeping OEM 18''s it is absolutely fine, but on 20"s it feels closer to an E90 (harsh).

Drop is an inch up front and half inch at the back. If you think that's not enough, it was enough of a difference for my 60 year old noncar guy dad to notice he has a stock 2011 of the same color

[atrueb]

Looks great in my opinion cause it does not looked slammed to the ground. Just right😉

[Lotus99]

Originally Posted by pokerface

No DDC. The ride is firmer. Keeping OEM 18''s it is absolutely fine, but on 20"s it feels closer to an E90 (harsh).

Drop is an inch up front and half inch at the back. If you think that's not enough, it was enough of a difference for my 60 year old noncar guy dad to notice he has a stock 2011 of the same color

Thanks. Did you look at H&R also and if so, how come you went with Eibach? H&R has about a half inch more drop from what I recall, which still would not be a lot. The wheel gap I measured on one with 19 inch wheels was 3.5 inches (9 cm) so even a 1.5 inch drop would still leave 2 inches of gap which I think is plenty.

[pokerface]

Without intending on upgrading shocks I'd rather not risk a more aggressive drop which would compromise ride comfort, as this is a family car (driven primarily by the wife)

Eibach i've had used in two previous cars (E90 and B8 A4) so I'm happy with them.

[Lotus99]

Yeah, if I'm going to do it, I should probably play it safe I guess like you, instead of possibly ending up with a ride that I end up hating, like this poor guy did:

http://x3.xbimmers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=829676

Or I might as well get nice KW V2 coilovers and be done with it! Adjustable dampening, so should be able to play with the firmness at least.