[allinon72]

Originally Posted by tarmactrr

Well after more hours on this and finally getting the struts out using a bottle jack on the inside of the strut... I"m done with this method. Both axles popped out trying to get enough clearance to remove the strut and now I'm going to have to remove the axles anyways to get them back in. At this point I might as well remove the entire hub like BMW suggests.

I know you're ready to bow out, but the axles will pop back into place if you rotate the hub and push in towards the vehicle until they go back into place. Just takes a bit of finagling since you can't see the alignment due to the boot.

[tarmactrr]

Originally Posted by allinon72

I know you're ready to bow out, but the axles will pop back into place if you rotate the hub and push in towards the vehicle until they go back into place. Just takes a bit of finagling since you can't see the alignment due to the boot.

You were right... just needed a new day and a refreshed body and I got them in.

The drivers side was easy as cake, and that passenger one (the one that was stuck) almost fully compressed the spring using the jack before it finally went back into the spindle.

[allinon72]

Originally Posted by tarmactrr

You were right... just needed a new day and a refreshed body and I got them in.

The drivers side was easy as cake, and that passenger one (the one that was stuck) almost fully compressed the spring using the jack before it finally went back into the spindle.

Glad to see you made it through. I had to do the same thing...give myself a nights sleep to reset.

[tarmactrr]

Figured I'd put this out there incase anybody else has issues getting the front struts removed. This way worked great for me.

Purchase a cheap 4 ton bottle jack from harbor freight

put the jack between the spindle and the bottom of the strut spring seat on the back side of the strut like shown below.




Gently hold the jack to the strut and press the strut out.

[Supr3me]

Man I wish I'd seen this write up before tackling this installation. Few comments of my own-
Agree that getting the assembly out of the knuckle on the front is the toughest part of the process. Fortunately I had a bottle jack from an ancient Toyota sitting around and had the presence of mind to think of that trick myself.
Second, I also damaged my wheel speed sensor and I'm also totally not sure how I did it. My dashboard lit up like a Christmas tree and it disabled every driving, steering, braking, and stability control nanny on the car. We had a fair amount of snow on the ground when I did the work and the car was basically undrivable until I got the new part delivered and installed.

As for driving comfort - I'm not blown away. It's marginally more comfortable but I don't think I'd do this over again if that was my only goal. Fortunately, I was looking more for ride height changes and I'm happy with the stance at the lowest setting.

Finally - and this is my main point of posting - over the past 500 miles it's developed a significant noise in the passenger side rear when under compression. It's kind of a creak or a low squawk sound. It's gotten to the point where I don't enjoy driving with the radio off.

For others who have had this noise from the right rear - were you able to pinpoint the cause and rectify it? Is it related to the spring being seated incorrectly?

(PS thanks for taking the time to do a terrific DIY, this sort of thing adds significant value to the forums)

[Parnishka]

Originally Posted by allinon72

After waiting for a DIY for X3M spring installation, I decided to make my own with the MSS Urban Adjustable Spring Kit. I've probably done a half a dozen spring installations on various cars and always had the benefit of a DIY guide posted on forums – so this is my first time going it alone with only facts gathered from the MSS thread. Hopefully some of you crazy DIYers will find this helpful.

So why not just pay to get it done? Well, I've always been a DIYer and enjoy working with tools and learning my cars. There are also many reports of the installation being done wrong even by competent shops, so I want to make sure it's done right.

This install is possible if you're a moderate to advanced DIYer. I would not recommend this if you are a beginner, first because you probably won't have most of the required tools, and second because of some challenging parts that will get you in a jam that you won't be able to get out of. That being said – I learned how to do this stuff by diving in, so I'll never tell anyone they can't do it. It's just a matter of how committed you are to getting it done.

Let's start with some warnings first:

[COLOR="Red"]**PLEASE FOLLOW ALL SAFETY PROCEDURES. NOBODY BUT YOURSELF WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR INJURY OR DEATH!!**

**MSS RECOMMENDS THIS KIT TO BE INSTALLED BY A CERTIFIED TECHNICIAN. PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK**

**INSTALLATION OF THIS KIT WILL LIKELY VOID ANY WARRANTY CLAIMS HAVING TO DO WITH SUSPENSION COMPONENTS (IN THE US) AND MAY VOID YOUR ENTIRE WARRANTY OUTSIDE THE US**

**BMW RECOMMENDS REPLACING ALL SUSPENSION HARDWARE ONCE IT IS REMOVED**

**PLEASE FOLLOW BMW'S RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TORQUE SPECS**[/COLOR]

---

Installation is on a 2020 X3M Competition with spare tire kit.

---

REAR INSTALLATION

The rear must be installed FIRST because the OEM bumpstops are used on the front.

TOOLS NEEDED:
- Impact wrench of some type
- 18mm and 21mm sockets
- 18mm and 21mm wrenches
- 18mm 12 point socket
- E12 (external torx) socket
- Spring compressor
- Pry bar
- Adjustable pliers

1. Jack the vehicle up by a center jacking point – I use this point where the bracing attaches to a large alumnium block; some people use the center diff with a piece of wood. This is a controversial topic with some saying the car should not be jacked by the diff, but many people do it without issue. The choice is yours.

Attachment 2504506

2. Support the vehicle with jack stands on both sides with the rear lifting points. Highly recommend using BMW jack pads that fit inside the rectangular jacking points (you can find these on Amazon). NOTE - do not have the parking brake on for this installation - it keeps the suspension in a bind and will not allow for reinstallation of suspension hardware. For safety, make sure the vehicle cannot roll.

Attachment 2504507

3. Remove rear wheels

Attachment 2504520

4. We are now ready to remove the rear strut from the vehicle

5. SUMMARY OF THE NEXT SEVERAL STEPS – we will remove the bottom bolt of the strut, remove the lower control arm bolt, remove the top strut bolts, push the lower control arm down and maneuver the strut out, as a full assembly, from the bottom.

6. Start by unplugging the stabilization sensor and unclip it from the bracket on the strut. Tuck the wire out of the way so it is not damaged.

Attachment 2504509

7. For removal, will need to remove 2 bolts – the bottom strut bolt and the lower control arm bolt. Both bolts have a 18mm head and 21mm nut. They are exactly the same.

Hardware info -
Hexagon screw with flange, part #07119906495
Hexagon nut with collar, part #33326794873

Attachment 2504508

8. Support the lower control arm loosely with a jack and remove the 21mm nuts for both the strut and the lower control arm. These nuts are tight – I removed them with an impact wrench. If removing by hand, make sure you have a long breaker bar.

Attachment 2504510

9. Remove both bolts

Attachment 2504511

10. Lower the jack – notice that the strut is now loose. You may have to use a pry bar to separate the knuckle from the lower control arm. Note that the control arm has resistance when you push down on it. **DO NOT** be tempted to loosen the bolts on the opposite side of the control arm to eliminate this resistance as these bolts adjust the camber of the suspension. Even though an alignment will be required, we don't want to make it any worse.

Attachment 2504512

11. Now it's time to go into the cargo area. My X3M has the spare tire kit, which makes getting to the top strut mounts considerably easier than vehicles without. If you do not have the spare tire kit, getting to the top mounts will require removal of the side panels in the cargo area. Please refer to other threads for removal of these panels


12. Lift up on the lid for the spare tire and you will see 2 foam inserts covering the strut mounts. Gently remove the inserts and unplug the connector that is embedded in the foam. The foam tears easily!!

Attachment 2504504

13. Remove the connector from the top of the strut. At first glance it appears the black part separates from the white part, but the whole thing comes off. Give it a squeeze and slight wiggle and it will come off.

Attachment 2504505

14. Remove 4 top strut mounts. These are external torx bolts, so you will need an E12 socket for this.

Hardware info -
- Hexalobular socket screw, part #33509909440

Attachment 2504513

15. With the top now disconnected, the strut is free. Push the lower control arm down with one hand while guiding the strut out with the other. You can use a pry bar to hold the control arm down if you find it easier.

Attachment 2504512

16. The strut is out and ready for spring replacement. Take a break, have a beer.

Attachment 2504514

17. SUMMARY OF NEXT SEVERAL STEPS – we will use a spring compressor to relieve tension on the upper strut mount, remove the upper strut mount, remove the OEM spring and components, install the MSS springs and components, and reattach the upper spring mount.

18. Now it's time to remove the OEM spring. Grab your spring compressor and attach loosely to the spring. Grab as many coils as you can – I was able to get 4. **NOTE** - there are many different types of spring compressors, and all of them come with an inherent risk of injury due to the built up potential energy of the spring when compressed. It's important to be familiar with your type of spring compressor and proceed with caution when using it.

Attachment 2504515

19. Compress the spring until you can wiggle the strut mount indicating that it has no tension from the spring, or when you can see the spring come away from the rubber mount. It does not take a lot of compression so no need to go overboard.

Attachment 2504516

20. The top strut nut is a 18mm 12 point nut. You must use a 12 point socket on it. You can get a special socket that has a cut out in it for removal (allows you to put an allen key in the middle to hold the shaft while turning the outside nut) but I just use an impact wrench to remove. If the shaft starts to spin, grab the shaft **carefully** with a pair of pliers in the area where the bumpstop is to hold the shaft.

Hardware info -
- Hex nut with flange, part #07119907135

Attachment 2504517

21. At this point you can remove all components from the strut, including the lower spring mount

Attachment 2504518

22. Carefully release the spring compressors from the spring and set it aside

Attachment 2504519

23. Find the rubber washers from the MSS kit, they call them "slip mats" and slide it onto the strut. It is a tight fit – it kind of stretches on there and does not sit flat at the bottom. This is normal. The MSS instructions warn not to modify this.

Attachment 2504521

24. Slide on the small black spring and adjuster. Make sure the adjuster is oriented properly. If you choose to use the MSS protective socks, install those as well.

25. Remove the OEM bumpstop from the dust boot and install the bumpstop that came with the MSS kit. Retain the OEM bump stop as it will be used on the front. Install the dust boot/bump stop assembly on the shaft of the strut

Attachment 2504522

26. Slide on the new MSS main spring. Be sure to use the correct spring! The rear springs are labeled 225-1

27. We will use the spring compressor again to reinstall the upper strut mount. Note that this is a little more challenging this time around because the spring is much shorter. If you are using the same spring compressor like mine, you will have to play around with the placement in order to compress the spring in such a way that it doesn't interfere with the adjuster or the upper strut mount.

Attachment 2504524

28. Compress the spring enough to slide the upper strut mount on and thread the nut on. Take note of the orientation of the spring in the rubber mount - this is easy to get wrong!! Tighten the upper strut nut the same way it was removed. Release the spring compressors.

Attachment 2506581

29. Strut assembly complete and ready to be reinstalled onto the vehicle

Attachment 2506582

30. Reinstall the strut the same way it was removed – by pushing down on the lower control arm and sliding it up into position from the bottom

31. Reinstall the lower strut bolt and nut loosely

32. Reinstall the 4 upper strut mount e-torx bolts loosely

33. Now is the time to adjust your adjusters when there is no tension on them using the wrench supplied in the MSS kit. I went with RG_sports recommendation of 20mm in the rear

Attachment 2504527

34. Once adjustments are made, tighten the lower and upper strut hardware. Reattach the wiring to the strut in the cargo area.

35. Jack the lower control arm up until the holes are aligned and install the lower control arm bolt

Attachment 2504528

36. Reconnect the level sensor and slide the harness back into the bracket on the strut

37. Installation complete!

Attachment 2504526

you should receive an Oscar man! hands down! you the rock!

[tarmactrr]

Originally Posted by Supr3me

Man I wish I'd seen this write up before tackling this installation. Few comments of my own-
Agree that getting the assembly out of the knuckle on the front is the toughest part of the process. Fortunately I had a bottle jack from an ancient Toyota sitting around and had the presence of mind to think of that trick myself.
Second, I also damaged my wheel speed sensor and I'm also totally not sure how I did it. My dashboard lit up like a Christmas tree and it disabled every driving, steering, braking, and stability control nanny on the car. We had a fair amount of snow on the ground when I did the work and the car was basically undrivable until I got the new part delivered and installed.

As for driving comfort - I'm not blown away. It's marginally more comfortable but I don't think I'd do this over again if that was my only goal. Fortunately, I was looking more for ride height changes and I'm happy with the stance at the lowest setting.

Finally - and this is my main point of posting - over the past 500 miles it's developed a significant noise in the passenger side rear when under compression. It's kind of a creak or a low squawk sound. It's gotten to the point where I don't enjoy driving with the radio off.

For others who have had this noise from the right rear - were you able to pinpoint the cause and rectify it? Is it related to the spring being seated incorrectly?

(PS thanks for taking the time to do a terrific DIY, this sort of thing adds significant value to the forums)

no noise for me yet, but I can't believe the rear dual spring doesn't have a proper seat. You would have thought they would have designed the adjuster to accept the small spring a bit better.

[Supr3me]

Update on squeak/creak from the right rear spring -

I took the wheel off and inspected it thoroughly and didn't see anything that looked wrong. Based on a hunch I used the adjustment tool to rotate the entire assembly a little over half a rotation using the larger collar (not the adjustment ring).
It's been about 750 miles and the sound hasn't returned!

[Big_CG]

I finished this job on the fronts yesterday. Thanks for posting the tips and photos, it helped.

It's a bear of a job. Using the bottle jack was a good tip to push the knuckle away from the strut. I used a windowmaker jack that was in the back of my Nissan, it worked the same.

I also used a chisel to expand the collar much more than the specialized tool did. I did not find the expanding tool to be useful, it is harder than the alumnium and too small, it simply gouges up the metal without expanding much.

My biggest complication was when the cv axles popped out of place on both sides

Once this happens, the knuckle cannot tilt back into place.

Finding the correct alignment seems to be a trial and error process until it falls back in to the socket. Took about an hour on each side to get it re-set. Its pure luck as the boot covers up how the it should mate together.

I would recommend zip-tying the pinch bolt hole to the sway bar before separating the knuckle from the strut. to keep the top of the knuckle from falling away from the axle and separating.

My outer CV boot tore also, probably a slipped jack or tool or something. Now I have to replace the passenger axle

Oh well, such is the DIY life!

Take care.

[tapx]

For the guys that had to push back in their CV axles, any tips?

The driver side CV axle popped out when taking the strut out and I can't seem to get it to seat all the way. I've tried the rotate/push method and it goes a little but not enough to rotate the hub enough to slide the strut back on. When it does go in a little I can see that when I rotate the hub the other side rotates the other way so I know its in at least a little.

Any advice is appreciated thanks!

EDIT/UPDATE: Ended up taking the axle out of the hub to maneuver it back into place. Definitely recommend what Big_CG suggested. Grab some zipties or a strap of some kind to limit the hub's movement.

[Sniper260687]

Kinda bummed out hearing all these problems.

I was under the impression that MSS springs are the "Dom Perignon" of springs.

Especially for the price they want.

This and other threads keeps steering me away from MSS, what a shame.

I hope someone from MSS can chime in...and not blame Covid

[allinon72]

Originally Posted by Sniper260687

Kinda bummed out hearing all these problems.

I was under the impression that MSS springs are the "Dom Perignon" of springs.

Especially for the price they want.

This and other threads keeps steering me away from MSS, what a shame.

I hope someone from MSS can chime in...and not blame Covid

I'm confused...everything in this thread is installation related, not product related? MSS has nothing to do with BMW suspension design on the F97 platform that makes the installation more difficult than others.

The issues that did come up in the early versions of the kit were quickly resolved by MSS.

[r33_RGSport]

Originally Posted by Sniper260687

Kinda bummed out hearing all these problems.

I was under the impression that MSS springs are the "Dom Perignon" of springs.

Especially for the price they want.

This and other threads keeps steering me away from MSS, what a shame.

I hope someone from MSS can chime in...and not blame Covid

I don't get your comment. :

[tarmactrr]

Originally Posted by Sniper260687

Kinda bummed out hearing all these problems.

I was under the impression that MSS springs are the "Dom Perignon" of springs.

Especially for the price they want.

This and other threads keeps steering me away from MSS, what a shame.

I hope someone from MSS can chime in...and not blame Covid

I've been on them now for almost 6 months and about 1600 miles. Zero issues and completely satisfied.

[Sniper260687]

Originally Posted by r33_RGSport

I don't get your comment. :

I been seeing clunk and noises comments after MSS installation

[r33_RGSport]

Originally Posted by Sniper260687

I been seeing clunk and noises comments after MSS installation

Yea, so far none of my customers have this issue.
You may want to check back with your installer and whom you purchased it from.

[Sniper260687]

Originally Posted by Influence

Excellent write-up. I'm going to use this to try and figure out where my minor clunking/thudding noise is coming from on my rear end after my installer did the job. At least for the actual suspension area. I've don't have the spare tire, so my noise might be coming from something inside the trunk area (which I'm hoping for as it will probably be easier to fix).

I'm checking with my installer to make sure he didn't modify the rubber washers that slip over the rear struts to make them easier to slide on. I'm thinking that could lead to a bit of noise if they are "loose" on the strut

Originally Posted by allinon72

I need more seat time but I might have the same noise in the passenger rear. It's very similar to what you described in the other thread.

Originally Posted by r33_RGSport

Yea, so far none of my customers have this issue.
You may want to check back with your installer and whom you purchased it from.

Right here. I also saw another one on another thread.

I don't have them install, my x3 its OEM but I want to go MSS route, this scares me.

Unless it installer fault.

[dooo]

Thanks for the great write up! It was a great help guiding the shop I took it to what to do... Thank you r33_RGSport for the MSS kit. I got these before taking delivery of my car in August. Been busy for the last 2months so it's been collecting dust. I got impatient and searched for a shop that could install same day.

I'll say that not all Google reviews and IG posts are accurate interpretation. I have a nightmare story. Dropped off the car at 10am to get the MSS kit installed on my 22 X3MC. Was told it would be a same day pick up. Normally it takes a couple of hours. Well I didn't get a call from the shop. Google listed their business closing at 5pm. I hopped in a Uber (45mins away). Once I got there (5pm), it looked like they had started working maybe an hour ago. Rear struts were out. One side was complete and ready to back in the car. They had the front apart, but stuck on getting the front struts out.. I wanted to get the car outta there, but it was in no position to do so once I got there...

One of the person left for an hr+ from working on my car to go pick up another customers car. I was told it would be another hour or two to complete. I waited and my trust in them went down the drain. They seemed very incompetent. Apparently, they have done the spring installs on couple of G80s. I don't think that was accurate. Couldn't get the front struts out so they ended up removing the knuckles. It was cringing watching your $80k+ car beat on and torn apart. Did not get home till Midnight from this shop... I noticed a clunking noise from the rear on my drive home. I figured it was the spring that wasn't seated properly and that was the culprit. The shop fixed it today.

Moral of the story is that do a thorough research of where you take your car and be patient. I got impatient waiting to take it to my usual mechanic's shop next week and regretted my life decisions lol. I'll be taking it to my usual shop tomorrow to get a once over check of everything.

[2Times]

Good timing to bump this... getting mine done Tuesday

[allinon72]

Originally Posted by dooo

Thanks for the great write up! It was a great help guiding the shop I took it to what to do... Thank you r33_RGSport for the MSS kit. I got these before taking delivery of my car in August. Been busy for the last 2months so it's been collecting dust. I got impatient and searched for a shop that could install same day.

I'll say that not all Google reviews and IG posts are accurate interpretation. I have a nightmare story. Dropped off the car at 10am to get the MSS kit installed on my 22 X3MC. Was told it would be a same day pick up. Normally it takes a couple of hours. Well I didn't get a call from the shop. Google listed their business closing at 5pm. I hopped in a Uber (45mins away). Once I got there (5pm), it looked like they had started working maybe an hour ago. Rear struts were out. One side was complete and ready to back in the car. They had the front apart, but stuck on getting the front struts out.. I wanted to get the car outta there, but it was in no position to do so once I got there...

One of the person left for an hr+ from working on my car to go pick up another customers car. I was told it would be another hour or two to complete. I waited and my trust in them went down the drain. They seemed very incompetent. Apparently, they have done the spring installs on couple of G80s. I don't think that was accurate. Couldn't get the front struts out so they ended up removing the knuckles. It was cringing watching your $80k+ car beat on and torn apart. Did not get home till Midnight from this shop... I noticed a clunking noise from the rear on my drive home. I figured it was the spring that wasn't seated properly and that was the culprit. The shop fixed it today.

Moral of the story is that do a thorough research of where you take your car and be patient. I got impatient waiting to take it to my usual mechanic's shop next week and regretted my life decisions lol. I'll be taking it to my usual shop tomorrow to get a once over check of everything.

Man, sorry to hear that. It's hard to vet a shop for the X3M because the front is one of, if not the hardest BMWs to get the struts out. Other models are a breeze by comparison. I guess that's why BMW recommends removing the entire knuckle.

[dmanb2b]

Originally Posted by dooo

Thanks for the great write up! It was a great help guiding the shop I took it to what to do... Thank you r33_RGSport for the MSS kit. I got these before taking delivery of my car in August. Been busy for the last 2months so it's been collecting dust. I got impatient and searched for a shop that could install same day.

I'll say that not all Google reviews and IG posts are accurate interpretation. I have a nightmare story. Dropped off the car at 10am to get the MSS kit installed on my 22 X3MC. Was told it would be a same day pick up. Normally it takes a couple of hours. Well I didn't get a call from the shop. Google listed their business closing at 5pm. I hopped in a Uber (45mins away). Once I got there (5pm), it looked like they had started working maybe an hour ago. Rear struts were out. One side was complete and ready to back in the car. They had the front apart, but stuck on getting the front struts out.. I wanted to get the car outta there, but it was in no position to do so once I got there...

One of the person left for an hr+ from working on my car to go pick up another customers car. I was told it would be another hour or two to complete. I waited and my trust in them went down the drain. They seemed very incompetent. Apparently, they have done the spring installs on couple of G80s. I don't think that was accurate. Couldn't get the front struts out so they ended up removing the knuckles. It was cringing watching your $80k+ car beat on and torn apart. Did not get home till Midnight from this shop... I noticed a clunking noise from the rear on my drive home. I figured it was the spring that wasn't seated properly and that was the culprit. The shop fixed it today.

Moral of the story is that do a thorough research of where you take your car and be patient. I got impatient waiting to take it to my usual mechanic's shop next week and regretted my life decisions lol. I'll be taking it to my usual shop tomorrow to get a once over check of everything.

Dang, this is unfortunate, but to your point such a common ocurrence. Do you mind sharing where this shop is located or name, so we know to tread with caution?

[dooo]

Originally Posted by allinon72

Man, sorry to hear that. It's hard to vet a shop for the X3M because the front is one of, if not the hardest BMWs to get the struts out. Other models are a breeze by comparison. I guess that's why BMW recommends removing the entire knuckle.

I did not know that. Is there anyone on here w the BMW service manual with all the torque specs? Would be helpful to know the torque specs for the front axle bolt, and all the control arms.