<E36-M3> Suspension comparison based on personal experience (YMMV)

[tteazis@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

As you may know, I am starting Club racing and because I want to compete in
Stock Class, I have to part with my H&R coilovers, which are allowed in Prepared
Class. Well, yesterday, I installed the Bilstein/H&R Sport suspension on my '97
M3. My first impression was "Wow, the car is really raised on the front!!! I
hope it drops...." The rear is the same height as with the coilovers, which
makes sense, as the springs are the same... Except the fact that the car front
is raised, if someone would have installed the Bilstein/H&R's without me
knowing, I would not be able to tell the difference based on street drivability.
The H&R coilovers and the Bilstein/H&R feel almost identical on the street. This
was, kind of, a surprise to me because of the much higher H&R coilover front
spring rates. H&R did a great job valving the Bilstein-build struts to make the
setup usable on the street and excellent on the track. This confirmed to me that
the H&R coilovers are the best mid-priced street/track compromise.

The following table is based on my personal experience on my car. YMMV, as
always.

                                                              Street Drivability
Track Performance

- --------------------                         ------------------------
Stock Suspension/RD swaybar     best
OK
Bilstein/H&R  Sport/RD                   good
better
H&R Coilovers/RD                            good
MUCH better
Sachs Coilovers/RD                         OK
best

Take care,
Theo. (my H&R coilovers are still available for sale...)
'97 M3

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End of bmw-digest V9 #1090
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