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Ride Height: XI vs I

39K views 83 replies 23 participants last post by  OUTATIME 
#1 · (Edited)
couldn't find the answer to this but can someone tell me the difference between the cars in terms of the rear height? I know the XI and I share common components for the rear portion of the car so is it the same and only the front is raised?
 
#6 · (Edited)
it matters because im collecting information and making a judgement even if it makes a billion nanometers difference.

and no, getting eibachs or HRs will not give me RWD ride height nor RWD handling/comfort. I have experimented with HR and Dinan setups in the past and gone away with them because I took subjective information from responses like yours instead of actual facts. Now this is my last and final time messing with the suspension and I want to do it right with all the information I have available. so please excuse the annoying questions because some day, a fanatic with similar goals to mine will want to do it efficiently and cost effectively do it right the first time.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Per your owners manual, page 161:

Overall height of the car from ground to roof:
325i/330i: 55.7in
325xi/330xi: 56.5in

Also, what exactly are you looking for in your suspension? I'm surprised that Konis and Eibachs don't fit the bill for you. I find them as close to the RWD suspension as it gets. Dinan is also supposed to be very very good because they are a factory recognized tuner.
 
#8 ·
Per your owners manual, page 161:

Overall height of the car from ground to roof:
325i/330i: 55.7in
325xi/330xi: 56.5in
yup thanks. I got that, but that only reflects the front which is .7 inches higher. Rear is supposedly different but I don't have a standard I model to find out for sure.
 
#12 · (Edited)
kickass Jason, thanks again for your info. This is the setup I'm planning to do if you are curious:

Stock XI Struts/shocks and Springs
15mm front drop hats/5mm lower rear spring pad.

Standard XI Suspension vs Standard I Suspension Height:
23.85in vs 23.19in (Front) = .67 inches difference
22.52in vs 21.85mm (Rear) = .67 inches difference

Custom Stock XI Suspension vs Standard I Suspension Height (Projected):
23.26 vs 23.19in = .1 inch difference
21.93 vs 21.85in = .1 inch difference

so there you have it. it is going to be as close to I specs as possible without having to shell out a whole lot of money (aside from the stock parts)
 
#14 · (Edited)
They are not the same thing. They are sourced to H&R for manufacturing but their specs are Dinan.

Dinan springs drop the car .75 inches and .25inches in the rear and less Harsh when HR /Eibach are more serious. I know because I've owned BavAuto, H & R, Dinan Springs and sold them off in this forum in the past. I haven't tried Eibach yet, but after finding out directly from their R&D team that their spring rate is between ZHP and m3, I didn't want to risk blowing more money on that setup because I've ridden in both and it's not my cup of tea
 
#16 · (Edited)
sure. I was planning to create a thread about it next week afterI meet up with my mechanic to overhaul my suspension one last time. But basically here is what I ordered:

Drop Hats from Supreme Power Parts (http://www.supremepowerparts.com/0/0/0/6189/shop_by_category.html?brand=Supreme+Power+Parts): $80 per pair
OEM Low Profile Spring pads (p/n 33531136385) : $12 per pair
Stock XI Struts/Shocks (from various vendors): $600

My experience with drop hats is that they work very well and offer those who want a modest drop without compromising ANYTHING and I mean it because in no way do these affect spring rate, shock rebound/life.. I have had these drop hats on my e30 with stock IS suspension and it is perfect. It dropped the front in line with the rear so it looks even (as oppose to the front being high).

It only took me this long to figure it out for an XI because I didn't realize the OEM spring perches between an I or an XI were actually the same P/N. The e46 AWD and RWD chassis share many more components than their e30 counterparts ever did so that is to our benefit i guess...

In any event, I encourage all those interested to refrain from buying anything until I report back to you with the results. That way you won't blow money on my simple theories.
 
#17 · (Edited)
looking good so far. measured it with no passengers while camber and caster are out of spec but even with that, I've lost at least .5 inches compared to bently specs. will report back once I get an alignment next week

One thing I would've done differently is kept my koni shocks. I have gone back to stock shocks and the only difference I felt was in my wallet. My mechanic inspected them and said they had plenty of life and would last longer than oem. In other words, konis on the softest is comparable to OEM struts/shocks using oem springs. Lesson learned since I cant retuen oem parts but gotta spend a little to learn a little
 
#21 ·
Thank you jasonbimmer for putting the correct picture of how the ride height is measured into this thread!! I was going to do the same. I can not understand why some of the guys on the forum just want to point to "look it up in the archives" and be "smart about it" instead of just answering the question? We are all BMW enthusiasts here, some with more knowledge than others, and we should all be happy to share our knowledge and experiences with others. None of us know it all, and we can all learn something. If you don't learn something new each and every day, you may as well crawl into the pine box.
 
#30 ·
Thanks for the reply. I will be on this project asap.

I'm looking to buy some 18"x8.5" Sportline CSL replicas from Modbargins and some 245/40/ZR18 Pirelli's that will definitely benefit from the subtle but effective .5" drop.

All I need is the mask and fire-arm and off to the bank!
 
#33 · (Edited)
going to be hard posting before pics. I have after pics now tht I just did an alignment. looks better. ill post pics when i get home. rides exactly like stock. Remember, I'm not tweaking the stock suspension, I'm simply seating the spring into a deeper pocket. As a result, I dropped 15mm.
 
#35 ·
@e46alfonso

Your suggestion was exactly what I've been looking for before I purchased suspension parts for my 2002 325xi (100,000 miles). I thought all along I'd go with H&R because of the slightly more aggressive stance than Eibach. But the "descrete" ride, as you put it, is just too attractive for daily driver. So I'm now tracking the following shipped items:

- lowering perches from supremepowerparts.com (item SUFT015) $70.00 shipped
- 5mm rear upper spring pads from TheBMWPartStore.com 2 x $5.23
- Eibach Pro-Kit Springs from advanceautoparts.com $240 shipped (were 20% off + $50 coupon towards next purchase)
- 3-series Strut/Shock Mount Kit - E46 325Xi/330Xi from turnermotorsport.com

Now I'm saving up for the right shocks/struts to go on sale. With the added drop from the perches and 5mm spring pads, I'm wondering if I could get away with Bilstein Sports. Kubica recommends only using them with H&R. But with this setup it'll be just as low.

This is my favorite car I've owned. It's now paid off and I want to drive it for another 100,000 miles on this suspension!
 
#36 · (Edited)
Now I'm saving up for the right shocks/struts to go on sale. With the added drop from the perches and 5mm spring pads, I'm wondering if I could get away with Bilstein Sports. Kubica recommends only using them with H&R. But with this setup it'll be just as low.
You can use the Bilsteins on whatever you want. The shocks/struts don't control the ride height, the springs do. There are many people with Eibach/Bilstein combos but there have been reports of leaky rear shocks with Bilsteins, just FYI.

Also, I would save the $70 you plan on spending on those perches and just stick with the OEM ones on your car already.

Make sure you change out the upper shock/strut mounts, all the hardware to mount these things (especially the lower pinch bolt), and the rubber spring pads on the front springs. All of those things are a much better use of your $70.
 
#39 ·
I think the drop-hats work in the same manner -effectively reducing the height of the strut piston.
I just got off the phone with a guy at SupremePower and he explained that the drop hats change the position the spring sits on the perch. They don't effect the height of the strut piston at all. Can anyone confirm/verify this? Though I'm willing to be a guinea pig with adding the drop hats and 5mm spring pads to a Eibach with Koni/Bilstein suspension (the goal being H&R height with street quality ride), I'd choose to keep OEM perches, as SamDoe1 suggested, if it meant avoiding premature wear on my struts. Thanks!
 
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