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**rammstein** · 06-08-2010, 05:59 PM

I look forward to the results! I know what you mean about being excited- in my case, not only am I upgrading, but the bushings that I am replacing are totally shot, so it's going to be a monumental difference I'm sure.

**caliGreen** · 06-09-2010, 01:52 AM

nice. let me know how it goes?. need to replace mine too

**Atreus** · 06-09-2010, 10:34 AM

nice.... how much that run you so far? i need to do something similar on mine, except i get to add sway bars/tie rod ends/subframe+trailing arm bushings....

looking forward to your updates man, keep us posted..

**Sagaris** · 06-09-2010, 02:51 PM

Originally posted by Atreus View Post

nice.... how much that run you so far? i need to do something similar on mine, except i get to add sway bars/tie rod ends/subframe+trailing arm bushings....

looking forward to your updates man, keep us posted..

Sourcing parts from www.turnermotorsports.com and www.fap99.com, all together with tax and shipping for everything you see in the picture, I am at $1050 (+/- $30 since I just checked over my invoices real quick and did a little rounding up and down) . I shopped around for the best prices, I would like to think that I got things for just about the best price possible but who knows.

**Sagaris** · 06-11-2010, 07:57 PM

FRIDAY:

My 2 friends and I started at 4pm and took a few breaks since it was 90F and extremely humid. We started with the rears and had a few fubars as far as forgetting the washer that the dust boot clips onto and things like that so we backtracked a bit. We completed the rears and got started on the fronts (got 1 strut disassembled and new components installed) It got dark and we were a bit worn out so we called it a night. Tomorrow I will be on my own to replace the other strut, THEN comes the contol arms and front bushing bracket. Hopefully that all goes well by myself. The electric impact gun has come in handy for removal of the strut nuts and ball joints.

I plan on getting up tomorrow early and seeing if I can finish it by noon.

I look like hell, time for a shower.....

**1990m3** · 06-11-2010, 08:31 PM

bring it to the car show at Concours BMW tomorrow.

Also -- put in new tie rods next and then get the alignment. Seriously, that is the most important part of all the work you are doing, gotta make it all line up correctly

**Sagaris** · 06-12-2010, 12:34 PM

SATURDAY: IT'S DONE!!! I'm not going to wait to wash the car up all nice for pictures so deal with it.

BEFORE (1)

AFTER (1)

BEFORE (2)

AFTER (2)

AFTER (3)

AFTER (4)

Installation comments:
--------------------------
-Having a California car with no rust was a real blessing, there was no issue removing any bolts at all, however, the pass. side 22mm inner balljoint nut was a turd to remove. I used 2 different 22mm combination wrenches (open at one end closed at the other) along with a 6" adjustable wrench which was maxed out and just fit. I would not have gotten it without the 6 incher. Removing the pass. side engine mount may have helped.

-I wasted a lot of time re-doing things after forgetting washers and things. I was a total clutz through the process but I survived.

-The front strut assembly is ridiculously heavy (with the brake rotor and bearing on it ). It was easier to lift it up into place on the car by myself with a jack and in broad daylight than with 2 helpers fumbling around in the dark (got one of them in last night and one of them in this morning)

-The stock rear sway bar LOL
(it still remains on the car) It is so small that the thing could be mistaken for a brake fluid line.

-$50 Harbor Freight impact gun = good idea for strut nuts and balljoint nuts that like to spin.

-My old balljoints were doing their best impression of the joystick on a PS3 controller, they were that easy to move.

-Homemade bushing tool = :D

v**********OFFSET LCA BUSHING INSTALLATION**********v

I was a bit worried about fitting the offset control arm bushings onto the control arms since I have read a lot of horror stories of cussing and hammering and not getting them on and getting the car on the ground within the recommended 30 minute window.
"87 e30" gave me an incredible idea for a homemade tool that made the bushing install a piece of cake. Between 3 hardware stores I was not able to find an eye bolt that was long enough and had threads which went the full length of the bolt (which would be ideal) but it worked fine with the partially threaded bolts.

I bought:
(2) eye bolts ~10-12" long, with nuts
(4) big ol' washers
(a bunch of) smaller washers
a piece of flat steel bar
a big bolt
a big nut

I cut the flat steel bar and drilled 2 holes (took for freaking ever) for the eye bolts to go through and then cut another plate (so it wouldnt bend) and taped them together for no apparent reason. As you can see, the big bolt goes through the eyes of the eye bolts and the big ol' washers keep it from just dropping through the eyes. This big bolt was stuck through a hole in the control arm and the end with the plates is what drove the bushing onto the contol arm. I learned that a deep socket is great to have snce you will be able to spend a lot less time with a standard open end wrench, big time-saver. All the other little washers were there just to act as shims since I only have partially threaded eye bolts.

I lubed the crap out of the bushing and control arm nub with dish soap, put the tool into place and started cranking it down. It worked great! but the nub was coming all the way through the bushing and I needed a hole in my steel plates or something so that it wouldnt stop the progress. I had a 2x4 with some holes drilled in it already but it was too long. Since time was ticking for the bushing setup time I was all frantic and cut the 2x4 into a diamond shape. Im still not sure why. I got everything on and back on the ground in 38 minutes. I think I could easily do it in 15 minutes if I ever do this job again.

Thanks again to "87 e30" for the info/idea about the bushing tool! It would have been a nightnare without it

Driving Impressions:
-----------------------

I have only driven 3-4 miles on it so far. The H&R Sports with Bilstein Sports sit lower, ride stiffer, and control body roll so much more than I had imagined. The ride is very solid, actually a tiny bit more harsh than I would have expected. The suspension feel reminds me of a stock S2000 if anyone has driven one. It definitely feels like a newer car!
The steering effort is reduced quite a bit/ enough to the point where I dont think I need a new PS pump anymore.

Again, I am really suprised that it is as low as it is. I actually hope they dont settle at all because I like where it is at the moment. I am glad I didnt go for the race springs, the roads are just too crappy around here for me to feel good about that.

I am definitely glad that I went with the drop hats too.

More driving impressions will come later when I put some more miles on it.

**Sagaris** · 06-14-2010, 05:14 AM

The car feels so much more confident on the freeway. The soppy old balljoints and bushings would make the steering wheel shake @60 MPH. The new suspsension got rid of that problem.

I do have to keep saying "OILPAN!!!" in my mind to remind myself that I have to be conscious about potential pan-killers.

I'm still glad that I decided against the polyurethane bushings and race springs, I think it would be too low, stiff, and harsh for me.

**metalsoul** · 06-15-2010, 06:06 AM

Yeah...skidplate...looking good!

**Sagaris** · 07-10-2010, 12:17 PM

UPDATE!!!

The springs have done some settling. The suspension has softened up a bit from how it felt during the first week. I have put about 1000 miles on it so far. I love the improved handling, the extra high speed stability, and the fact that it is still civil and not annoying to drive. The stock suspension had a tendency to understeer when accelerating out of a tight curve or oversteer, not a lot of neutrality. The new suspension has not understeered yet, it just grips and is very neutral though I know sway bars have a big impact on that as well (still stock). Oversteer is very predictable and throttle steering seems to be easier now during mid-slide. Here is what it looks like now ( with 3/4 tank of gas).

**george graves** · 07-10-2010, 12:28 PM

nice!

**miltown e30** · 07-14-2010, 11:03 AM

This is perfect. I should've asked about your setup when I grabbed that suspension mount. Looks good!

**dude8383** · 07-14-2010, 12:13 PM

Looks proper man! Now get some decent looking wheels on there now that suspension is out of the way ;)

**Sagaris** · 07-14-2010, 04:34 PM

Originally posted by dude8383 View Post

Looks proper man! Now get some decent looking wheels on there now that suspension is out of the way ;)

I have actually grown to love the bottlecaps. Until I come across a few thousand dollars I will be appreciating the fact that bottlecaps:
-Are a dime-a-dozen on craigslist and readily available if I ever bend one
-Are not very tempting wheels for theives to steal.
-Are 14" and tires are very cheap.
-Fit perfectly so there is no rubbing or hubcentric problems.
-Are lighter than any 16" or 17" that I could get for a low price.

An engine rebuild and new paint will come before wheels I think.

Announcement

My suspension overhaul

My suspension overhaul

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