Bilstein BTS suspension kit review, pics included

[etasDustin]

When recently shopping for springs and shocks for my 325, I came across the BTS kit, but could not find any reviews or pics of the setup. I wanted something very streetable, and with the lifetime warranty, I decided to go with it. To clarify one thing.... The springs are not made by H&R. They are matched to the bilstein strut and outsourced by Hyperco. Anyways, I installed them yesterday along with new control arms and tierods. The ride quality is very nice. The suspension is much better than the tired stock suspension, but I am sure the new control arms and tierods are helping out as well. If someone plans to purchase this setup, make sure you buy the 4 dollar strut tool for easy install. Below are a couple pics I took 10 minutes after I took it off the stands. In a few weeks I will post new pics if it settles significantly. Also, please forgive the dirty car, poor alignment, and missing front spoiler (in the mail). Hopefully this might help someone decide whether or not to choose this kit. Cost: roughly $600

[etasDustin]

5 days later with a lip

[backtrail69]

What are the spring rates with the BTS kit?

[Garageaholic]

They are rather soft

[etasDustin]

Yeah, from the rates that people have posted they are not overly stiff.

For me this works well, because it is not a "track only car." If it was track only I would have purchased a linear coilover setup, because basically everything else in that case seems like a waste of money. Unless you are racing spec e30 and need to follow rules.

Since it will be driven daily I choose to have a very nice ride quality on the columbus roads, rather then give up a tiny bit of handling on the track (if I ever choose to race it here and there). Which is one thing that baffles me..... Many people who use their cars (with very stiff springs) on the street only, or street/track combo, always sacrifice comfort for what little time they spend taking a corner fast. The gains are very minimal. On top of that, most of the people who buy a really stiff spring and drive on the street neglect their handling in the tire and swaybar department, which has a larger impact on how their car handles. I guess if you are very very overweight or your car is completely stripped of weight, it would be ok to want a very stiff spring to keep the ride height in the correct spot. But if someone is driving on the road and has no interior, spare tire, radio, wipers, lights, ac, and so forth... why are they driving it on the road? I guess I got a bit off topic.

[ian e30 318is]

I actually just put the bts kit on my car. It rides nice but i wish the kit lowered the front end a little more. Do you know of any ways to lower the front end more without buying a whole new setup?

[1991 318is]

Agree.

Yeah, from the rates that people have posted they are not overly stiff.
For me this works well, because it is not a "track only car." If it was track only I would have purchased a linear coilover setup, because basically everything else in that case seems like a waste of money. Unless you are racing spec e30 and need to follow rules.
Since it will be driven daily I choose to have a very nice ride quality on the columbus roads, rather then give up a tiny bit of handling on the track (if I ever choose to race it here and there). Which is one thing that baffles me..... Many people who use their cars (with very stiff springs) on the street only, or street/track combo, always sacrifice comfort for what little time they spend taking a corner fast. The gains are very minimal. On top of that, most of the people who buy a really stiff spring and drive on the street neglect their handling in the tire and swaybar department, which has a larger impact on how their car handles. I guess if you are very very overweight or your car is completely stripped of weight, it would be ok to want a very stiff spring to keep the ride height in the correct spot. But if someone is driving on the road and has no interior, spare tire, radio, wipers, lights, ac, and so forth... why are they driving it on the road? I guess I got a bit off topic.

I agree completely. I drive on the street and do not race the car at all. I'm part owner of a Formula Ford for that. I put coil overs with 350# fronts and 475# rears on my E30 and it rode like a sled. The car would get upset very easily on rough pavement. I now have an approximate equivalent of the E30 M3 setup. 150# fronts and 265# rears (not coil overs). The front bar has M3 links and is just a bit stiffer than the M3. The car corners fairly flat and rides firm but not stiff.
I'm pretty sure that the BTS shocks are valved to work with the BTS springs.

[egk2]

I actually just put the bts kit on my car. It rides nice but i wish the kit lowered the front end a little more. Do you know of any ways to lower the front end more without buying a whole new setup?

drop hats from bekkers

[StereoInstaller1]

Do you know of any ways to lower the front end more without buying a whole new setup?

1/4": Spring pad removal

1/2": M50 W/AC

3/4": Turbo M30

[ian e30 318is]

drop hats from bekkers

do you have these on your car now? i was wondering how they ride and if there were any big disadvantages to using them.

[e30 gangsta]

1/4": Spring pad removal

1/2": M50 W/AC

3/4": Turbo M30

dont know why but this shit made me laugh for a while.

[egk2]

do you have these on your car now? i was wondering how they ride and if there were any big disadvantages to using them.

I sold my e30 but when I had them installed the car handled nose heavy as you could expect. Also, they come too wide, I had to mock them up to stock ones and grind them down to stock diameter because they were rubbing the inside of the strut towers. Not the best way to lower your front end but I wasn't going to swap out the entire suspension for coil overs.

[ian e30 318is]

what kind of suspension setup is on the red bmw that you have as your picture?

[etasDustin]

Mine barely sits higher in the front than in the back...... one big difference may be the weight difference in our motors though.

[e30polak]

give it sometime, in a few months the springs should settle some more, and drop the car.