325TI - Project Mpact
Discussion
Well it's been nearly 5 months since the last update, and just over a year since the car went back on the road (2,500miles now covered).
There isn't much to report since the last update, I've been on a couple more trackdays at Snetterton (which seem to sell out ridiculously quick at the moment) and the handling is slightly better since the Powerflex front control arm bushes and solid steering coupling, but still doesn't fill me with confidence, and judging by the front nearside tyre that has chunks missing from the outer edge it could do with a bit more camber.
But that wasn't my main concern, under closer observation it was the limiting amount of suspension travel it had before the bump-stop came into use. The Compact uses E46 M3 modified top mounts (fixings relocated to replicate the original non-M geometry, previously explained a few pages back) and KW V2 coilovers for an E46 M3.
The Compact wasn't 'low' and still had plenty of gap between the arch and tyre, 13.5" from the arch to the wheel centre. The coilover was almost at the highest setting and had 66mm of thread left to lower it, but only had 12mm of travel before the bumpstop?!.
From what I found after a bit of googling, lowering an E46 M3 and keeping the stock top mounts it seems to be common to have limited travel, this is the same with the E92 M3 and some owners are having to 'shave' 8mm-10mm off the bottom of the top mount to gain more travel.
I understand that bump-stops are there to be used, and did not want to modify/shorten the bumpstop or trim the bottom off the top mount. So I started to look at alternatives, different BMW OEM, converting the KW V2's to narrower front springs to use KW adjustable top mounts, and looking at various aftermarket top mounts i.e Millway, Turner, Ground Control..... these can use the OEM style spring, but I didn't know how much travel I would gain, if any.
So, this is what I ended up ordering.....some lumps of T6 Aluminium,
And machined some little bits of stainless,
A bit of turning and milling to accept a heavy duty spherical bearing on the lower half of the mount,
Top half of the mounts machined,
All the bits bolted together, the stainless inserts pressed in with a bit of Araldite to secure them and help prevent galvanic corrosion,
Picture showing the height difference,
Stock bearing for the spring,
Spring perch,
Perch rubber,
And the collars to take the internal diameter of the spherical bearing (20mm) down to the shock size (16mm) and incorporate the plate for the bump-stop to press against,
I haven't tried them on the Compact yet, fingers crossed they fit! I'm expecting there to be a lot of NVH.... so I've allowed room to add a polybush of sorts at a later date if the NVH is too much for a road car.
So to sum it up, a shallower top mount to gain more shock travel, adjustable camber, adjustable caster (probably never use it) and the top plate is a larger area to help prevent the turret 'mushrooming'.
Just need to decide on if i'm going to paint them or have a go at anodising, if they fit.
And these took b****y ages to make.
Hopefully the next update wont take so long!
There isn't much to report since the last update, I've been on a couple more trackdays at Snetterton (which seem to sell out ridiculously quick at the moment) and the handling is slightly better since the Powerflex front control arm bushes and solid steering coupling, but still doesn't fill me with confidence, and judging by the front nearside tyre that has chunks missing from the outer edge it could do with a bit more camber.
But that wasn't my main concern, under closer observation it was the limiting amount of suspension travel it had before the bump-stop came into use. The Compact uses E46 M3 modified top mounts (fixings relocated to replicate the original non-M geometry, previously explained a few pages back) and KW V2 coilovers for an E46 M3.
The Compact wasn't 'low' and still had plenty of gap between the arch and tyre, 13.5" from the arch to the wheel centre. The coilover was almost at the highest setting and had 66mm of thread left to lower it, but only had 12mm of travel before the bumpstop?!.
From what I found after a bit of googling, lowering an E46 M3 and keeping the stock top mounts it seems to be common to have limited travel, this is the same with the E92 M3 and some owners are having to 'shave' 8mm-10mm off the bottom of the top mount to gain more travel.
I understand that bump-stops are there to be used, and did not want to modify/shorten the bumpstop or trim the bottom off the top mount. So I started to look at alternatives, different BMW OEM, converting the KW V2's to narrower front springs to use KW adjustable top mounts, and looking at various aftermarket top mounts i.e Millway, Turner, Ground Control..... these can use the OEM style spring, but I didn't know how much travel I would gain, if any.
So, this is what I ended up ordering.....some lumps of T6 Aluminium,
And machined some little bits of stainless,
A bit of turning and milling to accept a heavy duty spherical bearing on the lower half of the mount,
Top half of the mounts machined,
All the bits bolted together, the stainless inserts pressed in with a bit of Araldite to secure them and help prevent galvanic corrosion,
Picture showing the height difference,
Stock bearing for the spring,
Spring perch,
Perch rubber,
And the collars to take the internal diameter of the spherical bearing (20mm) down to the shock size (16mm) and incorporate the plate for the bump-stop to press against,
I haven't tried them on the Compact yet, fingers crossed they fit! I'm expecting there to be a lot of NVH.... so I've allowed room to add a polybush of sorts at a later date if the NVH is too much for a road car.
So to sum it up, a shallower top mount to gain more shock travel, adjustable camber, adjustable caster (probably never use it) and the top plate is a larger area to help prevent the turret 'mushrooming'.
Just need to decide on if i'm going to paint them or have a go at anodising, if they fit.
And these took b****y ages to make.
Hopefully the next update wont take so long!
I hope your doing well Adam, amazing work on these as always.
I have almost the opposite issue on my compact in that I want to stick with the Koni STRT set up for the time being given its very road friendly but would like to have adjustable top mounts, however I haven't found anything suitable as they can't be any thinner than stock as the car is already as low as I'd possibly want it at the front, plus i want something with minimal NVH increase/road friendly and decent lifespan, not the design spec of most adjustable top mounts!
Are you planning to go to Snet on 07/11 by any chance?
I have almost the opposite issue on my compact in that I want to stick with the Koni STRT set up for the time being given its very road friendly but would like to have adjustable top mounts, however I haven't found anything suitable as they can't be any thinner than stock as the car is already as low as I'd possibly want it at the front, plus i want something with minimal NVH increase/road friendly and decent lifespan, not the design spec of most adjustable top mounts!
Are you planning to go to Snet on 07/11 by any chance?
Court_S said:
They look bloody incredible.
I love all this bits that you’ve fabricated for the car. It’s such a shame that once fitted they’ll never been seen or noticed. The exhaust looks fab too.
Thank you! Ha, as with everything else on the car, it all goes unseen! Those who know will know. I love all this bits that you’ve fabricated for the car. It’s such a shame that once fitted they’ll never been seen or noticed. The exhaust looks fab too.
There's plenty more I'd like to make/do to the car yet.... Just need to find the time!
daniel-5zjw7 said:
I hope your doing well Adam, amazing work on these as always.
I have almost the opposite issue on my compact in that I want to stick with the Koni STRT set up for the time being given its very road friendly but would like to have adjustable top mounts, however I haven't found anything suitable as they can't be any thinner than stock as the car is already as low as I'd possibly want it at the front, plus i want something with minimal NVH increase/road friendly and decent lifespan, not the design spec of most adjustable top mounts!
Are you planning to go to Snet on 07/11 by any chance?
Sounds like you have been googling a lot too!. Have you knocked the pin out the top mounts so you can play with the camber or is it caster you want?. I've seen people use those TMS top plates for a bit more camber, but I don't know if these would cause excessive wear on the shock seals due to the angle of the shock going into the top mount with the extra camber being asked from them.... they seem to be widely used so I could be wrong.I have almost the opposite issue on my compact in that I want to stick with the Koni STRT set up for the time being given its very road friendly but would like to have adjustable top mounts, however I haven't found anything suitable as they can't be any thinner than stock as the car is already as low as I'd possibly want it at the front, plus i want something with minimal NVH increase/road friendly and decent lifespan, not the design spec of most adjustable top mounts!
Are you planning to go to Snet on 07/11 by any chance?
Strangely enough, I am there that date!
amc_adam said:
Sounds like you have been googling a lot too!. Have you knocked the pin out the top mounts so you can play with the camber or is it caster you want?. I've seen people use those TMS top plates for a bit more camber, but I don't know if these would cause excessive wear on the shock seals due to the angle of the shock going into the top mount with the extra camber being asked from them.... they seem to be widely used so I could be wrong.
Strangely enough, I am there that date!
Was looking at booking in the 1 coupe on that date tooStrangely enough, I am there that date!
So I've finished fiddling with the front Top Mounts, I also made up a rubber boot/dust shield to go on the underside of the Top Mount to help prevent any crap getting in the spherical bearing.
I decided to blast the aluminium to key the surfaces and spray them with VHT paint like I did with the calliper carriers, not that these will get hot it just seemed to be quite hard wearing (and there was an aerosol can left over).
The Top Mounts were reassembled,
And then fitted them to the car, the stainless discs on the top of the towers help prevent any 'mushrooming' and will eventually have a strut brace mounted to them. I turned some little cups so the fixings looked a bit tidier.
Roughly with a digital angle gauge the Camber was set to 1.8 degrees, and with two bits of folded aluminium sheet pushed up against the front wheels, using two tape measures the Toe was set to 0 degrees-ish.
I've driven the car quite a bit since, it feels so much better to drive..... the extra travel and camber has made a huge difference, the real test would have been the Snetterton track day I had booked on the 7th November but that has now been canceled due to the second lock down.
There is a very minimal NVH increase, nothing like what I was expecting..... but noticeable enough for the girlfriend to comment on it.
Also, I bought some 265/30/19 and 235/35/19 Michelin 4S's for the VMR VB3 (CSL reps) I bought new back in 2010, but these need refurb before the tyres are fitted. Something I've been putting off as I'd like to match the 'Hypersilver' that they are currently in, not the horrible dark powdercoat chrome that a couple of Refurb Company's interpretation of what hypersilver is.
There is still more I'm going to do and update, but keep an eye out for another thread I'll be starting soon on my Classic Mini.... that is another level of 'Involved'.
I decided to blast the aluminium to key the surfaces and spray them with VHT paint like I did with the calliper carriers, not that these will get hot it just seemed to be quite hard wearing (and there was an aerosol can left over).
The Top Mounts were reassembled,
And then fitted them to the car, the stainless discs on the top of the towers help prevent any 'mushrooming' and will eventually have a strut brace mounted to them. I turned some little cups so the fixings looked a bit tidier.
Roughly with a digital angle gauge the Camber was set to 1.8 degrees, and with two bits of folded aluminium sheet pushed up against the front wheels, using two tape measures the Toe was set to 0 degrees-ish.
I've driven the car quite a bit since, it feels so much better to drive..... the extra travel and camber has made a huge difference, the real test would have been the Snetterton track day I had booked on the 7th November but that has now been canceled due to the second lock down.
There is a very minimal NVH increase, nothing like what I was expecting..... but noticeable enough for the girlfriend to comment on it.
Also, I bought some 265/30/19 and 235/35/19 Michelin 4S's for the VMR VB3 (CSL reps) I bought new back in 2010, but these need refurb before the tyres are fitted. Something I've been putting off as I'd like to match the 'Hypersilver' that they are currently in, not the horrible dark powdercoat chrome that a couple of Refurb Company's interpretation of what hypersilver is.
There is still more I'm going to do and update, but keep an eye out for another thread I'll be starting soon on my Classic Mini.... that is another level of 'Involved'.
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff