E91 Straight Six Bearding

[g3org3y]

helix403 said:

With standard alignment settings and parts in good condition the E9x range shouldn t wear the inner edge of the rear tyres. Mine did with worn out dampers and incorrect alignment.

Dampers apart, any other specific parts worth renewing in your opinion?

[helix403]

The lower rear damper mounts wear. There are quite a few arms and ball joints on the rear. You can change some of these for M3 parts, these are alloy arms instead of steel.

[pits]

Gave mine a wash earlier for the potential sales advert to be written, the lesser spotted completely stock 330i Manual, I lie, it has one modification, it has an extra hook for Benson the seatbelt helper so it actually delivers the seatbelt 3 times out of 10, instead of just merely caressing it.

[cerb4.5lee]

helix403 said:

With standard alignment settings and parts in good condition the E9x range shouldn t wear the inner edge of the rear tyres. Mine did with worn out dampers and incorrect alignment.

The E90 330d was a sod for wearing the inner edges off, and that was only 3 months old when I got it. The F82 M4 is a pig for doing it too, and I was only looking at the fronts yesterday after I'd parked it up on full look. The inside edges are right off on that, whereas the rest of the tyres are still above the wear bars though.

[RSTurboPaul]

AmirGSXR said:

RSTurboPaul said:

Will look forward to your review in due course

great review

Many thanks for the detailed feedback!

£1800 on parts is not cheap but seems reasonable for a complete overhaul with 'German manufacturer tax' in there too.

I guess fitting costs would need to be added on top for those not spannering themselves, but I imagine it might be lower than various random parts replacement because it would all be apart in one hit and (I assume) the new stuff could be built-up on a bench and transferred on?


I think the M3 components swap that is possible could be interesting - I wonder if they make an appreciable difference in feel? - but that is yet more money... lol

(If they are alloy, are they as strong / suitable for the e91 with its extra weight?)

[helix403]

RSTurboPaul said:

Many thanks for the detailed feedback!

£1800 on parts is not cheap but seems reasonable for a complete overhaul with 'German manufacturer tax' in there too.

I guess fitting costs would need to be added on top for those not spannering themselves, but I imagine it might be lower than various random parts replacement because it would all be apart in one hit and (I assume) the new stuff could be built-up on a bench and transferred on?


I think the M3 components swap that is possible could be interesting - I wonder if they make an appreciable difference in feel? - but that is yet more money... lol

(If they are alloy, are they as strong / suitable for the e91 with its extra weight?)

The alloy rear arms are fine on the E91. I’ve had them for a few years on my car. I fitted them at the same time as springs and dampers so can’t quantify the improvements. They are 25% lighter than standard parts and stiffer.

[RSTurboPaul]

Looking at winter wheels and the vast unknown that is the roundness (or lack thereof) of eBay secondhand alloys listings (that usually need refurbishing)...

... I am wondering if a set of brand new OEM steelies might actually be a sensible option, given they only appear to be about £450:

https://www.alloywheelsdirect.net/bmw_alloys/bmw-1...

[RSTurboPaul]

helix403 said:

The alloy rear arms are fine on the E91. I ve had them for a few years on my car. I fitted them at the same time as springs and dampers so can t quantify the improvements. They are 25% lighter than standard parts and stiffer.

Ooh, thanks for the info

They sound ideal, assuming they are not a million quid each! lol


edit:

£350 ex VAT is not too bad:

https://www.darksidedevelopments.co.uk/products/m3...

I wonder what BMW is charging for the parts listed...?!

33 32 2 406 292 - 33322406292 - 2 406 292 - 2406292

33 32 2 409 890 - 33322409890 - 2 409 890 - 2409890

33 32 2 406 289 - 33322406289 - 2 406 289 - 2406289

33 32 2 406 288 - 33322406288 - 2 406 288 - 2406288

Edited by RSTurboPaul on Sunday 19th October 13:30

[helix403]

RSTurboPaul said:

Ooh, thanks for the info

They sound ideal, assuming they are not a million quid each! lol


edit:

£350 ex VAT is not too bad:

https://www.darksidedevelopments.co.uk/products/m3...

I wonder what BMW is charging for the parts listed...?!

33 32 2 406 292 - 33322406292 - 2 406 292 - 2406292

33 32 2 409 890 - 33322409890 - 2 409 890 - 2409890

33 32 2 406 289 - 33322406289 - 2 406 289 - 2406289

33 32 2 406 288 - 33322406288 - 2 406 288 - 2406288

Edited by RSTurboPaul on Sunday 19th October 13:30

You can buy aftermarket arms from someone like Autodoc to save a bit of cash. They sell TRW arms which have the M logo and BMW logo ground off.

[RSTurboPaul]

helix403 said:

You can buy aftermarket arms from someone like Autodoc to save a bit of cash. They sell TRW arms which have the M logo and BMW logo ground off.

Really? Nice, thanks for the info

[g3org3y]

Thoughts on this rear suspension kit at £170?

[helix403]

g3org3y said:

Thoughts on this rear suspension kit at £170?

I don’t use Meyle parts. I once bought a new Meyle bush which had more play than a very old genuine BMW one.

[g3org3y]

helix403 said:

I don t use Meyle parts. I once bought a new Meyle bush which had more play than a very old genuine BMW one.

Fair enough. Vaico also do a repair kit with the same stuff for around the same money. Better option?

[helix403]

g3org3y said:

Fair enough. Vaico also do a repair kit with the same stuff for around the same money. Better option?

I’ve never used Vaico, TRW are good.

[ATM]

helix403 said:

g3org3y said:

Thoughts on this rear suspension kit at £170?

I don t use Meyle parts. I once bought a new Meyle bush which had more play than a very old genuine BMW one.

I fitted some Meyle HD arms to my e61 - front - and they're great. I'm not sure what HD means but possibly stiffer bushes or ... no idea. Some bits are blue. No complaints from Me.

I posted a suggestion about these elsewhere and was ridiculed because they're now made in 'China'. I don't know why 'China' is a problem. If you don't like 'China' then look elsewhere otherwise I think these are worth considering.

[preacherman]

It's all a bit of minefield these days it seems. China/Far East doesn't automatically mean poor quality but anecdotal (forum) evidence seems to point to QC dropping when manufacturing has been moved from Germany/Europe. Maybe teething problems, maybe a choice. Everything in life costs more and you get lesser quality as firms try to reduce cost inflation.

I just had two front TRW wishbones (made in Malaysia) fail after a year and approx 5,000 miles; the ball joints went. Not even the mighty ZF family can be relied upon!

ETA: replaced with Lemforder which were made in Slovakia. Will see if they last any longer...

Edited by preacherman on Tuesday 21st October 19:18

[g3org3y]

Anyone else find their E91 sits low? Standard M Sport suspension and speed bumps are a concern to the extent this is now the second time exhaust has been damaged from being hit. Mechanic says springs are fine (not broken).

[helix403]

The M Sports do sit very low. As the dampers wear they sit even lower. You can increase ride height slightly with rough road spacers on the front and thicker rear spring pads.

[g3org3y]

helix403 said:

The M Sports do sit very low. As the dampers wear they sit even lower. You can increase ride height slightly with rough road spacers on the front and thicker rear spring pads.

Thank you, will look into it.

[SimonK2486]

RSTurboPaul said:

Looking at winter wheels and the vast unknown that is the roundness (or lack thereof) of eBay secondhand alloys listings (that usually need refurbishing)...

... I am wondering if a set of brand new OEM steelies might actually be a sensible option, given they only appear to be about £450:

https://www.alloywheelsdirect.net/bmw_alloys/bmw-1...

I have a set of the original MV3s which came on my car and were refurbished by me a couple of years ago in matte black with Continental Winter tyres on, and will be selling separately from my car soon, send me a PM if you re interested!

Edited by SimonK2486 on Saturday 25th October 22:29

Edited by SimonK2486 on Saturday 25th October 22:30