E36 Bilstein B12s or HSDs

[brian394]

I've been searching and reading all night but cant get s definitive answer.

I've recently picked up another e36 328, and it's on some horrible cheap coilovers. Its also got some knocking from the rear end which sound like the top mounts.

So I'm going to replace the dampers with something abit better.

Ive narrowed it down to 2 setups.

Setup 1 - bilstein b12 sportline kit, powerflex purple rear top mounts and m3 evo front top mounts (mounted the wrong way).

Setup 2 - HSDs monopros.

Price wise theres not much in it, HSDs are currently cheaper due to black Friday sales. But I know price isn't everything.

The car will be never go on track. That's a long slippery slope and last time I went there i ended up with an E36 race car ( ahem, https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

It's a long term project, that will end up s54 powered, but will also be a daily. Because of my past experiences, I do tend to keep my speed into and out of corners, so I'm after the damper setup that'll handle better and last longer.

[helix402]

B12 kit uses B8 dampers which are very high quality, the fronts have internal bump stops which give better ride quality.

[MGR]

I put the B12 kit on my M3 and it’s decent / excellent above 50mph but it’s too rigid below that speed or just using it around town.

The damping quality is good but it’s just on the wrong side of comfortable for low speed town use. It deals with big impacts well but doesn’t settle over the small bumps at lower speeds. It’s bad enough that you get a few comments sometimes from passengers.

I wouldn’t fit it again, but it’s not bad enough to pay to fit something else. Overall I preferred the stock damping, it wasn’t as good when pushing on but much more useable in town and better on the motorway. Since the M3 was my daily the stock set up was better for more of the time for my use.

Ride height wise it’s exactly what I was after - 15-20mm drop. It looks good, not obviously modified.

Be aware you will probably need to buy stronger top mounts at the rear otherwise they don’t last long with stiffer suspension. I think I put e46 M3 top mounts and also some reinforced plates from a z3 at the rear to try to avoid this.

Edited by MGR on Tuesday 20th November 18:21

Edited by MGR on Tuesday 20th November 18:32

[pvogue]

B12s for me, I had them on my old E36 328 and my 130i, decent drop and good ride quality

[Dave0321]

Had the B12 kit on both my 328i's.. They're good, but maybe on the stiff side... Always felt like a little too much damping and not enough spring to me.