coiler and spacer setup on e36 M3 help/advice needed...
Discussion
My E36 Evo has Eibach Sport Pro Coilovers fitted to it. Not too low, just done as a general suspension refresh a few years ago. When they were originally fitted I was told by the specialist that it needed spacers so the front wheels would clear the new front end setup. I have standard Evo DS11 wheels (sunflowers) fitted, staggered front and rear as factory. So, I had 15mm spacers fitted all round to make sure the clearance was met and thought no more of it.
Fast forward to now and I've noticed that my rear tyres (standard size wheels and tyre widths) have started rubbing on the rear arches. The car has not been excessively lowered but I've just taken the 15mm spacers off the rear to avoid doing any tyre/arch damage. Rear arches were rolled professionally before I bought the car so there's theoretically space under there but in practice, not.
I'm at a bit of a loss as to what route to take next. Do I...
-Drive it on the 15mm front spacers and none on the rear (remember, the car comes with staggered setup from the factory)
-Try and fit smaller spacers on the rear (down to 10mm perhaps) and keep the fronts at 15mm
-Go to 10s all round (not sure what clearance is actually required at the front though)
If anyone's gone this route before with an E36 M3 I'd be grateful of any advice on this.
This is how it was sitting with the 15s all round:
Fast forward to now and I've noticed that my rear tyres (standard size wheels and tyre widths) have started rubbing on the rear arches. The car has not been excessively lowered but I've just taken the 15mm spacers off the rear to avoid doing any tyre/arch damage. Rear arches were rolled professionally before I bought the car so there's theoretically space under there but in practice, not.
I'm at a bit of a loss as to what route to take next. Do I...
-Drive it on the 15mm front spacers and none on the rear (remember, the car comes with staggered setup from the factory)
-Try and fit smaller spacers on the rear (down to 10mm perhaps) and keep the fronts at 15mm
-Go to 10s all round (not sure what clearance is actually required at the front though)
If anyone's gone this route before with an E36 M3 I'd be grateful of any advice on this.
This is how it was sitting with the 15s all round:
f1nn said:
Why has the rear started to rub after a couple of years?
Surely it was always rubbing, or perhaps you’ve fitted tyres which although are the same size, are produced by a different manufacturer so have a slightly different shape to the side wall?
Or perhaps there is cumulative wear within the rear suspension that is now allowing more movement?
The rear arch on one side had a small amount of corrosion in it which had started to catch on the tyre wall. The corrosion has been treated but had marked the tyre a little. There doesn't seem to be any play anywhere on the back end of the car that I can find either.Surely it was always rubbing, or perhaps you’ve fitted tyres which although are the same size, are produced by a different manufacturer so have a slightly different shape to the side wall?
Or perhaps there is cumulative wear within the rear suspension that is now allowing more movement?
stevesingo said:
V1nce Fox said:
My E36 Evo has Eibach Sport Pro Coilovers fitted to it. Not too low, just done as a general suspension refresh a few years ago. When they were originally fitted I was told by the specialist that it needed spacers so the front wheels would clear the new front end setup. I have standard Evo DS11 wheels (sunflowers) fitted, staggered front and rear as factory. So, I had 15mm spacers fitted all round to make sure the clearance was met and thought no more of it.
I fail to imagine why this would be the case. Eibach Pro does not appear to be significantly different in appearance to a stock strut.https://www.eibachshop.co.uk/info-part-list?make=B...
I could imagine that if the lower spring platform was significantly larger in diameter, then the front wheel would need spacing away from the strut, but it is not. Maybe if you were to lower the front spring platform to it's lowest setting, it my interfere with the tyre. You have not.
Installation instructions here... http://web2.carparts-cat.com/default.aspx?32=5113&...
Para 14 of General Mounting Specification states
Eibach said:
Examine the clearance between the tires and the suspension over the full range of motion of the wheel. The minimum clearance between the suspension and the tire is 5 mm. If this clearance is less than 5 mm, wheel spacers may be necessary.
My suggestion would be to measure the distance from the inner face of the tyre and the strut. If >20mm, you can remove the front spacers. If, <10mm, you will need to keep them. Anything in-between, do the math.
I'll have a closer look at the front clearance (if it stops raining!). It did seem weird that it would need modification to fit. Guess it's going to be a bit of trial and error. All I do know is that the rears are already very wide tyres for the size of car and the rolled arches should have allowed clearance. Keen to keep the car looking fairly standard and the spacers always made it look a bit too aggressive for my taste.
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