[**ghost**]

I just got Eibach Springs installed and thought I'd do a brief review for anyone considering them.

Eibach makes 25mm and 40mm lowering springs. I opted for the 40mm ones.

Details of the car it was installed on:

2013 BMW 328i
Standard Suspension (in Australia we don't get M-Sport Suspension on sport lines)
Standard Non-VSS Steering
Front Wheels - 19 x 8.5
Rear Wheels - 19 x 9.5

Please note - I'm not a engineer or professional driver. I've a bit of track experience but by no means am I an expert. The below is my impressions only with some guesswork on why the improvements were made

Cosmetics and Gutter Clearance
Firstly the obvious - the car is lowered by the advertised 40mm. I'll post photos when i learn how to (anyone I can email them to and then you guys post?).

Overall - the appearance is much improved and required if you upgrade to 19 inch wheels.

Happy to note also that there are no issues with gutter clearance on the sport line bumper. I wouldn't recommend adding a lip though...

Cornering and Body Roll
My main problem with the F30 was the amount of body roll present during cornering that gave a "floating" feeling.

The lower centre of gravity and decreased body roll gives a much better driving experience with cornering being "flatter" and more responsive to steering input

Directional shift is also much more direct, especially if you turn one way then another in a "S" shaped curve. Prior to the modification I could feel the weight of the car being shifted to one side and required much more force to turn the car back to another direction. Now the car is far more responsive.

The best way I can describe it is that it feels more like a hot hatch in turning.

Braking
Prior to modification the car noticeably had a lot of forward pitch when under hard braking. The pitch hasn't been eliminated but substantially reduced.

My feeling is that the first benefit of this is that post corner acceleration is improved in responsiveness if not absolute speed. The second benefit is that the car generally feels more solid and "better".

Steering
This was the biggest surprise.

I'm no expert in suspension geometry but the lowered suspension made the standard steering noticeably heavier than before. On a scale against cars I've previously owned with 1 being the "lightest" steering;

1. Honda Accord
2. Honda Civic VTiR
3. Subaru Impreza WRX
4. Honda Integra Type R
5. E90 Non M Sport
6. WRX STI
7. F30 328i
8. Renault Clio Sport Cup
9. Honda S2000

It could just be an illusion of the added steering weight, but I feel that the feedback is also much improved.

Comfort and Harshness
Ok enough positives, here's some negatives.

The car is no louder or harsher over smooth roads or minor road imperfections. On larger road cracks, however, the ride is definitely bumpier than before. Again using the scale with one being the most least harsh and 9 being most harsh;

1. Honda Accord Euro
2. E90 Non M Sport
3. F30 328i
4. Renault Clio Sport Cup
5. Honda Civic VTIR
6. Integra Type R
7. Subaru WRX STI
8. Subaru WRX
9. Honda S2000 (with coilovers, i hated this thing)

Suspension travel - Lowering 40mm significantly decreased the travel to the point where coming DOWN on a speed hump the suspension would bottom out if going faster than 20kmph, resulting in a big "bump"

Other than that, however, I find that the comfort is largely retained

Overall, Cost and Subjective Impressions
Overall - I love the springs. It makes the car feel subjectively more solid, responsive and "sporty".

As discussed in my last thread the total cost came in at just over $500 without alignment.

Each to their own but i think this is the best mod you can make to a non-msport - definitely made the car more enjoyable than a tune or spanky new m sport foot pedals....

[Spikey]

Nice write up. I like the comparison scale you used there.

Keen to see pics of the before/after springs. If you edit your existing post, "Go Advanced", manage attachments... you should be able to chose files from your computer to upload into your existing post.

Otherwise, can upload to image hosting sites like imageshack.us and paste the links. Or PM me and I can help you upload the pics

[David328M-Sport]

Originally Posted by **ghost**

definitely made the car more enjoyable than a tune

Drive a tuned car (BMS Stage 1 or aFe for example) first before making such a claim. You WILL change your mind. Enjoy your suspension.

[**ghost**]

Originally Posted by David328M-Sport

Drive a tuned car (BMS Stage 1 or aFe for example) first before making such a claim. You WILL change your mind. Enjoy your suspension.

My one is tuned by Evolve Technik at one most refer to as Stage One

The acceleration is drastically better and response was much improved.

But personally speaking the increased in outright power which can't be used in most circumstances on the road didn't give me as much driving enjoyment as a suspension mod that changed the way the car behaved.

To be fair might be because I've owned higher power cars before. Probably should've bought a 335i but i couldnt afford it

[David328M-Sport]

Originally Posted by **ghost**

But personally speaking the increased in outright power which can't be used in most circumstances on the road didn't give me as much driving enjoyment as a suspension mod that changed the way the car behaved.

To be fair might be because I've owned higher power cars before. Probably should've bought a 335i but i couldnt afford it

Maybe because I have a better than the basic suspension, I'm very happy with my car's handling. I understand the base suspension is very soft. Still, comparing a tune to the suspension, the tune for me would win.

Yes, the 335i was/is way over the top, due to base pricing, LCT & extra stamp duty etc.

[dcg71]

Nice write up. You've done well getting springs, install and an alignment for $500.
I grew tired of the suspension pretty quickly too.

[jctg]

For me the eibachs would beat a tune as well. I have the std suspension and the softness is a much bigger problem for me than power - probably by a factor of 5. With the eibachs you can feel the difference even stopping at traffic lights from pretty much pedestrian speed (ok a little faster than that).

I would love a tune that would improve throttle response and linearity though.

[Sephanite]

My superchip tune is very linear. I think a spring upgrade would be more enjoyable than the tune though. I can turn the wheel side to side quickly at 10 degrees without turning the car

[**ghost**]

Originally Posted by Sephanite

My superchip tune is very linear. I think a spring upgrade would be more enjoyable than the tune though. I can turn the wheel side to side quickly at 10 degrees without turning the car

You'll definitely enjoy it if you got it done I can almost guarantee it. I know what you mean in regards to steering response - the factory specification is so unresponsive it almost makes you think the car is understeering.

With the mod the car is much sharper. Not as sharp as my old S2000 but definitely better than most sport cars or hot hatches out there.

And its so cheap if you order from Germany and install it here.

[bmbw]

Originally Posted by **ghost**

I just got Eibach Springs installed and thought I'd do a brief review for anyone considering them.

Eibach makes 25mm and 40mm lowering springs. I opted for the 40mm ones.

Details of the car it was installed on:

2013 BMW 328i
Standard Suspension (in Australia we don't get M-Sport Suspension on sport lines)
Standard Non-VSS Steering
Front Wheels - 19 x 8.5
Rear Wheels - 19 x 9.5

Please note - I'm not a engineer or professional driver. I've a bit of track experience but by no means am I an expert. The below is my impressions only with some guesswork on why the improvements were made

Cosmetics and Gutter Clearance
Firstly the obvious - the car is lowered by the advertised 40mm. I'll post photos when i learn how to (anyone I can email them to and then you guys post?).

Overall - the appearance is much improved and required if you upgrade to 19 inch wheels.

Happy to note also that there are no issues with gutter clearance on the sport line bumper. I wouldn't recommend adding a lip though...

Cornering and Body Roll
My main problem with the F30 was the amount of body roll present during cornering that gave a "floating" feeling.

The lower centre of gravity and decreased body roll gives a much better driving experience with cornering being "flatter" and more responsive to steering input

Directional shift is also much more direct, especially if you turn one way then another in a "S" shaped curve. Prior to the modification I could feel the weight of the car being shifted to one side and required much more force to turn the car back to another direction. Now the car is far more responsive.

The best way I can describe it is that it feels more like a hot hatch in turning.

Braking
Prior to modification the car noticeably had a lot of forward pitch when under hard braking. The pitch hasn't been eliminated but substantially reduced.

My feeling is that the first benefit of this is that post corner acceleration is improved in responsiveness if not absolute speed. The second benefit is that the car generally feels more solid and "better".

Steering
This was the biggest surprise.

I'm no expert in suspension geometry but the lowered suspension made the standard steering noticeably heavier than before. On a scale against cars I've previously owned with 1 being the "lightest" steering;

1. Honda Accord
2. Honda Civic VTiR
3. Subaru Impreza WRX
4. Honda Integra Type R
5. E90 Non M Sport
6. WRX STI
7. F30 328i
8. Renault Clio Sport Cup
9. Honda S2000

It could just be an illusion of the added steering weight, but I feel that the feedback is also much improved.

Comfort and Harshness
Ok enough positives, here's some negatives.

The car is no louder or harsher over smooth roads or minor road imperfections. On larger road cracks, however, the ride is definitely bumpier than before. Again using the scale with one being the most least harsh and 9 being most harsh;

1. Honda Accord Euro
2. E90 Non M Sport
3. F30 328i
4. Renault Clio Sport Cup
5. Honda Civic VTIR
6. Integra Type R
7. Subaru WRX STI
8. Subaru WRX
9. Honda S2000 (with coilovers, i hated this thing)

Suspension travel - Lowering 40mm significantly decreased the travel to the point where coming DOWN on a speed hump the suspension would bottom out if going faster than 20kmph, resulting in a big "bump"

Other than that, however, I find that the comfort is largely retained

Overall, Cost and Subjective Impressions
Overall - I love the springs. It makes the car feel subjectively more solid, responsive and "sporty".

As discussed in my last thread the total cost came in at just over $500 without alignment.

Each to their own but i think this is the best mod you can make to a non-msport - definitely made the car more enjoyable than a tune or spanky new m sport foot pedals....

Any issue with warranty or insurance?