[BenMN]

Hi All,

I have been planning on switching from stock springs to the Eibach Pro Kit and Bilstien B8's. I have a 2018 BMW 440i Xdrive coupe, base (non EDC).

After a good amount of reading, I have decided that I want to go for the Eibach
E10-20-031-05-22 kit. However, when I go to buy the kit on Eibach's website, they say that the E10-20-031-18-22 kit is correct for my car (or at least a 435iX) which only drops .8" in the front, unlike the -05 kit.

Has anyone used the -05 kit (E10-20-031-05-22) on their f32 X coupe or is it really only limited to the f30? I thought I saw somebody using it here... Is there any reason using an f30 kit on an f32 would be an issue?

Thanks!

[Sayonara]

Bump -> did you end up figuring this out? In the same boat lol

[johnung]

Originally Posted by Sayonara

Bump -> did you end up figuring this out? In the same boat lol

Is yours also an F32 440i XDrive, non-Adaptive? What model year? Mileage?

[Sayonara]

Hey John, thx for your reply on the other thread btw! Forgot to reply back.

It’s a 2018 F32 440x Drive on m adaptive with ZE0 package

After calling around and researching I found that the 18-22 is the correct one.

Any proactive maintenance you think I should do on suspension at the 94,000 km mark? I’ve got a small squeaky sound as soon as I sit down in it that could be from front strut mounts + bearings potentially.

[johnung]

Originally Posted by BenMN

Hi All,

I have been planning on switching from stock springs to the Eibach Pro Kit and Bilstien B8's. I have a 2018 BMW 440i Xdrive coupe, base (non EDC).

After a good amount of reading, I have decided that I want to go for the Eibach
E10-20-031-05-22 kit. However, when I go to buy the kit on Eibach's website, they say that the E10-20-031-18-22 kit is correct for my car (or at least a 435iX) which only drops .8" in the front, unlike the -05 kit.

Has anyone used the -05 kit (E10-20-031-05-22) on their f32 X coupe or is it really only limited to the f30? I thought I saw somebody using it here... Is there any reason using an f30 kit on an f32 would be an issue?

Thanks!

Sorry I missed this post initially. With European parts manufacturers it’s very important to check their European catalogs. Their American catalogs are often watered down to include only part numbers that American distributors have decided to import, or only models sold in the US, etc. So for Eibach I always lookup in Eibach.de instead of Eibach.com which is for US only.

The European catalog has additional information such as the part numbers and specs on the individual front and rear springs within an Eibach kit. Also the Eibach tech support has been consistently helpful for years providing additional information such as spring rates.

For this post the question was about the differences between the two Pro Kits:
E10-20-031-05-22 and E10-20-031-18-22.

The answer is obvious by looking up the individual front and rear springs used in each kit. The -05 & -18 kits use the identical front spring, part# F11-20-030-03-VA. It has a spring rate of 194 lbs/in, up from the stock spring which is usually in the 160’s. The drop for any spring is mostly dependent on the axle weight of the model.

So the -05 & -22 kits use different rear springs. But they have exactly the same rear spring rate of 542 lbs/in. But probably due to the different rear chassis design of the F32 vs the F30, Eibach went with a very slightly different rear spring that is 6mm shorter and 14.0mm thick wire vs 14.2mm used on the F30.

-18 Rear is Part# F11-20-031-01-HA
-05 Rear is Part# F11-20-031-03-HA

I continue to be amazed at how Eibach really attempts to tune the spring kits for specific models. When I’ve looked at other spring manufacturers, they tend to just match up one of their springs to an entire group of models like saying use this spring for every F30 or F32. The only customization or fitment might be to adjust their drop estimates in model descriptions. But it’s definitely a one spring fits all attitude.

Eibach drop estimates tend to be pretty accurate. For the -18 kit installed on the 440i XDrive Eibach estimates:
Front drop 15mm-20mm (0.6”-0.8”)
Rear drop 5mm-10mm (0.2”-0.4”)
In American catalogs, I typically see F0.8”/R0.4”.

It’s important to understand that the 4-series comes from the factory designed with an already lowered suspension. When my buddies F32 and my F30 were parked next to each other, both with Eibach’s installed, his F32 definitely looked like a lowered coupe.

It’s important to get a baseline chassis height measurement so you know later exactly how much lower it is. At all four wheels just measure from center point of wheel center cap straight up to the fender lip. This helps to quantify the tire/fender lip difference between front & rear too.

Mileage is important! Lower springs wear dampers faster! Dampers may already be worn out, so it’s often cost effective to replace dampers at the same time as adding lowering springs.

For Adaptive dampers, I recommend MonroeEDC made in Europe that cost so much less than Bilstein B4-Damptronic, even when paying for shipping from Europe to US. (Adaptives have a horizontal cylinder sticking out the side of the vertical damper body)

For standard dampers, I recommend Koni Sport Yellow which are adjustable for comfort (rebound), a big feature.

To refresh suspension comfort, replace top hats (bearing inside that wears out) and bottom rubber spring perches (rubber loses resilience). Also when lowering upgrade the bump stops to F80 bump stops which are shorter to prevent lowered suspension from prematurely hitting the bump stop. F80 bump stops are made of denser foam to prevent bottoming out when the new higher rate spring is overcome by a bad bump or bad pothole.

For standard dampers, there is a coilover option that is roughly the same price as KoniSport/Eibach individually. Usually coilovers are much more stiff/harsh, but ST/KW coilovers have great Engineering & matching of spring & damper rates. The ST XA model is an excellent choice that includes adjustment for comfort (rebound). Sometimes the KW rear 15mm spring spacer is useful to add to adjust the rear drop range. See photo.

Hope this helps someone!

[Sayonara]

Originally Posted by johnung

Sorry I missed this post initially. With European parts manufacturers it’s very important to check their European catalogs. Their American catalogs are often watered down to include only part numbers that American distributors have decided to import, or only models sold in the US, etc. So for Eibach I always lookup in Eibach.de instead of Eibach.com which is for US only.

The European catalog has additional information such as the part numbers and specs on the individual front and rear springs within an Eibach kit. Also the Eibach tech support has been consistently helpful for years providing additional information such as spring rates.

For this post the question was about the differences between the two Pro Kits:
E10-20-031-05-22 and E10-20-031-18-22.

The answer is obvious by looking up the individual front and rear springs used in each kit. The -05 & -18 kits use the identical front spring, part# F11-20-030-03-VA. It has a spring rate of 194 lbs/in, up from the stock spring which is usually in the 160’s. The drop for any spring is mostly dependent on the axle weight of the model.

So the -05 & -22 kits use different rear springs. But they have exactly the same rear spring rate of 542 lbs/in. But probably due to the different rear chassis design of the F32 vs the F30, Eibach went with a very slightly different rear spring that is 6mm shorter and 14.0mm thick wire vs 14.2mm used on the F30.

-18 Rear is Part# F11-20-031-01-HA
-05 Rear is Part# F11-20-031-03-HA

I continue to be amazed at how Eibach really attempts to tune the spring kits for specific models. When [...]

This is gold!!!! You’re a life saver. Thank you friend

[Sayonara]

Originally Posted by johnung

Sorry I missed this post initially. With European parts manufacturers it’s very important to check their European catalogs. Their American catalogs are often watered down to include only part numbers that American distributors have decided to import, or only models sold in the US, etc. So for Eibach I always lookup in Eibach.de instead of Eibach.com which is for US only.

The European catalog has additional information such as the part numbers and specs on the individual front and rear springs within an Eibach kit. Also the Eibach tech support has been consistently helpful for years providing additional information such as spring rates.

For this post the question was about the differences between the two Pro Kits:
E10-20-031-05-22 and E10-20-031-18-22.

The answer is obvious by looking up the individual front and rear springs used in each kit. The -05 & -18 kits use the identical front spring, part# F11-20-030-03-VA. It has a spring rate of 194 lbs/in, up from the stock spring which is usually in the 160’s. The drop for any spring is mostly dependent on the axle weight of the model.

So the -05 & -22 kits use different rear springs. But they have exactly the same rear spring rate of 542 lbs/in. But probably due to the different rear chassis design of the F32 vs the F30, Eibach went with a very slightly different rear spring that is 6mm shorter and 14.0mm thick wire vs 14.2mm used on the F30.

-18 Rear is Part# F11-20-031-01-HA
-05 Rear is Part# F11-20-031-03-HA

I continue to be amazed at how Eibach really attempts to tune the spring kits for specific models. When I’ve looked at other spring manufacturers, they tend to just match up one of their springs to an entire group of models like saying use this spring for every F30 or F32. The only customization or fitment might be to adjust their drop estimates in model descriptions. But it’s definitely a one spring fits all attitude.

Eibach drop estimates tend to be pretty accurate. For the -18 kit installed on the 440i XDrive Eibach estimates:
Front drop 15mm-20mm (0.6”-0.8”)
Rear drop 5mm-10mm (0.2”-0.4”)
In American catalogs, I typically see F0.8”/R0.4”.

It’s important to understand that the 4-series comes from the factory designed with an already lowered suspension. When my buddies F32 and my F30 were parked next to each other, both with Eibach’s installed, his F32 definitely looked like a lowered coupe.

It’s important to get a baseline chassis height measurement so you know later exactly how much lower it is. At all four wheels just measure from center point of wheel center cap straight up to the fender lip. This helps to quantify the tire/fender lip difference between front & rear too.

Mileage is important! Lower springs wear dampers faster! Dampers may already be worn out, so it’s often cost effective to replace dampers at the same time as adding lowering springs.

For Adaptive dampers, I recommend MonroeEDC made in Europe that cost so much less than Bilstein B4-Damptronic, even when paying for shipping from Europe to US. (Adaptives have a horizontal cylinder sticking out the side of the vertical damper body)

For standard dampers, I recommend Koni Sport Yellow which are adjustable for comfort (rebound), a big feature.

To refresh suspension comfort, replace top hats (bearing inside that wears out) and bottom rubber spring perches (rubber loses resilience). Also when lowering upgrade the bump stops to F80 bump stops which are shorter to prevent lowered suspension from prematurely hitting the bump stop. F80 bump stops are made of denser foam to prevent bottoming out when the new higher rate spring is overcome by a bad bump or bad pothole.

For standard dampers, there is a coilover option that is roughly the same price as KoniSport/Eibach individually. Usually coilovers are much more stiff/harsh, but ST/KW coilovers have great Engineering & matching of spring & damper rates. The ST XA model is an excellent choice that includes adjustment for comfort (rebound). Sometimes the KW rear 15mm spring spacer is useful to add to adjust the rear drop range. See photo.

Hope this helps someone!

Also, I watched this video by father kern417 and saw that he didn't recommend modifying the bump stops b/c it may feel more comfortable but may actually be damaging the internals of the shocks. Thoughts?

[johnung]

Originally Posted by Sayonara

Also, I watched this video by father kern417 and saw that he didn't recommend modifying the bump stops b/c it may feel more comfortable but may actually be damaging the internals of the shocks. Thoughts?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0heJpbTfy54

The video link didn’t work. I’ll have to search YouTube when I have time to see exactly what Kern was referring to. To damage the dampers would depend on the damper and require specific circumstances.

I’ve had a number of discussions about bump stops with Koni and Farkle. And I’ve experimented with bump stops myself. Most people don’t understand the functions of bump stops and their relationship to the dampers and the springs.

If lowering springs are installed with higher spring rates, and the stock bump stops remain, the odds increase that the ride will be disrupted with the damper prematurely hitting the bump stop more often in normal driving. And when driving on uneven surfaces, if the force is great enough to overcome the spring to contact the bump stop, the odds are greater that the stock bump stop will not offer enough resistance to prevent the damper from bottoming out.

See the attached photo. It shows a stock front F30 bump stop versus a front F80 bump stop. The stock bump stop is taller so a lowered car will contact it more than the shorter F80 bump stop. Also the stock bump stop is made of a much lighter weight foam. The new Eibach springs have about +30 higher lb/in spring rates. If a road force from a higher speed bump or pothole is enough to overpower that stronger spring, then it could slam right down and through that soft stock bump stop to bottom out the damper. But the denser foam of the F80 bump stop is more likely to absorb & dissipate that extra force preventing the damper from bottoming out and being damaged.

Based on these facts, I’d say that using the stock bump stops in this configuration increases the odds of a worse ride and potential damage to the damper from bottoming out.

[Sayonara]

Interesting points... Hard to argue with your suspension physics breakdown.

Thoughts on the lifespan of m-adaptive edc? I've seen they typically break down at the 100,000 mile mark. Mine seem ok (haven't noticed anything off except for a little creakiness which sounds like the top hat based on some of your feedback).

[Sayonara]

Originally Posted by johnung

The video link didn’t work. I’ll have to search YouTube when I have time to see exactly what Kern was referring to. To damage the dampers would depend on the damper and require specific circumstances.

I’ve had a number of discussions about bump stops with Koni and Farkle. And I’ve experimented with bump stops myself. Most people don’t understand the functions of bump stops and their relationship to the dampers and the springs.

If lowering springs are installed with higher spring rates, and the stock bump stops remain, the odds increase that the ride will be disrupted with the damper prematurely hitting the bump stop more often in normal driving. And when driving on uneven surfaces, if the force is great enough to overcome the spring to contact the bump stop, the odds are greater that the stock bump stop will not offer enough resistance to prevent the damper from bottoming out.

See the attached photo. It shows a stock front F30 bump stop versus a front F80 bump stop. The stock bump stop is taller so a lowered car will contact it more than the shorter F80 bump stop. Also the stock bump stop is made of a much lighter weight foam. The new Eibach springs have about +30 higher lb/in spring rates. If a road force from a higher speed bump or pothole is enough to overpower that stronger spring, then it could slam right down and through that soft stock bump stop to bottom out the damper. But the denser foam of the F80 bump stop is more likely to absorb & dissipate that extra force preventing the damper from bottoming out and being damaged.

Based on these facts, I’d say that using the stock bump stops in this configuration increases the odds of a worse ride and potential damage to the damper from bottoming out.

Hey John, been revisiting a lot of old threads and I'm considered the pay once cry once approach and going straight for the KW DDC. I assume that I can still update the tophats but skip the rubber spring perches b/c KW comes with them. Any thoughts on using OEM tophats vs alternatives?

For context it's a DD @94000km that I take on spirited drives. I live in Canada so I like the adjustability for winter as well. Car is an xDrive with edc.

[johnung]

Originally Posted by Sayonara

Hey John, been revisiting a lot of old threads and I'm considered the pay once cry once approach and going straight for the KW DDC. I assume that I can still update the tophats but skip the rubber spring perches b/c KW comes with them. Any thoughts on using OEM tophats vs alternatives?

For context it's a DD @94000km that I take on spirited drives. I live in Canada so I like the adjustability for winter as well. Car is an xDrive with edc.

I’d be confident using a name brand top hat. I think that I used Lemforder or Febi Bilstein.

Seems like a good strategy. Obviously there aren’t as many KW DDC because the price is at the higher end. But when I hear that someone has them, their results/feedback has always been positive. Sounds like the KW DDC check off all your boxes as well so I don’t think that you can go wrong.

Make sure to take a baseline chassis height measurement at all four wheels. Center point on wheel cap straight up to fender lip. It’s normal for left & right to differ. Then you’ll know exactly how the drop compares.

Good luck. I’m anxious to hear your driving impressions.

[Sayonara]

Originally Posted by johnung

I’d be confident using a name brand top hat. I think that I used Lemforder or Febi Bilstein.

Seems like a good strategy. Obviously there aren’t as many KW DDC because the price is at the higher end. But when I hear that someone has them, their results/feedback has always been positive. Sounds like the KW DDC check off all your boxes as well so I don’t think that you can go wrong.

Make sure to take a baseline chassis height measurement at all four wheels. Center point on wheel cap straight up to fender lip. It’s normal for left & right to differ. Then you’ll know exactly how the drop compares.

Good luck. I’m anxious to hear your driving impressions.

Appreciate your feedback, insight, and guidance John! It means a lot, especially as a newbie.

Sorry in advance for the wall of text below. 😅

Im having second thoughts on going for the DDCs since my OEM suspension at 94,000 KM as a DD (never tracked) seems like it’s good shape except for two things…

1. Sometimes I hear a creaking sound when sitting in the driver or passenger seat, which seems like it could be solved by refreshing the top hats + perches.
2. Sometimes I hear a little NVH (clunking sound) in the rear when driving over raised surfaces - but it only happens when the car is just started up.

Realistically I should have a mechanic assess the lifespan of my shocks to decide on whether to install the Eibach pro 18-22 and f80 m3 bump stops (in possession) or going for the DDC’s.

If I’m able to get away with using my stock shocks for a couple more years, I’m thinking of just going all out on my suspension by upgrading to coil overs, control arms, end links, sway bars etc…

I like the idea of upgrading parts when it’s time to service them to save the wallet.

Also it may help me appreciate the process of build my car.

For context, I’m installing a wavetrac LSD, akraprovic dp, B58TU pump and new wheels (apex arc8rt 18x9 ET 33 square) and tires (255/40-18 MPS4S).

[johnung]

Originally Posted by Sayonara

Appreciate your feedback, insight, and guidance John! It means a lot, especially as a newbie.

Sorry in advance for the wall of text below. 😅

Im having second thoughts on going for the DDCs since my OEM suspension at 94,000 KM as a DD (never tracked) seems like it’s good shape except for two things…

Sometimes I hear a creaking sound when sitting in the driver or passenger seat, which seems like it could be solved by refreshing the top hats + perches.
Sometimes I hear a little NVH (clunking sound) in the rear when driving over raised surfaces - but it only happens when the car is just started up.

Realistically I should have a mechanic assess the lifespan of my shocks to decide on whether to install the Eibach pro 18-22 and f80 m3 bump stops (in possession) or going for the DDC’s.

If I’m able to get away with using my stock shocks for a couple more years, I’m thinking of just going all out on my suspension by upgrading to coil overs, control arms, end links, sway bars etc…

I like the idea of upgrading parts when it’s time to service them to save the wallet.

Also it may help me appreciate the process of build my car.

For context, I’m installing a wavetrac LSD, akraprovic dp, B58TU pump and new wheels (apex arc8rt 18x9 ET 33 square) and tires (255/40-18 MPS4S).

You’re welcome! Glad it helps. Just paying it forward from when I received a lot of good advice when I was new to the platform ~8 years ago.

If you already have the Eibachs & don’t mind the labor, then install them for a nice refresh. No mechanic can predict the lifespan of Adaptives. I’ve seen 45k-95k miles typically. When one starts leaking then replace the pair on that axle with MonroeEDC, or get the whole KW DDC coilovers.

I’d do the KW DDC coilovers with adjustable end links (that are the correct length for a neutral setup), and with the VAC Motorsports monoball control arms. Hold off initially on any sway bar decisions until you drive the mods above for a while.

Suspension springs and sway bars overlap in terms of controlling body roll. You really need to get used to the higher spring rates and damper rates of the KW DDC. As well as your new wheels & tires. You may find that sway bar changes are not needed. Or maybe as little as a slightly thicker rear sway bar. What are your last seven digits of your VIN to lookup which stock rear bar you have?

Your planned upgrades look good. A buddy of mine installed a Wavetrac on his 340i. I need to ask him details/see how he likes it.

Hope this helps!