[B50AteYourRide]

I just wanted to share my opinions of the Ohlins Road and Track for the F30.
I have a 2016 340i x-drive and have had to wait for Ohlins to finally come out with a set that fit the x-drive. The car has about 50K miles on it and was coming from stock M Sport Suspension, which I felt was a bit soft and nothing to really get too excited about.

I wanted something that would keep the "civilized" nature of the 340 but just be stiffer and more composed.

I have had KW, Koni, Cusco and Bilstens in the past, although on different cars to be fair.

I have always heard good things about Ohlins and figured I could call it a bucket list thing and justify the purchase, and props to Sweden. I wanted to see if they were really worth the cost over other options and took a leap of faith.

I had them installed in November, but hit a deer within a few hundred miles, and had about 7 months of downtime (long story), so in total probably only have 1 to 2K miles on them.

I can say, so far, they have perfectly fit the bill for what I was looking for. There really is a balancing act between stiffness and "comfort" when it comes to springs and dampers and I think Ohlins did a great job with this set.

I have never had other setups on this car, so I really don't want to get into comparisons, because I honestly don't know, but, in a phrase, the car is quite stiff, but never jarring or harsh. The wheels really seem to stick to the road, even when unloaded, like at the crest of a hill. The car just always seems to feel well planted and sure footed. Overall, I would describe it as a very civilized, solid ride; stiff but not harsh. By way of example, my wife, who has no interest in having, or being in, a race car finds them perfectly fine. She did not say this about other past choices.

Here is a shot I got when the bumper was off from the deer incident. For me, for the cost, I thought they were worth it. I'm really glad to be using them again. I really enjoy driving them but must also disclose that, for the most part, I do not have to deal with really crappy roads with this car. For those I take the truck, which does have a set of Bilsteins that I also like, but a whole lot more travel.

[Watsey]

Good to hear they’ve worked out for you.

After 5 years of running them I have a rather different opinion/experience of Ohlins R&T, but I’ll post a detailed review after I’ve had the suspension refreshed.

[cfm56d7b]

Ohlins R&T are excellent coilovers. B50AteYourRide could not have described Ohlins any better: "keep the "civilized" nature of the 340 but just be stiffer and more composed".

If only Ohlins made Damptronic (using Bilstein term for M Adaptive shocks) versions ...

[casualDIYer]

This review seems to be in line with what others have said about them but one thing I also hear is that while performance is very good, longevity is not. OP, have you heard of any issues with the Ohlins needing repair?

[B50AteYourRide]

Originally Posted by casualDIYer

This review seems to be in line with what others have said about them but one thing I also hear is that while performance is very good, longevity is not. OP, have you heard of any issues with the Ohlins needing repair?

I'm sure there are stories out there, but I also think it has a lot to do with expectations, and the degree of abuse they receive. Personally, I do not expect 100K miles of trouble free performance with any coilover, of any brand. I just don't think that is realistic.

My understanding is that these are rebuildable, which I would expect to do at around 50k miles. By way of example, I had a set of KW V2 on a Legacy GT. Those were nice coilovers, but when I hit a large hole at about 50 MPH, a rebuild entered the picture. They didn't even make it to 50K, but if I didn't bash them, they probably would have. A rebuild is more economical than new dampers, especially if only one damper is the problem, and they are expensive dampers new.

So, I'm not aware of any specific longevity problems, but even the OEM dampers didn't last more than 50K miles for me.

I can keep everyone posted as to how these last.

[mike@x-ph.com]

This is the best suspension system in my opinion

[Watsey]

I’m not yet ready to publish my experiences of Ohlins R&T (they will be swapped out during the next few weeks) but my lasting thoughts at this stage are of disappointment and that they have a short lifespan.

Further details will be provided in due course.

[E90lova]

Originally Posted by Watsey

I’m not yet ready to publish my experiences of Ohlins R&T (they will be swapped out during the next few weeks) but my lasting thoughts at this stage are of disappointment and that they have a short lifespan.

Further details will be provided in due course.

How short are the lifespan of your Ohlins. Depends on weather conditions, terrain and how many potholes you hit .

[Watsey]

Originally Posted by E90lova

How short are the lifespan of your Ohlins. Depends on weather conditions, terrain and how many potholes you hit .

Nothing unusual in my use case for these dampers.

Like I said, further details will be posted in due course.

[moppity]

Originally Posted by Watsey

Nothing unusual in my use case for these dampers.

Like I said, further details will be posted in due course.

Did you manage to drop a post with those further details Watsey ? I was seriously considering the Öhlins for my F31, but am holding off for your long term review 😊

Thanks!

[Watsey]

Originally Posted by moppity

Did you manage to drop a post with those further details Watsey ? I was seriously considering the Öhlins for my F31, but am holding off for your long term review 😊

Thanks!

I’ve not posted my update yet, but I should be able to do so within a few weeks.

I’m not trying to keep interested parties on tenterhooks, but obviously I need to get the R&T replaced (I’m waiting for some other components as part of the suspension refresh) and have a chance to see whether the ‘fix’ has worked.

[casualDIYer]

@Watsey what are you planning to switch to? KW V3/V2? I hear Birds had a nice ACS-custom valved Bilstein kit available for UK buyers.

[johnung]

Originally Posted by cfm56d7b

Ohlins R&T are excellent coilovers. B50AteYourRide could not have described Ohlins any better: "keep the "civilized" nature of the 340 but just be stiffer and more composed".

If only Ohlins made Damptronic (using Bilstein term for M Adaptive shocks) versions ...

You probably already know this, that KW makes an Adaptive/EDC coilover called KW DDC.

[cfm56d7b]

Originally Posted by johnung

You probably already know this, that KW makes an Adaptive/EDC coilover called KW DDC.

KW makes great products. The lowering range offered by KW DDC coilovers is 1.6" to 2.6". Rather low for my preferences. I would be the first in line to buy these if OEM suspension height could be maintained.

[moppity]

Originally Posted by cfm56d7b

KW makes great products. The lowering range offered by KW DDC coilovers is 1.6" to 2.6". Rather low for my preferences. I would be the first in line to buy these if OEM suspension height could be maintained.

Yup, this is what I’m after too. Better damping than my tired old stock suspension, but not lowered. Or, at least, barely lowered.

[alohasurftoad]

Originally Posted by moppity

Yup, this is what I’m after too. Better damping than my tired old stock suspension, but not lowered. Or, at least, barely lowered.

for barely lowered, Eibach Pro-Kit springs are the least low and 10% stiffer than stock or just mildly firmer. they also address reverse rake. consider pairing with Koni Special Active(Red) if x-drive or STR.T(orange) dampers if RWD.
.

[TurboWeasel]

Here is my take on the R&T coilovers, FWIW.

I thought about buying them for my 330d, but after my experience of them on my GTI, not a chance.

They lasted 30K miles over 3 years of street use only.

There is/was a design flaw in the front struts. The nylon piston sleeve in the damper body wears out prematurely, allowing metal on metal contact, which in my set, resulted in chrome plate being chipped off the piston rod in several places, rendering them scrap metal.

I will see if I can find pictures of the damage later on.

I bought my set in 2017, so I would hope Ohlins have upgraded the sleeve by now.

You will know when the front struts are done because you will hear knocking noises when steering at slow speeds when at, or approaching, full lock.

With the one and only negative out of the way, they are the best coilovers I've ever had.

Like many enthusiasts chasing that Unicorn suspension kit, I've been through several sets over the years and was always left underwhelmed by the default kits people usually go for.

Nothing else came close to the DFV's taught suppleness. They feel pretty much like Bilstein B14 at slow speeds, but without the Bilstein's fundamental flaw....excessively harsh compression damping. Always a downside with monotube digressive damping profiles, which is where the DFV's compression 'dump valve' comes into play, and it really does work. The rebound is also superb.

The tyres feel like they're always in contact with the road and there was never any of the wheel/strut shuddering you feel with the M Sport suspension over sunken drain covers etc.

I see Ohlins now quote 60,000 KM for a rebuild with street use (page 10 of the user manual) which is a lot more than the 30,000 KM quoted in my manual, so maybe things have improved.

The reason I say "not a chance" on my new daily is because I do 20K miles a year in it, which would mean a rebuild every couple 18-24 months, which at UK prices, would be £1000+ a time.

In summary, I would say these are the best thing this side of custom Nitrons or ASTs, but without the cost. Just don't expect much life out of them

[moppity]

Great write up TurboWeasel thank you! It’ll be interesting to hear Watsey recent experience too, and if it mirrors yours.

I only do 5,000 miles a year, so they’re still tempting then 😂

[TurboWeasel]

Hmmm, it seems Flickr has purged a load of my pictures without my consent, but I found them on good old Google images.

So here is what they looked like after 3 years, inc salty winters. As you can see, corrosion resistance is pretty good. No rust, just slight discolouration of the steel.



And here is the aforementioned damage from the nylon sleeve wearing out and allowing the piston rod to contact the damper body.



I think as long as you are prepared for a short lifespan, I would still recommend them.

I suspect after sales customer care will be significantly better in America (bigger market) but as it stood for me, Ohlins weren't interested when I sent them the above picture. I didn't even get a reply. Oh well.

[johnung]

Originally Posted by cfm56d7b

KW makes great products. The lowering range offered by KW DDC coilovers is 1.6" to 2.6". Rather low for my preferences. I would be the first in line to buy these if OEM suspension height could be maintained.

Yes, for my 335ix if it had Adaptives the KW DDC drops would be Front 1.0” to 2.2” and Rear 1.2” to 2.4”. That really makes no sense for an XDrive that already has the BMW reverse rake with the tire/fender gap larger in the front than the rear.

Combine that with the XDrive front suspension geometry that limits the front drop to about 1.5” before front drive shafts might start to break.

In planning for a recent suspension refresh, I took a lot of measurements. So say that I got coilovers and installed and adjusted the fronts to that maximum 1.5” drop. Let’s assume that to look best the front & rear tire/fender gaps would have to be about equal.

Because of BMW reverse rake the XDrive rear only has to drop about 0.7”-0.8” for the tire/fender gap to equal that of the front which was dropped 1.5”. Drop the rear more than that and it starts to look like the chassis is squatting on the rear tires.

Coilover manufacturers must know this yet if you disregard XDrive coilover models that can’t do Front 1.5”/Rear 0.8”, then the options list gets smaller.

The standard damper KW V2 Street Comfort model works well at Front 0.6” to 1.8”, Rear 0.8” to 2.0”.

I talked to a few manufacturers about the XDrive drop range issue. I came away with the impression that they like to use the same coilover component pieces over many models. Focusing on practical XDrive drop ranges would force them to spend money on developing additional components.

[moppity]

Originally Posted by Watsey

I’ve not posted my update yet, but I should be able to do so within a few weeks.

I’m not trying to keep interested parties on tenterhooks, but obviously I need to get the R&T replaced (I’m waiting for some other components as part of the suspension refresh) and have a chance to see whether the ‘fix’ has worked.

Hello Watsey any news on your Ohlins tale?

Ta!

[Watsey]

Originally Posted by moppity

Hello Watsey any news on your Ohlins tale?

Ta!

Hello :-) Car is going into the 'shop on Thursday for a couple of days for a full suspension refresh. I'll hopefully be able to provide pics and a detailed update next week.

TLDR warning though...given the extended suspension problems that I've endured, it's going to be a long write-up.