Suspension Crossroads (C4S Cab)

it turns out that one is my front strut mounts is broken/worn/loose. It needs to be replaced. With almost 70k on the car, it makes sense to install new components while replacing the mount. I have read a ton (thanks, Rennlisters!), & I still have a few questions. The obvious choice for me would be to go with Bilstein B6s or B8s on all four corners. However, the rears are backordered. From what I gather, they�ve been backordered since Aug 2017 & might be back in June 2019. I won�t hold my breath. Koni makes a sport rear, but they don�t make a front for AWD models. Has anyone run Bilsteins up front & Konis in the rear? Sounds crazy, but maybe someone has found success with it. I don�t plan to track the car & have no interest in lowering it, so I wasn�t planning on doing coilovers. It looks like some come with mounts & some don�t. Other than the common (& somewhat expensive) coilover sets, does anyone have experience with the entry-level setups? H&R makes a street coilover setup. Any feedback on those? https://www.urotuning.com/products/2...8aApRNEALw_wcB What corners are cut on the less expensive setups? As always, thank you in advance for sharing your thoughts. This community is great!

I personally wouldn�t mix and match different brands of shocks/struts on a vehicle.

What about the B4s?

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i considered those. Maybe I�m looking at it wrong, but it seems like a lot of money to spend for stock performance when I could theoretically get upgraded performance for less. Is there a reason, other than the fact that they�re in stock, to go with B4s over 6s or 8s?

For not much more you may find some coil overs.

Have you checked carnewal.com ? I just bought the RoW M030 kit from him for my C2 Cab when everywhere stateside said it was out of stock. Great price too.

I wouldn't mix brands either. Bilstein B8's with H&R sport (lowering) springs. Gives you a great stance while retaining almost (a little stiffer/tighter) stock ride.

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Well, remember that the C4S has already a tuned up suspension setup from factory. So stock performance in this case doesnt mean worst. I like a lot how this car is tuned from factory. B6 is stiffer than the B4. Consider is that is what you are looking for. B8 in any case must be associated to lowered springs. In my case, I have decided to go for RoW OEM springs, and I will probably go with B4 or B6 when the time for changing the shocks come. R&H will be stiffer and lowered more the car? Yes (and with the half of the cost of the OEM), but is not what I was looking for. As I said, I love how well balanced the C4S factory RoW setup is for my use (ludic, but not track oriented)

I 2nd the coilover idea. I just did it to my C4S. They are fully adjustable so you could leave the car stock ride height. Then if you ever decided you want to lower it you can with only a few adjustments. Most coilover kits are fully adjustable so you can "dial" in the suspension from soft to firm.

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Thanks to everyone for the replies and advice. I'm leaning toward coilovers at this point. Mbren1979 - which coilovers did you go with? What do you think of the ride quality? I'm thinking that the Bilstein PSS10s are the default choice, but I'm interested in feedback about other setups.

Based on a few threads and experience in other cars i am gonna go with the Olins street set up. Ill probably only do a few de days ever so i want a good street suspension. There was a pretty good thread recently on the olins. Many here have also gone with the less expensive options like Feal with good success.

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i originally wanted to do Bilstein PSS10 but the price had me thinking. Hoping to not sound like a dick when i say this but most people on forums only follow everyone else just because the group said so. I wanted to know more and understand why i needed to pay so much whwn there were cheaper alternatives. The BMW forums had tons of people pointing towards a company called BC Coilovers. After watching tons of videos, asking questions and going to BC Coilover (luckily i live 5 miles away from the Oviedo FL location) i learned that the crazy high dollar systems were great if you are an advanced level race driver. For the average consumer you wouldnt be able to tell the differences while driving. The BC Coilovers offered the same options like ride height adjustment and dampening adjustment ****. They are also fully rebuildable like most of your high $ companies. For a better explanation just go on youtube and put in bc coilovers. Watch some vids by bigger channels like fitment industries to see real info on them. They are $1200.00 for the set on their website. Only thing to note is you will need to purchase upper front mounting plates. Install was easy and ride quailty is exactly the same as OE. Out of the box the dampening **** is set closer to stiff. The adjust range is 1 to 30 clicks. 30 being hard. They come at like 21 or 22. I did feel the difference but it wasnt harsh. Just more firm. Putting it at like 15 made my C4S feel stock. I am extremely happy with my choice.

I spent a lot of time reading about the BC Coilovers today. That is an intriguing proposition. I'm going to call them tomorrow to see what I can learn. It looks like they come with rear top mounts & I'd buy new top mounts and associated hardware for the front. From what I gather, that saves me about $500 from the PSS10s, too. The only real negative feedback I found was from some guy that (apparently) purchased a used early-2000s M5 with them already installed. It all started with a little clunk, and now it looks like I'll get coilovers on all four corners!

I have the pss10s on my 2000 and they are amazing. I can�t attest to the other brand mentioned, but I can tell you that I�ve always had positive experiences with Bilstein product. I�ve use them on everything from street cars to purpose built race cars (rally). There is a reason they have the following they do. If it was me, and the price difference was only $500, I know which way I�d lean. Sometimes you really do get what you pay for. Suspension isn�t where I�d try to save a couple of bucks. One other thought is to consider whether you really need height and otherwise adjustable coil overs at all. Unless you want to change height, or are racing (concerned with height and corner balancing), coil overs add a bunch of moving parts. So many people with street cars buy fancy suspensions and then set them once and forget them. Not really what they are intended for, and adds cost, moving parts, complexity, and additional potential points of failure. Not a big deal on a track car since you are constantly maintaining, checking and adjusting, but overkill for a street car. ...in my opinion. The stock replacement Bilsteins are a great option for a street car.

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Again with respect this is kinda what i am talking about. I agree 100% that the Bilstein systems are amazing. They have a following because they are great and i agree. But $500.00 is $500.00. Your comment "Sometimes you really do get what you pay for. Suspension isn�t where I�d try to save a couple of bucks." is exactly what i was referring to in my post. There are tons of coil over companies. Some are just cheap ebay crap that belongs on some high school Honda boys car and not on a Porsche. But when someone else comes out with a system the works great for everyday drivers that also see track experience i see no reason not to use them. They don't use inferior parts and they have a lot of the same features as the high end kits. I have no problem saving 500.00 and being proud to say i have BC Coil overs. Buying cheap parts is dumb, Buying affordable and still getting top quality product for you driving intent is not.

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No question. If the price gap was $500, I�d go with Bilstein all day. The setup is about $1500 less, & it comes with some of the mounting hardware. The total price gap is probably about $2000.

If your research leads you to wanting Bilstein replacements, there�s a great deal on 6apeed (link below). I messaged the guy and he was very honest and knowledgeable and he�s only selling because he wants go with coil overs. While the B8 is the better option for lowering springs, the set up linked below will work, not to mention B8s are supposedly unattainable right meow.... https://www.6speedonline.com/forums/...t-springs.html

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thanks for the heads-up. After spending hours & hours reading & watching YouTube reviews (everyone on the internet has an opinion!), I ordered a set of BC Coilovers & the necessary mounting hardware yesterday. I�m going to start with the rears & see how it goes before tackling the fronts. Anyone know of a good place to find a torque wrench for reinstalling the front axle nut? I can�t stand to buy one just for this project. Thanks again for all the thoughts & advice.

Just pull the drive shaft from the diff. Leave the nut alone.

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Glad to see someone else joined the BC bandwagon!

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I�ve read this before. Is the only advantage to this method not having to deal with the axle nut? Would I be removing an assembly that is basically everything from the top of the strut to the front diff? I�m guessing that the joints have enough flexibility that as I pull it out horizontally the assembly kinda folds a little. I found a great step-by-step DIY for the process that includes removing the axle nut, but I haven�t seen anything that really goes through the steps you suggest. I�ll look around unless someone knows of a link they can share. Thanks!

When i did mine i removed the axle nut. Although i have the luxury of being a mechanic and doing at the shop i work at. I would feel it would be more of a pain to disconnect it from the diff due to access of the bolts. 1 axle nut on the outside is a lot easier to access than 5 or 6 far in by the differential.

refer to Dharn55 I think. he is a sensible guy who has done a lot with his car.

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Let�s agree to disagree. Companies like Bilstein spend more on R&D, testing and motorsport in a year than a company like BC will spend in decades. The result is a superior product - and perhaps unilke some who may support the product because they are repeating what they�ve read online, I�ve used many of their product first hand, on tens of personal vehicles, so have what I consider an informed opinion on Bilstein. That being said, I respect your opinion, and wish you luck on your project.

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I think we are both correct depending on which side of the fence your on. I could not agree with you any more about Bilstein and companies like them. They are great for the application. My side of the fence is more pointed toward the original poster wants which were very close to mine. For those of us who are street only with maybe a DE event once or twice in our lifetime don't need to spend the extra money for the race pedigree product. If the original poster was wanting a product for several race events or the car was going to see the track more than street then yes, go with the race inspired product. Speaking only for myself, I can only afford to own my 996 because i am a mechanic and wrench for myself. $500.00 to me is a few weeks of saving up to buy another part to make my car more geared toward what i want. Had i had a hefty bank account maybe i would have spent more. I just don't see the need for the intent. Please don't take me the wrong way. I don't disagree with anything you have said.

Im in the same predicament, I have a 2003 Targa 74,000 miles , back suspension seems like it needs new shocks, so these are my choices. all I want is good street ride, no track. I can get the following ; 1, "996C2 Koni Special Active shocks, new in box, ready to ship. $700 If your not familiar these, they used to be called FSD, they were renamed for 2018 and are painted red now instead of gold. These are my favorite daily driver shocks, you can't beat them for the money. I've had FSDs in my daily drivers going back longer than I can remember. Highly recommended. Designed to work with stock springs" 2. Bilstein B4 are $1200 So question is will the Koni be as good as factory or are the Bilstein that much better for the extra $500

I went with BC Racing coilovers installed by PRE in Portland. My first drive with them was great. Their highest setting is a 1� drop, which was probably less than that with the old springs inevitably sagging a little. The clunk that I thought was maybe coming from the dash is now gone, & it really felt tighter. We�ll see what the long-term quality is like, but my first impressions of the product & the installation are good.

Did my BC Coilovers a few months ago. Very happy with mine.