H&R coilovers installed today.

[NickyC]

Originally Posted by sabbanick

Perfect stance, now go out and drive that car so others can appreciate it!

Believe it! Can't stop thinking of reasons to go drive the car, over two years of ownership and love it more than ever!

Thanks for all the compliments everyone, I still love the suspension and the ride! It feels like stock!

[mb1]

Its funny. I've spent the last two weeks contemplating what to do on my e46 M3. I want more flat cornering, don't really want to go too low like a lot of people. For me, its all about performance and handling. I don't like the stock M3 suspension. Its bouncy and not very connected. If you let it rip, it gets a little out of control and slightly scary in the mountains.

I've read tons of posts on M3F saying that the H&R coils are "junk" and to stay as far away as possible, blah, blah. I really have to believe the M3 guys are a bunch of soft pansies. I have a friend with a Z4MC with H&Rs and he loves them.

My choices have been between TCK, H&R, Bilstein PSS10, and Ground Control.

TCK are too expensive for a mostly street driven car. If I were tracking often, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch. Right now, its not going to happen.

Its between H&R PCS or Street Performance coilovers or Ground Controls. I like that the H&Rs are monotubes vs. the GCs but I do take the family and little kiddie out in the M3 every now and again. I wonder how "horrible" the ride will be on the e46.

I'm exhausted from researching this decision :-)

[fercho]

my dream car!!! can I borrow your car for the weekend?? hehe please!!!!

[NickyC]

Originally Posted by fercho

my dream car!!! can I borrow your car for the weekend?? hehe please!!!!

Mine too, I'd be happy to at least take you for a ride if you're ever in STL. Best I can do for ya!!

mb1, I would highly recommend you take a look at the H&Rs. I've had them on several cars in the past, and I've always had good results with them. As stated by myself many times however, my car is strictly for the street, it will never see a track. There are no doubt better options if you track your car.

That being said, I've now had the coilovers on for over a week, and I could not be happier. I even took a lady friend for a ride over the weekend, and she remarked how smooth the ride was. She'd been in my car many times in the past, and she told me it didn't feel any differently ride quality wise. She told me she was very surprised the ride wasn't rough due to how low the car sits now. Keep in mind, I also have 19" wheels with 275/30/19s in the rear, and the car still rides nice!

I definitely think a lot of nonsense gets parroted in our communities (just like all others). When I bought my AC Schnitzer CF rear diffuser, I had people telling me it was going to cover up the differential and blow it up due to heat. Where people get this stuff, I'll never know. I'd recommend you keep H&R in mind. If they suit your purposes, I don't think you can go wrong with them.

[inTgr8r]

FWIW, check your rear shocks.
There was an issue with H&R not shipping washers.

http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=501048

[NickyC]

Originally Posted by inTgr8r

FWIW, check your rear shocks.
There was an issue with H&R not shipping washers.

http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=501048

Roger, thanks for the heads-up. I saw that when I was researching them beforehand, and double checked the box when they arrived. All is well, the washers were there. Thanks for the heads-up though!

[inTgr8r]

good to hear that they are shipping OK now.

[esqu1re]

Looks great Nikki. Lots of high quality parts there. Love the brakes and the rear diffuser. You should go on a HPDE event if you enjoy driving your car more than ever! =D

[NickyC]

Originally Posted by esqu1re

Looks great Nikki. Lots of high quality parts there. Love the brakes and the rear diffuser. You should go on a HPDE event if you enjoy driving your car more than ever! =D

I'm NickyC, Nikki is a much better looking person who lives in CA. Thanks for the kind compliments though.

[esqu1re]

Sorry to misspell your name. I wasn't confused by who you were. The compliments were definitely still directed at your car.

[604BrO]

where you get that defuser!!

[NickyC]

Originally Posted by quocp

where you get that defuser!!

Check out this thread for all your questions.

http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=500603

[mb1]

I FINALLY pulled the trigger. It was a decent deal. If I were tracking the car, I would have splurged on the ASTs but for street driving, its not bad. Also, from what I've seen, the PSS9s and the H&R PCSs are virtually the same but the H&Rs are a good amount cheaper. I couldn't get Ground Control to help me pick a set. Not too thrilled with the customer service there BEFORE the sale so I decided against them.

I'll take this review from a different perspective:

A friend of mine helped me install the H&R PCS adjustable c/o 's this weekend. Here's my reply to him, thought someone might want to see my take:

The benefit besides the obvious handling improvements there are
actually many including better acceleration response like I was
mentioning. (it feels quicker because there isn't squat like before, its more immediate).

1. The steering response is better and the ratio doesn't seem as
bothersome nor does the large steering wheel. Before, I would crank
the wheel and there was a delay before the car turned. It felt like
poor off center steering response which was why I was thinking about
harder sidewall tires. The feel through the wheel is better too.
Actually significantly so. I can feel more of what's going on, the
makeup of the pavement, etc. Its MUCH more connected...which is what
I really was after and what I hadn't liked about the BMWs I've driven,
even the e46 and e92 M3s.

2. Braking is much easier, even in traffic. Prior, there was quite a
bit of brake dive. (I didn't notice it until it was mostly gone.) To
the point that it would almost feel more on/off. It was harder to
modulate.

3. It just feels more controlled. Before, the engine and suspension didn't seem like they were tuned for the same car. Great engine, poor body control.

What's great is that the modification is usable even on a slow drive to work.

Is it more harsh, yes a little. 95% of the time, its perfect. I could
go one setting softer if need be. I'll probably leave it where it
is for a while and just dodge potholes like I do when I'm in my S2000
anyway.

Oh, and I took out a co-worker for lunch, not a car guy and he didn't
know that any work had been done, which is a good thing I think
considering all the benefits. He's only been in it a couple of other
times but that's good enough for me.

[NickyC]

Awesome mb1, your experiences match mine EXACTLY. It's funny how you mention the car seems faster, I thought the same thing the first time I really stomped on it after the install, but figured it was just my mind playing tricks on me. I didn't even mention it for fear of getting laughed at. ;P

Ditto on the brakes, but I have Stoptech F&R kits front and rear so I'm not sure if the comparison is the same. NO front nose dive like you mentioned however.

I'm so happy you enjoy them, I still LOVE mine. I'm so happy I didn't listen to the naysayers and went through with everything. Hopefully with stories like ours, we can convince more people that there is a lower cost solution for our cars that really works!

[edergt7]

[QUOTE=NickyC;9166143]Hi everyone,

Well, I've finally achieved what I've wanted my car to look like all along. I almost allowed myself to get psyched out over some bad things I've read from users in this forum and others about H

[edergt7]

How wide r ur front wheels?? I'm thinking of getting h

[Ferus]

Bloody cool carriage!