Coilovers or OEM Struts for my situation?

[SplitsenseM35]

I checked all online vendors for new OEM Struts/shocks for my 08 M35 Sport which currently has 77K miles. its about $860 for all 4 corners which is ridiculous if you ask me. With the price of the D2/BC coilovers being around that price range, who would even think about purchasing OEM replacements? I never thought about buying or installing CO’S and this would be my first time, I did search the forums but still cant narrow down the answers I am looking for.

My main concern is comfort, reliability and longevity. Which out of the 2 sets would you say rides almost identical to stock stiffness over bumps/potholes? I also wonder if anyone runs into suspension noise and creeks with CO’S. When I dropped my past cars with lowering springs the car sounded like a old mattress. I am not looking for a serious drop, maybe about 1.5in front and 1in rear. with the drop I am trying to achieve, can I get away without purchasing camber arms/bolts? What tends to make suspension creek when lowering it?

I know everyone did note the ride is smooth and great but I live in NYC and these roads are crap. I assume most of you guys with CO’S live in areas with better roads and weather? If CO’s rides like a tank over bumps and potholes, I might just have to decline. I am looking for a plug and play application without going through all the other necessary stuff to get my car aligned to factory specs. I need help so I can decide on pulling the trigger or stick to stock. Any insight is appreciated. Thanks!

[Ilya]

I was in NYC with my BC Racing coilovers over a few weeks ago and going through Brooklyn made my cringe. The LIE was nice as it's smooth, but Brooklyn was turrible.

I definitely recommend BC's although the installation is a bit more involved than the D2's. Really up to you.

As for price of OEM vs CO's...definitely CO's. I wasn't planning to drop either at first but eventually the price of the CO's sold me to the idea.

[mexillis]

i thought everyone was going with kyb shocks for about 100 each that didnt want coilovers?

[Ilya]

Well I'm AWD and I believe the only option the AWD guys have is OEM which is not much less than BC/D2.

Don't know about the RWD guys.

[SplitsenseM35]

I was in NYC with my BC Racing coilovers over a few weeks ago and going through Brooklyn made my cringe. The LIE was nice as it's smooth, but Brooklyn was turrible.

I definitely recommend BC's although the installation is a bit more involved than the D2's. Really up to you.

As for price of OEM vs CO's...definitely CO's. I wasn't planning to drop either at first but eventually the price of the CO's sold me to the idea.

Thanks for your input llyakol.

Funny thing is my GF lives in Brooklyn, so i drive around the area alot. I have the stock 19in wheels and at times on the BQE i can agree the ruts and potholes make me cringe as well. I really wonder how much rougher the CO will be if i decide to go that route. Did you develop any new interior rattles due to the tougher suspension now?

[SplitsenseM35]

i thought everyone was going with kyb shocks for about 100 each that didnt want coilovers?

I was told the KYB only fit the base model and does not apply to the sport model and AWD? was i misinformed?

Thanks Mexillis

[Ilya]

I was in NYC with my BC Racing coilovers over a few weeks ago and going through Brooklyn made my cringe. The LIE was nice as it's smooth, but Brooklyn was turrible.

I definitely recommend BC's although the installation is a bit more involved than the D2's. Really up to you.

As for price of OEM vs CO's...definitely CO's. I wasn't planning to drop either at first but eventually the price of the CO's sold me to the idea.

Thanks for your input llyakol.

Funny thing is my GF lives in Brooklyn, so i drive around the area a lot. I have the stock 19in wheels and at times on the BQE i can agree the ruts and potholes make me cringe as well. I really wonder how much rougher the CO will be if i decide to go that route. Did you develop any new interior rattles due to the tougher suspension now?

No new rattles, and my CO's are set to their softest settings. However, tires have a lot to do with it. When I was in NYC, I was on Continental ExtremeContact DWS' which are more of a performance all season tire. I am now on Michelin Primacy MXM4's which are more of a grand touring all-season tire, so they are softer and not as loud. I think the car would feel better in NYC now, but it would still be rough as those roads SUCK (and that's where all of my tax money mostly goes - NYC should be it's own district like DC lol).

[SplitsenseM35]

Yes, the Primacy MXM4'S are on my list! I noticed Tire rack has 2 models to offer. One set is like over $1000, and another is $700? why is that? differnt speed rating i assume? I dont drive over 100mph much so I can opt for the cheaper set. which ones are you riding on? I am curently on these crap RSA still. Would this tire be considered soft or hard tire?

I been lurking on different forums and read the BC are higher quality compared to the D2. Esp on the maxima forums, but then members hear are saying D2 are better. So confused which ones to get...

[finikM35]

Thats why im still debating if i should lower the car. The other day i saw M35s that had almost no aero kit left lol guy was lowered on H&R springs and the lower part was beat up... And the other day i hit a pothole so big, i thought my wheel cracked for sure that was on FDR which is worst than Brooklyn now.

[finikM35]

The gap in front is killing me though i hate looking at it especially after i see all the nice cars on this forum. Anyone knows how long is a lifespan of D2 coilover?

[SplitsenseM35]

Thats why im still debating if i should lower the car. The other day i saw M35s that had almost no aero kit left lol guy was lowered on H&R springs and the lower part was beat up... And the other day i hit a pothole so big, i thought my wheel cracked for sure that was on FDR which is worst than Brooklyn now.

Thas what im saying, the roads really drive me away from lowering the car. But it looks so much better!

We pay some crzy taxes in this state, now fix the damn roads!!

[svard75]

The gap in front is killing me though i hate looking at it especially after i see all the nice cars on this forum. Anyone knows how long is a lifespan of D2 coilover?

I too would be interested in this but I don't think we have any longer term members in here with the D2's. I read that D2 improved their quality control on the shocks so the newer batches should last as long as a coilover lasts I guess. It really depends on the miles and road conditions plus the settings. One thing I really like about the D2 and BM is that to lower the car you thread the shock body deeper into the mount instead of playing with the spring preload. Technically the shocks should last as long as OEM shocks last but so many dependencies.

BTW mine are shipping from JW Auto Racing today $970 for the AWD kit

[Ilya]

Yes, the Primacy MXM4'S are on my list! I noticed Tire rack has 2 models to offer. One set is like over $1000, and another is $700? why is that? differnt speed rating i assume? I dont drive over 100mph much so I can opt for the cheaper set. which ones are you riding on? I am curently on these crap RSA still. Would this tire be considered soft or hard tire?

I been lurking on different forums and read the BC are higher quality compared to the D2. Esp on the maxima forums, but then members hear are saying D2 are better. So confused which ones to get...

I'm on the cheaper set of MXM4's with the lower speed rating. I think one is 94V and the other is 94W or something. It also has a lower total weight limit I believe.

As for BC vs D2...I know guys on here swear by them but I was in the same boat...did a lot of googling of different cars/forums and spoke to a great friend who has built a 95 Auto Maxima (VQ30DE) into a VQ35DE swapped, 6spd VLSD, boosted car with lots of other work. He said if I got D2's he'd disown me as a gear head and being that he builds cars, I trust his opinion. So, I went with BC's. They aren't true coilovers (rear shock is separate from the spring) like the D2's...which makes adjusting the ride more cumbersome as well as the installation but it is what it is. I'm happy with my purchase and as long as you do what you want with the car, that's all that matters.

If you go with D2's, 06M4.5 is a HUGE resource. He knows a lot about that setup.

[SplitsenseM35]

Yes, the Primacy MXM4'S are on my list! I noticed Tire rack has 2 models to offer. One set is like over $1000, and another is $700? why is that? differnt speed rating i assume? I dont drive over 100mph much so I can opt for the cheaper set. which ones are you riding on? I am curently on these crap RSA still. Would this tire be considered soft or hard tire?

I been lurking on different forums and read the BC are higher quality compared to the D2. Esp on the maxima forums, but then members hear are saying D2 are better. So confused which ones to get...

I'm on the cheaper set of MXM4's with the lower speed rating. I think one is 94V and the other is 94W or something. It also has a lower total weight limit I believe.

As for BC vs D2...I know guys on here swear by them but I was in the same boat...did a lot of googling of different cars/forums and spoke to a great friend who has built a 95 Auto Maxima (VQ30DE) into a VQ35DE swapped, 6spd VLSD, boosted car with lots of other work. He said if I got D2's he'd disown me as a gear head and being that he builds cars, I trust his opinion. So, I went with BC's. They aren't true coilovers (rear shock is separate from the spring) like the D2's...which makes adjusting the ride more cumbersome as well as the installation but it is what it is. I'm happy with my purchase and as long as you do what you want with the car, that's all that matters.

If you go with D2's, 06M4.5 is a HUGE resource. He knows a lot about that setup.

Thanks for the helpful advice llyakol!

[mexillis]

If you search the older threads if I'm not mistaken people with sport bought kyb shocks. If you want to get a drop and new shocks might as well get co's. my d2 air suspension has held up to all the s*** roads down here so I'd imagine their coilovers are just as good for NYC. Rattles and squeaky noises are not an issue unless you didn't tighten down the collar lol.

[SplitsenseM35]

If you search the older threads if I'm not mistaken people with sport bought kyb shocks. If you want to get a drop and new shocks might as well get co's. my d2 air suspension has held up to all the s*** roads down here so I'd imagine their coilovers are just as good for NYC. Rattles and squeaky noises are not an issue unless you didn't tighten down the collar lol.

Thanks Mex, since im doing a mild drop. can i get away without installing camber arms/bolts and get a perfect alignment?

[mexillis]

Maybe if you did .5" drop you can stay within specs for all categories. I have this after alignment:



So far over 25k miles with no camber arms, bolts, etc and I dont have any camber wear nor needed to replace tires.

[mexillis]

That was when I had eibach and espiler springs about 1.6 drop all around. If you do a drop similar to H tech springs you should be like this.

Before and after pics...

Before Passenger

After Passenger



Before Drivers

After Drivers


Mild drop. But it eliminated the front wheel gap and I'm level now at 27" all around. I'm hoping they settle a bit more. But I'm good with it. The ride is slightly softer than stock. Not as harsh.

Here is the alignment right after. Might need camber bolts to get it perfect, but this was pretty close.

[SplitsenseM35]

That was when I had eibach and espiler springs about 1.6 drop all around. If you do a drop similar to H tech springs you should be like this.

Before and after pics...

Before Passenger

After Passenger



Before Drivers

After Drivers


Mild drop. But it eliminated the front wheel gap and I'm level now at 27" all around. I'm hoping they settle a bit more. But I'm good with it. The ride is slightly softer than stock. Not as harsh.

Here is the alignment right after. Might need camber bolts to get it perfect, but this was pretty close.

Wow, your car looks great! thanks for the helpful info!

[mexillis]

Thats YosM45's car not mine but Im sure he'd appreciate the compliment! Mine is umbria grey, pictured in my avatar.

[Ilya]

I'm lowered 2" in the front and 1.5" in the back and my guy told me that even though my alignment is out of spec, it's not severe enough to warrant camber bolts. He said as long as I rotate the tires, I shouldn't see any major issues. It's not ON spec, but it's not so far off that I'm going to eat through tires.