EDC: Worth ordering?

[13eastie]

I've ordered my new M3 with EDC, but not having experienced the system before, am now wondering why...

Can anyone with previous experience of this tell me:

1) What is the default setting if you do not order EDC?

2) What EDC setting do you usually use on the road and why?

3) Is EDC good value for money?

4) Will the absence of EDC adversely affect resale value?

Cheers for any help...

[lucid]

Originally Posted by 13eastie

I've ordered my new M3 with EDC, but not having experienced the system before, am now wondering why...

Can anyone with previous experience of this tell me:

1) What is the default setting if you do not order EDC?

2) What EDC setting do you usually use on the road and why?

3) Is EDC good value for money?

4) Will the absence of EDC adversely affect resale value?

Cheers for any help...

How much does that option cost in the UK?

I can't speak to the rest, but the only two ways that I can think of for EDC to adversely affect resale value are A) if it malfunctions often and results in costly repairs, and B) if it adds significant weight to the car.

If I was buying a used M3 with some miles on it, which would suggest I don't have money to throw around, I would stay away from such a system because of A. When I order my new M3 however, I plan on getting EDC--unless the initial buyers strongly recommend against it!

[JEllis]

These are all questions that will be answered as real road tests are done with the car.

Jason

[T Bone]

Originally Posted by 13eastie

I've ordered my new M3 with EDC, but not having experienced the system before, am now wondering why...

Can anyone with previous experience of this tell me:

1) What is the default setting if you do not order EDC?

2) What EDC setting do you usually use on the road and why?

3) Is EDC good value for money?

4) Will the absence of EDC adversely affect resale value?

Cheers for any help...

Definitely worth it.... You will benefit from different damper settings for different applications, normal driving, road course, drag racing.... You will be able to tweak your car, at the touch of a button, for each application.

[The CSL]

One sport set-up would suit me personally, but I'm sure I read on here, the non-EDC cars are somewhere between normal and sport settings.

[13eastie]

Originally Posted by lucid

How much does that option cost in the UK?

It's an extra £1,295 in the UK.

[nusevad]

Originally Posted by T Bone

Definitely worth it.... You will benefit from different damper settings for different applications, normal driving, road course, drag racing.... You will be able to tweak your car, at the touch of a button, for each application.

that pretty much sums it up.

[lucid]

Originally Posted by 13eastie

It's an extra £1,295 in the UK.

Not much for a £50k car. Sounds like it would be worth it to me. I mean, it certainly can't hurt to be able to adjust your suspension settings on the fly, and it will be covered under warranty.

[T Bone]

Originally Posted by lucid

Not much for a £50k car. Sounds like it would be worth it to me. I mean, it certainly can't hurt to be able to adjust your suspension settings on the fly, and it will be covered under warranty.

I can personally attest that these setting make a difference on performance..... The car accelerates in drag racing much better in the soft setting....

[M3onTwomps]

Would an aftermarket coilover kit be applicable to an M3 with EDC?

[T Bone]

Originally Posted by M3onTwomps

Would an aftermarket coilover kit be applicable to an M3 with EDC?

I wouldn't think so....the EDC is tied into other electronic nannies... I am not sure if the M shocks use electomagnetic fluid to control the dampening rates but whatever replacement shock goes in, will need to interface with this system.

The M "magic" is typically added in the suspension work / balance so I would be hesitant in swapping parts out as it could really change the dynamic of the car without the benefit of trial and error that BMW took in the suspension system's development.

[nusevad]

Originally Posted by M3onTwomps

Would an aftermarket coilover kit be applicable to an M3 with EDC?

That is a very interesting question...even if it was would it possibly void your warranty if something went wrong with the EDC and they noticed you installed the kit?

[M3onTwomps]

Originally Posted by T Bone

I wouldn't think so....the EDC is tied into other electronic nannies... I am not sure if the M shocks use electomagnetic fluid to control the dampening rates but whatever replacement shock goes in, will need to interface with this system.

The M "magic" is typically added in the suspension work / balance so I would be hesitant in swapping parts out as it could really change the dynamic of the car without the benefit of trial and error that BMW took in the suspension system's development.

Gotcha. Thanks for the info.

I only ask because although I trust BMW's engineers, things can always be improved upon. Coilover kits are pretty standard mods on the E46 M3 and in many cases, provided an increase performance and not just a drop.

[M3onTwomps]

Originally Posted by FifthStreetz

That is a very interesting question...even if it was would it possibly void your warranty if something went wrong with the EDC and they noticed you installed the kit?

If something went wrong with the suspension and you get caught with aftermarket parts, you bet it will void the warranty.

[T Bone]

Originally Posted by M3onTwomps

Gotcha. Thanks for the info.

I only ask because although I trust BMW's engineers, things can always be improved upon. Coilover kits are pretty standard mods on the E46 M3 and in many cases, provided an increase performance and not just a drop.

IMHO, coilovers don't have an inherent advantage over struts....coilovers are just a more efficient package with more adjustability.... So long as the dampeners / springs are good, it is just a matter of packaging.

[nusevad]

After looking at the pictures of the M the writers got in Spain, i feel the M could use a bit of a drop, especially if im going to put on bigger aftermarket wheels on it. It would suck if EDC actually prohibited this, but ill take the performance and reliability over looks.

[swamp2]

Despite all of the great advantages of EDC you can not replace the shocks with aftermarket one nor use a coil over set up. The shocks are completely special from the ground up for EDC and replacing them would completely void the function of the system, it would likely cause some major warnings in the cars computer and may even interfere with the driveability of the car since the cars "brain" may would be quite confused. You can still use aftermarket springs for a bit more stiffness or for aesthetic reasons.

[Epacy]

Originally Posted by swamp2

You can still use aftermarket springs for a bit more stiffness or for aesthetic reasons.

This could be true, but it would depend on how much of a drop the stock struts could withstand.

[GregW / Oregon]

Originally Posted by Epacy

This could be true, but it would depend on how much of a drop the stock struts could withstand.

True. Conventional wisdom is to change shocks to sportier ones when you go to shorter/higher effort springs, however the dampers may have enough adjustment to allow some changes. Someone may even come up with a chip to give more settings or a wider range.

[T Bone]

Originally Posted by GregW / Oregon

True. Conventional wisdom is to change shocks to sportier ones when you go to shorter/higher effort springs, however the dampers may have enough adjustment to allow some changes. Someone may even come up with a chip to give more settings or a wider range.

I don't think Epacy is talking about spring rates but just the ride height. I think with the electronic shocks that would be stock with the M3, it shouldn't be a problem using stiffer springs.

I would fear changing the geometry of the suspension by dropping it. I know it looks cool but I like to let the suspension work and give it lots of travel and weight transfer.

[lucid]

Originally Posted by GregW / Oregon

True. Conventional wisdom is to change shocks to sportier ones when you go to shorter/higher effort springs, however the dampers may have enough adjustment to allow some changes. Someone may even come up with a chip to give more settings or a wider range.

I wouldn't mess with the springs in anyway if the car has EDC (not sure if that is what you are proposing). Maybe the exception would be if the software running EDC was rewritten for specific aftermarket springs, but I am not sure that I would trust anyone other than BMW to write that kind of code for the car.

[swamp2]

A spring provides stiffness whereas a damper provides a force in opposition to a velocity or to some function of velocity. The function of each is separate but coupled in that a system should try to reach critical damping for most inputs and this involves the spring rate and damping level. A slight alteration of spring rate and ride height should not affect the EDC system. Consider the case of a car loaded with passengers and luggage. The normal ride height in this case will be substantially lower and further into the travel of the EDC damper. For sure the system will function just fine under this cirumstance. EDC offers tunable damping and maybe some minor stiffness effects as well but the dominant source of stiffness is certainly the spring and you could extract more performance and some benefit to frontal area and drag with lowering springs. All that being said, I almost for sure will not do so personally.