Dinan Stage 2 to Stage 3

[jeff4598]

My impressions after 10 days-Overall very much worth it-ride is a little better, handling ALOT better- you feel like the car is rotating in a linear way-much more agile- feels like it's not even working to turn- front end feels MUCH lighter-this is not all good-I feel a bit less "connection" to pavement and on the highway there is more low level effort required to stay in your lane(increased negative camber means it follows crowned roads to the lower side more)-it feels a bit more like a 911-more agile but to me a bit less mechanical and more like it's doing "magic" on it's own.

[BimmerRob08]

Dinan stg 3 is one of my choices.

I'm not sure I follow. So do you feel the ride has improved overall or are you feeling some sacrifices in performance & handling now? Thanks,

Rob

[klammer]

Have stage 3 and the ride is better... More comfortable and smoother... And have taken her to the track, went 2 weeks apart, first without stg 3, then with, performance definitely improved... Love it... Car rocks

[rzm3]

How exactly do Dinan's camber plates/shims affect the ride quality? Not sure I follow...

[signes]

Was wondering the same thing...

[jeff4598]

This is all very subjective therefore likely very personal but here goes

- bumps feel less intrusive and less harsh as if some of the energy is being deflected at an angle, instead of straight up into the body/cabin-along with this is a VERY slight increase in the car being redirected left or right on very irregular pavement-not a problem at sane speeds so far.

-to me handling is divided into two areas: what the car can do and how good it feels/involving it is when it's doing it. What I am experiencing is that what it can do is greatly increased but how it feels is a bit diminished, it feels more like a video game and less like a mechanical device, like I have less of a connection to what I'm causing it to do-it feels less connected to the pavement- sorta like ice skating vs.walking on the ground in hiking boots. I had a similar response when I got out of my 2005 Audi s4(with H&R sways) and test drove a 911s and drove away in the s4-The 911 could obviously do things the audi couldn't touch but I LIKED the feel and the sense of involvement of the s4 ALOT more(so maybe y'all gonna think I'm nuts anyway...).Oh and I hated the old audi rs6- felt like I had NO connection to what it was doing at all.

[BimmerRob08]

Originally Posted by jeff4598

This is all very subjective therefore likely very personal but here goes

- bumps feel less intrusive and less harsh as if some of the energy is being deflected at an angle, instead of straight up into the body/cabin-along with this is a VERY slight increase in the car being redirected left or right on very irregular pavement-not a problem at sane speeds so far.

-to me handling is divided into two areas: what the car can do and how good it feels/involving it is when it's doing it. What I am experiencing is that what it can do is greatly increased but how it feels is a bit diminished, it feels more like a video game and less like a mechanical device, like I have less of a connection to what I'm causing it to do-it feels less connected to the pavement- sorta like ice skating vs.walking on the ground in hiking boots. I had a similar response when I got out of my 2005 Audi s4(with H&R sways) and test drove a 911s and drove away in the s4-The 911 could obviously do things the audi couldn't touch but I LIKED the feel and the sense of involvement of the s4 ALOT more(so maybe y'all gonna think I'm nuts anyway...).Oh and I hated the old audi rs6- felt like I had NO connection to what it was doing at all.

Could this be an alignment issue? Most that have installed a stage 2 or 3 rant about how well it has improved the handling/ride. So I wonder if something is off causing the "feel" to be off.

[kitw]

I think most people that have given a review have compared stock to the Dinan setup, not different stages. I'd be shocked if there were any actual ride quality differences, the camber plates shouldn't change anything.

[klammer]

^agreed

[BimmerRob08]

Originally Posted by klammer

Have stage 3 and the ride is better... More comfortable and smoother... And have taken her to the track, went 2 weeks apart, first without stg 3, then with, performance definitely improved... Love it... Car rocks

The OP states there are some negative aspects of the Dinan compared to when his M was stock. How do you feel about the performance? I know you state it's awesome but any specifics? I'm real interested in the Dinan. Thanks,

[Mavrick151]

Originally Posted by kitw

I think most people that have given a review have compared stock to the Dinan setup, not different stages. I'd be shocked if there were any actual ride quality differences, the camber plates shouldn't change anything.

The camber plates increase the ride height a little. about 1/8th to a 1/4 of an inch. no ride quality differences

[rzm3]

Sorry but it is crazy to think that an extra one degree of negative camber "deflects energy side ways" so you don't feel as much bump.

Better handling sure, more ride comfort? No.

[klammer]

I'll put it to you thus way. Been making numerous trips from Chicago up to Michigan, about 500 miles round trip (almost weekly for 4 months) one highway the whole way, have about 12k miles on car now, have had the dinan on for the last 5k and know it is more comfortable (rear upper shock mounts, bump stops???) as know where this road was rough and smooth and literally picked it up from install and did this trip, just a more comfortable trip after install. Also, ordered the suspension the day I got back from first track day, had it installed week and a half later, and a week after that went back to the same track and was faster, felt sharper, more responsive... So that's where I'm coming from... Just my experience...

[klammer]

And more specifically, car felt smoother over minor road imperfections, not softer but firmer yet more compliant. Car also seems more composed over changing surfaces at speed (ton of construction) and definitely less body roll on sudden lane changes, high speed sweepers, just general maneuvering. At track is where the xtra camber really shined, sharper turn in, feels like more of a scalpel now (from a really sharp steak knife) definitely less wheel hop on sharp turns as well, just more of an "on rails" feel... Hope that helps a bit... 2 more track days in 2 weeks, will report more impressions then... Exhale

[BimmerRob08]

Cool, so overall it was a good investment and an positive increase in performance. I was understanding that you had some negative experiances with it from your OP. This month Dinan has a 25% discount so thinking of taking advantage of it.

Cheers,

[jeff4598]

Just to be clear despite reservations I have expressed overall journey from stock to Stage 3 is a wonderful and essential improvement-would never go back.