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      12-10-2013, 01:57 AM   #1
WhatsBFc
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REVIEW: BC Racing Coilovers for E9x M3

Quick Review of BC Racing Coilovers for E9x M3.
Reason why i chose to go with BC Racing coilovers for my E90 M3 was because I ran them on my e46 M3 and e39. They run fantastic and never had any issues with noise or leaking. The guys at BC Racing NA has taken great care of me and I've decided to go with BC again for my newest car. Now, i know many people do not run BC Racing on this forum because it may be seen as "cheap". But hopefully with this review, some of you may consider it. Its definitely a great alternative coilover set up. Feel free to chime in your opinions about these coilovers, or whether you guys have questions or concerns about them.

Pros:
30 way adjustable dampening
Front Swaybar Endlinks included
Adjustable front camber plates included
Custom spring rates and lengths
The color looks damn good...
Price is $1K ish

One of the major pros that i see in this kit is the shock travel. As you can see, the bottom of the coilover strut is an independent adjustable casing/bracket. Spinning the bracket up will shorten the overall length and therefore lower the vehicle WITHOUT losing shock travel and maintain spring preload. Other coilovers such as KW for example, the bracket is set and in order to lower the car... the adjustable collars have to be lowered. Yes, the overall length is reduced, but its reduced on the wrong end of the coilover! This drops the springs down and reduces the shock travel when the car is set on the ground!

Before running these coilovers, i did do some research to see if others were running this setup. Hai_Cheo and another member were running this. However, Hai_Cheo got rid of his setup because it was not low enough for his liking. This shouldn't be a problem since most owners here would not slam their cars anyways. The other person had an issue with "missing parts". What i discovered was the difference in EDC vs Non-EDC equipped M3s.

The M3's rear shocks is what some may run into issues with. But its a very small issue that can easily be fixed. EDC equipped M3s have larger rear shock piston diameter compared to non-edc. EDC shocks run 14mm thread top nuts which i believe uses a 24mm socket to remove. NON-edc uses a 12mm thread to nut and im not sure exactly was size socket to remove. Because the BC racing coilover rear strut is built with 14mm threading on the top not, you can re-use your washers and top nut IF you have an EDC model. If you DO NOT have an EDC equipped M3, you'll have to purchase washers and nuts from an EDC model. A quick trip to your local BMW dealer or hardware store will fix it.

You will have an EDC malfunction code if your car has stock EDC. It can be coded to be turned off.

Enough with the technical stuff... So how does the car feel? Absolutely smooth! I currently have the car set at 20 out of 30 hardness on dampening. So far about 6 people have ridden in my car. Not one time did I ever ask any of them how the ride was. Ive taken all 6 passengers on rides, not with eachother... and each person has told me that the ride is "smooth and comfy as f*ck" without me asking.

Pictures:

18K miles on the stock suspension:


Coilover setup: Note the bottom independent cartridge/bracket


My car is equipped with EDC:


Front assembly on:


Rear assembly on:


Maxed out on stock 18s:


Alignment done:


Violaaaaa!:



Keep in mind that im on 18" Equips. 19" will almost tuck at the lowest setting.

I LOVE my ride dumped/slammed and people tell me it rides smooth... Don't believe me? Let's take a ride.

Hope this helps!

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      12-10-2013, 08:01 AM   #2
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Strong armin ppl!
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      12-10-2013, 02:13 PM   #3
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Looks awesome
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      12-13-2013, 04:00 AM   #4
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Perfect drop man. Looks good. Ill have to look into these. So are they just the standard spring rate setup out the box that you have or custom?
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      12-13-2013, 08:02 AM   #5
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Looks awesome, I love the drop the BC Coils give just worried about loosing ride quality too much. I am on H&R Race right now but I need a set of coils lol
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      12-14-2013, 03:27 PM   #6
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I don't understand how a company (BC Racing) are not aware of the difference between EDC and non-EDC cars and provide all the correct components to fit? Basic omissions like this would put me off using such a company.
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      12-14-2013, 04:00 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ant Man View Post
I don't understand how a company (BC Racing) are not aware of the difference between EDC and non-EDC cars and provide all the correct components to fit? Basic omissions like this would put me off using such a company.
Makes me VERY skeptical of how much testing they did on their product.
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      12-15-2013, 11:01 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by W Cole View Post
Makes me VERY skeptical of how much testing they did on their product.
Whats even weirder bc racing makes megan racing coilovers to(same company) and megans come with all hardware
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      12-16-2013, 11:43 AM   #9
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nice review nav wanna see your car in person with the 18's.
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      12-16-2013, 04:02 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mazspeed View Post
Perfect drop man. Looks good. Ill have to look into these. So are they just the standard spring rate setup out the box that you have or custom?
I have custom (stiffer). The standard out of the box is 8k fronts and 14k rears.

Quote:
Originally Posted by e92livin View Post
Looks awesome, I love the drop the BC Coils give just worried about loosing ride quality too much. I am on H&R Race right now but I need a set of coils lol
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ant Man View Post
I don't understand how a company (BC Racing) are not aware of the difference between EDC and non-EDC cars and provide all the correct components to fit? Basic omissions like this would put me off using such a company.
Quote:
Originally Posted by W Cole View Post
Makes me VERY skeptical of how much testing they did on their product.
The owner of BC racing owns an e90 M3 that is EDC equipped. Testing were done but were just not aware of edc vs non-edc. Since then they have already fixed the issues and provide all the correct components. As stated, it was a prior issue.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ThatGuyMikee View Post
Whats even weirder bc racing makes megan racing coilovers to(same company) and megans come with all hardware
Megan Racing and BC Racing are NOT the same company. You may be mixing up the manufacturing factory. Most/many companies manufacture from the same factories overseas and finish assembling them here in the states. Im not sure if Megan assembles them here but i know BC racing does. Because they offset custom spring rates and spring lengths, it would be easier to assemble them per order for those that are "not out of the box" ready.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ijnoj09 View Post
nice review nav wanna see your car in person with the 18's.
Soon brotha!
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      12-17-2013, 09:40 PM   #11
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Good stuff bro, thanks for the review.
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      12-30-2013, 07:35 PM   #12
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Love the stance!
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      01-01-2014, 02:40 PM   #13
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So tempting......
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      01-01-2014, 06:26 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by WhatsBFc View Post
I have custom (stiffer). The standard out of the box is 8k fronts and 14k rears.
??? Clarify please...800 front 1400 back? which would be pretty stiff from my limited knowledge on spring rates, and you went stiffer?!?
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      01-01-2014, 11:15 PM   #15
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Cool... thanks for the review
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      01-02-2014, 09:47 AM   #16
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very ncie, always liked the BC setup as they go really low!
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      01-02-2014, 12:39 PM   #17
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Curious to see how long these last before needing a rebuild. The price of these new is similar to a used kw v3 w/ 10k+ useage lately. If the quality/ ride is comparable to kw v3 and last similar mileage useage then these may be a great alternative
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      01-02-2014, 02:09 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by klammer View Post
??? Clarify please...800 front 1400 back? which would be pretty stiff from my limited knowledge on spring rates, and you went stiffer?!?
8kg fronts and 14kg rears...

Quote:
Originally Posted by MDIAU View Post
Curious to see how long these last before needing a rebuild. The price of these new is similar to a used kw v3 w/ 10k+ useage lately. If the quality/ ride is comparable to kw v3 and last similar mileage useage then these may be a great alternative
I put about 23k miles on my last set of BC coilovers on my e46 M3. No leaks or rebuilding. To my knowledge, the new owner isnt having any issues with them yet either.
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      01-03-2014, 07:28 AM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by WhatsBFc View Post
8kg fronts and 14kg rears...



I put about 23k miles on my last set of BC coilovers on my e46 M3. No leaks or rebuilding. To my knowledge, the new owner isnt having any issues with them yet either.
I do not understand the above spring rates.

There is a sticky in this sub forum that details the spring weights of various suspension kits (e.g. 300lbs front / 600lbs rear) including the stock components. 8kg or 14kg does not make any sense to me..

For the kit you are using. How many lbs is required to compress the spring by 1 inch?
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      01-04-2014, 12:04 PM   #20
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Convert kg/mm to lb/in.

8k is about 450lbs
14kg is about 780-800lbs
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      01-12-2014, 06:46 PM   #21
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Wow, what a waste.
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      04-24-2014, 05:49 AM   #22
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Good Review.
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