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      04-01-2017, 04:01 AM   #23
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Personally, what didn't/doesn't entirely make sense to me is that for the first 600miles or so I had no noises or issues. It was only after that the clunking started and IIRC got louder and more noticeable during low speed driving as the miles added on.

I'll come back here when I've out another 500 miles or so on the car and report back.
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      04-01-2017, 12:53 PM   #24
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Quote:
Originally Posted by su_root View Post
Personally, what didn't/doesn't entirely make sense to me is that for the first 600miles or so I had no noises or issues. It was only after that the clunking started and IIRC got louder and more noticeable during low speed driving as the miles added on.

I'll come back here when I've out another 500 miles or so on the car and report back.
Same happened with me. Rear was fine for the first 200ish miles, just started to knock really loudly the past few days.
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      04-03-2017, 01:17 PM   #25
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Not getting a clunk noise from mine, but in the rear I'm hearing some sort of ticking/clank when rolling at slow speeds (5-10mph). Everything's tightened down as well.
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      04-11-2017, 01:12 AM   #26
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Sounds like a bad sway bar end link or a loose upper strut nut.
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      04-11-2017, 02:14 PM   #27
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Has anyone experienced clunking while low speed reverse while turning the wheel to the right? It seems I developed a clunk, but only in that circumstances
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      04-16-2017, 07:32 AM   #28
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Revvvm3 View Post
Not getting a clunk noise from mine, but in the rear I'm hearing some sort of ticking/clank when rolling at slow speeds (5-10mph). Everything's tightened down as well.
I get this on my stock 2011 ZCP. Not always there, will go away, only in the warmer months. Master BMW tech who happens to be a friend as well and I could never figure it out. Clearly coming only from drivers side rear wheel.

So I would bet nothing to do with your R/T.

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      05-04-2017, 05:27 AM   #29
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After 600 miles the low speed clink re appeared and so I decided to take matters into my own hands.

I Jacked the car up and started on the rear. Removed wheels, all trunk lining to expose the rear damper mounts. Upon initial inspection the rear mounts looked fine. You won't see much if the unit is installed but the correct hardware appeared ok.

Moved onto the spring and damper assembly. All appeared Ok. no to little play in the spring and height adjuster assembly. No play in the damper.

I pulled up the install PDF on my laptop and reviewed the rear install guide. All looked ok. So now it was time to remove everything and reinstall.

As I was reading over the manual it noticed all the exact measurements Ohlins provides. Damper length, preload, etc. I decided to validate all my settings were correct so I picked up a 12" caliper on Amazon and waited for delivery.

Saturday morning came around, with caliper in hand I proceed to measure and notate all my settings. Preload on the rear driver side was above spec. Meaning >37mm. Normally this is ok if you want a lower ride height. The manual states that at standard prescribed settings the car wil lower 20mm below OEM ride height. Since I was troubleshooting I decided to make all settings as Ohlins prescribes.

I set driver and passenger rear preload to 37mm. Note: my passenger side rear preload was wayyyy >37mm and so I noticed more play in the spring assembly than the driver.

Put the wheels back on and took the car for a test drive. To my surprise the clunking was MUCH MUCH worse. I was upset. But clearly I was doing something to affect the problem more so I was heading in the right direction.

Jacked the car back up and called Ohlins USA. Really nice guy took the call in customer support. I explained the problem and he politely mentioned that phone troubleshooting is extremely hard for this type of work but that he'd gladly walk me through the common offenders and hopefully we'd find problem.

Common mistakes:
-not using the Ohlins provided spacer and washer if your car had EDC from factory
-Not removing the OEM top hat 'boot' from the spring assembly. Hard to explain but again this is the install manual
-not setting the proper preload AND damper length

Wait damper length? He says yea. The damper body is threaded so you can rotate the entire thing to set the Ohlins standard setting of 223mm. This doesn't control ride height but it's necessary to be correct. He offered to send me any missing hardware if needed and wished me luck.

I then grabbed my digital caliper and measure the damper length. Sure enough...was wayyy above 223mm. I loosened the lock ring and readjusted both driver and passenger side. Rear was also way out of spec. These two settings were in fact at the default length from the Ohlins factory.

I reassembled the car and took her for another test drive. All clunking was immediately GONE!

Ultimately only time will tell if this new change will solve my problem for good as before the sound would stop then return 600miles later. I'll jack the car up again in 100m and remeasure all settings. If any change it's likely I'm not locking the lock ring right enough and road vibrations are causing it to loosen.

In the end- measure measure measure. Don't trust that because you bought this kit specifically for your M3 that settings come correct from the factory AND/OR that your installer took the time to use a caliper to set preload and damper length to the recommended settings provided by the manual. Then again- if you trust your installer give them the install manual and ask to make sure they use it. It may offend them but it's necessary.

On a positive note- I'm happy with the ride height and will likely leave it at the Ohlins standard settings.

Hope this helps someone out there!
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      05-04-2017, 10:56 AM   #30
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Off topic, but any pictures of the ride height at the recommended manual settings? I bought my car used with the R/T and I'm probably going to be going in and moving to the recommended settings next weekend as the car is currently sitting a bit low for my tastes/local roads and driveways.

My car didn't come with the ohlins spanner wrenches, so I'm hoping the shop I'm renting the lift bay at will have some that will work.
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      05-04-2017, 11:29 AM   #31
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Datka View Post
OP, tell your mechanic to remove vorshlag plates and inspect spherical joints for play.
They go bad from time to time and need to be replaced. Loose joints cause clunking noise you describe.
+1

The spherical bushings wear out rather quickly if you drive on rough roads. Every spherical bushing I've had in a upper camber plate has clunked after you get some miles on them. The only way to fix it is the replace the spherical bushing or the camber plate.

I need a bit more camber on track but I hate clunking and noises so I've stuck with the stock rubber upper mounts.
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      05-05-2017, 12:10 PM   #32
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The clunking in the front was resolved, the rubber mounts from the oem struts weren't installed, once installed the clunking went away. Also it was not necessary to trim the rubber mounts on e90.
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      05-10-2017, 11:40 PM   #33
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Went under the car and I tried looking for the noise on mine. The only thing I could think of is the endlink end attached to the swaybar is more than 90 degrees turned. Would that cost clunking noise on slow full lock and occasionally going up on driveways slanted?
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      08-02-2020, 02:58 PM   #34
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Quote:
Originally Posted by su_root View Post
After 600 miles the low speed clink re appeared and so I decided to take matters into my own hands.

I Jacked the car up and started on the rear. Removed wheels, all trunk lining to expose the rear damper mounts. Upon initial inspection the rear mounts looked fine. You won't see much if the unit is installed but the correct hardware appeared ok.

Moved onto the spring and damper assembly. All appeared Ok. no to little play in the spring and height adjuster assembly. No play in the damper.

I pulled up the install PDF on my laptop and reviewed the rear install guide. All looked ok. So now it was time to remove everything and reinstall.

As I was reading over the manual it noticed all the exact measurements Ohlins provides. Damper length, preload, etc. I decided to validate all my settings were correct so I picked up a 12" caliper on Amazon and waited for delivery.

Saturday morning came around, with caliper in hand I proceed to measure and notate all my settings. Preload on the rear driver side was above spec. Meaning >37mm. Normally this is ok if you want a lower ride height. The manual states that at standard prescribed settings the car wil lower 20mm below OEM ride height. Since I was troubleshooting I decided to make all settings as Ohlins prescribes.

I set driver and passenger rear preload to 37mm. Note: my passenger side rear preload was wayyyy >37mm and so I noticed more play in the spring assembly than the driver.

Put the wheels back on and took the car for a test drive. To my surprise the clunking was MUCH MUCH worse. I was upset. But clearly I was doing something to affect the problem more so I was heading in the right direction.

Jacked the car back up and called Ohlins USA. Really nice guy took the call in customer support. I explained the problem and he politely mentioned that phone troubleshooting is extremely hard for this type of work but that he'd gladly walk me through the common offenders and hopefully we'd find problem.

Common mistakes:
-not using the Ohlins provided spacer and washer if your car had EDC from factory
-Not removing the OEM top hat 'boot' from the spring assembly. Hard to explain but again this is the install manual
-not setting the proper preload AND damper length

Wait damper length? He says yea. The damper body is threaded so you can rotate the entire thing to set the Ohlins standard setting of 223mm. This doesn't control ride height but it's necessary to be correct. He offered to send me any missing hardware if needed and wished me luck.

I then grabbed my digital caliper and measure the damper length. Sure enough...was wayyy above 223mm. I loosened the lock ring and readjusted both driver and passenger side. Rear was also way out of spec. These two settings were in fact at the default length from the Ohlins factory.

I reassembled the car and took her for another test drive. All clunking was immediately GONE!

Ultimately only time will tell if this new change will solve my problem for good as before the sound would stop then return 600miles later. I'll jack the car up again in 100m and remeasure all settings. If any change it's likely I'm not locking the lock ring right enough and road vibrations are causing it to loosen.

In the end- measure measure measure. Don't trust that because you bought this kit specifically for your M3 that settings come correct from the factory AND/OR that your installer took the time to use a caliper to set preload and damper length to the recommended settings provided by the manual. Then again- if you trust your installer give them the install manual and ask to make sure they use it. It may offend them but it's necessary.

On a positive note- I'm happy with the ride height and will likely leave it at the Ohlins standard settings.

Hope this helps someone out there!
Thanks for this detailed post! I just had a set installed a couple of weeks ago and am trying to bring the front and rear height up a bit to my liking.

I think a preload of 37mm in the rear might be more height than I want. I'm curious, did Ohlins say (or anyone else know) anything about the relationship between the preload height of 37mm and the threaded damper length of 223mm (see page 8)? For example, say I set the preload to 30mm, should the damper length remain at 223mm or is there some relationship where the adjustments should be coordinated?

And when adjusting the height for the front (see page 4), if the height adjuster is moved (copper sleeve held by the pinch bolt), should the spring preload adjuster be moved as well to maintain 158mm between them or should I just keep the preload where it is?

Lastly, when trying to adjust the preload in the rear, the whole collar rotated and distorted the rubber seat where now it's stretched and hanging out on one side but with all the force, there's no simple way to unseat it and reposition it from what I can tell. Did this happen to anyone else?
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      08-02-2020, 04:05 PM   #35
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Quote:
Originally Posted by davedNconfused View Post
Thanks for this detailed post! I just had a set installed a couple of weeks ago and am trying to bring the front and rear height up a bit to my liking.

I think a preload of 37mm in the rear might be more height than I want. I'm curious, did Ohlins say (or anyone else know) anything about the relationship between the preload height of 37mm and the threaded damper length of 223mm (see page 8)? For example, say I set the preload to 30mm, should the damper length remain at 223mm or is there some relationship where the adjustments should be coordinated?

And when adjusting the height for the front (see page 4), if the height adjuster is moved (copper sleeve held by the pinch bolt), should the spring preload adjuster be moved as well to maintain 158mm between them or should I just keep the preload where it is?

Lastly, when trying to adjust the preload in the rear, the whole collar rotated and distorted the rubber seat where now it's stretched and hanging out on one side but with all the force, there's no simple way to unseat it and reposition it from what I can tell. Did this happen to anyone else?

For the front. You only adjust the bottom collar by the spindles and not touch the spring preload.

For the rear. For every 1 turn of adjustment on the spring collar. I would go 1.5 turn (because the shock mount is further away from the pivot point of the lower control arm) on the shock body to keep the spring preload consistent.

That rubber ring that sits between the car and the collar is pretty poorly designed by Ohlins, the ID of it is much bigger than the "hump that goes into the cars body. So that ring slides around.

BC Rcing and Bilstein provides a much better one but Bilsteim don't sell it separately. The BC racing rubber ring is also much better and you can buy them from BC Racing on their site.

https://www.bcracing-na.com/product/rubber-cushion

Last edited by M4_GTS; 08-03-2020 at 05:22 PM..
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      12-28-2020, 02:22 PM   #36
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Quote:
Originally Posted by M4_GTS View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by davedNconfused View Post
Thanks for this detailed post! I just had a set installed a couple of weeks ago and am trying to bring the front and rear height up a bit to my liking.

I think a preload of 37mm in the rear might be more height than I want. I'm curious, did Ohlins say (or anyone else know) anything about the relationship between the preload height of 37mm and the threaded damper length of 223mm (see page 8)? For example, say I set the preload to 30mm, should the damper length remain at 223mm or is there some relationship where the adjustments should be coordinated?

And when adjusting the height for the front (see page 4), if the height adjuster is moved (copper sleeve held by the pinch bolt), should the spring preload adjuster be moved as well to maintain 158mm between them or should I just keep the preload where it is?

Lastly, when trying to adjust the preload in the rear, the whole collar rotated and distorted the rubber seat where now it's stretched and hanging out on one side but with all the force, there's no simple way to unseat it and reposition it from what I can tell. Did this happen to anyone else?

For the front. You only adjust the bottom collar by the spindles and not touch the spring preload.

For the rear. For every 1 turn of adjustment on the spring collar. I would go 1.5 turn (because the shock mount is further away from the pivot point of the lower control arm) on the shock body to keep the spring preload consistent.

That rubber ring that sits between the car and the collar is pretty poorly designed by Ohlins, the ID of it is much bigger than the "hump that goes into the cars body. So that ring slides around.

BC Rcing and Bilstein provides a much better one but Bilsteim don't sell it separately. The BC racing rubber ring is also much better and you can buy them from BC Racing on their site.

https://www.bcracing-na.com/product/rubber-cushion
Thank you for this! I was adjusting the height and the Ohlins cushion ended up spinning all the way out. Took your advice and purchased the cushions from BC Racing.

https://www.bcracing-na.com/product/rubber-cushion-
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      01-30-2021, 12:33 AM   #37
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Turbmando View Post
Thank you for this! I was adjusting the height and the Ohlins cushion ended up spinning all the way out. Took your advice and purchased the cushions from BC Racing.

https://www.bcracing-na.com/product/rubber-cushion-
fits like a glove! much better and it wont spin when you adjust the height.
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      12-20-2022, 04:23 PM   #38
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Quote:
Originally Posted by M4_GTS View Post
fits like a glove! much better and it wont spin when you adjust the height.
page doesnt load and cannot find.. anyone have a new link or actual name on site? thanks!

I JUST purchased my ohlins and not sure if ohlin updated it but rather by safe and have it on hand...
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      12-18-2023, 05:02 PM   #39
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mimmer View Post
page doesnt load and cannot find.. anyone have a new link or actual name on site? thanks!

I JUST purchased my ohlins and not sure if ohlin updated it but rather by safe and have it on hand...
https://shop.bcracing-na.com/products/spring-seat-isolator-rubber-d-90-hlk-rb-iso?_pos=2&_sid=f879245a2&_ss=r

They recently changed their site around. But I think this is the one.
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