Re: suspension question

[kohlbren-m-d@xxxxxxx]

> Alex thanks for your quick response. I may not have explained myself
> well when trying to describe what the bmw mechanic said needed to be
> done. i am not sure what the exact part names are but please bare
> with me. From what i remember the bmw mechanic said that the springs
> should not have been as compressed as they were. the car was just
> parked on a level surface. when he looked up under the wheel well he
> pointed and showed me what he was looking at. The first few coils on
> the springs were touching each other.

This may very well be perfectly normal.  There are plenty of
"lowering springs" out there that have several so-called "dead
coils" wound into them whose only function is to take up the
slop when the shock is at full extension, as when the wheels are
off the ground.  This prevents the springs from popping out of
their perches.

> ... he said that it looked like they did not set the bump stop
> properly and it could cause the car to bottom out.

This could also be perfectly normal, depending on the parts you
have purchased.  Didn't you mention that they did this on the
rear?

> ...he explained that i need to take it back to the shop that
> did it and have them cut the "spring perch?"(the plate/housing 
> where the spring sits in on the strut) and drop it an inch and
> weld it back on.

While this is certainly something that gets done, it is typically
only on really custom setups.  If you are buying off-the-shelf
aftermarket bits specifically for the M3, then you shouldn't be
doing stuff like that.

> He was not saying to cut and weld the actual springs themselves.
> 
> I got the springs from a place called AutoMod(www.automod.net)
> and I got my konis(yellow) from tirerack.

My suggestion is to start calling these two places and asking them
for their advice.  I don't think that the Tire Rack is going to be
selling you inappropriate parts, but I have no clue about this other
outfit.  A quick look on the REAL Racing Dynamics website shows that
they offer no suspension components for the E36 M3...

Good luck and sorry I couldn't offer more specific help.

Regards,
Mike Kohlbrenner
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