GJN Posted January 14, 2019 Report Share Posted January 14, 2019 The springs on my car are pretty tired, one of the rears may be broken. I want to get a replacement set, but which makes are the best? I want standard specification, although according to Euro Car Parts there are "standard" and "sports suspension" versions for my reg. number. Any ideas as to which one is factory spec for my car? Do I need new spring seats front and rear when replacing them? It's a 4 door, 330i Sport (2002). Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo Posted January 14, 2019 Report Share Posted January 14, 2019 The rears all snap eventually.. Even aftermarket ones. I have Eibach on mine, they have a 5 year warranty but that means nothing as you have to remove it to send it back for a replacement. The Standard one will be for SE suspension probably so get Sports - replace them both. If a garage is doing it just be sure they don't opt for the quick way of doing it by pulling the arm down and sliding it in without disconnecting the ARB first. Mine snapped doing it that way as we forgot to disconnect it. D'oh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJN Posted January 15, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 23 hours ago, momo said: The rears all snap eventually.. Even aftermarket ones. I have Eibach on mine, they have a 5 year warranty but that means nothing as you have to remove it to send it back for a replacement. The Standard one will be for SE suspension probably so get Sports - replace them both. If a garage is doing it just be sure they don't opt for the quick way of doing it by pulling the arm down and sliding it in without disconnecting the ARB first. Mine snapped doing it that way as we forgot to disconnect it. D'oh! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berts Posted January 15, 2019 Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 I've got eibach on mine to . althought I fitted them myself by just using the jack to pull down on the suspension . I guess I got lucky nothing snapped on me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo Posted January 15, 2019 Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 Doesn't always happen, but when mine snapped the specialist I took it to (for something else) immediately asked if I had replaced the springs recently. They said they've done it more than a few times so no longer risk it, just disconnect the ARB if you can (could be badly corroded so might not be able to). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berts Posted January 15, 2019 Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 Yeah I would definitely disconnect ARB if I was to do again just as a precaution Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJN Posted January 15, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 Thanks guys. Problem is, Euro Car Parts are no longer listing front springs for "vehicles with sports suspension". I can't find any anywhere else, and don't know the original part numbers, so EBay would be a risk. Any ideas where I can get a full set of decent quality springs for an E46 330i Sport? BTW I don't want to lower the car, or to 'modify' it becasue of insurance issues, plus the roads around here feel bad enough already! Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo Posted January 16, 2019 Report Share Posted January 16, 2019 (edited) Eibach sportlines will lower the car. Pro kit springs wont on yours. Ok, maybe the front will lower a tad, but not much. Rear will barely change. As for ride - it actually improves over stock springs. The advantage with them is they're black coloured springs, as per OEM so even though i'd never condone such a thing - insurance will never know! Doing a search on the Eibach UK parts catalog (search results here: CLICK HERE, for a 2002 330i saloon the part number you need is E2067-140 (the full set) Amazon do the set for £133 ATM. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Eibach-E2067-140-Performance-Pro-Kit-Springs/dp/B007G896V8 ... And the good thing about Amazon (so long as they're the seller you choose) they'll honour the warranty and if you're a prime member you could push them to send another set ready to be swapped over if it ever fails instead of being stuck without use of the car (they did that for a £50 centre support bearing for me). Return the old one in 30 days and no charge to me. Proper customer service! Otherwise if you want to stick with OEM springs then you're best off contacting OEM suppliers. Costwold BMW are a forum sponsor (You have to pay the £10 membership fee to access their forum), BMMiniParts (although not used them for a while, not as good as they used to be) etc.. Personally i'd get Eibach and be done with it. A full set of OEM springs will cost more than £135. Edited January 16, 2019 by momo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJN Posted January 16, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2019 Thanks for the information MOMO, the issue with the Eibach springs/insurance isn't the colour, its the "Eibach" and part number printed on them! Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo Posted January 16, 2019 Report Share Posted January 16, 2019 After a couple of thousand miles the grime will cover those part numbers.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz 330 Cs Posted January 16, 2019 Report Share Posted January 16, 2019 4 hours ago, GJN said: Thanks for the information MOMO, the issue is the "Eibach" and part number printed on them! Cheers. How is that even an issue ? Not getting you ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo Posted January 16, 2019 Report Share Posted January 16, 2019 I'm assuming either he's scared of not declaring a modification, or the cost of having to declare it is prohibitive? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJN Posted January 17, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2019 15 hours ago, momo said: I'm assuming either he's scared of not declaring a modification, or the cost of having to declare it is prohibitive? Correct on both counts. For me, it's not worth the risk of - technically - driving without insurance, or the hassle/cost of declaring a modification. It's easy to say "the difference is irrelevant", but if the worst came to the worst, I very much doubt that's how a court would view it. . momo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo Posted January 17, 2019 Report Share Posted January 17, 2019 Understandable.. But tbh it's such a small change that i'd be amazed if anyone noticed! I have Pro Kit on mine (can't get the red coloured Sportlines on the 330d due to weight so Pro kit lowers as much as Sportlines on equivalent 330i). BMW themselves didn't even notice. The noticed the braided brake hoses! lol. Is it not worth a call to your insurer to ask if they even consider replacement springs a modification? Most don't as far as I know. If you fitted coilovers, then they class that as a modification (at least that's what Sainsbury's insurance told me when I asked). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
incredirog Posted January 17, 2019 Report Share Posted January 17, 2019 (edited) Basically what he said ⬆️ This may not be how the world works but in my opinion, upgrading the standard suspension is kind of a grey area regarding informing the insurance. As long as you’re not putting coil overs on or drastically changing the ride height of the car outside of manufacturer tolerances it’s just another brand of springs and shocks? Gold standard is to inform them though but once a scallywag always a scallywag! Edited January 17, 2019 by incredirog momo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJN Posted January 18, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2019 I once fitted a stainless manifold to my old Honda Prelude - like-for-like swap, zero performance increase, just a different material. The main reason I bought it was that the old one had cracked, and the stainless version was several times cheaper than an original Honda mild steel version. I mentioned it on renewal and they nearly had a fit. At first they said they couldn't insure me at all, but after a load of hassle they eventually accepted it, but with a premium increase due to it now being a modified car. Never again. It's easy to assume 'nobody will notice', but the potential penalties are really quite severe if you're unlucky, and someone cares to look into it. For me it's not worth it, but each to their own! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
incredirog Posted January 21, 2019 Report Share Posted January 21, 2019 I appreciate that insurance companies are the devil, but where is the line? In my opinion if it’s a wear and tear item not expected to last the life cycle of the vehicle you can buy whatever brand you like. I don’t tell them when I put Bosch wiper blades on or change my brake pads to brembo so why would I tell them when I change my shocks and struts to h&r? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJN Posted January 21, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2019 59 minutes ago, incredirog said: I appreciate that insurance companies are the devil, but where is the line? In my opinion if it’s a wear and tear item not expected to last the life cycle of the vehicle you can buy whatever brand you like. I don’t tell them when I put Bosch wiper blades on or change my brake pads to brembo so why would I tell them when I change my shocks and struts to h&r? I don't think there's any issue at all with just changing the brand of part, it's when the specification changes from "standard" that the issue arises. For example, the Eibach springs (and most other 'sports' kits) specify a lowering dimension from standard; that's going to be the issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
incredirog Posted January 21, 2019 Report Share Posted January 21, 2019 I’m bowing out, mine is just an opinion and the fact is clear that you should always inform insurer of modifications. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telboy63 Posted January 21, 2019 Report Share Posted January 21, 2019 What if the car already had them replaced before you purchased it and the previous owner didn’t inform you where do you stand then ? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk momo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJN Posted January 21, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2019 1 hour ago, telboy63 said: What if the car already had them replaced before you purchased it and the previous owner didn’t inform you where do you stand then ? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk No idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momo Posted January 21, 2019 Report Share Posted January 21, 2019 1 hour ago, telboy63 said: What if the car already had them replaced before you purchased it and the previous owner didn’t inform you where do you stand then ? Happens all the time and from what I've seen usually so long as it's not performance enhancing and/or makes the car more desirable to thieves (so coilovers) they let it slide. At the most, they knock off the difference in the cost of the parts between the aftermarket ones and OEM ones. Tbh I fully understand GJN's position and agree to an extent. I'd be so p*ssed at the cost of a set of OEM set springs that i'd just stick my middle finger up at my insurer and fit the Eibach ones anyway and say some fool from this owners club on the t'internet sold them to you as OEM springs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...