Car was insured on Friday, and had the pleasure of doing my own alignment for the first time, ever, because my tech was booked off. I wasn't about to sit around and wait!
Got it dialed in to:
F&R Toe = 0
Front Camber = -2.5*
Rear Camber = -2.0*
Was thrilled to have the car home, and give it a proper two bucket wash, after 7 months of storage. Weather couldn't have been any better
Running a pretty "soft" compression/rebound setup and will dial things in as I commute, daily. The best part about this suspension is the ease of tuning. Everything is within reach, and the most you have to do is remove a wheel, if you don't want to climb under the car to make the adjustments. Should be all set to go by end of week, and will throw it back on the alignment rack, to see if there's any room for fine tuning after things have settled. The KW EDC Cancelers went in, after some fussing with the plug ends (two of the KW connectors needed to be modified, was pretty mad about that, but it's done) and no codes or funny business from removing the EDC suspension that the car came equipped with.
Initial driving impressions?
Stiff/Tight! But in a good way, the car feels planted, super stiff in regard to the chassis, but not jarring or unreasonable in any way driving around town. My fiance and I took a drive to Nelson BC, yesterday (about 30-40mins through the local roads) and she had no complaints with the ride, just noticed it was a lot sharper when we went over small bumps. A small 1" deep asphalt patch feels like a 3" deep pothole, lol...
Front axle: You do absolutely feel a LOT more through the steering wheel. I think this is related to the steel bushings in the M4 LCA's, the sway bar/links, and obviously the spring rate in the coilovers. I literally feel every crack/groove in the road, but this was to be expected with these mods. I'd also think running more camber would attribute to some more NVH since there's a slightly smaller contact area on the ground when driving in a straight line.
Rear axle: This is where the biggest change has happened. First, the Derlin Differential bushings, WHAT AN IMPROVEMENT in shifter feel and clutch engagement/disengagement. Every complaint I had regarding the "soft" feel in the driveline, is gone, including engine slop. I think anyone with a MT should do diff bushings if they're looking for more connection with the driveline. You get a little more NVH but it's mainly in the shifter itself, and also an increased gear whining noise from the rpm's of the differential climbing as you accelerate and declining as you decelerate. It sounds more like a race car, but not obnoxious whatsoever, I love it.
Secondly, the rear subframe bushings/swaybar/4-link/coilover transformation. This has to be the biggest noticeable change, mostly in regard to chassis stiffness and NVH, so far. The NVH isn't bad (for me), as I mentioned, but it's definitely something you'd want to consider if this was your 12 month/year car. The factory bushings are super soft compared to the urethane units, and this will transform the "soft" feeling BMW wanted us to have, in these cars. It is stiffer and more "connected", now, than any factory M car I've driven, and that was what I was after. I'm still well under the cost of a new base and stock M2, so I feel I'm in a good place
Brakes: I'm sure I won't see the true capability of them until I'm on the track, but initial impressions are that they're are frickin' strong, in comparison to the stock Brembo's. I use 1/4 of the pedal effort to slow the car down, than I used, before. The tires will now be the cars only limitation for hard braking and distance. Hoping when I get the Cup2's installed I'll have much better traction under hard braking. The PSS's locked right up on my first couple of pedal mash tests, which is expected with a BBK on street tires, lol. More impressions to come, later, once I put on the R compound tires, at the track.
Very happy with everything, and will work on getting those who requested detailed sway bar install pics, etc, to them.
Cheers,
D