[brakthru]

Originally Posted by tlum235i

I'm approaching 85k miles, so the car is getting a suspension refresh. Still deciding on either Dinan springs or MSS springs to pair with these B6 struts/shocks.

So, which springs you go with? I'd love to hear your impressions on MSS.

[brakthru]

Originally Posted by stvward

Really interested in how you go with this. I am about to install (next few weeks, hopefully over the holidays) the MSS Sport springs on to my M240i with 15,000 miles. I did think about installing the B6 struts but decided to leave it for a bit and go with the springs only. With only 15k miles I decided that the oem struts still had plenty of life in them although I am sure that the B6 struts would be a significant improvement.

Did you do the MSS springs yet? I'm on stock dampers too. I'd like to know how they helped your car perform in all adaptive modes and any drawbacks if any.

[pdx]

had eibach springs (E10-20-030-03-22), 15mil spacers, and powerflex front thrust arm bushings installed today.

quick day-one review:

it looks lower, but it doesnt measure lower (yes, i know it will settle more). maybe its the spacers pushing the wheels closer to the edge that makes it look lower.

the wallow feeling in corners is gone. and the steering wheel actually feels like its connected to something now.

the "comfortable ride" is also gone (yes, i know things will change). the stiffer springs are VERY noticeable in all modes. no more float, no more cushy, no more luxury. you feel everything on the road.

ECO PRO mode feels acceptable now for handling. i would say the firmer damper setting in SPORT mode is probably the right combo.

the best part of all the great, positive, changes: when driving, the car FEELS lower. that feeling of sitting in on a kids highchair has been reduced.

cons: now that the car is flatter in corners, it draws attention to the seats.

[spidy512]

Originally Posted by pdx

had eibach springs (E10-20-030-03-22), 15mil spacers, and powerflex front thrust arm bushings installed today.

quick day-one review:

it looks lower, but it doesnt measure lower (yes, i know it will settle more). maybe its the spacers pushing the wheels closer to the edge that makes it look lower.

the wallow feeling in corners is gone. and the steering wheel actually feels like its connected to something now.

the "comfortable ride" is also gone (yes, i know things will change). the stiffer springs are VERY noticeable in all modes. no more float, no more cushy, no more luxury. you feel everything on the road.

ECO PRO mode feels acceptable now for handling. i would say the firmer damper setting in SPORT mode is probably the right combo.

the best part of all the great, positive, changes: when driving, the car FEELS lower. that feeling of sitting in on a kids highchair has been reduced.

cons: now that the car is flatter in corners, it draws attention to the seats.

Thank you VERY much for the review. I have had these sitting in my garage since July pondering if I should put them in. I was looking for a small drop, so I am curious how much yours settles over time. If you can give an update down the road that would be great appreciated.

The big question I keep mulling over is if I should replace the original struts/shocks as the car is just approaching 42k miles. They currently feel fine as this is one of the best handling cars I have ever owned (qualified:3 STi, Mk7 R, etc.). I am just not sure what to expect to get mileage wise from BMW damptronic shocks. I do live in the Bay Area which has for thr most part terrible roads.

Can you post some pics of the car? Before afte maybe?

Josh

Josh

[GoldfishRT]

Welp. Oil change time. Due for brake fluid and coolant soon. Needs a new clutch for sure, and also found shift seal and oil pan gasket leaks.

Everything is great and problem free until I start looking.

[tlum235i]

Originally Posted by brakthru

So, which springs you go with? I'd love to hear your impressions on MSS.

I went with the MSS springs, as I found them on sale randomly one day, so I pulled the trigger. Pairing them with the B6 damptronic makes the car feel much better. Comfort is pretty similar, but a tad firmer. It's totally fine to daily and not harsh at all. Sport mode is much more firm, but, again, not harsh (to me anyway). It took away any floating I've heard many people talk about on here.
I've driven the car for about 1 1/2 hours since install and did a mix of highway and side streets (tried to find some harsh roads on purpose too). I haven't pushed the car too hard yet, as we're surprisingly having pretty cold weather here in TX right now. I'll try to give more of an update in a week or two.

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by GoldfishRT

Everything is great and problem free until I start looking.

You've got to stop with this; you know that you're frightening the rest of us, right!?!

P.S. I'm serious.

[Gabbykat]

I took it out for a drive and got the message "start engine" when I parked. So I drove it for over an hour and got the same message. Took it to the dealership and was told that I needed to replace my 2017 battery since I didn't drive it enough.

Didn't like being blamed for not driving it aimlessly especially when I work from home now and the guy did me a 'favour' by giving me 10%.

My 10 year old volvo never had this problem and I didn't drive that car in the winter because I didn't have winter tires!

What the heck? it's less than 4 years old and I'm in Vancouver - not that cold!

[PeteTheMailman]

Originally Posted by Joyyce

I took it out for a drive and got the message "start engine" when I parked. So I drove it for over an hour and got the same message. Took it to the dealership and was told that I needed to replace my 2017 battery since I didn't drive it enough.

Didn't like being blamed for not driving it aimlessly especially when I work from home now and the guy did me a 'favour' by giving me 10%.

My 10 year old volvo never had this problem and I didn't drive that car in the winter because I didn't have winter tires!

What the heck? it's less than 4 years old and I'm in Vancouver - not that cold!

Get a battery tender, newer cars use battery power even when parked so it takes toll on it

[Kemps2Fast]

I hope my boss believes my xdrive stopped working for a minute.

[harma24]

Since it's too cold for me to do it in my driveway at the moment, I sent my car in to an indi shop for an oil change. And while I had it in there, I had the the front and rear differential and transfer case fluids changed as well. Did the transmission fluid last year, so that pretty much takes care of all the "lifetime" fluids for a while!

[GoldfishRT]

Originally Posted by dradernh

You've got to stop with this; you know that you're frightening the rest of us, right!?!

P.S. I'm serious.

Some of the issues I've had, I anticipated as a cost of buying a second hand 'enthusiast' (read: thrashed) car. The clutch being on its way out is a bummer but I was suspecting it and we're close to 60k so fluids were a known fact. Such is life. I knew I wasn't getting into another Corolla haha.

Rear shift seal was a surprise as was the oil pan gasket. Lucky for me (maybe), when the dealer did the warranty work to replace the timing chain assembly and oil pump drive they had to replace it so I'm thinking they'll likely cover replacing it again since that was quite recent. I have a decent service advisor so we'll see. At least the leaks are quite minor.

On that note, Sachs still a good brand to go with for a clutch?

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by GoldfishRT

Some of the issues I've had, I anticipated as a cost of buying a second hand 'enthusiast' (read: thrashed) car. The clutch being on its way out is a bummer but I was suspecting it and we're close to 60k so fluids were a known fact. Such is life. I knew I wasn't getting into another Corolla haha.

Rear shift seal was a surprise as was the oil pan gasket. Lucky for me (maybe), when the dealer did the warranty work to replace the timing chain assembly and oil pump drive they had to replace it so I'm thinking they'll likely cover replacing it again since that was quite recent. I have a decent service advisor so we'll see. At least the leaks are quite minor.

On that note, Sachs still a good brand to go with for a clutch?

I'd guess so. I'd probably call Bimmerworld for advice and suggestions on that.

[Jcoop901]

Took my M240i to the dealership today after waking up to a pool of coolant in front of the driver side front tire. I must have caught a rock or something and punctured the auxiliary radiator. I spoke with the dealer, and BMWNA prior to taking it in. They wouldn't commit to covering it under warranty but seemed very willing to work with me on it. My production date was 1-17, I mentioned the rock guards being added after 12-17 and how it's a widely known issue with these. We'll see how it goes. If anyone has been thru this I'd love to hear the end result.

[pdx]

Originally Posted by Jcoop901

Took my M240i to the dealership today after waking up to a pool of coolant in front of the driver side front tire. I must have caught a rock or something and punctured the auxiliary radiator. I spoke with the dealer, and BMWNA prior to taking it in. They wouldn't commit to covering it under warranty but seemed very willing to work with me on it. My production date was 1-17, I mentioned the rock guards being added after 12-17 and how it's a widely known issue with these. We'll see how it goes. If anyone has been thru this I'd love to hear the end result.

the end result? i ended up paying $1,147.80 (including install) for a new aux radiator. none of the experience was covered under regular or extended warranty. i explicitly asked.

between this, and the $1,230.04 in rodent damage in the engine compartment (yaaay, soy-based wires and tubes), my december 2020 was really expensive.

i am not sure if it was a mistake or not, but i mentioned all this to my car insurance company and they might be taking care of it.

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by Jcoop901

Took my M240i to the dealership today after waking up to a pool of coolant in front of the driver side front tire. I must have caught a rock or something and punctured the auxiliary radiator. I spoke with the dealer, and BMWNA prior to taking it in. They wouldn't commit to covering it under warranty but seemed very willing to work with me on it. My production date was 1-17, I mentioned the rock guards being added after 12-17 and how it's a widely known issue with these. We'll see how it goes. If anyone has been thru this I'd love to hear the end result.

Sorry to hear about this. Having read about this issue over on babybmw.net, I'd already had some Lowe's screening installed on the backside of my bumper cover openings.

Later, I went ahead and had the dealer install the rock guard at a cost of $710, including the coolant flush.

[imperialgrunt]

Originally Posted by dradernh

Later, I went ahead and had the dealer install the rock guard at a cost of $710, including the coolant flush.

Hearing about the coolant punctures is a little scary. Does anyone have a photo of these rock guards?

My car is barely a month old to me (it’s a 2019) so I’ve yet to look underneath it, but will definitely try to get those installed if my vehicle didn’t already come with it.

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by imperialgrunt

Hearing about the coolant punctures is a little scary. Does anyone have a photo of these rock guards?

My car is barely a month old to me (it’s a 2019) so I’ve yet to look underneath it, but will definitely try to get those installed if my vehicle didn’t already come with it.

My understanding is that your car came with the rock guard; you might try contacting an SA at your dealer to confirm.

Below are what mine look like behind the upper and lower openings in the bumper cover. Immediately behind the OEM plastic is the Lowes screening I had installed. Behind that is the rock guard; I looks somewhat like a radiator really tight finning. Sorry the photos aren't better, and especially that I didn't shoot images before the install.

In case you haven't seen it or something similar, at the bottom is the realoem.com parts explosion for the radiator and its associated parts. The diagram is for a 2017 M240i; I'm guessing your radiator, etc. are the same.

[iv-128i]

How easy is it to install ?

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by iv-128i

How easy is it to install ?

I don't know. Book rate labor was 3½ hours. According to the dealer's invoice, that included removing the radiators and bleeding the cooling system.

It's just a guess, but with a very clean car like mine with only 10,600 miles on it, I would estimate that the time required was less than 3½ hours; and, perhaps a fair amount less. As I say, I'm guessing.

However, that assumes that you've got whatever tools are required and are as efficient as a dealer tech at performing the tasks involved.

<Caveat>

I'm the type of owner whose current mechanical qualifications consist of being competent at lifting the car to change wheels and at checking/maintaining correct tire pressures and fluid levels. Beyond those simple tasks, I turn the car over to professionals.

FWIW, I'm not mechanically-inclined, so when it comes to working on modern cars there is nothing I find "easy".

Back in the day, I did everything except transmission rebuilds and interior work like upholstery. That included engine rebuilds, clutch replacements, "tune-ups", coolant refreshes, brake fluid flushes and brake system rebuilds, etc. Believe it or not, it was very straightforward for a guy with minimal mechanical skills to successfully accomplish those tasks back then.

Since that time, cars have become remarkably complex, and I no longer have any interest in engaging with my car at that level. Whether I'm at the dealer or at an independent (the latter being my preference), I just push the plastic across the counter.

</End Caveat>

[Jcoop901]

As a follow up on the rock guards. Cars produced after Dec. 2017 were supposed to be fitted with rock guards from the factory. To retrofit the rock guards you MUST buy the new style mounts to attach the guards. Having said that, I am sure it is possible to modify the existing non-guard mount to work, after all, anything is possible with a little creativity.

[XutvJet]

Originally Posted by iv-128i

How easy is it to install ?

It can't be difficult at all. Best case, the under panel has to come off to get to the cooler. Worst case is the bumper cover also has to come off. The panel comes off in a 2 minutes and the bumper, maybe 15 minutes. The coolant needs to be drained (10 minutes, maybe). Then it's a matter of removing the two clips from the cooler connections, and removing the cooler. Then affix the guards and then refill with coolant. BMW has made it crazy easy to burp the cooling system as you add coolant. It's all automated. Check Youtube for a number of videos.

Cars have gotten more complicated, but I wouldn't say they are impossible to work on. They are more crammed under the hood and more stuff has to come out, but everything tends to come a part easier and go back together nicely. The biggest issue is troubleshooting certain electrical systems. In those cases, you'd need expensive computers and/or experience using the BMW ISTA. You may also need a few specialty tools to work on certain things.