Does blown shocks cause vehicle to sit lower?

nukezero · 08-25-2015, 04:15 PM

I noticed this rubbing noise coming from the front-end but it could be front the back end. ALso, this annoying clunk noise, sounds like plastic hitting.

I also noticed now that the rear passenger wheel well is sitting an inch lower than the left driver rear wheel well. All suspension and car is all stock on M-Sport.

Does this mean that my right rear passenger wheel shock is most probably blown?

109,000 original miles. All original parts, except water pump and HPFP.

UPDATE below:

it was a blown, leaking rear passenger shock

W37V · 08-25-2015, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Does blown shocks cause vehicle to sit lower?

Yes it can.

Is there any evidence of leakage on the affected shock?

slimxb8 · 08-25-2015, 05:40 PM

not really.. if the shock is blown, the spring may be partially collapsed from being over compressed with out the shock helping out.

nukezero · 08-25-2015, 05:41 PM

I'm going to check for leaks after I take the wheel off this weekend.

Something is definitely not right with my car. A couple of clunking going on and I noticed this when rolling like a G with the windows down but with the radio off.

autoart · 08-25-2015, 07:38 PM

The weight of the car is on the springs.

328XIdiot · 08-25-2015, 08:00 PM

Springs usually designate height. The shock determines the compression and rebound. Blown shock should not impact height, but it will make a corner react poorly to bad road conditions. I have reaplaced two rear sets of shocks on e90s with 50k miles and both were severely corroded and leaking...I would bet yours are too.

feuer · 08-25-2015, 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nukezero

I also noticed now that the rear passenger wheel well is sitting an inch lower than the left driver rear wheel well. All suspension and car is all stock on M-Sport.

Here, decide for yourself:
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1153280

nukezero · 08-25-2015, 11:59 PM

Hi guys

thanks for the response. i confirmed that something is seriously wrong with my rear end. When the car is turned off, I push the trunk up and down it goes "EEH EEH EEH EEH" like having sex on a bad bed of springs.

Also, this eeh eeh noise occurs when driving/turning too. In addition, there is an associated clunk noise with it.

What is the culprit of this? Blown shocks? Blown rubber bushing somewhere?

Thanks

ucdbiendog · 08-26-2015, 12:11 AM

the clunk could be a bad bushing(s). my front end made clunking sounds when i hit the brakes suddenly on my bad thrust arm bushings.

bmw_hub · 08-26-2015, 08:05 AM

could be rear control arm or bad springs

hockeyplayer · 08-26-2015, 08:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by W37V

Yes it can.

Is there any evidence of leakage on the affected shock?

I respectfully disagree. Shocks do not support any weight....the springs do.

Shocks are there to dampen excessive spring oscillations (a.k.a. keep you from bouncing)

Antetokounmpo · 08-26-2015, 08:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hockeyplayer

I respectfully disagree. Shocks do not support any weight....the springs do.

Shocks are there to dampen excessive spring oscillations (a.k.a. keep you from bouncing)

+1, shocks have nothing to do with height, the strictly dampen the springs to prevent it from bouncing.

Shocks are fairly compressible by hand, springs... absolutely no way.

The symptom of blown shocks is a very bouncy ride. Shocks are meant to last 75k, most people don't change them though. When I replaced mine with bilsteins at 90k, one of my rears was completely blown, the other 3 were okay.

W37V · 08-26-2015, 09:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hockeyplayer

I respectfully disagree. Shocks do not support any weight....the springs do.

Shocks are there to dampen excessive spring oscillations (a.k.a. keep you from bouncing)

I respectfully disagree with you disagreeing with me.

Just changed them on my brother's Golf. Golf's front right side was blown and car was sitting 1 inch lower than left. On my old Golf, blown rear left shock also caused the vehicle to sag by 1/2 inch. Both cars became leveled after shock replacement.

Pressurized shocks act (ever so slightly) as a spring and can affect height, especially on lighter vehicles with softer springs.

Since you disagree with this, go outside and just try lifting one corner of a car (preferably something with soft springs) and see how much effort it takes to start raising that vehicle (even a little bit).

techwhiz · 08-26-2015, 09:42 AM

Actually blown shocks can change ride height.
If the shock is blown, you have no resistance to compression and the car will sag some.
Take a look at a car with one blown rear shock. On my car with one blown rear shock, there was an ~1" difference in height between left and right.

tke344 · 08-26-2015, 02:51 PM

Yeah, while the spring supports most of the weight the shock does still support the vehicle some. I believe there has even been some threads on this forum where someone upgraded their shocks / struts and noticed slightly increased ride height. Make sure to replace all mounts etc. when getting the job done.

kfriceman · 08-26-2015, 04:38 PM

Springs carry the weight of the car and shocks keep the tires on the road.

-Kevin

nukezero · 08-26-2015, 05:59 PM

Hi Guys thank you guys for all the information. I took it to a reputable shop in socal that works on bimmers. He confirmed and agreed with me the left rear suspension wheel well was sitting lower than usual, being stock. I told him the entire car is bone stock, never rear ended, all sports suspension.

He put it on the rack and sure enough the rear passenger shock was leaking. I told him to replace it with BMW OEM sachs only. I told him that the car creaks when pushing it down like in this video:

and also the car has a clunk noise in the rear when going low speeds, over some bumps. He said the clunks can't be from the shocks, usually something else.

So he replaced both rear shocks and initially he heard the clunk once but tightened the subframe bushings and what not. He said from what he can observe from the exterior, the subframe bushing was okay but don't know about the inside without completely dropping it (which will cost a lot). After he tightened some nuts and bolts, the clunk noise went away.

Now my ride has been transformed! Holy crap, I can't believe the turn-in response and the steering response has improved so much. I must've been riding on a blown shock for 20,000 miles since i reached 109k miles.

I scheduled him to do a full front end refresh of the suspension as well, with OEM sachs struts and lower control arm+bushing.

aleks001 · 08-26-2015, 08:12 PM

Mine was really weird. The shocks were leaking no oil or had signs that oil had leaked. I thought at 93,000 miles it was time just to replace them anyway. When I did the swap I couldn't believe how much it raised the entire car and the old shocks had no resistance whatsoever. The ride also changed drastically, so much firmer and at the same time more comfortable.

nukezero · 08-26-2015, 09:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aleks001

Mine was really weird. The shocks were leaking no oil or had signs that oil had leaked. I thought at 93,000 miles it was time just to replace them anyway. When I did the swap I couldn't believe how much it raised the entire car and the old shocks had no resistance whatsoever. The ride also changed drastically, so much firmer and at the same time more comfortable.

Definitely! The rear end has completely STIFFEN up and no more body roll. I don't know how the hell I managed to keep driving my car. Now I know what it feels like to drive a new car off the lot again. That same feeling is back.

I've scheduled with my mechanic to replace the front strut with OEM next week because I'm pretty sure the outcome will be positive as well. Damn, can't believe I was missing out so much.

dassub · 08-27-2015, 12:21 PM

That noise sounds like what I had. Shocks were blown (somehow rusted through and leaked). Replaced all shocks and bushings (but kept stock springs) for a hefty price, but now all is good. Bilstein HD is nice.

nukezero · 08-27-2015, 07:45 PM

Hi Everyone... So I just spent $1600 including tax, parts, and labor to change to Sachs OEM front struts, OEM rear struts, and a pair of front tension strut arms (upper control arm).

I can safely answer my own question now and say, indeed, just replacing the struts/shocks will affect the height of the suspension. In fact, immediately when I picked up the car, I noticed both the front and rear now are sitting higher, most notably the front is higher too.

So far, the car is driving straight/alignment-wise and my steering is still straight. So nothing has changed.

but the driving experience, holy shit, has dramatically improved. I cannot believe that changing shocks will give my a car, that new car feel again. I will be changing shocks/sturts more proactively now.

I guess what i should do now, is measure and keep a log of the fender gap. Over time, as this fender gap decreases, then I'll know the shocks are dying.

feuer · 08-27-2015, 08:19 PM

In post#7 the link is from a thread that explains why one side is higher.
Now, why you car is higher after the installation of new struts and shocks?
Couple of reasons:
-strut mounts not broken in
-strut shaft valving not broken in
Until these get broken in they will add to the total spring rate and make the vehicle sit little higher.
After awhile it will drop and the struts and shocks will still be at 100%
Is just how things function.
BMW shocks struts are good for 50k to 75k after that start failing rapidly.

Enjoy your new suspension.

08-25-2015, 04:15 PM	#1
nukezero Major 343 Rep 1,465 Posts Drives: BMW 3 series Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Irvine iTrader: (8)	Does blown shocks cause vehicle to sit lower? I noticed this rubbing noise coming from the front-end but it could be front the back end. ALso, this annoying clunk noise, sounds like plastic hitting. I also noticed now that the rear passenger wheel well is sitting an inch lower than the left driver rear wheel well. All suspension and car is all stock on M-Sport. Does this mean that my right rear passenger wheel shock is most probably blown? 109,000 original miles. All original parts, except water pump and HPFP. UPDATE below: it was a blown, leaking rear passenger shock Last edited by nukezero; 08-26-2015 at 06:01 PM..
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08-25-2015, 05:40 PM	#3
slimxb8 First Lieutenant 51 Rep 308 Posts Drives: 2007 328i Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Chicago iTrader: (0) Garage List 2007 BMW 328i [0.00]	not really.. if the shock is blown, the spring may be partially collapsed from being over compressed with out the shock helping out.
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08-25-2015, 05:41 PM	#4
nukezero Major 343 Rep 1,465 Posts Drives: BMW 3 series Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Irvine iTrader: (8)	I'm going to check for leaks after I take the wheel off this weekend. Something is definitely not right with my car. A couple of clunking going on and I noticed this when rolling like a G with the windows down but with the radio off.
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08-25-2015, 07:38 PM	#5
autoart Colonel 347 Rep 2,281 Posts Drives: 2009 335i e90 M/ 22 X3 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: socal iTrader: (8)	The weight of the car is on the springs.
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08-25-2015, 08:00 PM	#6
328XIdiot Private First Class 28 Rep 121 Posts Drives: E92 328xi 6MT Join Date: Aug 2014 Location: Northwest Chicago Suburbs iTrader: (0)	Springs usually designate height. The shock determines the compression and rebound. Blown shock should not impact height, but it will make a corner react poorly to bad road conditions. I have reaplaced two rear sets of shocks on e90s with 50k miles and both were severely corroded and leaking...I would bet yours are too.
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08-25-2015, 11:59 PM	#8
nukezero Major 343 Rep 1,465 Posts Drives: BMW 3 series Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Irvine iTrader: (8)	Hi guys thanks for the response. i confirmed that something is seriously wrong with my rear end. When the car is turned off, I push the trunk up and down it goes "EEH EEH EEH EEH" like having sex on a bad bed of springs. Also, this eeh eeh noise occurs when driving/turning too. In addition, there is an associated clunk noise with it. What is the culprit of this? Blown shocks? Blown rubber bushing somewhere? Thanks
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08-26-2015, 12:11 AM	#9
ucdbiendog Captain 91 Rep 610 Posts Drives: 2008 335xi E90 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Reno, NV iTrader: (0)	the clunk could be a bad bushing(s). my front end made clunking sounds when i hit the brakes suddenly on my bad thrust arm bushings.
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08-26-2015, 08:05 AM	#10
bmw_hub Instagram: @bmw_hub 10 Rep 49 Posts Drives: 2011 BMW E90 335I XDRIVE N55 Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: USA iTrader: (0) Garage List 2011 BMW 335I [0.00]	could be rear control arm or bad springs
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08-26-2015, 09:42 AM	#14
techwhiz Colonel 453 Rep 2,973 Posts Drives: e90 335i Sedan - Arctic Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Bay Area, Ca iTrader: (4)	Actually blown shocks can change ride height. If the shock is blown, you have no resistance to compression and the car will sag some. Take a look at a car with one blown rear shock. On my car with one blown rear shock, there was an ~1" difference in height between left and right. __________________ Arctic Metallic\CF Splitters, Spoiler, Mirror Covers\LED Tails\LSD\Tinted\Coded\Apex Square SM10-19"\LED Angel Eyes\Gloss Black Grill\Integrated V1 & Galaxy Tab\M-Performance Brakes\Cobb Tuned\xHP Flash\Resonator Removed and -> is your friend.
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08-26-2015, 02:51 PM	#15
tke344 Lieutenant 38 Rep 463 Posts Drives: f15 X5 50i Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Charlotte iTrader: (1)	Yeah, while the spring supports most of the weight the shock does still support the vehicle some. I believe there has even been some threads on this forum where someone upgraded their shocks / struts and noticed slightly increased ride height. Make sure to replace all mounts etc. when getting the job done.
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08-26-2015, 04:38 PM	#16
kfriceman Lieutenant 52 Rep 471 Posts Drives: 2009 335 xDrive E90 Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Ferndale, WA iTrader: (1)	Springs carry the weight of the car and shocks keep the tires on the road. -Kevin
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08-26-2015, 05:59 PM	#17
nukezero Major 343 Rep 1,465 Posts Drives: BMW 3 series Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Irvine iTrader: (8)	Hi Guys thank you guys for all the information. I took it to a reputable shop in socal that works on bimmers. He confirmed and agreed with me the left rear suspension wheel well was sitting lower than usual, being stock. I told him the entire car is bone stock, never rear ended, all sports suspension. He put it on the rack and sure enough the rear passenger shock was leaking. I told him to replace it with BMW OEM sachs only. I told him that the car creaks when pushing it down like in this video: and also the car has a clunk noise in the rear when going low speeds, over some bumps. He said the clunks can't be from the shocks, usually something else. So he replaced both rear shocks and initially he heard the clunk once but tightened the subframe bushings and what not. He said from what he can observe from the exterior, the subframe bushing was okay but don't know about the inside without completely dropping it (which will cost a lot). After he tightened some nuts and bolts, the clunk noise went away. Now my ride has been transformed! Holy crap, I can't believe the turn-in response and the steering response has improved so much. I must've been riding on a blown shock for 20,000 miles since i reached 109k miles. I scheduled him to do a full front end refresh of the suspension as well, with OEM sachs struts and lower control arm+bushing.
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08-26-2015, 08:12 PM	#18
aleks001 Enlisted Member 8 Rep 30 Posts Drives: 2006 325i Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Brisbane, Australia iTrader: (0)	Mine was really weird. The shocks were leaking no oil or had signs that oil had leaked. I thought at 93,000 miles it was time just to replace them anyway. When I did the swap I couldn't believe how much it raised the entire car and the old shocks had no resistance whatsoever. The ride also changed drastically, so much firmer and at the same time more comfortable.
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08-27-2015, 12:21 PM	#20
dassub Captain 60 Rep 965 Posts Drives: '14 328xi sport line Join Date: May 2009 Location: Toronto iTrader: (1) Garage List 1981 Fiat 124 Spider [0.00] 2014 F30 BMW 328xi [0.00] 2006 E90 BMW 325i ( ... [0.00] 1988 Audi 90 Quattr ... [0.00]	That noise sounds like what I had. Shocks were blown (somehow rusted through and leaked). Replaced all shocks and bushings (but kept stock springs) for a hefty price, but now all is good. Bilstein HD is nice.
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08-27-2015, 07:45 PM	#21
nukezero Major 343 Rep 1,465 Posts Drives: BMW 3 series Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Irvine iTrader: (8)	Hi Everyone... So I just spent $1600 including tax, parts, and labor to change to Sachs OEM front struts, OEM rear struts, and a pair of front tension strut arms (upper control arm). I can safely answer my own question now and say, indeed, just replacing the struts/shocks will affect the height of the suspension. In fact, immediately when I picked up the car, I noticed both the front and rear now are sitting higher, most notably the front is higher too. So far, the car is driving straight/alignment-wise and my steering is still straight. So nothing has changed. but the driving experience, holy shit, has dramatically improved. I cannot believe that changing shocks will give my a car, that new car feel again. I will be changing shocks/sturts more proactively now. I guess what i should do now, is measure and keep a log of the fender gap. Over time, as this fender gap decreases, then I'll know the shocks are dying.
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08-27-2015, 08:19 PM	#22
feuer Major General 4276 Rep 9,206 Posts Drives: wife crazy! Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: Chicago, IL iTrader: (5)	In post#7 the link is from a thread that explains why one side is higher. Now, why you car is higher after the installation of new struts and shocks? Couple of reasons: -strut mounts not broken in -strut shaft valving not broken in Until these get broken in they will add to the total spring rate and make the vehicle sit little higher. After awhile it will drop and the struts and shocks will still be at 100% Is just how things function. BMW shocks struts are good for 50k to 75k after that start failing rapidly. Enjoy your new suspension.
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