New Dinan Tech Article About Suspension Travel and the M3

[Steve.breen@dinan]

Everyone,

This article should help answer some questions about our M3 suspension package and about our approach to suspension design in general. I'll be happy to answer any further questions in this thread or via PM. Please feel free to ask!

Here's the link: http://www.dinancars.com/bmw/technia...pension-travel

Thanks.

-Steve Breen

[808MGuy]

Good read but do new bump stops and spring perches really cost an extra $600. When I bought replacement bump stops for my last car they cost me less than $20.

[MDCTFTW]

Good read. So people lowering on H&Rs that give a 1 inch drop in the front are already riding on the stock bump stops?

One thing about your site though ... it's very very hard to read white text on a black background. I almost went blind and also contemplated not finishing the read. Just my 2 pennies.

[sparkyg]

Good read. Well done. Look forward to more M3 info and products.

[GregW / Oregon]

Originally Posted by HIS4

Good read but do new bump stops and spring perches really cost an extra $600. When I bought replacement bump stops for my last car they cost me less than $20.

Did you read the article? Sounds like the upper spring perches are more than half the solution. Still, the price for springs, bump stops & spring perches is very high. Guess they have to amortize those engineers making California wages. Still, sounds like a solution that might be great for a daily driver--slightly lower with no decrease in travel.

[Radiation Joe]

I'll be stopping in, in a couple of weeks. Are you working on bushing solutions for the rear trailing arms and front control arms, or do I have to call up Jay at GC? These are heavy cars. Those bushings aren't going to last long.

[SR71M3]

When are you coming out with the exhaust system?????????

[rzm3]

Originally Posted by MDCTFTW

Good read. So people lowering on H&Rs that give a 1 inch drop in the front are already riding on the stock bump stops?

One thing about your site though ... it's very very hard to read white text on a black background. I almost went blind and also contemplated not finishing the read. Just my 2 pennies.

+1
Sorry I am a little confused. So if I use a lowering spring that drops the car by 1 in., then I would be compressing the bump stop all the time?

[JAJ]

This doesn't make sense to me - the marketing document for the E92 M3 says that it has 95mm compression travel and 100mm rebound travel. That's 3-3/4 inches and 4".

The Dinan white paper says 1/2 inch of compression travel to the bump stop.

I'm wondering if the white paper is about the E46 and not the E92. Does anyone know when it was written? It refers to the "new" M6.

[808MGuy]

Originally Posted by JAJ

This doesn't make sense to me - the marketing document for the E92 M3 says that it has 95mm compression travel and 100mm rebound travel. That's 3-3/4 inches and 4".

The Dinan white paper says 1/2 inch of compression travel to the bump stop.

I'm wondering if the white paper is about the E46 and not the E92. Does anyone know when it was written? It refers to the "new" M6.

The article does say that the bump stop is over 2" high so maybe the 1/2 inch they quote is to the bump stop and the rest of the travel would be the compression of the bump stop.

[808MGuy]

Originally Posted by GregW / Oregon

Did you read the article? Sounds like the upper spring perches are more than half the solution. Still, the price for springs, bump stops & spring perches is very high. Guess they have to amortize those engineers making California wages. Still, sounds like a solution that might be great for a daily driver--slightly lower with no decrease in travel.

I did read the article but I know spring perches don't cost $500. Excellent article but the price is still not justified. Maybe at $500 or even $600 for the package I would consider it but not for $900.

[spyderco10]

If anybody does a DIY, please confirm the 1/2" of suspension travel before hitting the bump stop.

[Technic]

Originally Posted by HIS4

Good read but do new bump stops and spring perches really cost an extra $600. When I bought replacement bump stops for my last car they cost me less than $20.

I guess that those extra $600 (in the case of a set of Eibach Pro Kit springs is more like extra $660) in the price of this Dinan lowering spring kit is to cover the Dinan BMW-matching warranty.

[rzm3]

Originally Posted by spyderco10

If anybody does a DIY, please confirm the 1/2" of suspension travel before hitting the bump stop.

+1. or i can check when i install this weekend.

[ILLCOMM]

Pictures of the Dinan setup and lowering versus stock?

[GregW / Oregon]

Originally Posted by SR71M3

When are you coming out with the exhaust system?????????

Let's hope it doesn't have two fake tips, like their E46 one. That was very lame, no matter what the justification.

[watrob]

Sounds like Dinan has done a little bit of R&D into these springs and acknowledge that its works fine with the EDC. Like to see some pics of the new perch plates there talking about.

[lucid]

Originally Posted by JAJ

This doesn't make sense to me - the marketing document for the E92 M3 says that it has 95mm compression travel and 100mm rebound travel. That's 3-3/4 inches and 4".

The Dinan white paper says 1/2 inch of compression travel to the bump stop.

I'm wondering if the white paper is about the E46 and not the E92. Does anyone know when it was written? It refers to the "new" M6.

The article references the EDC systems in the "new" M3 and M6. The E46 M3 did not have EDC, so they must indeed be talking about the E9X M3.

[EvilTuna7]

It would be very interesting to see a shock dyno chart with the edc in the 3 different modes. I wouldn't be surprised if the "normal" setting yielded the best results.

[GT3 Tim]

Originally Posted by EvilTuna7

It would be very interesting to see a shock dyno chart with the edc in the 3 different modes. I wouldn't be surprised if the "normal" setting yielded the best results.

That was the inside word long ago in an article in which one of the delevopers was quoted....Normal "reacts" to inputs whereas sport sort of locks it in. Faster slalom times were found in Normal mode. I know it is here somewhere....but I am too lazy to search and link.

Also, the differences quoted in suspension travel can be explained as to WHERE the measurements are taken. If taken at the wheel, one could expect 3-4" of travel. Much less would be seen at the suspension area adjacent to the bump stop (prolly where Dinan measured it).

[335ICoupe]

I cut the bump stop on my S2000 when I put in aftermarket springs. It was a super easy DIY, free, and I never had a problem....

[rzm3]

Originally Posted by GT3 Tim

That was the inside word long ago in an article in which one of the delevopers was quoted....Normal "reacts" to inputs whereas sport sort of locks it in. Faster slalom times were found in Normal mode. I know it is here somewhere....but I am too lazy to search and link.

Also, the differences quoted in suspension travel can be explained as to WHERE the measurements are taken. If taken at the wheel, one could expect 3-4" of travel. Much less would be seen at the suspension area adjacent to the bump stop (prolly where Dinan measured it).

whether it is measured at the axle (part 5 of pic 1) or the top of the shock (part 1 of pic 1), it will be the same because they are rigidly attached.