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E30 318i 1990 Front Ride Height

5K views 2 replies 2 participants last post by  idanity 
#1 ·
I have a 1990 e30 318i which is riding too high at the front.
According to my measurements it is 25mm higher at the arches than dad's 320i touring.

It's got the thin (38mm?) struts. My previous 318i Saloon had "thick" struts, with 45mm inserts. That rode at the correct height. The struts were not standard i think.
I'm not sure if these struts are right. the thin 38 mm shocks are the correct shocks for the car, but these struts could be wrong (came with the car) - I have 45mm struts from a wrecked :cry 318i touring, and could fit them (and buy 45mm shocks :wink )
I dont want a lowered ride height, and don't want invalid insurance/ a modified vehicle (costs enough as it is!) - what i want is for it to be right.
When we fitted the replacement shocks (thin 38mm shocks) we measured the extended length of all the shocks (new, old, scrap) and they all extend to the same length.

The gist is: what would make it 25mm too high? is there an easy way to check if the springs are correct? is there long and short struts?

oh, and visual checks with other parked e30 318i's show mine is considerably higher - it's not just the 320 that's lower... but the 320 is the only one i've actually measured.
 
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#3 ·
does the springs grow w/age..?

do they get longer or what b/c all the older bmw's (granny's cars) have like 3 feet of clearance between the front tires and front panel,
while
the rear is pretty much normal looking...

but all the super stock old e30s (all cars for that matter) seem to have this huge gap in the front and when im at the dealers (been doing this 4 years) all the cars seem normal.

not like the new porche's or bimmers but at least normal.

id like to know the stock gap measurements for all cars and measure them after 10 years, 15 years to see the change
 
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