Apex 693 Report post Posted October 12, 2008 Mine is fine on a smooth road but as soon as I hit some coarse chip its way to loud and rough for comfort. I have BOGE shocks in the back and KYB’s in the front and VOTGTLAND 30mm lowering springs all round and run what look to be ok KINGSTAR radials. So is this road vibration normal in the E30? How smooth is yours? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tire 10 Report post Posted October 12, 2008 (edited) Mines reasonably smooth (stock suspension except bilsteins in the front), fine for ME... thing that gets me the most is the noise. Edited October 12, 2008 by tastic Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
3series 0 Report post Posted October 12, 2008 does your car have any vibration at about 125km/h down Airfield road Graham ? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Apex 693 Report post Posted October 12, 2008 does your car have any vibration at about 125km/h down Airfield road Graham ? Yep, a sh*t load.. Was that you in the dirty 36?? It drives straight and the steering is smooth bar a vibration at 120+. Thinking it might be the tires. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
QuickSilver 0 Report post Posted October 12, 2008 All e30's ive driven have some funny vibrations in one way or another, 20+ years of chopping and changing shocks and springs around Mines smooth but bumpier than standard, which is what I'd expect from a lowerd car, I have no problems with it at all. Vibrates at 120ish kph, does it less now since I got rid of my bottles and put on the 17's, only a slight vibration, I put it down to not perfect wheels, not perfect wheel alignment and being a 21year old car Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
3series 0 Report post Posted October 12, 2008 (edited) Yep, a sh*t load.. Was that you in the dirty 36?? It drives straight and the steering is smooth bar a vibration at 120+. Thinking it might be the tires. Yeah haha. Picking up some av gas for the rally car. Your car has a sweet air intake noise. Sounds sweet. Edited October 12, 2008 by bmw3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Apex 693 Report post Posted October 12, 2008 Yeah haha. Picking up some av gas for the rally car. Your car has a sweet air intake noise. Sounds sweet. Must have been a plane going over head mate It sounds like a Mitsubishi Van with sewing machine sewing steal onto steal mounted on the side.. She’s gunna stop one of these days! A Mitsubishi van would be faster too! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ED1RTY 2 Report post Posted October 12, 2008 I found that once i replaced ALL bushes, sway bar mounts and re-enforced them a lot of the noise went away, except for when going over cats eyes (although i did use all urethane which makes the car a lot stiffer) Also making sure your wheels and alignment are true makes a HUGE difference. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Driftit 2079 Report post Posted October 13, 2008 My 325 was pretty good until I replaced the tyres. I have some crap Kingstars on there now. They are a joke for road noise. I am finding my subframe is noisy too. Obviously the bushes have flogged out. Am replacing everything while I rebuild the motor. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Eagle 1662 Report post Posted October 13, 2008 Mines ok, a bit loud and little rattly and quite a firm ride on coarse seal. Very good on smooth stuff like most cars. You feel alot of of the bumps but i don't think i have much to vibration. Im running full urethane and H&R\Bilstein Sport combo so not exactly stock ride. Going 100kph+ the ride is excellent just the usual wind noise. Ive driven a few stock E30's and thought they were pretty good for and older car, certainly better than most japs of similar age. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hbmonkeyman 0 Report post Posted October 13, 2008 I get quite a lot of road noise from mine. Although that might be due to the fact that i have no sound insulation Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cale 36 Report post Posted October 13, 2008 Mines not bumpy at all, probably because of the front springs being touring ones (?) which you can compress with your pinky finger. Means its a bit squidgy which sucks. It is however very LOUD on rough road. I'm used to it but when you try to talk to someone in the car you expect to be able to talk with an inside voice- you can't. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tibbs.james 1 Report post Posted October 13, 2008 (edited) With Eibach springs Koni Shocks & urethane all around the rear of the car mine is not that quiet but i believe with some decent rear tires( not cheapo Chinese ones) it would make a huge difference. I Think the Urethane Rear Shock mounts made the road noise a bit louder also. It is a firm ish ride and a little bumpy on a rough road but i prefer it to being all floaty on a rough road. Edited October 13, 2008 by Jimmy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ED1RTY 2 Report post Posted October 13, 2008 I Think the Urethane Rear Shock mounts made the road noise a bit louder also. Definitely Especially cats eyes Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest SamSpargo Report post Posted October 13, 2008 I found that once i replaced ALL bushes, sway bar mounts and re-enforced them a lot of the noise went away, except for when going over cats eyes (although i did use all urethane which makes the car a lot stiffer) Also making sure your wheels and alignment are true makes a HUGE difference. Also made for cool sparks up at the mangawhai controlled testing zone Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
huff3r 347 Report post Posted October 13, 2008 Mine was real quiet in all conditions before i started stripping it... it was unnerving, becos my other cars have all been way louder (cheap jap traps). But it was completely stock, and seems to have pretty good tyres on it. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JiB 0 Report post Posted October 13, 2008 Ride's not bad at all with 525lb/650lb springs. Well damped. Solid mounts everywhere, urethane everywhere else, but my spleen hasn't exploded so can't be that bad. NVH is pretty high, stripped car. With r888's it's actually quite a nice ride compared to some of those cheap street tyres out there. Change your kingstars imho, tyres make a world of difference. Went from Pirelli P6s to RE001's in E46, more comfortable/fun to drive/quieter/less harsh. Shocks too, makes a world of difference (my ill-informed opinion), my Jamex/Bilstein combo was crashy and too soft. I daresay the new setup is more composed/less crashy even though it has blood nose spring rates. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SIR E30 68 Report post Posted October 14, 2008 (edited) I found my Touring a wee bit noisier than my Sedan. Could be the case with yours too Graham? Mine wasnt to bad when it was on soft springs/standard shocks and 15inch basketweaves with plenty of tyre. But now that its had new shocks and springs which are stiffer (courtesy of Keith at H&R) and 18s with almost no tyre its a bit rougher and noisier. Its only bad on rough roads, on smooth hot-mix it rides like a dream. Also a slight vibration but only above 130kph, I put this down to the hub adaptors not being absolutely perfect. Once again, I extend an offer your way to have a drive of mine to compare, if I'm in auckland one day. I think I still have your cell number, I will text you Cheers, Jason Edited October 14, 2008 by SIR E30 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bravo 35 Report post Posted October 14, 2008 Mines shocking - more the crashing and banging than road noise. My bilsteins are currently in the capable hands of Chris at suspension tech, so I'll let you know what its like when I get them back. he did mention that trimming the rear bumpstops on a lowered e30 to increase the travel can help the crash/bang effect. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Apex 693 Report post Posted October 14, 2008 Thanks guys, sounds like my car is quite normal then, it doesn’t crash and bounce it simply vibrates and flexes im going to put it down to Bushes and the fact it is a Touring and lacks the structural rigidity of the sedan. I guess the Touring handles quite poor in comparison to the sedan and coupe. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tibbs.james 1 Report post Posted October 18, 2008 I guess the Touring handles quite poor in comparison to the sedan and coupe. Any comment on the coupe vs the sedan and coupe rigidity wise ? i would not have expected it to be much worse. I don't know about such things but perhaps it might be the sort of situation where a rear reinforcement bar across the shock towers might help flex a wee bit ? Please excuse my lack of engineering knowledge and reason. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
320guy 0 Report post Posted October 22, 2008 Im rolling on bumpstops so its a bit harsh. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ashy_aye 3 Report post Posted November 3, 2008 Im rolling on bumpstops so its a bit harsh. on bummpys aye, y dont u pull out the shocks and put a peice ov chain in while ur at it!? haha -pity sum people have to do dodgey mods to there e30's makes the rest ov us look bad- (say'n that i think we hav all done it at some point) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mark247 39 Report post Posted November 3, 2008 Im rolling on bumpstops so its a bit harsh. on bummpys aye, y dont u pull out the shocks and put a peice ov chain in while ur at it!? haha -pity sum people have to do dodgey mods to there e30's makes the rest ov us look bad- (say'n that i think we hav all done it at some point) hes trolling my man Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kaz 64 Report post Posted November 3, 2008 Mine isn't very loudish because of the road surface, my exaust for some reason im sure has been getting louder since I first got it. Also my car kinda vibrates at high speeds (140km+), not that I speed or anything . Anyone know why this maybe? I have had them balanced several times but it still does it. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
