DDM Coilovers

spidertri · 12-30-2008, 03:10 AM

I received my DDM coilovers today, I haven't technically seen them yet but I have some pictures of them. I'll get a chance to hold them on Wednesday and post up more pictures. I have an appointment on Friday at Induktion Motorsports to have them installed.

I ordered them back at the beginning of November and it has taken close to 2 months for them to get stateside and into my hands. I do realize that I am one of the first to put them on a ti, but initial response from other E36 owners has been very positive. I was also impressed by Jim Powell at DDM. I was able to call and speak to him directly about the coils and he gave me periodic updates about when they would be here.

One of the things that attracted me to this setup is the adjusability of the dampening. I had a spring and shock kit on my Jetta and while the handling was much improved the ride quality definitely suffered. I am hoping to find a good compromise with these between the two. I don't plan on tracking/autocrossing the car but if I do these coils are *supposed* to stand up to that kind of abuse.

I'm sure some of you will be thinking that I am an idiot

but I wanted to try these out, not just for me but for the whole community.

Photos courtesy of my brother, sorry that some are a little blurry.

spidertri · 12-30-2008, 03:15 AM

Here's the rest of the suspension stuff I have to install. I will be installing everything separately so that I can feel the difference each mod makes.

tiFreak · 12-30-2008, 03:17 AM

sweet, keep us updated, I'm curious to see how well they work

Viper3812 · 12-30-2008, 06:34 AM

Sweet deal. Has the front left strut issue been fixed? I heard over on bf.c that a lot of e36 guys hear a loud noise from the front left strut. My friend got this setup for his e36 325 and I was going to do the install, but 1 of the rear springs would not fit in the coupling adjuster or whatever it is called. After we heard about the left front strut issue and with the spring not fitting he changed his mind and returned them. It looked like a nice setup. Good luck on your install, hope it goes well.

By the way, the Eibach sway bars kick ass, I love mine.

BimmerBum · 12-30-2008, 06:54 AM

$750 for a set of coil overs with rear shock mounts and front camber plates is a screamin deal... if the quality is there.

It is also nice how they added the M3 sway bar mount on all the E36 front struts. If the sway bars you bought are for the ti I would return at least the front one for the M3 bar.

I will be curious to see what you think.

Off the bat I am not a fan of the progressive rate spring in the rear but it sounds like that will be perfect for what you want.

**wolferj-RIP** · 12-30-2008, 09:08 AM

Had I not gotten the RD Sport setup, I would have been right there with you and ordered these... I had spoken with DDM about their coilovers for the ti in April, when they were just getting ready to start shipping the regular e36 ones... I can't wait to hear how these work.

I also have the Eibach sways (like Viper) along with the RD Sports and couldn't be happier with my current setup. I am afraid that I won't be changing anytime soon.

The problems that have been reported by the regular e36 folks on BFC seem to be mostly due to installation issues and swaybar endlink problems and I know you are well read on those problems, so you can avoid them and have a great setup...

Have Fun!

spidertri · 12-30-2008, 01:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Viper3812

Sweet deal. Has the front left strut issue been fixed? I heard over on bf.c that a lot of e36 guys hear a loud noise from the front left strut...

By the way, the Eibach sway bars kick ass, I love mine.

Yeah, Jim Powell (DDM Owner) determined that the front strut popping noises were coming from incorrectly installed M-type swaybar endlinks and also from not having enough preload on the front coils.

The supplied endlinks, as you know, are for M3 type swaybars. Several people on bf.c have said that many M owners who track their cars have found the non-M setup to be better. If it's better for the track, it must be fine for the street.

I did know that I wanted these when I ordered the swaybar and I decided to stick with the non-M endlink/version. I am glad I did because of the endlink issues.

Maverix · 12-31-2008, 04:55 AM

This makes me want my suspension kit even more

spidertri · 01-01-2009, 12:07 AM

Just got home and got a chance to look at the coils. Man, they are beefy. A lot bigger and heavier than what I was expecting. The build quality seems top notch and very sturdy. If anyone wants specific pictures of stuff let me know and I'll take them. Can't wait for the install on Friday.

Maverix · 01-01-2009, 08:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spidertri

Just got home and got a chance to look at the coils. Man, they are beefy. A lot bigger and heavier than what I was expecting. The build quality seems top notch and very sturdy. If anyone wants specific pictures of stuff let me know and I'll take them. Can't wait for the install on Friday.

Take more pictures. I'm interested in seeing how much more different they are than my RDS.

mohaughn · 01-02-2009, 04:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spidertri

Just got home and got a chance to look at the coils. Man, they are beefy. A lot bigger and heavier than what I was expecting. The build quality seems top notch and very sturdy. If anyone wants specific pictures of stuff let me know and I'll take them. Can't wait for the install on Friday.

Can you get a weight comparison of the stock components and the newer stuff? Many of the other aftermarket suspension kits are lighter than stock, curious to see if this are. Good to see that they have worked out some of their early issues.

spidertri · 01-02-2009, 02:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mohaughn

Can you get a weight comparison of the stock components and the newer stuff? Many of the other aftermarket suspension kits are lighter than stock, curious to see if this are. Good to see that they have worked out some of their early issues.

I will definitely do this and post up the weights.

More pictures. I'm dropping the car off in 20 mins.

spidertri · 01-02-2009, 02:40 PM

And more pictures...

spidertri · 01-02-2009, 06:50 PM

Well, just got a call from the shop. The fronts bolt up great, the rear shocks bolt up fine but the hole in the spring perch is not big enough to fit over the "bump" in the spring cup. I'm not sure if I was sent perches for a regular E36 or if this is a design issue. DDM is closed today so they are putting the stock suspension back on and I'll call on Monday. Crap.

ATF · 01-02-2009, 07:55 PM

I've always lived by this saying "You get what you pay for"

As BimmerBum pointed out, that's one hell of a steal if the quality matches those of Bilstein's. Camber plates & RSM's make it even more sweet. As for the rear spring issue, the E36's don't have that style of rear spring IIRC, so you did get the correct E36/5 spring. As for the spring perch, you got me. If I'm remembering correctly, the rear spring pad nipple diameter is the diameter of the opening of the rear spring, no?

You might have to just slice off the nipple of the rear spring pad or machine out the inside of the spring perch.

And why aren't you DIY!! I loved doing the suspension on my ti myself.

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