Custom Adjustable ShocksBMW 330i 2006 E90, 240K miles
In this post we will talk about custom shocks for a BMW E90, and the modification needed to install, the delays and modifications needed to install maXpeedingrods-us shocks on a BMW E90.
To start off...
As I drove down the street of San Diego, a huge pothole came out of nowhere and even though I swerved sharply I still couldn't avoid it... Seconds later Bang and Then Pop, I knew something was damaged, I just didn't know what. But I did start to notice that my car tilted higher on one corner and so I began the ordeal of having to replace the shocks on my car. This is that story...
Which shocks I got and Why:
The company I ended up going with is Maxspeedingrods, I chose these shocks because in the pictures they seemed like quality, and the price was right, but I was a bit skeptical before I bought them because I didn't see any reviews of the shocks at all, which is a big red flag, but I figured I would give them a chance.
My Opinion on these Shocks at end of article... Yay or Nay!
Amazon store front: maXpeedingrods-US Amazon storefront
Alright let's get into it... to start off...
Shipment time (1.5 weeks) to my house
I didn't like that it took about a week and half to get the shocks delivered, I figured they were coming from a far, but I later found out they were NOT coming from a far, the problem was that they were VERY HEAVY, the box they came in was probably expensive to ship to me, so they shipped them "ground".
54 LB Box, came from Dayton, NJ
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| Box they came in |
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| after unboxing the shocks, packed well, I might ad. |
Leaking Shock upon delivery (defective shock):
Upon opening the box and taking the shock out of the bag, I noticed that one bag was full of oil, which I figured was a bad sign, because all other shock bags didn't have any oil inside at all.
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| Leaking Oil from shock |
Vendor feedback for Exchange of defective shock
To my surprise I did get good fast response from the vendor, and upon explaining and sending pictures of the defective shock, (using Amazon email feedback) I did get a replacement shock sent out to me.
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| Replacement Shock |
Why I couldn't get a refund ($154 dollars to return to vendor):
I planned on sending back the shocks, because of the defective shock, but I quickly found out, thanks to my local UPS lady, that the price to return them was $154.00 dollars, which did not make sense for me to return, because I would be out of shocks and money, if I decided to return them...
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| Return cost back to Dayton, NJ from San Diego, CA |
Installation: Not an exact replacement fit, as OEM was
I ran into a few problems, mostly with the rear shocks, I expected the shocks to be "almost" exact replacement, I did not expect what ensued... |
| This is what I needed for installation (washers and extra nut, not included...) |
If you go into this project thinking that it's a simple shock replacement, that is not the case, the shock is not exact as the old one in the car, I had to go buy a few things to make what you see in the picture above, to install the shocks... this is not what you get in the box!
What is needed for "easy" installation:
I did finally end up installing the rear shocks, but it took a bit of investigation and good luck.
This is what I needed, that was not included with the shocks:
(2) M12 1.25 Nut (this nut is exact as the original that came with the new shock)
(4) 1/2 in x 2 in Washers (2 per bag)
The washers I got from local Home Depot
The Nut can be found at home depot also, but my local store did not have it, so I looked for it at another local hardware store. The hard part was finding out the exact threat, which is 1.25 thread nut it is a NON-standard thread M12 nut, it was the correct thread that I struggled to find.
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| Must have for installation, not included with shocks |
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| You will need 2 extra of these M12 nuts, otherwise, you can't install the rear shocks. |
The Major modification needed:
I had to shave with a grinder the M12 (two) of them, otherwise it wouldn't fit in car. Used a vice and a grinder, and shaved off a bit of the nut. Otherwise the two nuts and washer will be too wide and you won't have enough threads on the top nut.
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| shaved a little off the nut to make sure it fit right |
REAR SHOCKS
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| The nut here is too Thick, and so you need to shave it a bit, so the top nut fits, otherwise you can't thread it in. |
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| Top of Rear shocks |
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| Rear shock installed. |
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| Shocks don't come with the washer, and extra nut for the top of the shock to bolt to thecar |
FRONT SHOCKS: Adjustments to new shocks so they fit good in the car
Differences from OEM shock, to replacement adjustable shock from Maxpeedingrods....
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| The old shock has these dimples, to lock it into place, new one is missing these... |
MAJOR DIFFERENCES IN OLD VS NEW SHOCKS
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| The old shock came with a "needed" bump stop |
I also ran into a few problems when installing the front shocks, but they were not major, in my "non expert) opinion...
Front shocks ran into support brace
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| I suggest you install a washer that came with the old shocks |
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| Add this spacer, otherwise the center nut hits the engine bay brace, spacer came with old shocks |
Please note the amount of thread on the shock, don't adjust so low that you only have a few turns into the thread. Adjust the level with a safe amount of thread. The threads go about 1 inch into the cylinder, keep this in mind. If you only do a couple of turns, the shock will brake and you will suffer catastrophic failure as soon as you put a load on the wheel, so please be very careful with this!
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| Front shock adjustment threads... |
About ride quality: Very linear
The ride is a hard, I would call it linear, compared to stock, but I am okay with it, because I know I can adjust the ride. The original shocks have a squishy soft feel, not these shocks. If you are looking to carve the mountains with your E90, these may be okay for that.
First drive:
The very first time you take it for a ride, keep in mind that the ride will be extra harsh, as the shocks are adjusting at this point, give it a few miles before you judge the ride, because it will take a few miles for the shocks to settle in place.
About Maxpeedingrods
I did get good service from company, I emailed back and forth and I always got a response. I would also like to add that because of my troubles the company did officer to refund back some of the cost for the parts I had to buy to make the installation possible, so for that I am happy.
No longer listed on Amazon
After dealing with the vendor, after back and forth emails, the post for these particular shocks was removed from Amazon. I am not saying that it was me that made them remove it, but I did have quite a few emails back and forth with the vendor about problems with the installation of my shocks. I was going to post a link for these particular shocks, because they were a good price. But I no longer can...
Like I told the vendor... the shocks are not impossible to install in the car, it just takes somebody with know how to deal with the few curve balls, needed for installation.
Conclusion: Nay
I am not sure I would buy these shocks again, I don't think they are ready for prime time, they need to be finessed a bit more before they should be sold... I am surprised that they were sold as is, advertised as a direct replacement for BMW E90 330I 2006.
I was disappointed because I hoped this would be a quick replacement, but it was disappointingly not. Buy at your own risk, if you are handy and you know what you are doing, go for it, otherwise, get something different, with more documentation and with more instructions on installation.
If you have a similar experience please let me know in the comments below.
I hope this was helpful to you!
I post a ton of BMW 330I E90 related content, I have a lot of other posts, check them out, link below to the main page.
Comment below if you have any questions...
Thank again and until next time
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