New M3P have lowered suspension?

[SEXY M3]

@tm1v2 thanks for all the detailed infos and comparisons above . I have a Model 3 LR and I am also in the market looking for a set of coilovers. I am currently leaning towards the FPX from Redwood paired with front lower arms bushings from MPP. Looking to lower 1 inch max from stock height. I was wondering if rear camber arms are necessary.

 

[tm1v2]

@tm1v2 thanks for all the detailed infos and comparisons above . I have a Model 3 LR and I am also in the market looking for a set of coilovers. I am currently leaning towards the FPX from Redwood paired with front lower arms bushings from MPP. Looking to lower 1 inch max from stock height. I was wondering if rear camber arms are necessary.

@SEXY M3 I don't know how much negative camber 1" lower from LR height will get you. I'd ask Redwood.

My guess is you'd be okay-ish, in terms of tire wear, because M3P PUP was already approximately 0.4" lower per these forums (10mm lower than M3LR). So 1" max lowering from M3LR height should (maybe, in theory) be only 0.6" max lowering below M3P PUP height. I don't have any experience lowering these cars much though. I'm only about 2-3mm lower than my M3P's stock height. So I'm probably about 0.5" lower than your stock M3LR height.

 

[famoruwa]

Definitely invest in coilovers rather than the spring / stock damper upgrade.

I am moving off of the Eibach Pro-Kit on stock damper, into the Ohlins DFV Performance Sport, + Sway Bars + Rear Camber and Toe Control Arms next week and can report back.

 

[famoruwa]

Update:

I had Ohlins DFV Performance Sports, Redwood Motorsports Front and Rear Sway Bars, FPX Adjustable Rear Camber & Toe Control Arms, and alignment done, all by Redwood Motorsports in Fremont, CA.

First impressions compared to stock damper/eibach pro-kit springs are:

1) Much less body roll, with a much more neutral ride. Very flat cornering. Turn-in feels much more precise.
2) Very smooth ride across street perturbations. The setup absorbs bumps much moreso than I can remember even when stock.
3) Able to accelerate through turns much more confidently without the tendency of the rear to lag/want to catch up with the front. The car seems to rotate much easier.

I am still running stock M3P wheels on MP4S (20") for now.

I highly recommend a setup like this if you're looking for a comfortable yet sporty suspension upgrade from either stock, or stock + springs.

Once the suspension settles, hope to provide more feedback.

Cheers to Redwood Motorsports!

 

[tm1v2]

Update:

I had Ohlins DFV Performance Sports, Redwood Motorsports Front and Rear Sway Bars, FPX Adjustable Rear Camber & Toe Control Arms, and alignment done, all by Redwood Motorsports in Fremont, CA.

First impressions compared to stock damper/eibach pro-kit springs are:

1) Much less body roll, with a much more neutral ride. Very flat cornering. Turn-in feels much more precise.
2) Very smooth ride across street perturbations. The setup absorbs bumps much moreso than I can remember even when stock.
3) Able to accelerate through turns much more confidently without the tendency of the rear to lag/want to catch up with the front. The car seems to rotate much easier.

I am still running stock M3P wheels on MP4S (20") for now.

I highly recommend a setup like this if you're looking for a comfortable yet sporty suspension upgrade from either stock, or stock + springs.

Once the suspension settles, hope to provide more feedback.

Cheers to Redwood Motorsports!

@famoruwa Might want to share what damper settings those impressions are based on! Same for the adjustable sway bars.

 

[famoruwa]

Sways currently are on Medium.

Dampers are 7 clicks from softest.

 

[GregD60]

No, newer ones have LR suspension.

no i believe the new ones now uses the regular LR suspension

After having a 2023 Performance for a few months which replaced a 2018 LR AWD that we put 71k miles on, I can say that I don't think that the performance suspension is the same as the 2018 LR AWD suspension. I didn't measure, so I don't know if there's any difference in ride height or not, but the car definitely rides and handles differently. I actually think the 2018 LR matched the springs and shocks together better than the 2023 Performance. The Performance is kind of bouncy and the LR never felt like that. What it feels like to me is that there isn't enough low speed rebound damping to control the springs properly, like they just increased the spring rate without changing the shocks. The Performance doesn't seem to get into the bump stops as much as the LR or bottom out as easily, but it's kind of twitchy and unstable over bumps. The result is a poorer ride than the LR and with a handling tradeoff that I don't particularly care for.

 

[Clover]

After having a 2023 Performance for a few months which replaced a 2018 LR AWD that we put 71k miles on, I can say that I don't think that the performance suspension is the same as the 2018 LR AWD suspension. I didn't measure, so I don't know if there's any difference in ride height or not, but the car definitely rides and handles differently. I actually think the 2018 LR matched the springs and shocks together better than the 2023 Performance. The Performance is kind of bouncy and the LR never felt like that. What it feels like to me is that there isn't enough low speed rebound damping to control the springs properly, like they just increased the spring rate without changing the shocks. The Performance doesn't seem to get into the bump stops as much as the LR or bottom out as easily, but it's kind of twitchy and unstable over bumps. The result is a poorer ride than the LR and with a handling tradeoff that I don't particularly care for.

Comparing a car with 71K miles to a new car is somewhat iffy. Of course they are different even with the same parts. However, I am sure your experience in those 71K miles has value and I agree the 2023 M3 Performance I have is under dampened. I would say it is both compression and rebound though. A shock with better compression damping would allow for a softer spring. The additional redound damping is certainly called for even more. The shocks simply can't seem to fully control the spring rebound sometimes. To me, it seems like they cheaped out with these shocks which is disappointing for a "performance" car.

 

[GregD60]

Comparing a car with 71K miles to a new car is somewhat iffy. Of course they are different even with the same parts. However, I am sure your experience in those 71K miles has value and I agree the 2023 M3 Performance I have is under dampened. I would say it is both compression and rebound though. A shock with better compression damping would allow for a softer spring. The additional redound damping is certainly called for even more. The shocks simply can't seem to fully control the spring rebound sometimes. To me, it seems like they cheaped out with these shocks which is disappointing for a "performance" car.

Actually, I'm happy to say that our 2018's ride and handling seemed to change very little to not at all after the first couple of thousand miles. The shocks and bushings were holding up very well. I'm also pretty sensitive to springs and shocks due to some racing both on and off road.

I totally agree with you that the Performance suspension would be improved with better damping for both compression and rebound with a softer spring, at least for the street and occasional track use.