Bavarian Exclusive did all the installation, as I'm not a mechanical person and have no clue what to do. I went with the KW's variant 3 because I needed something lower then my current spring setup with RD Sports. I've always wanted a full coilover suspension and with my new F10 what better time is it for me to do it
I'll keep this first post as my "reaction" to the new set up, and post drop measurements, pictures, etc. later in the review.
WOW!!!!!! is all I kept saying on the ride home from Bavarian. The car is completely different. The car "feels" lighter, like it lost a lot of weight. Body roll? Whats that? The F10 now tackles corners like a BMW should and not the boat feeling I had for the first month or so with the stock suspension. The RD Springs helped reduce that but I was not completely satisfield. It feels so flat around a turn. It took some time to re-learn how to drive it, it's that different. Coming from completely stock to this, makes me feel like I'm back in my E92. Okay well not that far but 100 times better now
Ride quality. My settings on the KW's are the out-of-box settings. I have not messed with the rebound/compression yet. The ride quality is not bad at all. I'm lucky enough to live in an area where we have very nice smooth roads. The V3's are stiffer then stock, thats for sure, but it's not annoyingly harsh or rough, and I'm on 20's. But the suspension has a tiny bounce to it. And I mean a tiny bit, no where near the bounciness of stock or the RD's. My wife was following me in her SUV on the way home from Bavarian, She said she could see a slight bounce, but it was not really noticeable, that it looked like a race car. It's not a constant bounce, it only really happens when their is some sort of dip in the road, and it like bounces back into place (1 bounce). Does that make any sense?
"75" on the freeway feels like 30, the car feels so planted on the ground. The stock ride was boat-like to me, very "floaty" and I felt disconnected from the road. Now I feel like I'm in full control of the car. The steering feels tight, I feel like there is a new tighter steering rack on the car. The steering wheel snaps back into place after a turn. My braking feels tighter as well, no nose dive, and I feel the F10 stops faster for some reason.
The F10 now feels neutral and light. Like it's ready to fight.
Was it worth it? YES!!!!! I definitely recommend the KW's, if you want the ability to dial in your height and stiffness, and get awesome handling with out spending an arm and a leg, this your ticket.
As promised here are some before and after pics along with some install pics as well as the specs.
Before with RD Sport springs
After with KW Variant 3 slammed
Here are some pictures with the stock shocks and RD springs and some with the KW variant 3's
Some close up pictures after install of the front and rear
The drop for the V3's can go from 22-55mm front and 20-50mm rear.
Here's some info from KW's website on the V3's
KW Variant 3 inox-line – Perfect Street Performance
State-of-the-art technology from motor sports for more performance on the road. The separate and independently adjustable rebound- and compression damping allows for an individual suspension setup for different uses and preferences. The unique patented system with its two-stage valves allows a rebound damping adjustment (comfort) and a compression adjustment (driving dynamics) in the low-speed range while the high-speed range which controls the driving safety, is fixed.
Damping technology with individually adjustable rebound- and compression technology
inox-line* stainless steel technology
Individually height adjustable
Adjustment parameters approved by the German Technical Control Board (TÜV)
High-quality components for long durability
Infinitely variable rebound damping adjustment
14-way adjustable compression damping
Unique, individually working damping force adjustment
Comprehensive documentation for easy use
Compression- and rebound adjustment
As far it is vehicle-specifically possible, the rebound damping is adjusted by a spindle at the end of the piston rod. Mainly, the traction phase (rebound) controls car body vibrations and also influences handling and comfort in the low-speed damping range. By using the traction phase adjustment, the vehicle can be adapted to the requirements of the driver. Moreover the driving behavior can be regulated from comfortably rolling to sporty and tense with improved road holding characteristics.
The compression phase adjustment is carried out at the lower end of the shock absorber via our patented multi-purpose valve. The large number of pre-set parameters of this valve allows for a wide range of adjustment for individual use. The unique low-speed compression adjustment significantly distinguishes this technology from any other. In this compression range, the driving behavior of the vehicle is drastically influenced. An increase of the damping power supports the vehicle already during compression and therefore avoids rolling and pitching. The directional stability is significantly improved.