Boxster 986 Complete Suspension Overhaul - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

madmods · 02-06-2012, 04:43 AM

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Eric G · 02-06-2012, 05:22 AM

Very nice! I am in discussion with them right now, sent them a detailed request for quote. This is a good thread to subscribe to!

san rensho · 02-06-2012, 05:38 AM

An impertinent question. How much?

madmods · 02-06-2012, 05:53 AM

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ekam · 02-06-2012, 06:23 AM

Is your suspension completely worn out at 70k miles?

madmods · 02-06-2012, 07:44 AM

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Eric G · 02-06-2012, 08:40 AM

Madmod...again I appreciated your time and effort in helping me with this over the weekend. I just pulled the trigger for all the components and after taking my time in doing a comparison of State side venders VS Design911 they were more then competitive. Not only am I doing the complete suspension, I am also doing water pump/thermostat/wheel bearings/steering and a new left side radiator.

I called a number of suppliers here and they all agreed that only a couple of components have bushing kits, the rest of the suspension are full replacement parts only. So with that in mind in looking at all my bushings, they are hard and cracked (but not for long).

What I think was the best part about these guys is the amount of time they put into building Kits that are reasonably priced with Porsche Drawings as backup. You see what you are ordering, where it is in the schematic and you are given options (OE, OEM, alternate brand).

bar10dah · 02-06-2012, 03:17 PM

Great post! I have the ROW M030 sitting in my garage awaiting install. Was wondering what else I should be replacing while in there. Your post/pics definitely gave me some ideas of what else I'd like to replace.

WhipE350 · 02-06-2012, 04:33 PM

Kewl post! I always wondered what my car would have felt like driving it off the lot in Dec of 1999. I'm the type that likes to restore mechanical stuff to new, I guess it beats spending 65k on a new car. I was thinking of replacing a lot of this stuff also just for the heck of it. I have no idea if I'll be able to tell the difference. When I changed my shocks out at 55k miles I noticed a more muted ride. I'm guess if the car had all new bushings it would probably just feel stiffer and a little more responsive. Anyway keep us posted!

Bala · 02-06-2012, 05:22 PM

Subscribed.

Just started taking off my front suspension. I'll be doing the wheel bearings while I'm in there. Will be right behind you on the steps. BTW, Advance auto parts has all the tools for loaner - pickle fork, bearing removal tool, etc etc.

Meir · 02-06-2012, 06:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bala

Subscribed.

Just started taking off my front suspension. I'll be doing the wheel bearings while I'm in there. Will be right behind you on the steps. BTW, Advance auto parts has all the tools for loaner - pickle fork, bearing removal tool, etc etc.

So what was your decision ? Did you go with the vertex setup?

madmods · 02-06-2012, 08:10 PM

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madmods · 02-06-2012, 08:21 PM

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Bala · 02-07-2012, 02:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meir

So what was your decision ? Did you go with the vertex setup?

Mine may not be a full overhaul like madmods'. Though it might end up to be. Want to remove and check first and then shop for the best price and order.

thstone · 02-07-2012, 12:16 PM

Just a side note, I had to remove one of my rear shock absorbers last weekend to try and find a thumping noise (not the shock) and I found that the shock had almost no rebound damping. Definitely time to replace all of the shocks (and maybe entire suspension). 102,000 miles.

shlim8 · 02-08-2012, 06:21 AM

Madmods, that looks like the project that I embarked upon 1.5 years ago - ROW M030 kit plus a FULL replacment of everything else suspension wise...

In my case, it was a painful multi part process.... partly due to unavailability of stock and partly as I didn't expect such a extensive exercise....

The only thing in my case that turn out to be still good was the strut mounts and 1 or 2 arms, the shocks were wobbly though still good damping, all the other arms had between serious play to slight play.... I even had the inner and outer tie rods changed (although they still looked good but it improved the steering feel).

And all this from a car with then only 29k km... but then the roads are really bad here in Malaysia...

Having said that, 1 yr+ later and 30k km later, I just sent the car in today to check on a nasty "wooden floor board" sound when going over rough roads... surely these control arms don't just last 1 year ????!!!! sianz..

madmods · 02-08-2012, 06:52 AM

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Bala · 02-08-2012, 02:29 PM

I guess I'm going to be highjacking this thread quite a bit. Sorry Madmods!

So, started taking out the front strut, wishbone, drop links, rotor, control arm. The drop link bolt is pretty snug into the housing where the shock is inserted. Tried quite a bit with air ratchet as well to no luck. Also the shock is in very tight into the housing. Maybe due to the fact that the drop link bolt is still in there?

Also having issues with the big bolt on the boomerang thingy under the sway bar. Can I take a propane torch to these nuts? Am I nuts?

Need replacement so far for front: wishbones, control arms, tie rods (in and out), sway bar bushings, drop links, shock bearing plates, bump stops, boots and wheel bearings, 2 cases of beer.

When I checked the wheels by shaking them they seemed fine. But once they were off and the rotor was off as well there is a slight play.

Shocks and springs seem fine. I don't get the point about buying new hardware and not using the old ones. 3-5 bucks a nut is crazy. Will have to try local hardware stores for less price.

shlim8 · 02-08-2012, 07:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by madmods

PS: Driven out and around Sepang, Malaysia and S'pore a few time (rentals of course) and found out the roads to be fairly good there. I'd say your problem can't be only because of the roads alone. But again, I'm not a pro and one would need to see the car to judge accurately

Luckily, all the control arms/links etc I used was TRW branded. Frankly, the markings on the arms and links looked identical to the originals, except that they had the porsche logo removed

. Looks pretty much oem quality.

The roads in Sepang are excellent but unfortunately, I'm a foreigner working in Kuala Lumpur/Petaling Jaya area... and the roads are horrible... I've never upgraded from 17" rims to anything bigger due to that reason (I dented 3 out of 4 rims on my prev bimmer in 9 months ! And finally the potholes even got the alignment so out of specs, I had to get the chassis straightened ! Apparently, it's pretty much common on a e36 on Malaysian roads !). It's pretty hard to avoid dropping into potholes at night or when it rains and can't see the *&^%!! potholes.

I'm sure you are going to enjoy your renewed suspension ! It made a huge difference on my car.

Bala · 02-10-2012, 02:30 AM

What a pain these bolts are. Maybe its just my car. Spent 6 hours removing the wishbone, sway bar, drop link bolts. Propane torch speeded up the things. Still broke the abs sensor ones and need to deal with it. Aso remaining are the bolts over the wheel bearing housing.

Both wheel bearings seemed fine when checked with the wheel on but when all was reoved there is some play. Recommend folks taking out the wheel assembly to check. "Better to do it while you are in there".