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Went for a short little drive in the Baur, sorted the brakes today..( see other post ) so thought it best to road test them.

Last very short drive I did..(approx 1mile ) was horrid....shake, wobble no real brakes....

I was then expecting good things.....somewhat disappointed now though...

Can't really explain it..it just felt..well a little rough and clumbsy....

Brakes are fine now, wheel bearings checked and adjusted, all bushes seem fine, no play in track ends, struts etc...that I can tell anyhow..

Engine seems to tick a little under load.... she revs up and pulls well if you use the gears , was expecting more torque though TBH.

It all felt a little, well, baggy , noisyand the droney wind noise and buffeting was a little annoying, ( hood off and targa on windows up.. ) didn;t expect that.
My 86 Audi drives like a smooth thoroughbred in comparison.

Mind you I do have two holes either side in the floor now, after getting in with the hammer and chisel to remove the bitumen mats and rust., carpets were covering them though. Suspect that didn't help the drone.

Could be the tyres,....balancing...or maybe the rack. Squeals towards hard right lock, and makes the engine hunt/stammer going left lock.

Best I start checking each component one by one...

Any thoughts or anyone close to me fancy a nice cup of tea in exchange for a drive and some advice/help.
Approx 7mls north J17 M4.

You have to remember that the suspension design is 30 years old, if your using stock tyres that won't be helping you, and being a convertible is going to be less rigid.

When mine was stock I hated how it drove.

Spend a grand on the suspension setup and it will drive as a beemer should do.

nas80 wrote:You have to remember that the suspension design is 30 years old, if your using stock tyres that won't be helping you, and being a convertible is going to be less rigid.

When mine was stock I hated how it drove.

Spend a grand on the suspension setup and it will drive as a beemer should do.

I know I know, just was a little disappointed....sure my 02s never drove like that.

Not sure I have the cash to upgrade everything, turns out I paid over the odds for something I was assured was overall fine with a few niggles....niggles my a**e.

I think wheels will have to stay as 13", which limits tyre choice....I have enquired about a Motorsport setup from BMW..just awaiting a price.

But that will have to wait unless MR MOT man tells me otherwise....my budget has been decimated by fixing all the problems so far.

Any help or advice will be greatfully recieved.

You can probably find a second hand uprated suspension set-up

e21-Mark wrote:You can probably find a second hand uprated suspension set-up

Not sure I want a second hand one TBH..seems a false economy...

Had a good poke around this morning, can't find anything obviously worn, leaking, bent....
Did note, however, that the PAS pump seems slightly askew..ie the pullet isn't quite parallel to the engine one.

I tried squaring it up to no avail...its not loads but is noticable..took the liberty of fitting a new belt whilst I was down there.

Got a price for the Motorsport set up from BMW sadly the front inserts are NLA..so pretty pointless buying the rest. Unless someone knows where to get them.

Thinking maybe budget of £500 max...thus spending my remaining on the mechanicals rather than aesethics would be prudent.

So, is it better to lower slightly, or stick with the original ride height...and what are my options.

Want a good quality fit and forget type setup, I have no need for adjustment etc....

A second hand quality set-up can always be refurbished to 'as new'. Gaz, Leda, Bilstein etc. The basic Gaz set-up is available at £595 from RPM.

some lowering springs 30mm and some stock type shock absorbers will be fine, and a full polybush kit from ebay / superflex. Then id buy some mims and decent tyres.

You only need a couple / few hundred for that lot. well worth it as this will make your e21 not feel like such a death trap when you try to make a bend.

the drone noise could be a worn wheel bearing / knackered diff / etc all cheap and easy to replace.