Ultra Racing Sway Bars (Front and Rear for F15, Unopened)

[futurejl]

Pm'd

[Djhumvee]

Is this price with shipping or without?

[yupetc]

Can't believe these are still lurking around without being sold already. I have no affiliation to the seller, but since both these bars are offered on one sale, being one who has installed both on my wife's car, I'd like to give it a push and attest again that both bars together will transform the way our jeep corners.

I've been driving many BMW's since the E and the F series, currently on some G chassis, and of all cars compared, by simply upgrading to these sway bars, the X5 drives like a 5-series (both F10 and G30) in terms of cornering. The original X5 corners with a boat effect, you put these bars in, you're a whole lot more near the sedan cornering experience.

I also would like say that my wife is picky on the suspension feel, but I hate that orginal standard suspension setup, so I've tried different springs and dampers sets already. Out of all that I've tried so far, the best combination that goes very well with these sway bars is with Eibach lowering springs and KONI RED active sport (FSD) shocks. This is my final setup and it's best world between handling and comfort.

These spare parts are getting dust in my garage:
- H&R lowering springs (Very Hard spring rate compared to Eibach)
- Bilstein B4's (Jarring on big bumps, resists sinking motion some, and a bit lazy on repeated rebounds, on repetitive rough terrain, it progressively becomes more bumpy and inundated to plant the wheel on the road, feels like it has a poor damening span), but definitely performs better than stock shocks for dampening.
- Bilstein B6's (Jarring everywhere on even the smallest of road unevenness, especially the rear shocks, puts a cringe on us n every terrain we traverse). Has a very small dampening range, it's so hard it almost feels like the moment it's installed, it's running on almost bottomed out range of the shock, especially on the rear side. It only gets a slight better when I load the trunk space with a lot of weighted items. But that's not practical. This is by far the worst shocks to have for comfort because it offers none. For performance it does perform, but due to how stiff it responds to bumps, there are plenty of air time between the tire and the road as it doesn't take much to generate a lot of cabin's creaking noise within the internal mating parts.. But at high speed driving, it gives a lot of confidence in handling.
- Stock springs and shocks, you all know how that is, very comfy and cushy ride, offers very bad handling characteristics. OEM combo is made for low speed, cushy cruising, nothing more.

[1norseman]

Not sure how often he checks his messages, or if deal is for real. He might just want to wait for an easy sell to local person, no shipping, who knows.

I have messaged him twice and got no response. That together with his low post count and initial refusal to show actual bars, I believe makes people wonder if he's for real or a scam. Had he been a regular on the forums, that we knew more about, I would have seriously tried to buy these already.

btw, I have come across a few scams now where someone claims they prefer local pick up, but it's just a ruse to make you feel safer about the deal. Not saying this is the case here, but I have seen it more than once.

[futurejl]

Originally Posted by yupetc

Can't believe these are still lurking around without being sold already. I have no affiliation to the seller, but since both these bars are offered on one sale, being one who has installed both on my wife's car, I'd like to give it a push and attest again that both bars together will transform the way our jeep corners.

I've been driving many BMW's since the E and the F series, currently on some G chassis, and of all cars compared, by simply upgrading to these sway bars, the X5 drives like a 5-series (both F10 and G30) in terms of cornering. The original X5 corners with a boat effect, you put these bars in, you're a whole lot more near the sedan cornering experience.

I also would like say that my wife is picky on the suspension feel, but I hate that orginal standard suspension setup, so I've tried different springs and dampers sets already. Out of all that I've tried so far, the best combination that goes very well with these sway bars is with Eibach lowering springs and KONI RED active sport (FSD) shocks. This is my final setup and it's best world between handling and comfort.

These spare parts are getting dust in my garage:
- H&R lowering springs (Very Hard spring rate compared to Eibach)
- Bilstein B4's (Jarring on big bumps, resists sinking motion some, and a bit lazy on repeated rebounds, on repetitive rough terrain, it progressively becomes more bumpy and inundated to plant the wheel on the road, feels like it has a poor damening span), but definitely performs better than stock shocks for dampening.
- Bilstein B6's (Jarring everywhere on even the smallest of road unevenness, especially the rear shocks, puts a cringe on us n every terrain we traverse). Has a very small dampening range, it's so hard it almost feels like the moment it's installed, it's running on almost bottomed out range of the shock, especially on the rear side. It only gets a slight better when I load the trunk space with a lot of weighted items. But that's not practical. This is by far the worst shocks to have for comfort because it offers none. For performance it does perform, but due to how stiff it responds to bumps, there are plenty of air time between the tire and the road as it doesn't take much to generate a lot of cabin's creaking noise within the internal mating parts.. But at high speed driving, it gives a lot of confidence in handling.
- Stock springs and shocks, you all know how that is, very comfy and cushy ride, offers very bad handling characteristics. OEM combo is made for low speed, cushy cruising, nothing more.

Thanks for the nice write-up about handling the upgrade on the F15. How difficult is the installation of the sway bars both front and rear from a garage DIY point of view? If I bring it to some Indy shop in Houston, how much labor do you think it will cost?

I do appreciate better handling, but would like a as a nice add-on instead of a complete overhaul, cuz I have another BMW that is much better at this segment, lol.

[stopher]

SOLD! to futurejl

Originally Posted by 1norseman

Not sure how often he checks his messages, or if deal is for real. He might just want to wait for an easy sell to local person, no shipping, who knows.

I have messaged him twice and got no response. That together with his low post count and initial refusal to show actual bars, I believe makes people wonder if he's for real or a scam. Had he been a regular on the forums, that we knew more about, I would have seriously tried to buy these already.

btw, I have come across a few scams now where someone claims they prefer local pick up, but it's just a ruse to make you feel safer about the deal. Not saying this is the case here, but I have seen it more than once.

i'm not a scammer, trust me bro

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by futurejl

Thanks for the nice write-up about handling the upgrade on the F15. How difficult is the installation of the sway bars both front and rear from a garage DIY point of view? If I bring it to some Indy shop in Houston, how much labor do you think it will cost?

I do appreciate better handling, but would like a as a nice add-on instead of a complete overhaul, cuz I have another BMW that is much better at this segment, lol.

Honestly for myself, the job is not hard at all. The rear sway bar can be directly accessed for replacement. The front sway bar can be challenging if you aren't mentally prepared for it. Basically you have two ways to go about this:
1) Drop the subframe while keeping the motor hung from the top side. This involves a lot of time and hoisting tools to get done, I don't recommend this at all.
2) Remove the whole front end, that includes front bumper, bumper carriage, the radiator, intercooler, remove both intercooler pipings, and dangle the A/C condenser to the side. After you get this far, you'll then have access to the sway bar, and at this point, you'll also be dealing with two aluminum side bracketries which are in the way of getting this bar out. The bar's bushing section is secured by 13mm socket bolts and the end links are some 16mm or 18mm sockets. In a garage situation, when you're dealing the front sway bar it'll be a bit heavy to handle on your own, so it's best to have an extra set of hands to help.


I do not how much indy shops will charge overall, the rear side is less than 30 minutes, so that should be less than 100 bucks in labor cost. On the front sway bar, If it's someone who's familiar with it like myself, total time should be 2-3 hours, maybe 4 at most. And you'll need to refill with new antifreeze. I remember when I was dong this job, since i have direct access to the front side of the motor, I was also doing a bunch of other maintenances such as OFHG, front main seal, belts, tensioners, etc. I still think all this trouble is worth going through because it certainly does transform the way this car drives after the mod. My opinion is that BMW should have started the car with this set of sway bars from the get-go, then we will never be complaining about cornering.

[futurejl]

Originally Posted by yupetc

Honestly for myself, the job is not hard at all. The rear sway bar can be directly accessed for replacement. The front sway bar can be challenging if you aren't mentally prepared for it. Basically you have two ways to go about this:
1) Drop the subframe while keeping the motor hung from the top side. This involves a lot of time and hoisting tools to get done, I don't recommend this at all.
2) Remove the whole front end, that includes front bumper, bumper carriage, the radiator, intercooler, remove both intercooler pipings, and dangle the A/C condenser to the side. After you get this far, you'll then have access to the sway bar, and at this point, you'll also be dealing with two aluminum side bracketries which are in the way of getting this bar out. The bar's bushing section is secured by 13mm socket bolts and the end links are some 16mm or 18mm sockets. In a garage situation, when you're dealing the front sway bar it'll be a bit heavy to handle on your own, so it's best to have an extra set of hands to help.


I do not how much indy shops will charge overall, the rear side is less than 30 minutes, so that should be less than 100 bucks in labor cost. On the front sway bar, If it's someone who's familiar with it like myself, total time should be 2-3 hours, maybe 4 at most. And you'll need to refill with new antifreeze. I remember when I was dong this job, since i have direct access to the front side of the motor, I was also doing a bunch of other maintenances such as OFHG, front main seal, belts, tensioners, etc. I still think all this trouble is worth going through because it certainly does transform the way this car drives after the mod. My opinion is that BMW should have started the car with this set of sway bars from the get-go, then we will never be complaining about cornering.

Thanks for the info. I have taken apart the whole front end of my M235i once before but that was for a lot of the upgrade and repair similar to your situation. I might not want to do it again myself just for the front sway bars. I do have an OFHG gasket, intercooler, and engine mounts that need to be replaced. If I let the Indy shop do the engine mounts job, would it be easier and cheaper for them to install the front sway bar during this process?

For the rear sway bar, I think I will do it myself as it seems pretty easy and accessible. But I still want to hear your opinion or instructions about the whole process. Thanks in advance.

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by futurejl

Thanks for the info. I have taken apart the whole front end of my M235i once before but that was for a lot of the upgrade and repair similar to your situation. I might not want to do it again myself just for the front sway bars. I do have an OFHG gasket, intercooler, and engine mounts that need to be replaced. If I let the Indy shop do the engine mounts job, would it be easier and cheaper for them to install the front sway bar during this process?

For the rear sway bar, I think I will do it myself as it seems pretty easy and accessible. But I still want to hear your opinion or instructions about the whole process. Thanks in advance.

If this is being done at an Indy shop, then yes, there is comonality between the two jobs. They will likely hang the motor on the upper strut bracing structure, and lower the subframe to get the motor mounts, that'll also make way for the sway bar to clear and come off. But it'll fully depend on how well they understand the job and whether they will give you this discount or not.

[futurejl]

Originally Posted by yupetc

If this is being done at an Indy shop, then yes, there is comonality between the two jobs. They will likely hang the motor on the upper strut bracing structure, and lower the subframe to get the motor mounts, that'll also make way for the sway bar to clear and come off. But it'll fully depend on how well they understand the job and whether they will give you this discount or not.

Thanks for the reply. Any good indy shop in the Houston area that you would recommend?

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by futurejl

Thanks for the reply. Any good indy shop in the Houston area that you would recommend?

I won't be able to really recommend any indy shop for you. Sorry about that there. I've been working on my own car the whole time I've come to ownership of several BMW's so far, and I've accumulated enough tooling and experience to do them all in my garage. So the only indy shop I've been to are some nearby shops who will change out my tires, do an alignment, and perform annual inspections. Everything beyond that I'd do them all on my own. And these shops are like vultures, an annual inspection hardly gets a full pass without being told that my wipers seems to frail up and my tires are getting towards low tread; all of which just in hopes I would falter and let them sell me those items, real petty and I wouldn't recommend them to you at all.

With that being said, if you must, I did come across a shop nearby where I work, it's called Drivenwoerx and it's right there in east side of downtown Houston. They seem to have a lot of BMW's in and out of that shop constantly; and I only see them open shop in the past 5-6 months so far, and they are getting traffic so they must have something good. I swung by there a few months back just to chat with the owner, who appear to be quite young and he does specialize in BMW's mostly. I don't have any affiliation nor any experience with them, but deep down inside, if I get in a bind, I'd probably try them out. Address is 1902 Hussion St, 77003.

[futurejl]

Originally Posted by yupetc

I won't be able to really recommend any indy shop for you. Sorry about that there. I've been working on my own car the whole time I've come to ownership of several BMW's so far, and I've accumulated enough tooling and experience to do them all in my garage. So the only indy shop I've been to are some nearby shops who will change out my tires, do an alignment, and perform annual inspections. Everything beyond that I'd do them all on my own. And these shops are like vultures, an annual inspection hardly gets a full pass without being told that my wipers seems to frail up and my tires are getting towards low tread; all of which just in hopes I would falter and let them sell me those items, real petty and I wouldn't recommend them to you at all.

With that being said, if you must, I did come across a shop nearby where I work, it's called Drivenwoerx and it's right there in east side of downtown Houston. They seem to have a lot of BMW's in and out of that shop constantly; and I only see them open shop in the past 5-6 months so far, and they are getting traffic so they must have something good. I swung by there a few months back just to chat with the owner, who appear to be quite young and he does specialize in BMW's mostly. I don't have any affiliation nor any experience with them, but deep down inside, if I get in a bind, I'd probably try them out. Address is 1902 Hussion St, 77003.

Thanks for the information, man! I actually contacted them right before I heard the recommendation from you. The quoted price seems reasonable and they appears to be specialized into BMWs. I will bring my X5 to them for the engine mounts, sway bars removal and reinstallation.

[yupetc]

Originally Posted by futurejl

Thanks for the information, man! I actually contacted them right before I heard the recommendation from you. The quoted price seems reasonable and they appears to be specialized into BMWs. I will bring my X5 to them for the engine mounts, sway bars removal and reinstallation.

Let me know how things go. I'm curious, too.