Coilovers & Rear Air Bag leveling help!

[cnebrask]

Question for you guys. Recently installed KWv3 on my F85 X5M, including the new adjustable end links which set the rear air bag height. My issue is i can't seem to get each side the same height in the rear. I started by adjusting the end links to the exactly same length - measured them with electronic calipers. At first the passenger side was 1/2" higher, so i spun the link 2 full rotations, re-installed and then this side is 1/4" lower. It seemed like such a small adjustment but netted a massive change. Are there any tricks to getting each side to the same height? Appreciate the help!

[F85MTuNED]

Question did you install new bags? Or had them recently taken care of via warranty? I'm asking because another guy on the forum had a similar issue with either one or both sides in the rear slipping a bit lower than norm / lopsided and the end result was he purchased new bags.

I know when I did my coilovers I had just purchase new bags 2-3 months prior even though my bags were good I just rather be safe than sorry. When install was done everything went smooth.

[cnebrask]

Thanks for the info... did not purchase or install new bags. I may have my shop look at them if I can't figure it out. 2016 with 30k miles at the moment.

[ekological]

my ‘16 f85 with a touch under 30k miles is in for the last service before the warranty expires. Both bags were leaking

[cnebrask]

Assuming you just sprayed some soapy water on them? Were you seeing any sag at all? Not sure that they would even sag if the compressor keeps running.

Originally Posted by ekological

my ‘16 f85 with a touch under 30k miles is in for the last service before the warranty expires. Both bags were leaking

[ekological]

I did see it sag when parked for an extended time.

Originally Posted by cnebrask

Assuming you just sprayed some soapy water on them? Were you seeing any sag at all? Not sure that they would even sag if the compressor keeps running.

[Bobby_Drake]

Originally Posted by ekological

my ‘16 f85 with a touch under 30k miles is in for the last service before the warranty expires. Both bags were leaking

Mine is out of warranty. I'm at 35K mi. Had to get it replaced at an indy shop.
Mind if I ask how much dealer charged BMW?

[KCTiger]

I had to replace the bags immediately after doing coil overs. My car would be fine for a few hours but overnight it would sag. Definitely the compressor did a fine job keeping them inflated. You could actually hear the compressor come on, which I had never heard before, or at least not so pronounced.

[ekological]

Originally Posted by Bobby_Drake

Mine is out of warranty. I'm at 35K mi. Had to get it replaced at an indy shop.
Mind if I ask how much dealer charged BMW?

The car is still at the dealer, but it's also being fixed under warranty, so I'm not sure if I would know what the price would be.

[BadCompany]

Originally Posted by Bobby_Drake

Mine is out of warranty. I'm at 35K mi. Had to get it replaced at an indy shop.
Mind if I ask how much dealer charged BMW?

I had one side done at the dealer under warranty last month (2015 F86 23,000 miles). It was just under $700 with parts and labor. My understanding is that the dealer in Hawaii charges more for both parts and labor than on the continent. With that said, my SA did give me a discount on parts, as list price for one OEM bag is $663 per my invoice... not that it mattered much this time since it was warranty work.

[Bobby_Drake]

Originally Posted by BadCompany

I had one side done at the dealer under warranty last month (2015 F86 23,000 miles). It was just under $700 with parts and labor. My understanding is that the dealer in Hawaii charges more for both parts and labor than on the continent. With that said, my SA did give me a discount on parts, as list price for one OEM bag is $663 per my invoice... not that it mattered much this time since it was warranty work.

I ended up getting Arnott bags, as recommended by Forum members. It's half the price of OEM bags. Indy shop had no issue installing it. But one other shop did give me a hard time and wanted to charge an ///M tax.

[F85MTuNED]

Originally Posted by Bobby_Drake

I ended up getting Arnott bags, as recommended by Forum members. It's half the price of OEM bags. Indy shop had no issue installing it. But one other shop did give me a hard time and wanted to charge an ///M tax.

They're the same as OEM don't be fooled lol..you should be good to go now.

[BadCompany]

Absolutely agree. If mine wasn't warranty work, I'd have went with Arnott bags installed at my friend's shop (both sides regardless of whether the other side was already leaking or not).

[EuroCarFan]

Just had my suspension swapped with another X5M owner for his KW V3s last week. Car looked fine but I just drove it home from SoCal yesterday (about 380 miles) and this morning, I noticed the rear sagging. I started it up and moved it into the street and it raised up. Thought it was a fluke (didn't know the bags are inflated when car is running...duh).

Just checked it again about an hour ago and it was sagging but this time, a lot more noticeable on the drivers side.

Not sure if it's just a coincidence that the bags are failing or if the stiffer suspension with the KWs contributed to the problem?

Also noticed the front drivers side is about 1/2" lower than the passenger side.

Will be bringing it to my indy to get it checked out.

[F85MTuNED]

Originally Posted by EuroCarFan

Just had my suspension swapped with another X5M owner for his KW V3s last week. Car looked fine but I just drove it home from SoCal yesterday (about 380 miles) and this morning, I noticed the rear sagging. I started it up and moved it into the street and it raised up. Thought it was a fluke (didn't know the bags are inflated when car is running...duh).

Just checked it again about an hour ago and it was sagging but this time, a lot more noticeable on the drivers side.

Not sure if it's just a coincidence that the bags are failing or if the stiffer suspension with the KWs contributed to the problem?

Also noticed the front drivers side is about 1/2" lower than the passenger side.

Will be bringing it to my indy to get it checked out.

I always recommend to swap the rear bags out if the suspension is being changed it's better to be safe than sorry plus you'll save your compressor from having to work overtime which would result in failure eventually.

[EuroCarFan]

Is it okay to drive the car about 10 miles or should it be towed?

[F85MTuNED]

Originally Posted by EuroCarFan

Is it okay to drive the car about 10 miles or should it be towed?

If it airs up that's fine but you don't want to go multiple days in a row.

[EuroCarFan]

Originally Posted by F85MTuNED

If it airs up that's fine but you don't want to go multiple days in a row.

Yeah, it aired up. Just dropped it off at the shop. Hoping new bags will also fix the unevenness of the drop between the left and right sides.

[F85MTuNED]

Originally Posted by EuroCarFan

Yeah, it aired up. Just dropped it off at the shop. Hoping new bags will also fix the unevenness of the drop between the left and right sides.

Once new bags are in you'll know right away if the install was off, I would hope the person that installed did the proper measurements.

[EuroCarFan]

Got new bags for the rear. Suspension is relatively even...left drivers rear is maybe 1/4" higher than right rear. Gonna let it settle and then have things adjusted.

Sorry for hijacking this thread. :/