Rear shocks

[Boysie]

I had an MOT last week the test mechanic said one of my shocks was
showing a very slight leak, no advisory given
Do I go with Oem or are there a better ones out there

The car passed

[aceman]

Ray, you can get Boge/sachs shocks from likes of Eurocarparts which are exactly the same as BMW ones except they are not stamped BMW. The alternative is to go Bilstein B8's but then would want to change fronts to match too. Bilsteins are painted canary yellow too which I don't like but they are supposed to be good.

[siwilson]

How many mikes do you do Ray? If not many then leave it for now. Not even an advisory means it must be a very small weap.

If you do replace then the rear shocks do have a significant impact on the comfort of the ride as well as handling. I might look to a blistering upgrade, but to the B6 OEM replacement, nothing more. I did this for my old E39 an am very pleased with the results.

[GE45TON]

I recently fitted Sachs rear shocks to my 1.9 which I got from Carparts4less, more or less an OEM type replacement. Really easy to fit, didn't even need to take the rear wheels off, make sure you replace the shock mounts at the same time, I used Meyle ones from ebay, took about an hour to do.

[Del]

I would definitely replace them. Shocks seem to be one of those things that will carry on limping through MOTs in a very tired state without actually failing. If they are leaking even a bit then in fairness they are knackered. You’ll notice a hell of an improvement with new ones and have a much more enjoyable driving experience. I’ve got new Sachs Super Touring (carparts4 less) on my little 1.9 – I noticed a really big improvement and the rears had done 80,000 miles and were still getting through MOTs. I’m not sure if they do a version for the M model. The M ones must be uprated.

[CollyBee]

Just had my rear shocks done today (Sachs from Euro Car Parts) first time in 88k miles, what a difference. Having seen the springs, its obvious one has been broken for a while...oops.

However, now the auto hood wont come down ! It was working fine before it went in. Forgive my ignorance, but I think this is more than coincidence? Could they have broken or nudged something to do with the hood mechanism while doing the shocks? Press the button, no action but the orange light. Pretty miffed.

[gookah]

Just had my rear shocks done today (Sachs from Euro Car Parts) first time in 88k miles, what a difference. Having seen the springs, its obvious one has been broken for a while...oops.

However, now the auto hood wont come down ! It was working fine before it went in. Forgive my ignorance, but I think this is more than coincidence? Could they have broken or nudged something to do with the hood mechanism while doing the shocks? Press the button, no action but the orange light. Pretty miffed.

They may have moved the shelf in the boot, it needs to be in the lower position.. do the windows lower when you try the roof? if not then its most likely the shelf.

[CollyBee]

I've checked the shelf bit. Turned it up & down a few times, it's down. Nothing. Windows don't move, silence, the motor doesn't start whirring. Extra miffed as it was done by someone who runs a team in WTCC.

[Del]

Replacing the rear shocks involves having to remove the piece of carpet from the "shelf" behind the seats. It is a very awkward and fiddly job - particularly if you have to do it through factory fitted roll hoops. There is a load of wiring that comes through some rubber grommets on the near (passenger) side. Could something have been disrupted there in connection with a powered hood?

[gookah]

There is a microswitch at the back of the shelf, (on the back of the bulkhead in the middle) with a small lever on it, sometimes that gets bent or broken off,
Without that you will have no working roof.
This all ties in with the shelf position microswitch, that why your windows don't go down.

[CollyBee]

There is a microswitch

Sorted ! It was that micro switch, disabled it ? with tape, put back together and everything works. Thanks...and oh joy today its raining.

[gookah]

There is a microswitch

Sorted ! It was that micro switch, disabled it ? with tape, put back together and everything works. Thanks...and oh joy today its raining.

Here to help if at all possible...

[Boysie]

There is a microswitch

Sorted ! It was that micro switch, disabled it ? with tape, put back together and everything works. Thanks...and oh joy today its raining.

Here to help if at all possible...

Well done that man
Maybe we should award you a Merit star like Big Mac