Back to my original point on the torque of the top nut. The Bilstein instructions show to torque the nut from 10 - 83 ft lbs depending on shaft thread!!! What happens when you torque a shaft intended for 10 ft lbs of torque to 83 ft lbs??? You could snap it on the spot or you could weaken the integrity of the shaft to the point that it breaks later. Anyone that makes that bolt "tight" easily torques it well more then 30 ft lbs. The instructions are poor given that they don't cite the specs for the particular units they are intended for. Bilstein could inform us of the correct torque for these things and owners could double check their own shafts.

I agree with other statements, this could as well happen with KW's. Why a KW is twice as much is beyond me as well.

I'm on the fence about these as well. I would simply check the shaft nut if I owned them and make myself much more comfortable. Problem with springs is that the shocks are not matched for them. You get the look, but the performance will not be optimal. And you will likely wear out the stock struts prematurely anyway.

 

It is not common to have a broken strut but it DID happen to me .

The shop i take my car to has installed 100's of suspensions (maybe even more) . They have followed every spec to the letter . They see issues but not like this . Even Bilstein did replace and repair all the previous (minor) issues and they even did comp me the updated drop links . I still had to pay for labor or alignment and sometimes had to wait but at no point did they deny the fact that it was in fact a broken item . In fact the mere fact that the drop links were changed is IN my opinion almost an admission of a flaw but they never contacted me . It wasn't until I read this post that I decided to contact them. I still kept them until now.
https://www.6speedonline.com/forums/...-advisory.html

BTW .. There are many threads on noises and clunks . My Turbo did not have the clunk . One of two 997S cars had it but even that is minor.

All I can do is post about my experience with my car . If I mention a Porsche part that breaks someone else may never have the same issue . The thing I notice about these particular setup is that it seems to get mentioned often on this forum .

I sincerely wish that mine never broke and even though i am not thrilled about spending money and time without my car I am taking steps to fix it and find some hope that a new setup with a noselift by another company will be a positive step forward .

 

Did you install the KW Coil overs with the nose lift kit?
Looking to do the same and wanted some more feedback.
Thanks!

 

This is scary...


I have found other threads with people having similar issues with Bilstein. When I called them about these kind of failures they stated they are few and far between. Doing my research I am not sure I would trust these on my car as well.

 

I think it is worth considering the fact that Bilstein is a oem supplier of shocks for Porsche, BMW M-cars etc it is hardly a "fact" that they have bad quality products. Though on Porsche forums there is several stories about coil-over failures, so something is preventing a farm and fuzzy feeling.

I had a Bilstein kit on my BMW coupe, installation was done at a BMW dealer here in Stockholm, they pointed out that Bilstein does in fact do the M3 shocks so its a "approved" choice in their opinion...

 

As all others have said, I am sorry to hear about your issue and I am happy you are okay.

With that said, I did want to offer a differing viewpoint on the Bilstein Coilovers. Im no tech, I dont know your installer, nor your car. So I wont offer thoughts as to WHY yours failed. I will simply tell people about my experiences with the Bilstein PASM Coilovers.

I am the exact extreme of you as far as car use. I installed my Bilsteins over a year ago along with a full Tarett Suspension Upgrade. I daily drive my Porsche every day (12-18k) miles a year, PLUS I track my car HARD at least 3 weekends out of a month during Race Season. I race my full interior 997.1 Turbo with NASA for Time Trials as well as a few other groups (Chin, Tracks Unlimited, PCA, Drivers Edge ect) and am a relatively fast driver. I have not had a single issue with my Bilstein Coilovers other than a PASM light when we initially installed them that was soon after tracked down to installation issues and easily resolved.

Obviously your experience is different from mine and you obviously should post your thoughts and can pick any Coilovers you choose. However as I dont believe there are many of us on this forum who track their *daily* anywhere near as much as I do, I wanted people/you to hear about the other side of the potential performance of the Bilstein Coilovers from a track junkie who does 15-20+ track Weekends a year. I PERSONALLY feel they are a great product as a hybrid between street and track and wouldn't hesitate to buy them again.


-Sayajin

 

I tracked my first dd 997tt approx 150 track days, probably more. I had multiple suspensions, including bilsteins. Make no mistake they are a street suspension. Gmg springs, sways and gt3 Lcas were much better on the track IMHO. I run in the black, red run groups.....
I found the bilsteins less than ideal on a dd street car, others concur, others have zero issues, you gotta make your own decision. The off the shelf aftermarket bilsteins damntronics are very different than any oem strut/shock they make for porsche, which have had zero fails.
I think the best setup would be the b6 bilsteins with eilbach or gmg springs, this is basically a x73 for the 997tt, more of an oem style design