How many people have had to replace their stock upper shock mounts (rubber mount with bearing in it)? I noticed the other day that one of my upper mounts is showing small crack in the rubber. Is that normal, or should I replace is ASAP? Are there any aftermarket options for the supper shock mounts, or is it best to just replace them with the factory mounts? This is on a daily driver….not a track car.

 

My 2003 MCS had cracked/torn mounts at about 40,000 miles.
I replaced them with H-Sport adjustable camber plates which solved three normal issues; torn upper mounts, mushroomed strut tower, and added camber adjustability.
http://www.waymotorworks.com/h-sport-camber-plates.html
However the adjustable camber plates are more expensive ($489)and add a little noise and roughness.

A great solution if you what similar to stock comfort and do not need adjustability are the IE Fixed Camber Plates:
http://www.waymotorworks.com/ireland...e-r50-r53.html
They are about the same prices as OEM replacements but are stronger and add a fixed amount of negative camber for better handling.
The IE Fixed Plates are probably the best solution for your planned use.

 

Thanks for the link!! That’s exactly what I’m looking for. I just placed a big order with WMW a few days ago, sounds like I need to place another one soon. And if I’m going that far, I’d Misewell replace the shocks while I’m at it I guess. The car has 93,000 miles on it, and still has the stock shocks. It still seems to ride nice and firm, but since I’m going to have everything out to replace the upper mounts, it might be a good time to just replace them.


One question I had about the IW fixed camber plates is if they will raise the front of the car at all. I've seen some posts floating around talking about it...not sure I want to raise the front of my car at all.

 

At 93k, I would replace...

Front: strut mounts, dampers (struts), control arm LCA bushings, sway-bar bushings... check & replace if necessary ball-joints, tie-rod ends and sway-bar links. **IE plates do raise the front-end by 3/16 or less due to thickness of plates.

Rear: dampers (shocks), sway-bar bushings... check & replace if necessary sway-bar links and shocks upper rubber bushings.

For diagram & part numbers, go here

 

Yep...already have the LCA bushings and sway bar bushings on order. Not sure about shocks and mounts yet.. If it wasn't going to cost me close to $1000 for shocks and mounts, it would be an easier decision for me

 

When replacing the upper strut mounts with IE fixed camber plates is it recommended to also install M7 strut reinforcement plates?

 

On my S I had the reinforcements on top first, on the justacopper, just the camber plates. Seems fine, did the S due to not wanting mushrooms but then did the other because the handling improvement was worth it (to me).

 

I jsut replaced mine. I wish I could find someone to sell me that dang BMW 23mm socket that you have to use to remove the bolt on the strut. Ended up using a pair of vice grips and a regular socket. I THINK we torqued it back right but hard to tell.

 

How long did it take to replace them? Did you use a floor jack or lift?

 

Have an 04 MCS with torn mounts and mushrooming. Looking to replace with IE camber plates. Should M7 reinforcement plates be installed as well?

 

I'd say about 1-2 hours per side. Mostly it was getting the strut out of the lower mounting that took forever. When you do it, be careful to make sure that flange on the bottom goes into the slot correctly where the pinch bolt is. Took me 20 min longer than expected because of that.

We ended up using a Harbor Freight motorcycle jack of all things. You could use a regular floor jack. If you do, I'd recommend putting a hockey puck on it to keep it from slipping.

 

No. The IE plates have a thicker mounting surface compared to the stock units. I just replaced mine last weekend. The IR mounts just strengthen from the bottom...whereas the M7 plates strengthen from the top. You don't need both. The IE plates are VERY beefy compared to the stock mounts.

 

Ok, thanks for the info. How long did it take to install them & did you have to remove the struts? Also, there is "mushrooming', will the camber plates correct that?

 

It took me a few hours to do it. I was replacing my shocks anyway, so it wasn't really a big deal. Yes, you will need to pull your front shocks out and then remove the stock upped shock mounts...and install the IE camber plate mounts. I don't know if it will "correct" a mushrooming problem...but it sure will keep it from getting any worse. My stock mounts where pretty bent from where they were starting to mushroom...the IE mounts won't bend....so I guess "theoretically" it corrected the mushrooming in the stock mounts.

The car handles better, and I got rid of the cracked stock mounts.

 

No. It'll just break the bolts. I did a write up on my experience with this. I had to hammer my towers back, and have since replaced all the strut tower bolts with higher grade hardware.

 

Where did you find a spring compressor?

 

I also hammered down the mushroomed towers when I installed camber plates.

An inexpensive spring compressor ($20 but on sale right now for $13) can be purchased from Harbor Freight Tools.
http://www.harborfreight.com/macpher...-set-3980.html

 

Autozone will "rent" you one. That's what I've used the few times I've used it. They make you pay the full $50 or whatever it costs to buy it. You can keep it as long as you want. Bring it back when you're done and they'll give you a full refund. It's part of their tool lending program.