My 2009 Cooper S has a leaky front strut. I'm on a tight budget so I want to replace it with the cheapest one possible. My car has the "Sport" button, so does that mean it has the sport suspension? If I order the non-sport Bilstein, will it fit?

 

Plug vin # into bimmer.work for a detailed look at what your car came with.

Replacing old struts one at a time isn't an ideal way to go.

 

The sport button is on all S, but the sport suspension was a separate, extra cost option. Enter your VIN here to see the options on your car: http://bimmer.work/. Overall for the general public (not car enthusiasts), sport suspension was relatively uncommon and it is more likely that your car doesn't have it.

 

If you're not replacing it with the same part number, then you will want to replace both front struts. You should never run mismatched shocks on the same axle.

 

Thanks, that decoder is pretty cool. It says I do have package 226 sport suspension settings. Do you know if the non-sport strut will fit?

 

Thanks, I know it's not ideal, but I'm on a tight budget. According to the decoder, it has sport suspension. Do you know if the non-sport strut will fit?

 

The suspension parts are similar.

you can use non sport strut, but as mentioned before, you will have uneven balanceof the car...SAFETY vs budget? safety should always win.

you can also buy used in good shape suspension from members on this forum, ebay, or my favorite car-part.com

 

I highly doubt the 9 year old strut on the left with 173,000kms on it has as much damping as it had when it was new. It's probably more like the non-sport strut now.

 

I wouldn't change it around as it will really mess with the handling and ride as it won't be balanced.
We have the cost effective Bilsteins
https://www.waymotorworks.com/bilste...7-r58-r59.html

But honestly I would just go with a set of the Koni FSDs as they work so well and have the rebate right now toon
https://www.waymotorworks.com/koni-f...5-r56-r57.html