Today's Sticky Tires and our Bushings, Balljoints, Etc

[j0nwall]

Full disclosure! I don't have a full blown track build. This is first and foremost a streetcar that I do HPDE's in and am prepping for the local speed challenges. 😅

With today's "200tw" tire tech being as sticky as it is, I am looking to learn about the longer term effects and shortcomings I might experience with refreshed OE bushings, balljoints and other areas that would experience accelerated wear. I've already refreshed my E46's suspension components (though it is with OE rubber) and had my subframe reinforced. The next time I get around to doing a refresh, I'd like to "future proof" a bit. I'm definitely beating myself up a little for not thinking about this beforehand. Coming from an S2000 in the past, the early model cars had a known failure point with its upper control arm mounts when using something like NT01's and so I took preventative measures to account for that when using grippier tires.

How have ya'll rebushed your cars to get better use out of your tire selection? I know that's only one dimension of it all and oddly specific, but would love to read about how you've approached that and learn about other areas I should consider.

[ridebikes]

I could be wrong, but I believe the only real failure point that is common is the subframe itself. Otherwise, I have never heard of a hard driven E46 M3 on modern tire rubber that somehow compromised it's entire suspension because the tires were too sticky.

OE replacement parts are very high quality. In some cases, there are uprated factory bushings you can buy. Many go aftermarket poly or solid with mixed results. Really depends how much you're hanging on to the "streetcar" aspect vs. full track car.

I wouldn't recommend buying from ECS necessarily but would recommend you check out their suspension refresh bundles (link below) to get a quick sense for what OEM vs. OEM+ vs. Track, etc. combinations come with and which parts are uprated vs. left OE

https://www.ecstuning.com/News/BMW_E46_M_SuspensionRefresh/

P.S., in regards to your subframe, if you haven't reinforced the top side (Vincebar or similar), you might want to consider that too if you're going to be tracking a lot. The subframe plates are good but there is a more complete "solution" out there. Good luck!

[S14]

I could be wrong, but I believe the only real failure point that is common is the subframe itself. Otherwise, I have never heard of a hard driven E46 M3 on modern tire rubber that somehow compromised it's entire suspension because the tires were too sticky.

OE replacement parts are very high quality. In some cases, there are uprated factory bushings you can buy. Many go aftermarket poly or solid with mixed results. Really depends how much you're hanging on to the "streetcar" aspect vs. full track car.

I wouldn't recommend buying from ECS necessarily but would recommend you check out their suspension refresh bundles (link below) to get a quick sense for what OEM vs. OEM+ vs. Track, etc. combinations come with and which parts are uprated vs. left OE

https://www.ecstuning.com/News/BMW_E46_M_SuspensionRefresh/

P.S., in regards to your subframe, if you haven't reinforced the top side (Vincebar or similar), you might want to consider that too if you're going to be tracking a lot. The subframe plates are good but there is a more complete "solution" out there. Good luck!

Just to be clear, the subframe is not a failure point on the E46 M3. The chassis where the subframe mounts is the weak spot on the car, not the actual subframe cradle itself.

OP: I get where your mind is, and I like this thought experiment. Personally, I prepped my suspension for track day use by using solid rear subframe bushings, OE rubber diff bushings, sealed spherical ball joint RTABS with the idea of reducing rear toe changes under loads, and "street/track" lower control arms that are adjustable but use a spherical ball joints. Up front, I kept it stock, but might change the control arm bushing out for something like the Turner spherical ones.

I bought as much as I could through FCP euro and plan to refresh them ever few years thinking that fresh "OE" would be better than binding/popping racecar stuff.

[j0nwall]

Love the feedback! Thanks!

[bigjae46]

No real issue with running sticky tires. The biggest issue you will encounter is on the front axle and dynamic camber while cornering. You do want some added anti-roll stiffness on the front