[gaifaun]

I've always wanted to lower the front of the car just a little bit to get rid of the ugly wheel gap but also to maintain its "oem, classy" look. nothing too aggressive, and i wanted the signature "raked" look from BMWs. Supreme Power's lowering perch do just the job in removing the wheel gap I am very satisfied! This is mainly for aesthetic purposes and if you want handling upgrades, go with coilovers.



Customer Service and Packaging:

Eric's serivice is truly outstanding. The time it took from my fiirst PM to him and to receiving the package, was less than a week! Truly a smooth and seamless transaction. thanks again Eric!

the perches arrived in a box filled with "air bladders". The result is the perches were nice and very secure in the box with more than adequate padding.


Product
The perches seem to be made of high quality metals and the quality is superior compared to the OEM spring perch. The price is great too! 1/3 the cost of lowering springs. Also, you only need to pay installation for just the front and not rear. OEM ride quality is maintained. this is a major selling point for those on a lease.

*does not fit Xi models



SP lowering perch (left), OEM (right)





Install:
I took it to an experienced shop which completed the install in 1 hour 30 minutes. the most important tool is the spring compressor. Briefly:
1) remove front shock tower
2) compress OEM spring on spring compressor
3) loosen nuts and remove OEM perch on top
4) remove rubber seal from OEM perch
5) replace with SP lowering perch
6) reverse steps for reinstall

install cost me $120 and it is only $99 ( I believe) at SP's garage! much more economical than doing a full coilover install.


silver, grayish circular object at the top of the shock tower is the OEM perch.



shock tower detached, OEM perch on top


Spring compressor compressing stock spring while perches are being swapped




Results:
I sucessfully lowered the front of my car around 0.5 inches and the wheel gap is gone, the front sits the same height as the rears. It should've been like this stock! It looks more aggressive and sporty in person and i've gotten many compliments from friends!


BEFORE


AFTER


BEFORE


AFTER


------------------------------------------------------------
Afters








Conclusion:


No alignment required. my car drove wonderfully after the install. My headlights needed a bit of re-aiming though. (the guide to re-aiming your low-beams are on E90post).

The drop ranges from 0.4-0.6 of an inch approx. I'm happy with 0.5 inch drop. I'm completing the look of my car bit by bit! thanks again Eric @ Supreme Power! For the price, and the looks, i would recommend this to anyone!

[Dr. G]

Looks good! I love the 189 wheels on the sedans. The Perches definitely give the car a much better stance.

[francisomar]

Looks good and very clean!

[SV Concepts III]

Looks great, nice review

[rbeck]

Why not for the xi models? Isn't the configuration the same at the top of the strut?

[Tam@SupremePower]

Awesome Review! And best part, the car looks oem classy clean!

[gaifaun]

thanks for the compliments guys! i like the 189's (style 287) on my car and i'm gonna put wider spacers in the back and in the front tomorrow, for the best stance!

to continue with the clean and classy look, next up are tinting and shadowline window trim!

[Boosted_TIAG]

Nice review man, thanks for doing that. Looking good.

As soon as I get home today I'm installing mine. I'm already dropped on springs though. I have a vert and because of the extra weight the rear is lower than the front right now so I'm hoping the new perches will fix that.
Btw: I have an e46.

[Ghost170]

good subtle lowering of the front, front tends to be a bit high on stock shocks.

[Boosted_TIAG]

Fuuuuu they don't fit the e46 m3!!!

[oel]

nice review as always.
car looks cleannnnnn

[gaifaun]

yeah the perches itself is inexpensive. the installation itself is more expensive haha. i wish i was handy enough to work on the car myself...

for the E46, there should be perches for it specifically. in fact, perches are more popular for E46's than E90's. I'm not sure but maybe the E46 M3 do not offer perches?

[bluefly]

Just wanted to chime in a thanks for the detailed review on these. Car looks perfect man! (only de-chroming window trim left to do lol)

[AlanAZ]

I put these on 6 weeks ago, and I'm very happy. I did have to call to verify install information -- simple written instructions would have negated that (answers: do not use included washers, don't reuse the rubber collar from stock perch.) Other than that, installed easy, quality construction.

I have an early build E90, which had a sport pkg front strut mount that was soon revised. I put the old BMW performance suspension on, with heavier rear sway, keeping my sport pkg springs, Meyle HD front control arms, and the revised front strut mounts (1/2" taller -- surprise!) However, my former nice rake was now gone, and the front fender wheel gap looked bigger than the back..

Well, that wasn't going to work. So, after some research, I picked up these perches and out it came, again. Now the look to the car is back to what is was before, and with the new suspension, drives like a dream. More controlled, more feedback, absorbs bumps well, but quick rebound. And much less understeer. The new perches integrated perfectly.

I had an alignment done (because of all the other suspension work), but all front values could be adjusted to exactly mid-range.


Install tips: I put blue painters tape on the fender edge (protect the paint from the duct tape), and duct tape over that. The bolt studs from the strut mount will mark your paint if they contact.

I replaced the top nut on the strut, it is a lock nut with a metal collar, one time use only, and the stabilizer link to strut nut, since those are all under constant movement. Cost, just a few dollars from dealer, piece of mind = priceless. Blue Loctite on nuts to the strut mount.

[EQUANT]

@gaifaun - what type are the rims on your car?

[Tee212]

Supreme is quality!

[BlueA2GTI]

Originally Posted by rbeck

Why not for the xi models? Isn't the configuration the same at the top of the strut?

Yeah, I have the same question! Taking delivery of my first bimmer this week, an 07 328xi sport package and want to put some H&R Sports and ideally some front lowering perches on it right away.

Anyone done it anyways? I've read several times that the spring perches are the same on i and xi models or at least the top of the coils are.

TIA

[BlueA2GTI]

So can anyone answer the above question about lowering perches on xi models?

[gaifaun]

Perhaps someone at supremepower can chime in? I know the suspension is designed differently, that's all...

[Babydragon]

They don't fit, I tried, so did Matt at cambertoe.

Originally Posted by BlueA2GTI

So can anyone answer the above question about lowering perches on xi models?

[gaifaun]

by the way, has anyone installed these differently? I remember reading one member didn't re-install the rubber rings back onto the spring perch. I assume that would make the car sit even lower but now there is not rubber to dampen the vibration and shock from bumps.

Supremepower, what do you usually do when you help your clients install the perches?

[francisomar]

Originally Posted by gaifaun

by the way, has anyone installed these differently? I remember reading one member didn't re-install the rubber rings back onto the spring perch. I assume that would make the car sit even lower but now there is not rubber to dampen the vibration and shock from bumps.

Supremepower, what do you usually do when you help your clients install the perches?

In deed, you are not suppose to reuse the rubber rings since the perch itself has sort of a spring that holds the actual coil seated properly and yes they in fact give you a lower stance, the vibration is not a problem since it rides as comfortable as oem but a little more firm