Kmac adjustable strut mounts received - install questions...

[dubois]

I am assuming that I have to remove the front struts and compress the spring to remove the upper mounts - I've done this before safely & succesfully,

Is there anything else that I need to know - ie tricks, little secrets, additional parts required, special tools, warnings, ways that this job can be fd up, parts that don't fit, etc - before I embark on this?

[Harv]

Do you have the stock springs in there now?

If not you might be able to swap them without a spring compressor.

John

[Mike87]

After you have the mounts on but before you bolt the struts back in the car, make sure you can rotate the mount all the way around. Sometimes you may need additional spacers under the mount to raise it high enough over the upper perch.

[williamggruff]

See my comments regarding installation of the KMAC front camber plates (Stage 2--street/track) in the thread below. With the Stage 2 front mounts, I found installation was NOT straight forward, required some modifications to the parts received, and involved requesting replacement parts from the vendor and from KMAC to complete the installation. Since KMAC is located in Australia, there may be some delay in delivery. If you have Stage 2 camber plates, ping me for some additional guidance. I'll see what I can do to assist.

http://www.bmw2002faq.com/component/option,com_forum/Itemid,57/page,viewtopic/t,351278/highlight,kmac/

Grice

[dubois]

See my comments regarding installation of the KMAC front camber plates (Stage 2--street/track) in the thread below. With the Stage 2 front mounts, I found installation was NOT straight forward, required some modifications to the parts received, and involved requesting replacement parts from the vendor and from KMAC to complete the installation. Since KMAC is located in Australia, there may be some delay in delivery. If you have Stage 2 camber plates, ping me for some additional guidance. I'll see what I can do to assist.

http://www.bmw2002faq.com/component/option,com_forum/Itemid,57/page,viewtopic/t,351278/highlight,kmac/

Grice

thanks you all, this at the very least prepared me for some battle, we"ll see how it goes... very helpful!

[tjones02]

I have a set of these in my Red and clearanced the underside considerably so that the upper spring perches would not hit on hard bumps. I also clearanced the adjusting plate so that it would not hit the body when adjusting the things to max camber. I think I got about 1.5 deg camber and a bit more than stock caster out of my K-Mac's.

Click on the picture for large version...

[RoccoGilroy]

Iv been seriously debating this upgrade... Please post your results!!! Im especially curious to see if they raise up the front end at all. Also What stage are you using?

[skipsfcr]

I'm not sure if this is what Grice is referring to but the "collared" nut included in the K-mac kit recently purchased by FAQer "Tiger75" had the wrong thread pitch for his relatively new Bilsteins. Replacements had to be shipped to him from AU. Of course he discovered the discrepancy AFTER the front suspension was completely apart. Nice.

[williamggruff]

I'm not sure if this is what Grice is referring to but the "collared" nut included in the K-mac kit recently purchased by FAQer "Tiger75" had the wrong thread pitch for his relatively new Bilsteins. Replacements had to be shipped to him from AU. Of course he discovered the discrepancy AFTER the front suspension was completely apart. Nice.

I ran into this issue, and several others along the way. My KMAC kit is Stage 2, which differs substantially from the set on Tom Jones' car. The Stage 2 kit forces the top of the strut cartridge to sit just about flush with the top of the fender, which sets the ride height about 2 inches higher than stock. I described the alterations I made in my posting referenced above.

Grice

[dubois]

I got stage 1, I will take a bunch of pictures and report back. Wish me luck!

I have a nut guy next door, that can get me anything overnight if I need to...

[Tiger75]

I had similar problems with installation.

I bought Kmac Stage 2 from Bav Auto.

There installation instructions were no help on an 02.

My new Bilsteins had different threads on them than my old Bilsteins, so the Kmac nuts did not fit. I received a new set of washers and nuts from Austrailia, but it took a while for a responce and shipment.

They did finally get it right.

[jgerock]

See my comments regarding installation of the KMAC front camber plates (Stage 2--street/track) in the thread below. With the Stage 2 front mounts, I found installation was NOT straight forward, required some modifications to the parts received, and involved requesting replacement parts from the vendor and from KMAC to complete the installation. Since KMAC is located in Australia, there may be some delay in delivery. If you have Stage 2 camber plates, ping me for some additional guidance. I'll see what I can do to assist.

http://www.bmw2002faq.com/component/option,com_forum/Itemid,57/page,viewtopic/t,351278/highlight,kmac/

Grice

Grice's car (on the left) riding high in the front before the fix. Note the position of the struts compared to the mounts.

[williamggruff]

Note that in the second photo Jim posted, the top of the strut cartridge is actually sticking out of the top nut by about half an inch. If one follows the installation instructions and uses the proper washers/bushings, the top of the cartridge ends about 1/4 inch BELOW the top of the top nut. So the ride height will be jacked up 1/2 - 3/4 inch further than it is in the first photo if the KMAC Stage 2's are installed per the instructions. It imparts a dangerously loose feeling to the steering.

[RoccoGilroy]

I was leaning towards the stage 1's too. Please post loads of pics both before and after. If you have positive results my decision will be made. If u need someone to wrench with let me know. I'm close...