E28 rear suspension questions ???

[John Buchtenkirch]

Several people have mentioned that using a E28 rear cross-member and some welding & fabrication will allow the use of the newer next generation center section which has more ratios and better availability. I have searched & searched and can’t find the answers to the following questions. #1, Do you have to alter the driveshaft to do the swap? #2, Do the E9 swing arms fit on the E28 cross-member ? #3, If you have to use the E28 swing arms wouldn’t it be easier to weld on E9 spring pads on to the swing arms rather than trying to reinforce the E9 body / wheel houses to accept the E28 type coil overs ? #4, Do the E28 swing arms & cross-member give the car a wider rear track and if so cause tire clearance problems, a little bit wider rear track could only improve coupe looks but too wide is another problem ? #5, What half shafts would one use if he used the E9 swing arms ? #6, Are there any photos or drawings of the required fabrication needed for the swap ? I have tried searching many combinations of words and did read quite a few posts about doctor Ping’s coupe but many of the finer points of this swap remain somewhat mysterious. Any links to information or solid information on this swap is much appreciated. THANKS ~ John Buchtenkirch

 

[John Buchtenkirch]

Wow, well over a day without any response :confused:. I thought my searched word combinations were weak but I guess this is a swap / update that very little is known about. ~ John Buchtenkirch

 

[Arde]

Possibly intimidated by so many questions. Try to ease your way into the topics with one easy question.

 

[Bill Riblett]

I can't imagine how you could just swap parts. The E28 suspension design is very different from the E9 and and the E28 track is a lot wider than the E9.

I only know of one E9 that has this conversion, a black E9 that got a complete drivetrain/suspension/brakes conversion from an E28 M5. I think the owner is K Ping Tsao? The car was written up years ago in European Car magazine. The swap was done by a shop in California.

 

[decoupe]

E28 suspension swap

Some comments from previous discussions - sounds doable. Also try google "K Ping e9"
http://e9coupe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10106

 

[John Buchtenkirch]

I can't imagine how you could just swap parts. The E28 suspension design is very different from the E9 and and the E28 track is a lot wider than the E9.

I only know of one E9 that has this conversion, a black E9 that got a complete drivetrain/suspension/brakes conversion from an E28 M5. I think the owner is K Ping Tsao? The car was written up years ago in European Car magazine. The swap was done by a shop in California.

My thoughts exactly, I would think that the track would too wide for a complete E28 suspension swap unless you had puffed out racer type quarter panels. It tends to make me think that the Dr. Ping car was an E28 cross-member and center differential with E9 swing arms or possibly even Bavaria (E3) swing arms for a slightly wider track ??? This swap or upgrade certainly seems to have its share of unanswered questions. THANKS anyway ~ John Buchtenkirch