BMW E36 Chassis Reinforcement Kits & Parts

Let's face it, the E36 is an old chassis but it's still the most popular car to build for track-use. But because of it's age, certain parts of the chassis are prone to structural failure. We've been racing the E36 for over ten years so we know what the weak points are and how to make them stronger. Included with this package are the reinforcement kits that are absolutely necessary for a car that sees any time on the track. Street cars will also benefit from these pieces as your car can take almost as much of beating on the road as on the racetrack. Buy as a package and save 10%! Package includes reinforcements for the following areas:

front subframe

front strut towers

front strut tower paper gaskets

rear sway bar / swaybar tabs

rear shock towers

rear subframe

rear camber arms (optional)

This item fits the following BMWs:
1992-1998 E36 BMW 318i 318is 318ic 323is 323ic 325i 325is 325ic 328i 328is 328ic - Not M3

Let's face it, the E36 is an old chassis but it's still the most popular car to build for track-use. But because of it's age, certain parts of the chassis are prone to structural failure. We've been racing the E36 for over ten years so we know what the weak points are and how to make them stronger. Included with this package are the reinforcement kits that are absolutely necessary for a car that sees any time on the track. Street cars will also benefit from these pieces as your car can take almost as much of beating on the road as on the racetrack. Buy as a package and save 10%! Package includes reinforcements for the following areas:

front subframe

front strut towers

front strut tower paper gaskets

rear sway bar / swaybar tabs

rear shock towers

rear camber arms (optional)

This item fits the following BMWs:
1995-1999 E36 BMW M3, M3 convertible

The motor mount area on a subframe is one of those easily-forgotton areas that may be hiding a serious problem. The subframe on the E36 has a gusset ('ear') welded on for the motor mounts. These gussets take the stress of the motor mount as the engine torques (more upgrades = more torque = more stress). Worn motor mounts only transfer more stress to the subframe. Unfortunately, the gusset is not well-reinforced from the factory and cracks can develop along the welds and the gusset begins to collapse. A total failure of the guesset will shift your engine to the side and forward, taking out many other components along the way and leading to a very costly repair.

The next time you replace the motor mounts, oil pan gasket, checking your oil pump nut, or any other time you drop the front subframe, you should install these reinforcements. This kit comes with steel reinforcing plates that are welded to the underside of the guesset as well as plates to close off the bottom of the gusset for extra strength. Instructions included (or see the link below).

Click Here for Installation Instructions.

This item fits the following BMWs:
1992-1998 E36 BMW 318i 318is 318ti 318ic 323is 323ic 325i 325is 325ic 328i 328is 328ic M3
1997-2002 Z3 BMW Z3 1.9 Z3 2.3 Z3 2.5i Z3 2.8 Z3 3.0i M Roadster M Coupe

These are the BMW factory chassis reinforcement plates that came on the E36 M3s (some very early 1994-production M3 models may not have had them). This reinforcement should be done on all non-M E36 models especially when used in track/autocross situations. The kit is a set of 4 plates that are added to reinforce the rear subframe chassis mounts. BMW discovered that over time, due to the bending of the rear of the chassis in conjunction with the movement allowed by the rubber bushings in the rear, the chassis mounting points for the subframe would flex, weaken, and if left unattended, rip out of the chassis. The stock mounts are basically a flat plate with an internally threaded tube that are welded to the chassis. The flex of the rear subframe causes the threaded tube and mounting bolt to act as a lever arm at the point where the flat plate is welded to the chassis, weakening the surrounding sheet metal. Due to the direction of force of the torque applied by the drivetrain on the subframe, the first mount to rip out is the passenger’s side front mount, followed by the drivers side rear mount. Having these plates welded to the underside of the chassis significantly stiffens the mounts and stops the weakening of them.

In order to weld these plates in, the rear suspension, rear subframe, exhaust, and driveshaft must be removed. It is also strongly recommended that the back seat, rear interior, trunk interior, and fuel tank are removed and all fuel lines are capped to reduce the fire hazard while welding.

This item fits the following BMWs:
1992-1998 E36 BMW 318i 318is 323is 325i 325is 328i 328is
2/1994-6/1994 E36 BMW M3, although there is no clear transition on when the factory started building M3s with the reinforcements
all 1996-1999 M3s should have these reinforcements. Only early 1995 M3s are in question.

E36 cars with swaybar upgrades will develop cracks where the swaybar bushing mounts to the subframe. The problem becomes worse for cars that are tracked or drifted. Because the swaybar tab is un-reinforced from the factory, you can end up with flexing and twisting which will eventually weaken the welds and snap the tab from the subframe. By welding in this reinforcement you can prevent the mount from twisting. This will go a long way towards preventing a bothersome repair down the road.

Click here for installation instructions.

This item fits the following BMWs:
1992-1998 E36 BMW 318i 318is 318ic 323is 323ic 325i 325is 325ic 328i 328is 328ic M3

A very common weak point on the 3 series BMW is the sheetmetal of the rear shock tower. The sheetmetal here is relatively thin and very susceptible to stress and fatigue. A worn out shock will bottom-out more often and this energy is transferred through the bump stop and into the metal chassis. Stiffer shocks and shock mounts also put more stress on the sheetmetal. Factor in age, mileage, and environmental conditions and it's not a surprise that we see shock tower failures often. BMW addressed this issue with reinforcements of their own but our's are thicker for additional strength. This kit mounts on top of the shock tower and can either be bolted or welded in place. Because of the shape of the rear shock tower, these do not fit cabrio/convertible cars.

This item fits the following BMWs:
1992-1999 E36 BMW 318i 318is 318ti 323is 325i 325is 328i 328is M3 - not for convertibles
1999-2005 E46 BMW 323i 323ci 325i 325ci 325xi 328i 328ci 330i 330ci 330xi M3 - not for convertibles

This is the factory BMW rear shock mount reinforcement, as equipped by BMW on Z3 models. This also fits all E36 and E46 models as well. Turner Motorsport makes our own that are thicker but these can also do a good job of preventing cracks and deformation of the rear shock towers.

Priced per reinforcement plate. Order 2 to cover both rear shock towers.

This item fits the following BMWs:
1992-1999 E36 BMW 318i 318is 318ti 318ic 323is 323ic 325i 325is 325ic 328i 328is 328ic M3 (not for convertible models)
1999-2006 E46 BMW 323i 323ci 325i 325ci 325xi 328i 328ci 330i 330ci 330xi M3 (not for convertible models)
1997-2002 Z3 BMW Z3 1.9 Z3 2.3 Z3 2.5i Z3 2.8 Z3 3.0i M Roadster M Coupe

If you haven't already upgraded to Adjustable Camber Arms, your stock rear lower wishbones are letting your down. The stock rear camber arm/wishbone is designed to be flexible and weak. In an impact, it's designed to bend or even break to absorb energy and prevent damage to other more vital components. This is great on a regular street car. But on a track car, or heavily modified street car, these arms can bend just from cornering forces and that can introduce radical camber changes that will throw off the balance and handling of the car. This reinforcement solves all of that by tying the two sections of the arm together. This creates a single solid arm with minimal flex in the arm itself. We can't take credit for this innovation - BMW recognized the problem and did this on their factory Group N racecars. If you haven't made the jump to adjustable arms, or your racing class still requires the stock camber arm, then this kit is a must! Installation requires welding.

Click here for installation instructions

This item fits the following BMWs:
1992-1998 E36 BMW 318i 318is 318ti 318ic 323is 323ic 325i 325is 325ic 328i 328is 328ic M3
1999-2005 E46 BMW 323i 323ci 325i 325ci 325xi 328i 328ci 330i 330ci 330xi M3
2003-2008 E85 BMW Z4 2.5i Z4 3.0i Z4 3.0si Z4 M Roadster M Coupe

The shock towers on the E36 and Z3 are notoriously weak. Under normal driving conditions with a stock, fresh suspension it is unlikely that you will ever have a problem. But with an upgraded street or race suspension with firm springs much of the energy from pounding the road is transmitted to the thin sheet metal in the strut tower. This pounding will cause the tower to deform or even crack. Look for 'mushrooming' or deformity around the holes for the three mounting studs at the top of the strut tower. The sheetmetal around the holes should really be flat and square. Poor shocks or stiff suspensions will actually cause this sheetmetal to pop up.

These factory BMW reinforcement plates will help disperse the energy and save you from costly repairs in the future. A strut brace also helps to prevent this but these plates are designed to reinforce the strut tower from the bottom. The install over your strut mount or camber plate and simply add thickness (strength) to the strut tower. They can be sandwiched in place and do not require welding.

This item fits the following BMWs:
1992-1998 E36 BMW 318i 318is 318ti 318ic 323is 323ic 325i 325is 325ic 328i 328is 328ic M3
1997-2002 Z3 BMW Z3 1.9 Z3 2.3 Z3 2.5i Z3 2.8 Z3 3.0i M Roadster M Coupe. Note: some Z3 models already come from the factory with these plates.

The ORIGINAL rear trailing arm bushing / RTAB shim kit -- and still the best! The Turner rear trailing-arm bushing limiter kit creates a stiffer rear suspension without sacrificing ride quality. Stock trailing arm bushings are known for failure, on both the E36 and E46 BMW chassis. This kit is a perfect upgrade from stock, as it reduces bushing deflection, dramatically increases bushing life, improves handling, and all without the harshness of "race-only" bushings, and while maintaining completely silent operation -- no squeaks and no vibration, whatsoever.

By combining these limiters with stock bushings, this is a great low cost and effective suspension performance enhancer. Each pair of blue aluminum "shims" essentially sandwich the stock rubber bushing to control their lateral movement. By limiting the amount of side-to-side play of the stock bushing, drivers will have increased driver feel thanks to the reduction of toe variation caused by the squirm of the stock rubber bushings. This also reduces duress on the bushing, giving your newly installed bushings a dramatically longer lifespan (a welcome benefit for both pure street or tracked cars). Some stock class racing series even allow this kind of modification, because the stock bushing is still being used.

Kit includes: 4-Blue anodized aluminum bushing limiters, eight 5mm allen bolts and a drilling template.

Need bushings? Click here for replacement trailing arm bushings.

Click for installation instructions.

This RTAB limiter / shim kit fits the following BMWs:
1992-1999 E36 3 Series including 318i, 318is, 325i, 325is, 328i, 328is & 323is
1995-1999 E36 M3 3.0 & 3.2 (coupe & sedan)
1999-2005 E46 3 Series including 323i, 323Ci, 325i, 325Ci, 325xi, 328i, 328Ci, 330i, 330xi & 330Ci
2001-2006 E46 M3 coupe & convertible
2004-2011 X3 2.5, 3.0
2003-2009 Z4 Roadster & Coupe (2.5, 3.0, 3.0si)
2006-2009 MZ4 M Roadster / M Coupe