Soft rear suspension

[MichaelInChicago]

It may be my imagination, but over the last few months it seems like my rear suspension has softened. It feels like there is more give and rebound, and can be felt especially over speed bumps.

Has anyone else experienced this?

[ezmaass]

How many miles are on the car? Have you noticed any misting or leaks from the shocks? Is the suspension OEM?

Most of my BMWs I never kept long enough (mileage wise) to change the shocks, but my old e46 needed them after around 50k - 60k miles. They weren't terrible, but they had lost too much control for my liking. Mileage will vary for folks based upon a number of conditions, though, such as highway vs. city driving, road conditions, etc.

If you use your full body weight and push down hard on each corner of the car, you can see how it rebounds. A healthy shock should only allow the car to come back up to its normal height, while a worn shock may allow the car to bounce a few times before settling.

Aside from shocks, my experience has been that bushings and control arms go fairly readily on BMWs - but that usually manifests as a bit of play in the suspension feel, potentially accompanied by a bit of a soft clunking noise over bumps. I've generally experienced this on the front axle, though.