Strut assembly Bilstein or GABRIEL

My 2012 had about 95k miles on it when I replaced the struts this past December. I went with Bilstein B6s and have been happy with them.

I recently put some Gabriel quick struts on my 2008 minivan. Fitment was so good they didn’t change the alignment (I had a local shop check after the install). I’ve only driven on them for a month but the ride has been excellent so far.

Got b4 struts for my e92 with sport suspension back in may-june from them. Holding up good, no issues. Had the rear shocks done a couple months before and bought locally but theyre holding up good too, also b4's.

Then pair them with some Bilstein B4 struts. I have the B4s on my 2008 SE 2.5 and they're fantastic, especially for the price.

Guess I lucked out when I ordered my B6's (talked to the company first and knew they were 4 days out)

I put Gabriel ready struts on. I like them. They are a more truck like ride. I tried some cheap RCS brand ones and I was literally bottoming in city streets with a lift kit lol. I would go Monroe if you want really smooth(never had them but that’s what I’ve heard), Gabriel a little more performance or if you tend to carry heavier stuff frequently.

Replaced my rear struts with Bilstein. Bilstein is a quality brand comparable (or exceeding IMO) OEM No issues.

I went from Sachs to B6 just in the front and it’s meh.

For all who are considering or may be considering Bilstein B14s or B16s, I would suggest you look elsewhere. The struts below were on my Alltrack for 65K miles and about 4 years. The suspension was not modified beyond these coilovers and a rear sway bar. I've owned cars with modified suspensions (both strut and double wishbone front ends) for more than a quarter century and I've never seen chrome worn off of a shock shaft before. Not surprisingly once the chrome started to chip it tore up the piston rod guide and seal so the struts started acting very poorly in rebound and clunking at low speeds from the movement of the shaft relative to the strut body.

In 2018 I installed Bilstein B8 struts/shocks with vogtland springs on my '13. Within the past 2 years, I've started to notice a knocking sound in the front, usually at low speeds and generally when I have passengers, but not all the time.