Have an older M5 and my regular euro repair guy said that new struts would give me a more supple and compliant ride as the old struts tend to ride harder as they age. The car can be quite quite jarring when its cold and the ride improves when it been operated for an hour or so. Any thoughts out there? MPT
Personally, I would agree with your mechanic and replace the struts to acquire a better ride. I've never heard of shocks increasing their stiffness with age. Usually they lose it and become mushy, which does cause harshness in a ride (from potholes and bumps) because they don't support the vehicle's unsprung weight correctly. Something else, in addition to the shocks, that will give you a better ride is to make sure your upper control arms have healthy bushings and ball joints. With a 10 year old vehicle, my guess would be these need to be replaced if they've never been.
