The Suspension Discussion Thread

[mbaker8v 0]

No... I am comparing a £300 Sachs kit against how the coilovers have always felt. They were way too hard and crashy since they were fitted. And the same goes for every other car I have been in that has coilovers fitted.

[Kevin Bacon 5]

So despite the leaking dampers, they still felt the same as new? What a pile of crap. You're just feeling bitter about coilovers in general because you made a poor choice.

 

I would recommend anyone considering coilovers not to listen to that narrow minded appraisal.

[mbaker8v 0]

OK, firstly my dampers were not leaking.... And I have never claimed they felt like new, as usual because i dont agree with you I am obviously wrong. As I stated, the coilovers have ALWAYS been way too hard for road use, as have all other coilover equipped vehicles I have driven or ridden in. But as I have said also, thats my personal opinion, and one I passed on as purpley-corrado-dude was looking for a good ride from his suspension.

 

I would recommend anyone considering buying coilovers to get a ride in the same model car, fitted wit hthe coilover kit you areconsidering buying. Its no use riding in a car on KW coilovers if your thinking of getting Konis, and its no use riding in a VR with Konis if you have a G60 that you want Konis on, they are different due to the aded weight of the VR engine in the nose.

 

How is that for narrow minded??

[Kevin Bacon 5]

OK, my bad then. I thought I read on your other post that your driver's side front was leaking and the passenger side didn't have much life left in it? Crossed wires then, I do apologise.

 

I do agree that a lot of coilovers, in general, are very firm. It's because aftermarket suspension manufacturers (particularly german ones) have got it in their heads that for a "sporty" feel, you need tonnes of high speed bump and very hard springs.

 

Not many aftermarket suspension kits have, in my opinion, ideal high speed bump forces for UK roads.

 

Gaz and KW are the closest to ideal I've tried so far.

 

Also with coilovers, you have the option to tune the spring and damper rates EXACTLY to your own requirements, the springs are cheap as chips.

 

But you can also get good mchperson / spring combos too. I just prefer the flexibility and tunability of coilovers.

[g60karmann 0]

well I can say noone that has ever been in my car has ever said anything but good words about the comfort of the ride and I can say drives back from Belgium after a long weekend at a metal festival I still had no complaints and I got out of the car feeling fine, apart from the hangover. As for feel round the bendy stuff I rate the KW V1's as top draw and worth making the extra jump from koni's. purpley-corrado-dude I would offer to let you have a go in my car but you are about 5 hours away from me, if I head up north for any reason I will give you a shout

[randomist 0]

I would offer to let you have a go in my car but you are about 5 hours away from me, if I head up north for any reason I will give you a shout

 

thanks for the offer mate, shame your so far away! that's what i really need, a drive in a corrado with different set ups but they're few & far between up here so not much chance of that!

 

at the minute i'm thinking of going with either kw v1's which i've seen for 600 quid so it's only a bit more than i was expecting to spend or just replace the springs with h&r's & if that doesn't make much difference buy new koni t/a's or something similar.

i'm slightly more tempted to go down the new shocks & springs route only because i kinda know what to expect as i've had no experience whatsoever with coilies.

just finding it a bit frustrating trying to find what i'm after. :shrug:

[Guest]

I have very recently changed my standard G60 set up for KWV1`S in the past i have had H&R Coilovers on my Rallye (when i was young and rich! they cost 1k) I also had the FK Highsports on my Golf VR6 they were ok but not a patch on the H&R`s or the KW`s, but are not bad for the money, that bit extra is truely worth it as its a job you only want to do once if your gonna do it properly!

 

After 3 weeks on the car and a few minor adjustments I have found the KW really comfortable, not crashy or bouncy or harsh, and it goes around bends and roundabouts as flat as anything (ask peanut :norty: he`s seen me a few times "testing" :norty: ) obviously if you drop it in the weeds then you cause your own discomfort as you run the spring virtually compressed and the shock with little or no travel, but with a drop of say 50-60mm they perform perfectly (for me anyway) the difference in the quality of the shock and parts on the KW is far far superior to anything FK are churning out, bit like their after market lamps!!! they leak and dont look good!

 

Got my set up sent to me direct from KW through G-werks for £570 delivered, add about another £50 for all new top mounts and bolts from VW and another £60 for camber and track set up after fitting and your there!

 

half the reason why peoples cars fell bad is that they are not set up properly after the suspension is put on

[twofourten 0]

Thinking about doing mine (still on original) I have had a brief look, but have no idea to be honest + most seem so blinking expensive?

 

Was contemplating KW Variant 1 & getting someone like G-Werks to fit them?

[joinerboy 0]

i have read through this thread a couple of times now and need some advice. im looking at getting a set of coilovers for my VR6 but am not to sure which brand to go for. price isnt to much of a problem.

the KW variant 2 or 3's seem to be standing out to me at the minute. im not going to be dropping it a lot, 30mm at a max

can someone point me in the right direction please

[Kevin Bacon 5]

If price isn't much of a problem, then I'd get a set of AST 3 ways :D. If it is a problem really, then I'd defo get the KW V3s if you're planning on big wheels / brakes and KW V2s if you're not.

[Dr Forinor 0]

If price isn't much of a problem, then I'd get a set of AST 3 ways :D. If it is a problem really, then I'd defo get the KW V3s if you're planning on big wheels / brakes and KW V2s if you're not.

 

When you say price isnt much of a problem I thought they would be a couple of hundred more, clearly not, for the AST 3ways, 2,450GBP (heck, their most basic kit costs 995GBP ) but for the KW V3s, 1,019GBP.

 

I currently have Koni coilovers and I must admit I'm not overly impressed. They are definitely better than my old Weitec springs/shocks but I would want better.

 

Any ideas anyone on how long you should ideally wait to change your coilovers (provided you dont want to remove and sell)? I really REALLY want to try the KW V3s now...

[Kevin Bacon 5]

LOL, yeah the ASTs are a "money no object" setup and very nice they are too :D

 

I think for ~ £1000 the V3s are hard to beat as a great all round setup.

[Dr Forinor 0]

And after how long would you recommend changing coilovers? I do drive fairly hard, I'm thinking 3-4 years max?

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Ah OK, I thought you meant that in respect of selling to get the best price - i.e. sell sooner rather than later.

 

In terms of lifespan then, there's no definitive answer. If you drive the car hard, daily and know it's handling behaviour intimately, then you'll just feel when the dampers are past their best. I've given the V3s some abuse and they seem to take it well. They also seem to be fine with big wheels, hardly affecting the ride quality at all compared to 16s and some 15" setups.

[joinerboy 0]

thanks for the feedback

at that price i think the 'AST 3 ways' are a little ott! thats nearly the price i paid for my corrado :lol: i wish i was that rich

 

one other question:

the suspension specs say they lower 45mm - 85mm. does that mean that 45mm is the minimum drop and 85 the max?

[Kevin Bacon 5]

85mm is the max drop, for sure, although that will vary on wheel and tyre size. You can get the car visibly a lot lower on 15" wheels. - 45mm must be the ride height at the coilover's highest setting, I've never checked that tbh....

[Dr Forinor 0]

I think I might want to actually change 'em before they are past it, but lets see eh...

[Niall16v 0]

Hi there,

I have a classic green pearl vr6 storm with a set of h&r coilovers for the grand price of £980 and she is lowered 50mm on 16" azevs . She is still very comfortable and handles great :D

[W3RKD 0]

I just completed a trackday in one of my customers corrados today (yes he was with me) with stock wheels / 288 brakes, a set of our v3's and a neuspeed rear arb and we were showing up some very expensive machinery around the track.. these really are up to the job on road and track use!

 

Oh and BTW kev when are you going to trail some of our new KW clubsports on your car? i really think you will like them!

[Toad 0]

Darren, do you sell the Neuspeed rear ARBs? Roughly how much would I be looking at for one for a VR6?

[W3RKD 0]

Darren, do you sell the Neuspeed rear ARBs? Roughly how much would I be looking at for one for a VR6?

 

We only sell KW / Eibach Arb's due to most other companies not giving a rats Ass about how quickley the customer needs it ( H&R)

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Oh and BTW kev when are you going to trail some of our new KW clubsports on your car? i really think you will like them!

 

What's the difference between the clubsport and V3? They look very similar on paper?

 

The competition kit looks interesting.... inverted monotubes, 3 way adjustable..... yum :D

[joinerboy 0]

i have just ordered my KW V3's. all i need now is to patiently wait until they arrive

[Chris Langdon 0]

hi all

 

does anybody in my area have a VR6 with H&R Coilovers or KW V2 fitted on them and would be willing to take me out in their car so i can see what they are like, as im looking to buy one of the above kits and still cant make up my mind which one!! :confused4:

 

im in Devon

 

many thanks

 

chris

[Kevin Bacon 5]

i have just ordered my KW V3's. all i need now is to patiently wait until they arrive

 

You can specify softer springs if you like. As standard they come with 400in-lb front and 275in-lb rear.

 

I went with 325in-lb front and 228in-lb rear. I've tried both and I feel the softer ones are better suited to a daily driver that has to use rough roads.

 

I find these damper settings work well:-

 

Front compression - 4 clicks open

Front rebound - 9 clicks open

 

Rear Compression - 6 clicks open

Rear compression - 12 clicks open

 

"Clicks open" is KW's weird terminology. It means close the damper valve fully (clockwise) with the supplied tools, and then soften it (by turning anti clockwise) the desired amount of clicks.

 

The rear compression adjustment is very fiddly when the damper's fitted to the car, but doable.