Suspension Kit - VR6

[mic_VR 3]

Yeah I'd be happy to travel, no different to heading over the Stealth rather than a local garage I guess. I wonder what the process is.

[Jim Bowen 1]

Stealth don't seem to have the 4 wheel alignment anymore, i phoned them back in August/November time and it was broken, tried again in March/April and he said the same, maybe i sound like trouble on the phone, but i got the impression he had other things to do and wasn't really that fussed. Also the prices for parts was a bit crap, but i still bought off them, so can't moan too much.

 

Still think i'll go there with my engine rebuild though.

[Jim 2]

Stealth don't seem to have the 4 wheel alignment anymore, i phoned them back in August/November time and it was broken, tried again in March/April and he said the same, maybe i sound like trouble on the phone, but i got the impression he had other things to do and wasn't really that fussed. Also the prices for parts was a bit crap, but i still bought off them, so can't moan too much.

 

Still think i'll go there with my engine rebuild though.

 

Heh... well I can tell you for a fact their four wheel alignment rig was working up until March/April time - they were doing a wheel alignment on my friends MK2 Scirocco which still had winter tyres fitted, and unfortunately one of the alignment lasers slipped off the tyre due to the different tread pattern and smashed. The units are extremely expensive and Vince was pretty gutted as it is a big outlay to get one replaced. So it's been out of action since then..

[Jon_vr6 1]

It wasnt working last year due to a the power going off and vince losing saved data.

 

Looks like youve phoned just when its broken Jim bowen

[daves16v 1]

Well I've gone and done it and ordered the B12 kit tonight. I saw Ian's (GlosterOx) car at the National Day and was happy with his ride height plus along with other reviews I decided to go for it. It's the only thing I hadn't touched on the car, looking forward to a complete VR now.

 

Thanks for those that have given reviews and pics.

 

If anyone is interested I paid £632 delivered from http://www.europerformance.co.uk/ as it was the cheapest I could find.

 

Dave

[somersetdub 0]

Well I've gone and done it and ordered the B12 kit tonight. I saw Ian's (GlosterOx) car at the National Day and was happy with his ride height plus along with other reviews I decided to go for it. It's the only thing I hadn't touched on the car, looking forward to a complete VR now.

 

Thanks for those that have given reviews and pics.

 

If anyone is interested I paid £632 delivered from http://www.europerformance.co.uk/ as it was the cheapest I could find.

 

Dave

 

Nice one, I'm sure you won't be disappointed!

[Jim 2]

Look forward to hearing how you get on with it Dave. As you say, Ian seems very happy with the kit and has promised me a ride out in the car next time I meet up with him so I can see what it feels like.

 

As you say, should complete your car really given how much work you've put into everything else :)

[Kevin Bacon 5]

I have Bilstein B4 dampers, KW springs and uprated front and rear ARB's... the combination does not work well at all. Shock absorption on anything more than a small bump or pothole is quite crashy but the worst (and strangest) characteristic is bouncyness so possibly something to do with rebound (I must admit I don't know anything technical about suspension).. uneven road surfaces that previous Corrado's of mine have dealt with fine, seem to make this suspension setup bounce the car up and down to the points where I almost thought I was going to leave the road when I went over it a bit fast once! The springs and dampers really do not match / suit each other at all.

 

The bounciness is because the springs are too soft.

 

What you've got there is a soft spring, a damper with a very firm high speed compression and uprated ARBs, which increase the spring rate across the axle. It's a mismatched mess as you say.

 

Just pull it off and start again with a properly matched kit, like the one we've been discussing, the B12.

 

Put the standard ARBs back on as well. Get the car behaving how you want and THEN tune the under / over steer characteristics with an ARB.

 

Big heavy ARBs ruin the ride quality on rough roads, so they should always be done last.

[Jim 2]

The bounciness is because the springs are too soft.

 

What you've got there is a soft spring, a damper with a very firm high speed compression and uprated ARBs, which increase the spring rate across the axle. It's a mismatched mess as you say.

 

Just pull it off and start again with a properly matched kit, like the one we've been discussing, the B12.

 

Put the standard ARBs back on as well. Get the car behaving how you want and THEN tune the under / over steer characteristics with an ARB.

 

Big heavy ARBs ruin the ride quality on rough roads, so they should always be done last.

 

As ever Kev, you're a font of knowledge. Appreciate the info. Suspension is on the list to tackle after the engine work is done, and I've got some paint sorted so this will be the plan of attack :)

[Kevin Bacon 5]

No worries mate, just doing my bit :)

 

Remember that modifying triangle we discussed a while back that we all go through? I.e. We buy a car, identify some weaknesses, modify it until we hit the peak of the triangle, and then we realise VW got it right in the first place and slowly start undoing the mods..... well that's what happens with suspension a lot! :D

 

Yeah we love the flat cornering of stiff springs and fat ARBs, but hit a patch of busted up road and we immediately regret it :lol:

 

I still remember the day I went out in Neil's blue one after he did a Kip special and replaced every single suspension part with new OEM and honestly, around my local roads, my KW V3'd Rado was no match for the standard car's blend of handling and comfort. I don't ever remember a standard VR6 devouring corners quite like that, so it just goes to show how we all forget what the standard car is capable of, but people are just too shallow when it comes to the looks ;)

 

Anyway, I'm not suggesting you go that extreme as it's ruddy expensive, but the B12s with stock ARBs I think you'll like!

[Jim 2]

Gonna have to hold my hands up and say I can't stand the factory ride height.. not having it a bit lower just isn't an option! B12's and standard ARB's sounds like a good starting point for me. Out of curiosity could you elaborate on why the stiffer / thicker ARB's would be such a bad thing? I figured that, as the name suggests, it simply takes out roll.. does this result in a much firmer ride though? What are the negatives of stiffer ARB's?

[Dox 23]

Bigger bars make the car less predictable in the wet - they let go all of a sudden when cornering hard - you don't get the weight transfer to the outside wheel that you get with softer bars. If you hit a pot hole on one wheel only then the bar acts as an additional spring - you're twisting the bar rather than the bar swinging up or down should both wheels hit a speed ramp, trench or expansion gap on a motorway bridge etc

 

Does anyone have eibach springs fitted?

[GlosterOx 0]

From memory the B12 kit is Bilstein Shocks + matched Eibach springs, I also have an Eibach Rear ARB fitted as well.

 

Ian.

[Jim 2]

Bigger bars make the car less predictable in the wet - they let go all of a sudden when cornering hard - you don't get the weight transfer to the outside wheel that you get with softer bars. If you hit a pot hole on one wheel only then the bar acts as an additional spring - you're twisting the bar rather than the bar swinging up or down should both wheels hit a speed ramp, trench or expansion gap on a motorway bridge etc

 

Does anyone have eibach springs fitted?

 

Would that account for why hitting even a small pothole is quite a jarring experience then in my case? Sorry, not meaning to try and take over this thread but suspension has remained forever quite a dark art to me so it's quite enlightening to learn a bit more for those who are far more knowledgeable about such things :)

[Jim Bowen 1]

I still reckon when i get my standard VR chopped spring setup, its going to be awesome.

 

Every place i've taken mine have commented about the rear end being the problem. Just looking at the angle of the rear beam from the side, its look wrong.

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Gonna have to hold my hands up and say I can't stand the factory ride height.. not having it a bit lower just isn't an option! B12's and standard ARB's sounds like a good starting point for me. Out of curiosity could you elaborate on why the stiffer / thicker ARB's would be such a bad thing? I figured that, as the name suggests, it simply takes out roll.. does this result in a much firmer ride though? What are the negatives of stiffer ARB's?

 

It is a comedy ride height for sure. I used to hate it as well but if I was in the market for a super clean standard VR6, it wouldn't bother me now! It would if the handling was as bad as the ride height looks, but it isn't :)

 

ARBs - Exactly what Dox said, so if you have really big bars, the spring rate goes up significantly, which can unsettle the car badly on mid corner bumps. And it's worse on solid rear axle cars because both wheels are tied together anyway. Add a big bar to that and it gets even worse. That's why I suggested taking the big bars off and see what you think of the ride quality with a new spring / damper kit before putting them back on. As you know, Corrados essentially don't have a rear ARB at all as standard, and just use a front one to tune it for under steer.

 

The only time big ARBs are invisible to the driver is when both wheels on the same axle move the same amount at the same time, but that is extremely rare, so 99% of the time, bigger ARBs ruin the ride. That's why Range Rover and McLaren developed hydraulic ARBs. They are disconnected completely on a straight road for ride comfort, and recouple on corners.