Koni's Front Suspension

[r.u.sure 0]

I recently changed all the front suspension and decided to go for the Koni Sport Adjustables (yellows) on the front, well happy with them. I was going to uprate the rear as well but ran out of cash.

 

Got a bit of extra cash now so am looking to uprate the rear, I don't really want to go for the Koni's Sports as I've read that a lot of people think they're to hard, then I really don't mind losing a bit of ride comfort but don't want anything thats going to make the rear 'skippy' on corners, (been there before and hated it).

 

Did think about the Billy Sprintlines or the Avo adjustables, but not sure.

 

What do other people have or recommend bearing in mind that it's strictly a road car.

 

 

Thanks

[m.i-man 0]

I have Koni sports on the rear of my 309, and they are solid. Which is great for track use, but horrid for roads. Put it this way, atm my 309 grd can corner just as quick, because the rear end on the goodwood just steps out everytime it hits an imperfrection on the road.

 

But then, the koni sports are adjustable I think, so should really soften them up a bit!!

Edited December 28, 2005 by m.i-man

[jonnie205 1]

Standard pug ones are ideal for the back

[jshep205gti 3]

My cars lowered but with standard shocks at the rear because they feel fine.

[C_W 3 1 Cars]

Ideally you want somewhere in between the standard and Konis rear shocks, I'd imagine the peugeot sport Bilstein ones to be about this. Standard rear shocks on a lowered car don't work that well IMO, even with the bump stops cut it crashes a lot; the ride on smoothish roads is still fine though.

[Butler 0]

Are standard 309 ones stiffer then standard 205 ones? Could be worth a look.

Edited December 29, 2005 by Butler

[Miles 331 1 Cars]

The Bilsteins work very well on the back, I've used them and many others on the road without problems, Yes they are firm but your not driving for comfort in a 205,

The std 309 Dampers are a different Damping and I found them soft on the 205, Even on the parts list for the 1.6 & 1.9 different rear dampers are listed

[j_turnell 134 3 Cars]

Yeh with the 309 having thicker torsion bars it doesnt need stiffer dampers so they are softer, i run konis on mine on the softest setting with solid beam mounts and tbh dont find the ride that harsh.

 

maybe im just used to it, but i do drive other GTi's on a regular basis and dont notice ride comfort being worse by that much.

[r.u.sure 0]

I've actually got new rear standard shocks on the back at the moment, couldn't afford the extra for anything else.

The rear does seem to dip quite a lot on corners, but then it is still at standard ride height, but it still felt quite dippy even before I lowered the front, I only lowered the front, as I couldn't decide whether to lower the rear as well, or by how much

 

I think I might go for the Bilstein Sports, and leave the rear ride height where it is.

 

Are the Sports the same as the Sprints and if so where would be the best place to get them from.

 

 

Thanks

[jshep205gti 3]

I've actually got new rear standard shocks on the back at the moment, couldn't afford the extra for anything else.

The rear does seem to dip quite a lot on corners, but then it is still at standard ride height, but it still felt quite dippy even before I lowered the front, I only lowered the front, as I couldn't decide whether to lower the rear as well, or by how much

 

I think I might go for the Bilstein Sports, and leave the rear ride height where it is.

 

Are the Sports the same as the Sprints and if so where would be the best place to get them from.

 

I would recommend lowering the rear using standard shocks. It is fine for road use. Why are you looking to spend money?

[Butler 0]

Yeh with the 309 having thicker torsion bars it doesnt need stiffer dampers so they are softer,

 

 

Dampers control spring movement, so surely thicker TB's mean a stronger damper is required.

[r.u.sure 0]

I would recommend lowering the rear using standard shocks. It is fine for road use. Why are you looking to spend money?

 

 

Not really looking to spend money, just looking for a bit more stabillity on the back as I don't really want to lower it.

 

Edited December 30, 2005 by r.u.sure

[C_W 3 1 Cars]

Dampers control spring movement, so surely thicker TB's mean a stronger damper is required.

 

I'd have thought that too, on a heavier car aswell.

[madaxgt 0]

Ive experienced both the bilstein grp.n gravel dampers (a 205 challoenge car) and the koni yellows that i have on my car. And i would definately say the bilsteins are harder, remember the bilstein's are for competition use and you'd be surprised how hard a gravel setup is on a rally car is. Remember they have to deal with hitting ruts the size of the wheel at high speeds so they have to be harder than you think. I would say the konis on middle setting are as hard as the bilstein gravel group n's.

 

for example special tuning list the 205 tarmac billies for use as 205 tarmac and 309 gravel. The 205 gravel's are a different part no.

 

and from memory i would say my 205 rode better at full attack down a bumpy contry lane with the konis than it did with the std dampers i replaced (a std height beam). Only at slow and cruising around did the konis feel harsh compared to the std dampers.

Showing that dampers are always a compromise as you cant get the ideal valve in a damper unless you spend mega bucks and get slow and fast compression and rebound adjustment dampers.

 

hope this helps

[Sandy 189]

The 205 needs more bump damping to supplement the standard torsion bar's softness, the 309 needs less, being slightly harder bars.

The 205 needs less rebound damping to tame the spring of the bar, the 309 having a stiffer bar needs more.

So the net effect is less difference in bump-rebound ratio on the 205, compared to the 309. Damping is highly specific and it's difficult to predict what works best.

 

The Bilstein Challenge dampers and Eibach springs that I thanked God for and made me emotional with their rightness every I drove my 205, are frankly a bit bouncy on the 309 at the same ride height. As an example.

[d-9 0]

I ran the bilstein group n gravel spec dampers on the back of my old 309 and they were truely wonderful. As soon as I have £200 Im buying a pair for its replacement.

[r.u.sure 0]

Looks like whatever I'm going to get will have to wait anyway, as the money now needs to be spent elsewhere.

 

Not on the car

 

 

Many thanks for the help all.