Now Thats What I Call A Suspension Thread....vol 76

[RAF_gti 0]

Howdy

 

Ok, so I'm away to get my 205 2mrw Now I'm in the process of preparing my wallet for the expected battering!

 

Having phoned round various places it looks like 5-600 will be the expected price for suspension, the thing is, everybody seems to offer different opinions

 

The question is, just where do I put that money? Bilsteins with Eibach would be my preferred option, bearing in mind this is for fast road use, would this be suitable? Or would standard shocks with Eibach be the way to go?

 

Going by forum posts Bilstein steetlines are not the way to go, too soft for rear? What is the ideal setup for the rear to avoid having a skippy arse?!

 

Sorry for asking questions which have already been asked but not all the replies were what I was perhaps looking for and it can't do any harm asking again!

 

Steve

 

ps my last car was a 182 Cup so as a reference that was on the slightly softer side of harsh in my mind!

[smckeown 1]

Bilstein Sprintline are what you wanr, not streetline. Some people replace the kit with diff springs and even rears, but others do fine withthe kit as it for a road car.

 

Sean

[j-16 1]

No, no, no Gaz coilovers are what you want! Under 400 quid - highly recommended!

 

ebay linking not allowed.

Edited January 31, 2007 by pugtorque

[tom_m 0]

sorry j-16 but bilstein over gaz everyday of the week!

[DrSarty 90 1 Cars]

beware the txt spk steve - the mods'll have your entrails for afternoon brunch!

 

 

Rich

[Rippthrough 98]

Billies for road/track use, gaz for bumpy b-roads.

[RAF_gti 0]

beware the txt spk steve - the mods'll have your entrails for afternoon brunch!

 

 

Rich

 

No txt speak here!

 

I don't think anyway...

 

Steve

[Miles 331 1 Cars]

The thing with suspension is that everyone is different on what they personally like, Damper's, Springs, Anti Roll bars and even tyre pressure's, the only thing I recomend for a good base set up is the Bilstein Sprintline (B8's as they are now known) with the Eibach spring's, or heading for more track Use the Group 'N' damper's front and back

[jackherer 543]

No txt speak here!

 

I don't think anyway...

 

Steve

 

Ok, so I'm away to get my 205 2mrw

 

[kyepan 291]

you might also think about a set of 309 lower wishbones for front negative camber, and better turn in.

 

or solid rear beam mounts if you want to kill any chances of the back stepping out in lift off oversteer.

[RAF_gti 0]

 

 

ah

 

 

 

Do solid beam mount's give a skippy ride?

 

After driving the (tired) standard suspension I am pretty impressed with the dampning of the car so I am tempted to stick with OE spec shocks and possibly go for Eibach springs.

 

Is there any particular brand of OE spec which is recommended?

 

Steve

[TEKNOPUG 3]

Budget on replacing the entire suspension (bushes, mounts, front and rear, bearings, drop links etc) as they'll all be knackered and any weakness in one will let down the rest of the components.

 

A 25mm drop reall improve the handling but will suffer on pot holes and bumpy roads as you have less suspension travel. Grp N mounts on the rear will pretty much eliminate LOO unless you are really trying to provoke it. Try replacing everything with OE spec first of all. Then you can try stiffer springs/dampers etc in a progressive manner unitl you find what you like. May as well get the parts from Pug as they aren't dear. Obviously though your first investment should be on a set of 4 Eagle F1's or similar.

[GLPoomobile 958]

Don't use OE shocks with Eibach springs as the shocks are not matched to the stiffer spring rate and the ride is a bit bouncy. This is what I currently have.

 

Will be trying the sprintline set up if I keep the car.

[DrSarty 90 1 Cars]

Ok, so I'm away to get my 205 2mrw

 

Hmmmmm

 

 

EDIT: In regard to what GLPoo just said I agree. I learnt from another site too late, as it's logical that if you're gonna change the springs, you're gonna have to change the dampers too. They are matched sets, and as a result, whilst my 205 feels planted (read: low) I've missed the point by putting std Monroes on aven't I! Eeejut

Edited February 1, 2007 by DrSarty

[Alan_M 66 1 Cars]

Instead of Eibach's, you could try Skip Brown's progressive springs. I've got them on mine, which used to run Sprints and now has the Bilstein Grp N (Challenge) shocks fitted.

 

Impressive levels of grip are there to be had

[Edd-XS 0]

My suspension set up is very low and very firm, which I know isnt for everyone, but its how I roll!

Anyway, I strongly recommend uprated rear beam mounts as the transformation/cost ratio was very high indeed! Made the rear feel like you had almost fingertip control over what I was going to do. And surely its better to leave the suspension itself to do the suspending rather then soft soggy mounting points?

Edd

[GLPoomobile 958]

And surely its better to leave the suspension itself to do the suspending rather then soft soggy mounting points?

Edd

 

Yes, but the problem then is that any flex that you remove from the mounting points or the shell then needs to be compensated for by the suspension. So you are going to show up any shortcomings in this area. In other words, if you still want to retain some degree of pliability and ride comfort, you'd better start investing in some very pricey springs and shocks.

 

However, the rear mounts are such a good upgrade, and great value for money (bar the fitting hassle). I commented after fitting mine that one of the positives was that the car actually felt more solid in construction. Not solid in a bad way, but solid as in 'I'm driving a well screwed together VAG car, and not a flimsy tin foil french car'. The only downside really is the slight increase in road noise in t the cabin (but it's not excessive).

 

I was actually thinking that maybe it would be possible to make a slight compromise but adding some thin rubber washers between the solid mounts and the shell. This would maybe be enough to prevent some of the vibration being transferred in to the cabin, without compromising the solid feel. Just a theory though.