Suspension help

[Sammy]

Hi Guys,

I want to tweak the suspension a little more on my GTI.

I was going to leave the stock shocks, and get some lower springs, can anyone recommend either the H&R 30mm or the Eibach 20mm lower springs? Does anyone have these? or have ridden in a car with them? scrapes? ride quality?

OR

Should i look at some coilovers... KW? Bilstein? i don't want it being too hard...

cheers
Sam

[nath_mk6]

It all really comes down to what you want to achieve and how much you want to spend.
If all you are looking at is a drop for looks then springs would be a fine change, MK ran the eibach for some time prior to the PSS10s and I'm running H&R. For me the ride is almost the same as stock but I also change my shocks so not sure what if any difference this made. As far as VFM this is an effective mod that gets the look without the high price.
If you're looking at tracking etc or just want the adjustability of coilovers to enable changes to ride harshness then you should look at coilovers but these are about 10 times the cost of springs from memory.
So it depends on what you want to do really.

[elisiX]

I'm in the same boat mate.

If you don't want to spend the ~$3k for PSS10's (which are a little harsh unless you will make the most of them and track..), H&R Sport Springs (the black ones) are the best bet.

[Justin Fox]

Speaking from experience: I'd ALWAYS go for a coilover system for the adjustability in height and damper.

I've been in this boat so many times before and gone for lowering springs as they're so cheap. I've found that progressive lowering springs were always too soft and sometimes they settle badly (lower at the rear than the front which is a really bad look in my opinion). Each and every single time I've gone for lowering springs I ended up forking out for coilovers in the end (ie: wasted money on the springs and install and should have gone coilovers to begin with!).

I know that you should not go off the gap between the fender and the tyre but if a chassis is perfectly parallel to the ground then chances are there will be a larger finger gap in the front than the rear which makes you car look like the rear is lower. I like to have an even appearance. 1 finger gap at the front and a 1 finger gap at the rear. Coilovers will allow you to adjust the "look" of the car until you're happy whereas springs are a hit and miss, set and forget (ask Will about his R32, he has lowering springs and his car is lower on the drivers side rear than the passenger side rear!).

Not all coilovers are harsh. Yes some have high spring rates for track use but there are a bunch of street coilovers out there too (Tein Euro Spec for example). Christina's PSS10's feel harsh mostly because she runs 19inch wheels. We have set the dampers softer and whilst it was more comfortable the car felt too 'floaty' so we set them harder again. I would safely bet on the ride being too soft if we wound the dampers down to the softest setting.

[Sammy]

Speaking from experience: I'd ALWAYS go for a coilover system for the adjustability in height and damper.

I've been in this boat so many times before and gone for lowering springs as they're so cheap. I've found that progressive lowering springs were always too soft and sometimes they settle badly (lower at the rear than the front which is a really bad look in my opinion). Each and every single time I've gone for lowering springs I ended up forking out for coilovers in the end (ie: wasted money on the springs and install and should have gone coilovers to begin with!).

I know that you should not go off the gap between the fender and the tyre but if a chassis is perfectly parallel to the ground then chances are there will be a larger finger gap in the front than the rear which makes you car look like the rear is lower. I like to have an even appearance. 1 finger gap at the front and a 1 finger gap at the rear. Coilovers will allow you to adjust the "look" of the car until you're happy whereas springs are a hit and miss, set and forget (ask Will about his R32, he has lowering springs and his car is lower on the drivers side rear than the passenger side rear!).

Not all coilovers are harsh. Yes some have high spring rates for track use but there are a bunch of street coilovers out there too (Tein Euro Spec for example). Christina's PSS10's feel harsh mostly because she runs 19inch wheels. We have set the dampers softer and whilst it was more comfortable the car felt too 'floaty' so we set them harder again. I would safely bet on the ride being too soft if we wound the dampers down to the softest setting.

Any suggestion on where to shop online for the Tein Euro's?

Cheers
Sam

[Justin Fox]

Sam I know WhiteJames wrote a review on these a few years back and quoted $3800 but that price was a 2008 price and now it's $5656 WITHOUT gst from Fulcrum and no EDFC either?! (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).

You can view his suspension review here:
http://www.golfmkv.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47137&highlight=H%26R+Tein

I've run Tein coilovers on a few cars and always gotten my coilovers through JDMyard. On my MX-5 I thought the Tein Super Streets were too soft so I swapped the springs on the coilovers out for stiffer springs (perfect for street but I tracked the MX-5 a lot). I assume the Euro-Spec would be like their Super Street range. IE: more comfort for street than track.

I know Fulcrum are official Tein distributors in Australia. They re-valve Tein suspension for Australian conditions and also offer local warranty so that's the plus side of things. I trust JDMyard would smash the $5656+gst asking price though I'll give the boys a call and get them to list a price (they're so busy selling JDM goods to JDM guys I have to force them to post goods for us :lol:).

[elisiX]

WJ has been saying recently that a great new overall alternative coilover is the H&R Street Performance Coilover.

Not as harsh as the PSS10's while giving you the adjust ability benefits of a coilover for street use.

[Justin Fox]

Jay that sounds pretty good to me. I trust the H&R brand.

PS: Guys Zi from JDMyard is making a post in a sec in his trading room.

[Sammy]

Jay that sounds pretty good to me. I trust the H&R brand.

PS: Guys Zi from JDMyard is making a post in a sec in his trading room.

Ahh.. Zi is an old friend of mine from long ago, i spent many a night battling his blue EG with my G1 Teg.

[Sammy]

WJ has been saying recently that a great new overall alternative coilover is the H&R Street Performance Coilover.

Not as harsh as the PSS10's while giving you the adjust ability benefits of a coilover for street use.

That sounds awesome, they are a truckload cheaper than the bilstein/KW options.

Where can i find his comments on the H&R product?

[en.elle]

That sounds awesome, they are a truckload cheaper than the bilstein/KW options.

Where can i find his comments on the H&R product?

http://www.golfmkv.com/forums/showthread.php?t=62927

[elisiX]

The more recent comments came from a USA MK6 GTI owner who had purchased the H&R Street Performance setup.

[elisiX]

All the info here.

http://www.golfmk6.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3137&page=5

My only concern is that on the stock 18's, it looks like the wheels need spacers (illegal in AUS).

http://www.golfmk6.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=1782&d=1272736480

[MasterKevin]

What isn't illegal lol lol