Anyone with problems with springs and shockers combo?

[kaanage]

And a tip so you don't fall into the same trap I did. The koni sports have adjustable dampening but on there softest setting the are still stiffer/harsher then stock GTI set up so adjusting them will only get worse.

That's because the Koni sports dampers are made to suit lowering springs which are stiffer than stock springs by necessity. As gavs said, the adjustment is primarily for wear compensation but you can use it to stiffen the suspension response for a track day (it may pack down if you go nuts since the adjustment is for rebound only). With stock springs, you will be overdamped, giving a harsh ride.

I don't entirely agree about mismatching with the Koni sports or Bilstein B8 dampers with any lowering spring kit - they are designed for higher spring rates than stock and will work much better than the stock dampers in this situation even if they haven't been matched as a package.

Awwwww Come On!

I just bought the same springs 3 days ago! Why didn't I have this to read then!

Even better, read this anyone want to get rid of there standard sports pack spring?
And then if you really want to understand how our suspension works, have a read through the links here Does your VAG handle? It depends...

[LunchboxVRS]

The koni sports are designed for the H&R springs. Which I already have. If you buy a kit you get H&R with them.
I had the springs first which naturally made it stiffer but it just didnt take the sharp bumps well at all. then I brought the sports thinking they would be well matched but they where stiffer then the weitec coilovers (with the lowered springs) a friend has and I felt like I was back in my old track wrx. So I got the FSD as they ar ment to match the H&R as well. There not as comfy as stock but they work well when pushed and don't bust your kidneys on the big bumps.
If you get shocks with a good spread in the rebound adjustment you can counteract the sharp action of a stiffer spring forcing down and smooth it out but the koni sports just don't have the spread. There not focused enough for track and to harsh for the road.

[dening]

OK, I think I might abort having the H&Rs I just bought installed then.

I guess I'll either sell them on to someone looking at going the whole hog or put them aside for a time when I might be able to justify going for shocks as well.

Maybe I'll look into a less aggressive spring like an Eibach or even pay the slight premium to import the VW Eibach set.

This does suck though as the best looking wheel gaps I'd seen on here were GTI Joe's and Lunchbox's.

[GTI JOE]

Waiting on several quotes on different scenarios at the moment. Seems like the cheaper but crapier option is to take out the H&Rs and replace with OEMs and replace leaking damper. But if I can swing a good price on the Bilstein B8s then I will buy them and get them installed as I love the low rider look.

I'll keep you guys posted......as I'm writing this, I just received a quote from Germany for the Bilstein B8s....495 euro delivered to OZ. Much better than the last quote of 495 pounds.

Can anyone recommend an installer in the Melbourne area, out Essendon way? OR someone on the forum who can do it for me if I throw some coin their way?

Really didn't need this crap happening at the moment........and all was going so well

[dening]

Can I ask how many Km you guys already had on your cars when you added springs or whether you felt you drove your cars hard or did any track days?

The H&R Dealer here was surprised there would be problems as he had done far more aggressive installs and had no problems, I've already bought the springs off him just not installed yet, so he didn't need to overly try and lie to me, he was assuring me I'd be fine. But I'm still thinking I might just pull out altogether for now.
I asked about getting some Bilsteins at the same time and he said not to waste my time and to wait until I'd put at least 40,000kms. He said since I only had 10,000km on mine already they'd still be like new and have no issue taking lowered springs.

[kaanage]

The koni sports are designed for the H&R springs. Which I already have. If you buy a kit you get H&R with them.
I had the springs first which naturally made it stiffer but it just didnt take the sharp bumps well at all. then I brought the sports thinking they would be well matched but they where stiffer then the weitec coilovers (with the lowered springs) a friend has and I felt like I was back in my old track wrx. So I got the FSD as they ar ment to match the H&R as well. There not as comfy as stock but they work well when pushed and don't bust your kidneys on the big bumps.
If you get shocks with a good spread in the rebound adjustment you can counteract the sharp action of a stiffer spring forcing down and smooth it out but the koni sports just don't have the spread. There not focused enough for track and to harsh for the road.

That's surprising and rather sad - Koni have been good about matching their sports dampers to lowering springs with other cars.
When you say they're not focused enough for track, did you find they didn't control the car during track sessions? That suggests a fault with the dampers.

I asked about getting some Bilsteins at the same time and he said not to waste my time and to wait until I'd put at least 40,000kms. He said since I only had 10,000km on mine already they'd still be like new and have no issue taking lowered springs.

I'd try it - you may be OK (I just doubt it and GTI Joe's experience is what I would expect) but just be prepared to replace your dampers sooner rather then later. And check your car's behaviour in bumpy corners before and after the spring change.

[LunchboxVRS]

That's surprising and rather sad - Koni have been good about matching their sports dampers to lowering springs with other cars.
When you say they're not focused enough for track, did you find they didn't control the car during track sessions? That suggests a fault with the dampers.

The kit is about $1200 for the sport with springs and for a little more you could get some nice entry level coilovers like the weitec,s which are good budget setup for the odd track day. The sports just seem stiff for the sake of being stiff. They don't handle that much better then stock to be worth the coin. I have FSD'S now and they seem to respond better when pushed.

[dening]

That's surprising and rather sad - Koni have been good about matching their sports dampers to lowering springs with other cars.
When you say they're not focused enough for track, did you find they didn't control the car during track sessions? That suggests a fault with the dampers.



I'd try it - you may be OK (I just doubt it and GTI Joe's experience is what I would expect) but just be prepared to replace your dampers sooner rather then later. And check your car's behaviour in bumpy corners before and after the spring change.

I'm really not sold on doing it now. The reason I had chosen a properly engineered product like an H&R spring is that I didn't want to risk it behaving terribly. I'm not as tied to the looks side to risk losing too much of that functionality...oh I have been before, but not on this occasion.

Anyone who wants a discount on some brand new H&Rs could do worse than giving me a buzz

[kaanage]

The kit is about $1200 for the sport with springs and for a little more you could get some nice entry level coilovers like the weitec,s which are good budget setup for the odd track day. The sports just seem stiff for the sake of being stiff. They don't handle that much better then stock to be worth the coin. I have FSD'S now and they seem to respond better when pushed.

I wonder if someone at Koni has stuffed up in the H&R spring kit selection with their 'sports' kit for the 6R GTi. I would have expected that the sports dampers would be paired with the stiffest springs made by H&R for the 6R GTi which would be those that give the 35/55mm front/rear drop rather than the 25/40mm (which is what you have). This would explain your findings - with such overdamping, behaviour on roads would be worse if the corners were bumpy (I'd still lay odds that they would work well on tracks which are pretty smooth compared to almost all public roads).

My problem with Weitec (and their upmarket cousins KW) are that the dampers are not serviceable locally.

[GTI JOE]

Well, just purchased a set of B8s from Germany and all the companies I have contacted have advised that these dampers will be a good match for the H&Rs. I'll keep you posted when they arrive and are installed....we shall see.

BTW, once the springs were bedded in, after about 3K km....that's when the leaking started. I installed them at 5000km on the clock.