The Suspension Thread

N

NeilP

Veteran
 North West London
I've seen various threads dotted about the place, and I think it may be useful to have one go-to thread for everyone to discuss their thoughts on their setups (and help those considering making the switch).

I guess I'll get the ball rolling.

I'm running KW's V2 kit on my otherwise stock setup e86. Coilover on the front and a separate damper and spring on the rear.

The kit offers height and dampening adjustment.

Got the car down to a reasonable height without resulting in a crashy or bouncy ride.
 
would it be possible to list the parts that are available to change/upgrade?

i mean ive changed my rear shocks/top mounts and rear springs, but not really sure of all the other parts that could be changed while im under that area doing the work.
maybe a list of parts for the front (i.e springs, shocks, lower wish bone bush etc etc) and then a list for the rear?
 
Good idea for a thread. I recently changed the ARB bushes and droplinks and spent ages hunting around for recommended products and what size ARB bushes my car actually needed.

For the record, my car is an 03 3.0i and has the sport suspension, which comes with thicker anti roll bars, which require larger bushes. The se are smaller (only by 1mm I think). I ended up going for Powerflex front and Superpro rear ARB bushes. I also bought Meyle HD droplinks and Lemforder track rods. Bit of a mish mash of Brands, but all seems to work well.

The actual suspension (shock and spring) set up consists of standard struts and Eibach springs. Could really do with new shocks, which will probably be Bilstein's if and when I require them.
 
I've tried lowering with H&R springs which lasted just over 6 months as they killed my tired shocks. :(

Been running KW V2 for 16 months and covered nearly 20,000 miles on them :driving: Its been one of my best mods :D . Ive also replaced all my main bushes and top mounts with Meyle HD, fitted a limiter kit to the rear and powerflex ARBs.
The ride is pretty firm now but it handle way better then it used too, the only downside is my partner can't go five minutes with out the need for the loo :lol:

I'm running a sensible ride height, lower then stock but its usable as its my only car but thats soon going to change as I am going to need the extra seats soon :D
 
jan_tekin said:
I've tried lowering with H&R springs which lasted just over 6 months as they killed my tired shocks. :(

Been running KW V2 for 16 months and covered nearly 20,000 miles on them :driving: Its been one of my best mods :D . Ive also replaced all my main bushes and top mounts with Meyle HD, fitted a limiter kit to the rear and powerflex ARBs.
The ride is pretty firm now but it handle way better then it used too, the only downside is my partner can't go five minutes with out the need for the loo :lol:

I'm running a sensible ride height, lower then stock but its usable as its my only car but thats soon going to change as I am going to need the extra seats soon :D
Click to expand...

This is a know issue.. running lower springs on stock shocks is a good way to destroy the stock shocks.

The H&R spring combo with Bilsteins HD's are also top notch for the money that you pay. around half price of the KW's.. though without the adjustability.
 
Vanne, I ran Eibachs on stock shocks for 30,000 miles. I track my car a great deal and the UK roads are awful with frequent potholes and poorly maintained surfaces. I had no problems and only took them off when I fitted Clubsports. I suspect that the age of the shocks is important as mine had under 30K miles on them when I lowered the car.
 
I have the Bilstein B12 kit which consists of Eibach springs and bilstein B8 shocks.

Absolutely love the set up, it's slightly lower than the stock sports suspension set up and the car drives superb, it rides the bumps better and handles amazingly it seems to be more comfortable that stick suspension 80% of the time as well.

I also have the following powerflex bushes RTAB's, Lollipops and Front ARB.

New Meyle Top mounds and front drop links.

Ash
 
Got KW V3s, which at the highest level permitted in the manual are approx the same height as a stock sport with well worn in springs. Ride comfort and control are better than the sport suspension, although clearly brand new dampers will make a good difference there.

Fitted Rogue Engineering rear shock top mounts (the nuts are in the wheel well so you don't have to remove half the boot interior to get the damper out), Turner Motorsport RTAB limiters (to give the benefits of the stock bushing but with better rear arm control, more like a poly bush), front Meyle HD wishbones (inc balljoints and lollipop bush) and droplinks.

Will shortly be fitting new steering tie rods (again, Meyle HD), and anti roll bar bushings as I noticed these were a little worn.

Do polybushings on the ARBs make any noise come through to the cabin?
 
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