Harsh ride

chaz20vt

chaz20vt

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Can I ask people what there rides are like as mine is really crashy iv got a 2000 pre facelift s3 it's running a red dog bone bush and it has fk street coilovers with power flex bushes in the front wishbones also new ball joints but it's a very harsh ride, it hasn't really got much worse since I done the polyflex bushes either would this be my cheap fk coilovers
Thanks in advance
 
I have Ebay special coil overs on mine and the car is not much harsher than standard HOWEVER a friend of mine has a Mk4 Astra Gsi I fitted fk coil overs to this and the ride is so harsh and crashy it's un true
 
So you think it's down to the fk street coilovers
 
chaz20vt said:
Can I ask people what there rides are like as mine is really crashy iv got a 2000 pre facelift s3 it's running a red dog bone bush and it has fk street coilovers with power flex bushes in the front wishbones also new ball joints but it's a very harsh ride, it hasn't really got much worse since I done the polyflex bushes either would this be my cheap fk coilovers
Thanks in advance
Click to expand...

its down to the FK how old are they ?
 
My mates Fks on his astra are around 6 months old I also have a friend with FK'S on his A3 8L there about 12 months old and they are crashy too
 
theres your answer then
 
Yea mine are around 10 Months old its a horrible ride
 
Ive been looking around and thinking of going down the bilstein b12 damper and spring kit, good idea do you think?
 
I have recently fitted Koni fsd shocks with h&r springs and I have to say I am very impressed with the setup. The Koni's are also slightly cheaper than the bilsteins. To be honest the only difference between this setup and stock is that the car handles now, holds the road with little to no compromise in comfort. In fact I previously had bilstein b5's I think they were which are a direct replacement for stock shocks, which I fitted 2 1/2yrs ago with standard springs and this feels even better.
 
I'll have to look for some maybe from dpm
 
I have Billy B12 kit on mine as do lots of people on here with various spring set ups... Got them from GNJ Motorsport... He's a sponsor on here.... Good price as well.
 
Ok thanks for that what's the comfort like
 
There spot on.... I have with Eibach springs.... Others have with H&R.... The thing is with coil overs you get what you pay for... Need to spend decent money for good quality... You get what you pay for... They are cheap for a reason...
 
Yea I understand that. I got the fk more as an cheap fix, I did think I could put up with the crashy ride but I just can't anymore.
What's the height like with yours cecilthesausage any pics?
 
Ive got Bilstein B8 on mine with HnR springs, if you want a ride in it let me know
 
This is mine...
FB41FC28-B139-45F0-9699-74E6B7734983-23606-00000AC9C956DFB8.jpg
 
That's a good height
Got a pic of yours alex?
 
You run 18" wheels yes Alex? How do you find the ride quality and how do you feel the car handles
Thanks again chaz
 
I am running 18x8.5J wheels with 225 tyres on so its an 18" wheel with an ever so slight strech on the tyres. Ride quality is fine for me and i can whip around corners pretty well. If you want a ride in it then it's no trouble
 
I think i might take you up on that offer Alex what height tyre do you run ?
 
Can anyone comment on there rides with coilovers?
I'm stuck whether to spend the money and buy this bilstein damper and spring kit the b12 kit
Options please
 
My advice would be to go for a set of shocks/springs over coilovers. Unless you are willing to spend big money on coilovers you will never get as comfortable a drive as you will from the later. Then to get coilovers to work properly you will need to get the car corner balanced which is an extra cost and by the sound of it you are more concerned over comfort rather than handling.
My 2cents.
 
The thing is Dave i don't think my car handles either, iv got fk coilovers and my front wishbones have power flex bushes iv also got the red dog bone bush new ball joints on the front iv also had a full 4 wheel allognment done
I have 18x9" wheels all round with 225/40/18 UniRoyal Rainsport2s on all four with plenty of tread and it still doesn't handle like i think it should :(
 
chaz20vt said:
Can anyone comment on there rides with coilovers?
Click to expand...

I've had a few A3's and an S3 on various coilover set ups and generally they've all had fairly crash rides except one... My previous S3 was on AP coilovers, the ride really wasn't much firmer than my mums standard 225 TT, even when wound down very low! They're not too expensive either
 
Chaz I think a good set of springs/shocks will out perform a relatively cheap set of coilovers on all fronts.
 
Would you say this is why I feel it doesn't handle to well?
 
So alex took me out in his today and difference on comfort and handling is like night and day to mine so im putting it down to my cheap fk coilovers, im gonna buy the bilstein B12 kit :)
 
There you go. I thought it would have been down to your current setup. At the end of the day you get what you pay for.
 
This is very true Dave
Now just to find the cheapest prices on the B12 kit
 
I'm afraid to say, the whole 'get shocks and springs instead of coilovers for comfort' is rather an outdated idea.

Get decent coilovers that suit your requirements.

Cheap ebay coilovers generally have a **** ride, the lower you go the worse it gets. It never bothered me and I ran them for years, but it bothers some people.

Weitec HiCon GT's are affordable, and give a very smooth and comfy ride, easily on par with similar shock/ spring combos.

AP coilovers also run the same dampers as weitecs, and give a really nice ride, and you can still chose your ride height.

i'd be going with AP's if it were me.
 
Hey, you are supposed to be building bridges not being on this site
 
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I understand that but i believe the shock and spring combo qill be suitwd to me and the roads around me
As I am in coenwall wirh no decent roads
 
chaz20vt said:
I understand that but i believe the shock and spring combo qill be suitwd to me and the roads around me
As I am in coenwall wirh no decent roads
Click to expand...

The ride will be no different, you'll just be stuck with whatever height it ends up at.
 
I don't think I'd mind that to be fair there's no where near me to have corner waited either which was something I wasn't aware of needing doing
 
Corner weights are just as likely to be out with shocks and springs as they are with coilovers set to a level ride height.

By all means, buy shocks and springs, I'm just pointing out that I think the reasons for doing so in this thread are incorrect.
 
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