Advice on S-line Suspension upgrade needed

Sayam · Apr 13, 2016

You aren't the first person that's happened to.

Mine went the other way, so the rear of the car is as low as it would be if I'd gone for the Sportline even though I have the Pro-Kit.

I gave Damian @DPM numbers off my rear springs and he confirmed they are the correct ones listed for my car (I bought them from him).

So something isn't right because my car went down loads at the rear and hardly anything at the front and others are going up instead of down.

I'm not sure whether the springs will settle 10mm or not...

Donny_DJ · Apr 13, 2016

Arjuanamo said:
So my car went in today for installation of the Bilstein B-12 Kit and 20mm rear spacers .

Elite direct originally quoted me a drop of 10/15mm but after reading up on the forum i was only expecting 5mm maximum drop .

They just rang me and told me the rear has gone up by 10mm ! I was shocked as I thought it would stay the same height . Has anyone else had this same experience with the kit ?

He asked me if I want to reschedule and go for the sport line kit . My main reason was to improve comfort so I told him I will just stick with the Pro kit .

I was wondering if it it is possible they were sent the wrong springs but they rang up Eibach and confirmed they are the right ones . Would it be possible that the springs would drop 10mm once they have settled in ?

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When I originally had Eibach Pro-Kit springs fitted to mine I found the drop negligible. I now have Sportlines coupled with B8 dampers and the drop is much better but still want it lower if I'm honest.
Drive it around a few hundred miles and it should settle slightly but as mentioned above you're better off going straight to Sportlines.

Donny_DJ · Apr 13, 2016

The Sportlines ARE comfortable mate. On a par with Pro-Kit.

Sayam · Apr 13, 2016

Donny_DJ said:
The Sportlines ARE comfortable mate. On a par with Pro-Kit.

Depends on what you mean by comfortable though.

I've had both on the same car and there is no doubt the Sportline springs are stiffer. So if OP's measure of comfort is stiffness then the Pro-Kit would be perceived to be more comfortable to him.

I miss the handling of the Sportline but nothing can replace being able to drive over speed bumps at a normal speed with full complement of four adults and luggage in the boot.

Donny_DJ · Apr 13, 2016

Sayam said:
Depends on what you mean by comfortable though.

I've had both on the same car and there is no doubt the Sportline springs are stiffer. So if OP's measure of comfort is stiffness then the Pro-Kit would be perceived to be more comfortable to him.

I miss the handling of the Sportline but nothing can replace being able to drive over speed bumps at a normal speed with full complement of four adults and luggage in the boot.

Fair point; 'comfort' is very subjective according to the driver, however I've had experience of H&R -50mm lowering springs and now the Eibach Sportlines and the latter are supremely more comfortable despite a similar drop.

Sayam · Apr 13, 2016

Donny_DJ said:
Fair point; 'comfort' is very subjective according to the driver, however I've had experience of H&R -50mm lowering springs and now the Eibach Sportlines and the latter are supremely more comfortable despite a similar drop.

Yeah completely agree, comfort is very subjective...

downtothebone · Apr 13, 2016

Sayam said:
Depends on what you mean by comfortable though.

I've had both on the same car and there is no doubt the Sportline springs are stiffer. So if OP's measure of comfort is stiffness then the Pro-Kit would be perceived to be more comfortable to him.

I miss the handling of the Sportline but nothing can replace being able to drive over speed bumps at a normal speed with full complement of four adults and luggage in the boot.

I'm with Sayam on this - I was on H&R 50 and driving around London just became a pain. I was more concerned after I'd removed them and saw that they had been so compressed on the SLine shocks that the paint had been removed along the top and bottoms of the spring coil exposing the bare metal which had started rusting.

c_w · Apr 13, 2016

The springs would sit at the same position whatever dampers you're using as they dictate the rideheight. H&R springs, by design, are coilbound for a certain portion of the spring.

There's something weird going on with AUDI A3 lowering springs, it's as if the makers of these kits are making a kit that fits a hundred different vehicles on the same platform. My H&R -35MM raised the rear 20mm and looked stupid. I've never known a car that is so difficult to lower and look right. Most other cars you sling a set of springs on and it goes lower.

Springs IME don't settle much, they probably settle a little in to the rubber pads etc but don't expect much more than 5mm-10mm max. You should see the rough result as soon as you drop it off the jack and settle it off the handbrake.

Donny_DJ · Apr 13, 2016

downtothebone said:
I'm with Sayam on this - I was on H&R 50 and driving around London just became a pain. I was more concerned after I'd removed them and saw that they had been so compressed on the SLine shocks that the paint had been removed along the top and bottoms of the spring coil exposing the bare metal which had started rusting.

H&Rs are awful around London. Back-breaking ride! No doubt they'd be great round the Nurburgring though

Donny_DJ · Apr 13, 2016

c_w said:
The springs would sit at the same position whatever dampers you're using as they dictate the rideheight. H&R springs, by design, are coilbound for a certain portion of the spring.

There's something weird going on with AUDI A3 lowering springs, it's as if the makers of these kits are making a kit that fits a hundred different vehicles on the same platform. My H&R -35MM raised the rear 20mm and looked stupid. I've never known a car that is so difficult to lower and look right. Most other cars you sling a set of springs on and it goes lower.

Springs IME don't settle much, they probably settle a little in to the rubber pads etc but don't expect much more than 5mm-10mm max. You should see the rough result as soon as you drop it off the jack and settle it off the handbrake.

You've kinda nailed it there CW. I think that's why some are looking at coilovers then they can play around

Sayam · Apr 13, 2016

Out of all the different springs I've tried, seen and sat in cars the only one that gets the ride height perfect for me is the eibach sportline.

H&R springs are way too stiff.

downtothebone · Apr 13, 2016

Donny_DJ said:
H&Rs are awful around London. Back-breaking ride! No doubt they'd be great round the Nurburgring though

Yup one thing I do miss now that I'm on Eibach Pros was the almost complete lack of body roll on cornering with the H&Rs.

Gazwould · Apr 13, 2016

The trouble with playing around with coilovers is its pure guesswork and you haven't a qualification in suspension dynamics set up .

An individual axle weighted kit from Eibach has all the engineering sorted out for you .

Good coilovers are great for ultimate handling but comfort comprised and set up as long as camber, damper, castor etc adjustable then corner weight set up .

Sayam · Apr 14, 2016

Does anyone know if audi sorted the handling and comfort on the 8V? Or is it a shambles too?

millsy4002 · Apr 14, 2016

I took a new S3 out last week for a test drive and the suspension was a lot smoother but a short test drive ain't exactly thorough

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Arjuanamo · Apr 14, 2016

So I have decided to stick with the pro-line kit for now and see how i feel over the next couple of months .

There is such an improvement in feel and handling over the original S-line set up . Just wish i upgraded when I got the car instead of waiting this long .

I took some pictures of the car and brightened them to make the gap more visible . The rear spacers have made a great difference and the wheels sit where they should now .

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audismart · Apr 15, 2016

I`m hoping I get the same sort of drop when I get my Eibach pro springs on, I have 16mm spacers on.
Yours are defiantly Eibach pro kit?

Arjuanamo · Apr 15, 2016

audismart said:
View attachment 88023

I`m hoping I get the same sort of drop when I get my Eibach pro springs on, I have 16mm spacers on.
Yours are defiantly Eibach pro kit?

The spacers look good ! I was thinking about getting them for the front too but need to save some money for the mean time .

I am certain they are the correct Eibach Springs for my car as elite direct made me measure my axle load and checked but current suspension before ordering them in . I also saw the Bilstein box and Black Springs when I dropped it off before installation .

It has definitely settled a bit over the last couple of days and I think I will stay with the Pro kit instead of exchanging them for the Sportline kit . Ideally I'd want a height between the Pro-line & Sportline but am worried it won't look OEM if I go for the sportline .

I'm really impressed with the change in ride comfort and handling though . Only wish I upgraded a few years ago . Was always worried about my warranty being invalidated if I do certain performance mods like remaps & Suspension .

Arjuanamo · Apr 15, 2016

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audismart · Apr 15, 2016

Arjuanamo said:
The spacers look good ! I was thinking about getting them for the front too but need to save some money for the mean time .

I am certain they are the correct Eibach Springs for my car as elite direct made me measure my axle load and checked but current suspension before ordering them in . I also saw the Bilstein box and Black Springs when I dropped it off before installation .

It has definitely settled a bit over the last couple of days and I think I will stay with the Pro kit instead of exchanging them for the Sportline kit . Ideally I'd want a height between the Pro-line & Sportline but am worried it won't look OEM if I go for the sportline .

I'm really impressed with the change in ride comfort and handling though . Only wish I upgraded a few years ago . Was always worried about my warranty being invalidated if I do certain performance mods like remaps & Suspension .

Pop on the forge motorsport website for spacers, I got 11mm for the front for £30 and if you want 10% off? Ill give you my email address to quote with a referral voucher.
Wheel Spacers |

Arjuanamo · Apr 16, 2016

audismart said:
Pop on the forge motorsport website for spacers, I got 11mm for the front for £30 and if you want 10% off? Ill give you my email address to quote with a referral voucher.
Wheel Spacers |

I currently have H&R's on the rear and was wondering if these forgesport ones would be as safe as my rear ones ?

ignore the RNSE pictures ; i meant to post them in another thread and cant figure out how to delete my post

Advice on S-line Suspension upgrade needed

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