New suspension for my avant quattro - opinions please...

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jbcalvin

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OK folks,

Looking for some advice on this one. My 1.9 TDI Quattro avant needs new springs and shocks, still on the originals and they are shot, catching speed bumps in the street more regularly…… :-(

So, most of the arms have been replaced in the last 2 years, as well as all the wheel bearings and an RS4 RARB was one of the first mods I did. The car is my main one and is used for annual trips snowboarding, Le Mans and all my triathlon races, so it does get loaded up regularly. I also run the original 16" wheels in the winter tyres at this time of year, but have RS6 18's for the summer.

I do not want to lower the car, it is already on sport suspension and when I go to Le Mans, it is packed to the gunnels inside, plus has roof bars and box up top. The original suggestion was to go for Bilstein shocks and Eibach springs, standard spec. however, I am throwing this open to the Forum for suggestions as unsure which kit to go for, or whether I should mix and match.

Do not suggest coliovers, as I am not going down this route, I may however be tempted to fit B5 perches to the front if it widely regarded as a good choice…..

Let the comments begin…….. :)
 
i can thoroughly reccomend koni adjustable
the kit for your car may come with slightly shorter springs reducing the ride height but you do allways have the option of fitting
the normal springs
if you buy koni kit from certain outlets its guaranteed for life

took me 3 go,s to get the ride and feel i wanted from the kit but i must say its performed superb
 
Eibach Prokit with Bilstein B4 or Sachs Super Touring oe shocks.

Has the speed bumps been catching lately or all year ?
 
It has always caught with the car loaded (our speedhumps are particularly aggressive), recently it has started doing it with less weight…. plus after 11 years and 130k miles, it's probably due a change

dualmono21, don't see the point in buying a koni kit and then have to add normal springs… plus would rather have something non adjustable as I just want to bolt it on and forget...
 
Watching with interest and also confirming the aggressive nature of jb's speedbumps!
 
Bilstein B4 shocks and genuine Audi sport springs. You'll probably need the new foam bump stops for the dampers as the original ones may be perished. Top mounts should be fine. I changed them on my B5 and frankly they were as good as new.

Replace ARB rubber bushes front and rear and stabilising drop links at the front if not already done.
 
anyone else? surely other people have done this already…..?
 
Just to be contrary, some OEM Sport shocks and Eibach springs would be hard to beat I reckon.
 
no one else on this? or am I just ordering Bilsteins and Eibachs…...
 
I have a set of sport shocks and springs in the garage.
I removed them when I fitted coilovers @ 110,000.
 
Eibach springs and sports shocks for me, had enough drives in cheap tat and it does not do it for me, unless you get a quality spring kit and matched shocks...
 
Alex, want new for a reason, yours have only done 20k less than what I have already….

Adamss24, Is that Eibach springs and standard Audi sport shocks, or the Bilstein Sport ones?
 
I have a set of Eibach springs spare... Never got to fit it as the car sat for too long and slowly lost interest. I also have a pair of decent nick shocks as well as used S line springs...
 
Adamss…. are those Eibach springs for a 1.9 TDI Quattro Avant? If so how much?

Damian… do you have a price for those?
 
Hi guys, I've not made many posts on this forum but have been actively reading and getting many helpful advises and experiences, I brought my a4 2.5 tdi avant DG '04 (fwd) Auto in Nov '11 and it came with almost every option available. It's been a pleasure to own and now sitting at 190K and coming up to a 3rd cambelt change - I can happily say the engine still ticks over not missing a heart beat and the auto gearbox touch wood has not caused any issues - I've had a few things replace considering its age, lemforder lower arms, new rad, oil sump, disc/pads, etc..but now my attention needs to be on the suspension as it has come to a point where everyday driving is bone shatteringly painful. I want to try and keep this car close to stock as possible and reading this topic people are recommending Bilstein B4 shocks and audi springs, does anyone know which audi part no. is required for my car?

The Rs4 b5 ARB is a good mod and probably try and get this installed at the same time.

Thanks
Minh.
 
Last edited:
OK update on this, after doing quite a bit of research it looks like I am going for the following options…..

Bilstein B6 shocks front and rear.
Standard Audi sport springs (as much as I like the Eibach option, these will again lower the car further which I don't want to do)
B5 spring perches
All new bushes and also replacing engine and snub mounts….
 
Go for audi sports shocks, they last longer than the bilstein shocks and are much more comfortable as well. as instructed above, i would go for eibach pro kit and heavy duty sports suspension, however it's your money and your car in the end... Eibach springs will still go over speed bumps without having to stop at every speed bump... Do it once, do it right !
 
Adamss24,

I was under the impression from Bilsteins website that the B4 shock is what Audi fit as OEM, however the B6 is more robust being a mono tube unit, so should last longer and have better damping, so would be confused if they lasted less time than the B4 unit?

With regards to the springs, I have OEM sport suspension on the car just now, and really don't want to be dropping it another 30mm. The car catches on the speed bumps in my street with no load in it just now, plus I go snowboarding in the winter as well which causes further problems if the car is dropped. If Eibach did an uprated spring with no drop I'd be all over it like a rash….
 
Eibach isn't 30mm lower than sport/sline :lmfao: it's 30mm lower than SE aka around 10mm on yours. Can't really comment on shocks but if you're starting 20mm down I would imagine they're not as necessary, might help with your speed bump worries if you go aftermarket though.
 
I had the Weitec Shocks with Eibach springs on my Lupo GTI and it handled beautifully without a harsh ride too.
 
jbcalvin said:
Adamss24,

I was under the impression from Bilsteins website that the B4 shock is what Audi fit as OEM, however the B6 is more robust being a mono tube unit, so should last longer and have better damping, so would be confused if they lasted less time than the B4 unit?

With regards to the springs, I have OEM sport suspension on the car just now, and really don't want to be dropping it another 30mm. The car catches on the speed bumps in my street with no load in it just now, plus I go snowboarding in the winter as well which causes further problems if the car is dropped. If Eibach did an uprated spring with no drop I'd be all over it like a rash….
Click to expand...
To be honest audi fitted Sachs or Boge shock absorbers from factory, (exception is the S4/rs models which came indeed with Bilstein shocks) to this day i did not come across anything aftermarket that's better and longlasting than factory fitted parts and does not cost twice as much ! If it's standard Sports ride you after then just using new shocks with your existing springs will do great- Euro car parts does Sachs Heavy duty touring shocks, they are cheap, work well and last long too...they were fitted from factory on some models as well !
 
DieselJake, is that a definite that the Eibach sport line kit only drops it 10mm?

If so then I may go for a matched set of Bilsteins and Eibachs…
Also need to look into costs of Audi heavy duty parts from TPS….

and there was me thinking I had a plan put together….
 
I have gone OEM sports shocks with Prosport -30 springs, will let you know what they are like after Saturday when i put em on !!
 
ruffrida, if that is a 30mm drop on top of already having sport suspension on the car, it is a no go from me for the reasons already stated about not dropping it…… your signature doesn't say whether you have a SE/Sport model…..
 
jbcalvin said:
DieselJake, is that a definite that the Eibach sport line kit only drops it 10mm?

If so then I may go for a matched set of Bilsteins and Eibachs…
Also need to look into costs of Audi heavy duty parts from TPS….

and there was me thinking I had a plan put together….
Click to expand...

Not going to say it's a definite 10 as it could be a mm or two one way or the other, but yeah.
 
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