A3 1.8T Suspension Options

[Timbo]

Hi All,

I've been thinking about changing the springs & dampers on my A3 1.8T, it's done 67K miles so I figure the dampers must be a bit tired by now and I'd like to tighten up the handling a bit. Searching back through the forum it seems the concensus is largely Koni adjustables with Eibach or H&R springs. I've had a quote for an Audi specialist to supply and fit these for £750.

However, I was surfing the Internet the other day when I happened across these: Koni Sport Adjustable Suspension Kit.

So my questions are:

i) Are these the same as have been mentioned before on the forum? They seem very cheap. If they are the same dampers I'm tempted to get some by mail-order and get a local mechanic to fit them.

If I go ahead and order them,

ii) How much money/time should I budget for fitting? Is it even worth considering fitting them myself? I'm not a complete workshop novice but can't afford to **** it up if I have a go myself as I need the car for daily transport.

And finally:

iii) Do the Eibach ARBs make enough difference to justify the cost, on top of decent springs & dampers?

The background to all this is I haven't had the car that long, and I had a mk6 Escort RS2000 before which had much sharper "classic front-drive hot hatch" handling. So I'm having some difficulty adjusting to the softer handling of the Audi (although I am adjusting my driving style - slowly)!

Any advice greatfully received. I'm planning on keeping the original 16" wheels for the time being if that makes any difference.

Cheers!

 

[Timbo]

Cheers for the responses chaps.

I'm interested in the whole 17's thing - I had assumed that wheel/tyre combos wouldn't make much difference because the rolling radius/width isn't that much different. Would you say changing the wheels would be a better starting point in the quest for better handling?

 

[Gambba]

[ QUOTE ]
Cheers for the responses chaps.

I'm interested in the whole 17's thing - I had assumed that wheel/tyre combos wouldn't make much difference because the rolling radius/width isn't that much different. Would you say changing the wheels would be a better starting point in the quest for better handling?

[/ QUOTE ]

Basically as Slugs said, but the biggest benefit is that the lower profile gives less roll on the tyre and therefore you maintain higher levels of grip in the corner...so faster cornering. Corners which once had the tyres screaming made no such whimpering when the 17's were fitted. In addition to this the tyres are wider as standard and again give higher levels of contact for cornering.

my route was to change the springs to start with for look and handling and then later add the 17's.

If you fit 17's on standard suspension it does look a bit odd, you know a car on stilts sort of thing (not that bad, but not great IMO), so springs were first

 

[imported_Turbopaul]

Can the a3 1.8t be lowered 50mm without catching the driveshafts on the std arb? I know the mk4 golf 1.8t suffers from this problem so would assume the a3 is the same?

 

[Khufu]

I would reakon 50mm is too low. I believe 25-35mm is the best bet. Making the car too low will actually upset the handling.