For those who know about lowering springs

[06B7]

i drive 06 a4 2.0t sline I just want to lower my car around 1 to 1.5 inch so I kind of don't want to spend 800 for coilovers. I did already search but just found a lot of people selling springs. I just got few questions to you guys. Someone told me that if i put springs is going hurt my stock shocks and is going make noise is that true or not. Would the springs make the car less comfortable than it is now on sline suspension or should i just stick with coilovers and which brand springs would you guys recommend.

[AudiTFSI3o3]

like all have said throughout many of these threads, skip the springs completely and get coilovers. If you're gonna do it, do it right. why do I say that? If you buy springs for oh, idk around $200 or so, you'll still be paying labor just to put those on. Might as well do that for coil overs. That plus OEM shocks could result in bouncier ride, noises, as well as shortening the life of your OEM shocks.

[jeffrey146]

If you really want to do just springs i would probably get H&R. However, as stated above coil overs are the way to go. Your our a chunk of money on labor one way or another so you might as well save and do it right.

[NorcalPB]

Have you seen the most recent Lexus commercial with the cars going up individual elevators to the roof? They say "You're either luxury or you're not" and the BMW gets eliminated from the other 3 cars. I believe they say this due to the stiff rubber components in the control arms/shock mounts/rear spring mounts that give BMWs great handling characteristics. This also causes a decrease in ride quality. Audis typically have softer rubber components and therefore focus on better ride quality and more overall control in the snow. By adding coilovers you are addressing the suspension, but the other components will cost you a pretty penny to get the most out of your $1k+ suspension.

If I had a BMW, I would totally get coilovers because they're practically begging for it and the ride quality isn't that nice to begin with.

If it's a super sporty ride you seek, then go for coilovers but just remember there are nice coilovers, and then there are bouncy coilovers that rust in the snow. You gotta pay to playy and if you're having a shop install the suspension for you I doubt you'll ever take off the wheels yourself to adjust the height, and if you're not going to the track you might have well saved money with a spring/shock combo.

BTW aftermarket springs work fine with s-line struts =), and added wear on the struts + "noises" are merely speculations with no foundation.

[oc-drop]

I paid $130 for my H&R springs and $150 to install. I can't afford another $1000+ for "proper" coileovers. so what.


they performed well on my stock s-line shocks/struts with NO noise... I am at 150k mi now and looking to replace the shocks as they feel a tad too soft now, after having the springs on about 100k mi on my 2006.


i think the "rule of thumb" to savings for coilovers is if you were buying a spring/shock combo and spending upwards of $800 on it... then yeah maybe it would be best to get the $1200 coilovers by saving up.

but if it comes down to just swapping some springs on, fuck it. my car handled fine and aggressively through mulholland's canyons.


only complain is the front sits 1/4" higher than the rear with h&r springs and s-line shocks. i am going to fix this with the "lowering cups" that people talk about. (B5 spring perch)

[mr shickadance]

like all have said throughout many of these threads, skip the springs completely and get coilovers. If you're gonna do it, do it right. why do I say that? If you buy springs for oh, idk around $200 or so, you'll still be paying labor just to put those on. Might as well do that for coil overs. That plus OEM shocks could result in bouncier ride, noises, as well as shortening the life of your OEM shocks.

i respectfully disagree, i think the initial omggottahavesomecoilsorelse feeling grabbed me by the penis tip and i ended up getting a set of coils, arguably the cheapest coils, but for me, they rode nice, and throughout my time with the car they were great so nuts to them.

getting back to my point is that i originally bit the bullet for coils, and if i had to do it all over again, i would have never done it. granted my needs might be different then yours, but i never did, nor had the intentions of slamming my car to the ground, i wanted, and i got, a nice drop that i felt complimented the car very nicely.

a drop that i could have gotten with a set of springs and saved some money.

see, if you are gonna spend 300 on springs, then 500 on labor, your end result is the total cost of the st's....which by AZ standards, are the cheapest, acceptable coils you can put on your car. so you end up saving 500 dollars IF.....a modest drop is the way to go.

i also, and i think i might be a miniority in this case, but i never adjusted my height once, outside of the initial installation. so again, if you want a moderate drop and you don't really plan on adjusting the height or tracking your car, i would go springs all day.


as for the ride? the ride will not be bad, it will certainly be a bit stiffer.....A BIT stiffer, but nothing that makes you want to drive off of a cliff. and yes, going on lowering springs WILL put an added level of stress onto your struts and may cause premature wear.....but search around, you can;t find nothing to really back that up besides "well i knew a guy who knew a girl who blew a dude who stole a baby who's father had a car lowered on springs and it didn't end well.....or something like that


cliff notes: go springs

[VroomVroom]

...and $150 to install....

Wow...good for you. I can't find anyone in my area who will install the B5 lowering caps up front for under $250.

[NorcalPB]

I got a quote for KW STs for $715 shipped and that still wasn't cheap enough. I spent $585 shipped on my Tein/Bilstein combo and am happy I did the research to make this decision.

[E.Anderson]

Springs are 100% the right decision for me. I definitely dont want to be under my car raising and lowering for winter. It's not like you just crawl under the car and twist the nut either, they are a PAIN IN THE ASS to spin and if you drive in the winter and want to lower it for summer.....good luck, you will be dedicating 2 hours to that one.

I have H&R, i love the drop, just wish the spring rate was a little softer.

[Becker]

Yeah, I am kinda in the same situation as you 06B7. I am going to try the Vogtland Junior Cup Kit, it lowers about 1.4" on the FWD and I think it is a bit more on the quattro. I found the kit for a bit above the 500 bucks, which I would consider a decent deal for both shocks and springs compared to all the other combos out, it might not have the same adjustment options as some of the other shock/spring combos, but again as Shickadance wrote, it depends on your needs.

[jsandor91]

im having my tein s tech springs which i got for $170 + b5 caps $100 shipped on genuine audi parts installed by a friend as we speak. ill post up pictures when its done
its a gread sub $300 dollar setup for a moderate drop.
when my shocks wear out ill probably pick up some used s-line shocks

[NorcalPB]

im having my tein s tech springs which i got for $170 + b5 caps $100 shipped on genuine audi parts installed by a friend as we speak. ill post up pictures when its done
its a gread sub $300 dollar setup for a moderate drop.
when my shocks wear out ill probably pick up some used s-line shocks

Congrats dude I'm on the same setup right now! The fronts go so low doe

[A4_Ti]

nothing to really back that up besides "well i knew a guy who knew a girl who blew a dude who stole a baby who's father had a car lowered on springs and it didn't end well.....or something like that"

Epic.

[VroomVroom]

^ How in the hell did I miss that earlier? Outstanding. Louder than a golf clap.

[jsandor91]

Epic.

x2

@norcalpb how happy are you with your setup? you on s-line shocks?

@06b7 nice to see another central jersey b7! im in columbus which is pretty close to you.

[06B7]

I found some cheap coilvers anyone knows about them http://store.blackforestindustries.com/jomb6quco.html

[jsandor91]

a few people have used those. some will say there great for the money and others will say you get what you pay for. depends on who you ask.

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...ttro-Coilovers

[06B7]

Im like 30 min away from Columbus

x2
@06b7 nice to see another central jersey b7! im in columbus which is pretty close to you.

[doublezero30]

BTW aftermarket springs work fine with s-line struts =), and added wear on the struts + "noises" are merely speculations with no foundation.

wow you are so far off its unbelievable. yes, sline shocks will work "better" that non-sline would...however my vogtland shocks/struts were a good amount shorter than the sline shocks (maybe about an inch or so). clearly noone even half knowledgable will listen to your advice after the second part of the quoted sentence. added wear absolutely, positively, 100% WILL happen if you pair lowering springs to shocks that are not meant to be used with them. the car is lower, meaning the longer shocks will be compressed partially even BEFORE you hit a bump. this means the shocks will endure more wear and even sometimes bottom out...which i shouldnt have to tell you would cause more wear. im really curious how you could even say its "merely speculation with no foundation". B7 members of this forum leave me dumbfounded more often than not.

Springs are 100% the right decision for me. I definitely dont want to be under my car raising and lowering for winter. It's not like you just crawl under the car and twist the nut either, they are a PAIN IN THE ASS to spin and if you drive in the winter and want to lower it for summer.....good luck, you will be dedicating 2 hours to that one.

2 hours is a little excessive. i removed, adjusted, and re-installed my front coilovers in 45 minutes last weekend. its really pretty god damn easy to do if you know what youre doing. rear is even easier...takes maybe 30 minutes(dont even need to remove the rear to adjust just take wheel off).

[A4_Ti]

Outstanding. Louder than a golf clap.

Lool also Epic.

[9Hooker]

it's weird how things repeat themselves every 3-4 months.

1) do a search.
2) you have an S-line, right. leave the springs alone and get Koni Yellow shocks.
3) if you want low (sounds like you do), and are cheap (sounds like you are), just take a blowtorch to your stock springs.

d) yes I'm bitter at all the late teens, early twentysomethings that just got a decent car and wanna rice it up with testpipes and springs without realizing you are giving ME a bad name.

5) enjoy a video of me, by me.

f) coil-overs are a misnomer. i assume you are talking about springs with adjustable perches.

[617 Bones]

I paid $130 for my H&R springs and $150 to install. only complain is the front sits 1/4" higher than the rear with h&r springs and s-line shocks. i am going to fix this with the "lowering cups" that people talk about. (B5 spring perch)

oc-drop - you have a side view shot of your ride on the H&R's and s-line shocks? I am on oem sport suspension on my 06 s-line with the B5 caps and am wondering how it would look with some H&R springs!

[jsandor91]

Im like 30 min away from Columbus

oh really are you more north of trenton?
cause im like 15 min away from trenton.

[06B7]

Im 10 min from trenton

oh really are you more north of trenton?
cause im like 15 min away from trenton.

[coletrain]

Theres already a ton of threads on this ... buttt buying a cheap pair of coil overs is like buying a 2002 745i for $11,000. And you said you want a drop of 1.5 so there you go.. get springs. also, yes you should get a set of Eibach struts to go along just because eventually youll do it anyways.

[mr shickadance]

wow you are so far off its unbelievable. yes, sline shocks will work "better" that non-sline would...however my vogtland shocks/struts were a good amount shorter than the sline shocks (maybe about an inch or so). clearly noone even half knowledgable will listen to your advice after the second part of the quoted sentence. added wear absolutely, positively, 100% WILL happen if you pair lowering springs to shocks that are not meant to be used with them. the car is lower, meaning the longer shocks will be compressed partially even BEFORE you hit a bump. this means the shocks will endure more wear and even sometimes bottom out...which i shouldnt have to tell you would cause more wear. im really curious how you could even say its "merely speculation with no foundation". B7 members of this forum leave me dumbfounded more often than not.

this is the omg stuff i was talking about, yes, clearly the strut gets more stress and in turn, gets more wear, no one is against you on that front, what i am saying is that people think springs and automatically think rice and easy way out (cough9hooker) when truth be told, 1) it's not ricer, ricer would be adding a body kit to make your car seem lower than it is and 2) its not going to to completely ruin your suspension and cause your struts to spontaneously explode and kill your grandma....its just going to put a little added stress on the struts....say the struts have a shelf life of 50K miles....springs might turn that 50 into a 40...



2 hours is a little excessive. i removed, adjusted, and re-installed my front coilovers in 45 minutes last weekend. its really pretty god damn easy to do if you know what youre doing. rear is even easier...takes maybe 30 minutes(dont even need to remove the rear to adjust just take wheel off).

you sir, are better with a wrench than most

because i typed everything above in the quote i need to say something down here

[doublezero30]

^lol.

well, agree to disagree. theres no way to tell how long you OEM shocks are going to last when adding lowering springs to them. it could turn that 50k into a 40k, or it could turn that 50k into 5k. theres litterally no way to tell. the shocks bottoming out certainly will make ride more harsh. and since it sounds like this guy is not doing the work himself, it would be very wise of him to just save the money and either get a shock/spring combo OR coilovers upfront and not pay $300+ for installation twice. (i would recommend coilovers because ultimately they do handle better and with adjustability its great to have the option if you need it).

since i didnt see anyone else post this (didnt look hard though) I should mention to the OP however, you are on s-line suspension...just because springs say they lower the car 1.5inches, this is from BASE MODEL ride hieght. i believe s-line suspension is about 1/2inch lower than base model. so those springs would lower your car about 1inch.

[9Hooker]

the car is lower, meaning the longer shocks will be compressed partially even BEFORE you hit a bump. this means the shocks will endure more wear and even sometimes bottom out...

this is not what happens. your stock shocks are not valved properly for the higher spring rates that lowering springs provide. your comment on hitting the stops is accurate, which is why I advocate keeping the bump stops and cutting them down a bit.

[snopyro]

Will b5 caps mount onto Koni yellows? I read that they don't work with Koni FSDs.

[mr shickadance]

^lol.

well, agree to disagree. theres no way to tell how long you OEM shocks are going to last when adding lowering springs to them. it could turn that 50k into a 40k, or it could turn that 50k into 5k. theres litterally no way to tell. the shocks bottoming out certainly will make ride more harsh. and since it sounds like this guy is not doing the work himself, it would be very wise of him to just save the money and either get a shock/spring combo OR coilovers upfront and not pay $300+ for installation twice. (i would recommend coilovers because ultimately they do handle better and with adjustability its great to have the option if you need it).

since i didnt see anyone else post this (didnt look hard though) I should mention to the OP however, you are on s-line suspension...just because springs say they lower the car 1.5inches, this is from BASE MODEL ride hieght. i believe s-line suspension is about 1/2inch lower than base model. so those springs would lower your car about 1inch.

heres the thing, and i am not trying to be ass, but i can see how what i'm about to say could be taken that way.....prove me wrong....show me an example where someone put springs on their b7 and blew their struts out. it's not there, and there's a reason for it, eibach, and H&R and who ever makes springs who not make a part that self destructs someone's suspension because they wouldn't really have much of a business.

the springs lower the car modestly, the added stress is really not that much, but show me wrong, i have honestly have never heard a story of a blown out strut that has been backed up


this is also coming from someone who has witness a regularly auto-x'd s2000 on springs climb well into the 50k+ miles with a set of springs and ride beautifully

[NorcalPB]

wow you are so far off its unbelievable. yes, sline shocks will work "better" that non-sline would...however my vogtland shocks/struts were a good amount shorter than the sline shocks (maybe about an inch or so). clearly noone even half knowledgable will listen to your advice after the second part of the quoted sentence. added wear absolutely, positively, 100% WILL happen if you pair lowering springs to shocks that are not meant to be used with them. the car is lower, meaning the longer shocks will be compressed partially even BEFORE you hit a bump. this means the shocks will endure more wear and even sometimes bottom out...which i shouldnt have to tell you would cause more wear. im really curious how you could even say its "merely speculation with no foundation". B7 members of this forum leave me dumbfounded more often than not.

Yikes man chill out. I was more referring to the squeaks with aftermarket springs. Obviously there will be slightly more stress on the shocks but nothing to worry about, this is just like the rear end links not needing to be upgraded with a bigger (RS4) sway bar...but I won't say they don't cause more stress I don't need you blowing up again.

Hopefully my misinformation won't taint the millions of springs threads here, not like people search anyways.

[NorcalPB]

x2

@norcalpb how happy are you with your setup? you on s-line shocks?

@06b7 nice to see another central jersey b7! im in columbus which is pretty close to you.

I love this setup I've been rocking it for 1.5 years now but I just got some Bilsteins in the mail that are about to go in. The Teins/b5caps on Sline shocks lowered 1.7" in the front and 1" in the back which gave it .5" of rake but we'll see where these new shocks sit the car.

[jsandor91]

so my friend was only able to get the b5 caps and the fronts on so it looks a little goofy now but. hopefully the back will get dropped soon too

[mr shickadance]

heard the rear's are a total bitch to take out

[jsandor91]

yea. might have to drop the subframe on friday to get the back's in. my friend did it when he had a b7 so i'm hoping for the best

[mr shickadance]

be careful, do some research you can end up shifting the subfram to the left or right by an inch or so....make markings

[doublezero30]

heres the thing, and i am not trying to be ass, but i can see how what i'm about to say could be taken that way.....prove me wrong....show me an example where someone put springs on their b7 and blew their struts out. it's not there, and there's a reason for it, eibach, and H&R and who ever makes springs who not make a part that self destructs someone's suspension because they wouldn't really have much of a business.

the springs lower the car modestly, the added stress is really not that much, but show me wrong, i have honestly have never heard a story of a blown out strut that has been backed up


this is also coming from someone who has witness a regularly auto-x'd s2000 on springs climb well into the 50k+ miles with a set of springs and ride beautifully

b7 specifically, no i havnt heard of that because i havnt had a b7 very long(less than a year). Ive heard of numerous b6's, b5's, vw's, nissans, and honda's that this has happened to. its just common knowledge that youre taking a risk by not putting in shocks that are meant to be paired with lowering springs. hey if its a risk he wants to take, let him. maybe he will get lucky and his shocks wont blow. we are just trying to give him or anyone else reading this thread and understanding that he may end up having to spend more money down the line. i learned the hard way modding my B6, buy nice or buy twice. My B7 has been, and will be modded with a completely different mindset so i dont waste money for no reason. if i cant afford to do it right, i need to wait until i can or ill end up paying in the long run.

heard the rear's are a total bitch to take out

"heard". exactly. you dont know. this has been my point in every thread, every time ive quoted/replied/corrected you. why comment and give mis-information about things you dont know about? and like you said above, im not trying to be a dick either...but i seriously just dont get it?

rears are 10x easier than the front as long as your camber bolts arnt frozen. each side has 3 bolts that holds the shock in place, one bolt ontop of the shock that holds the mount to the shock. the springs are taken out after the shock by loosening the 2 subframe bolts, then removing the camber bolt(or vise versa). the whole rear control arm will lower, and the spring can easily be taken out. i shouldnt have to mention, but i will...that youll want spring compressors on the springs for safety reasons. even if the camber bolts are frozen its still much easier than the front, just have to push(bounce) on the hub and the spring will come out.

[mr shickadance]

heard was a poor word choice, i should have said " i have read the DIY and it says the rear springs are a bitch to take out" my apologies....why you are jumping down my throat is beyond me, it's not misinformation....so because i never installed a set of a springs immediatly disqualifies what i have to say? bullshit




and btw, i love you how you "heard" about b6's b5's VW's, honda's, and nissans having blown struts on lowering springs, but when i "heard" it was a bitch to install it means i don;t know anything about the subject


i am not trying to be a dick about this, but show me some proof about this, link me to threads, if i am misinformed, educate me. but from my experience, and knowing people personally with springs, they have never had a single problem with excess wear on their springs.

[jsandor91]

be careful, do some research you can end up shifting the subfram to the left or right by an inch or so....make markings

were gonna try to do it without messing with the subframe.

[doublezero30]

heard was a poor word choice, i should have said " i have read the DIY and it says the rear springs are a bitch to take out" my apologies....why you are jumping down my throat is beyond me, it's not misinformation....so because i never installed a set of a springs immediatly disqualifies what i have to say? bullshit




and btw, i love you how you "heard" about b6's b5's VW's, honda's, and nissans having blown struts on lowering springs, but when i "heard" it was a bitch to install it means i don;t know anything about the subject


i am not trying to be a dick about this, but show me some proof about this, link me to threads, if i am misinformed, educate me. but from my experience, and knowing people personally with springs, they have never had a single problem with excess wear on their springs.

yes it does disqualify you. just because you read about it on the internet does not make you knowledgable. its like me talking about carpentry and saying "yea you can build a house without using braces to support the frame." technically, sure you MIGHT beable, you MIGHT not run into issues, but no its deffinatly not a good idea and no i dont have a fucking clue what im talking about because i have no experience building houses. just like you have no experience working on these cars(or any from what i can tell).

and i refuse to spend hours searching threads on this forum and the nissan forum i was on (about 6 years ago) just to give you proof. like i said, this is all common automotive knowledge. i know people who have done springs and been fine just like you said, however ive read about and personally known more people/cars doing this and then needing shocks shortly after. my point throughout this "debate" that you seem to be missing somewhere is that it is NOT the correct thing to do and it WILL cause extra wear and there is a good change that you will need to replace the shocks. you seem to just argue for the sake of arguement. you have basically admitted not knowing what youre talking about yet still continue to try to argue.