H&R vs BC Racing vs other brand coilovers

**Mr.Tan** · 05-08-2017 01:52 PM

Looking for opinions on coilovers for my car. I recently installed new wheels and tires over the weekend which made me realize how much I need to lower the car (i had factory 18's for the life of the car and just moved up to a 19" wheel).

I'm familiar with most brands as i've been in the VW car scene for many years and have had different setups on my GTI, however i'm totally unfamiliar with how the B8 reacts to different setups and how they ride on these cars/adjustment.

I'm not trying to spend a ton of money, however i don't want to go too cheap. This lead me to H&R and also BC racing---which i'm not familiar with at all. Does anyone have these on their car? If so, how is the ride? I really just want to clear up the gap that I have and maintain a semi decent ride for every day use.... i'm aware it will get a little more stiff... but i dont want something bone jarring. I'm not interested in just springs, i would like the adjustability.

TIA

pic of said car

**DannyDeez** · 05-08-2017 02:00 PM

I ran ST coilovers on my S5 and loved them. Very comfortable and cleaned up the wheel gap. Is there a reason why you aren't considering them?

**Mr.Tan** · 05-08-2017 02:02 PM

Originally Posted by DannyDeez

I ran ST coilovers on my S5 and loved them. Very comfortable and cleaned up the wheel gap. Is there a reason why you aren't considering them?

i've heard of people complaining about the rear sagging(?)

**DannyDeez** · 05-08-2017 02:03 PM

I've seen posts on that as well. I personally had no problem with it.

**youloze** · 05-08-2017 05:24 PM

Originally Posted by DannyDeez

I've seen posts on that as well. I personally had no problem with it.

I've had ST Coilovers on a B7 A4, B8 A5 and B8.5 S5. I never had issues with sagging but in my opinion they are severely under dampened for the weight of the car and can tend to be a bit bouncy at times. For the money I think they are a good coilover but I'd definitely spend the extra money on H&R coilovers instead.

And BC coilovers started off as a popular budget coilover for Japanese cars (big with the Subaru crowd back when I had one) and expanded to Euro cars. I don't have any experience with them but have heard a lot of people that were happy with them. They seem to have pretty good build quality.

**Johnnycash** · 05-08-2017 05:39 PM

Bilstein pro-kit gets very good reviews but non-adjustable.

I am leery of the budget cost setups, and would only go full kwv1+ or bilstein equivalent for adjust-ability...

**DannyDeez** · 05-08-2017 06:03 PM

Originally Posted by youloze

I've had ST Coilovers on a B7 A4, B8 A5 and B8.5 S5. I never had issues with sagging but in my opinion they are severely under dampened for the weight of the car and can tend to be a bit bouncy at times. For the money I think they are a good coilover but I'd definitely spend the extra money on H&R coilovers instead.

And BC coilovers started off as a popular budget coilover for Japanese cars (big with the Subaru crowd back when I had one) and expanded to Euro cars. I don't have any experience with them but have heard a lot of people that were happy with them. They seem to have pretty good build quality.

I've only run the ST's on my B8.5 S5. I never had them feel bouncy. I'm picky with ride quality and they were honestly great. I felt they were more comfortable than the factory suspension for regular driving.

**whts4** · 05-08-2017 06:30 PM

Originally Posted by Mr.Tan

Looking for opinions on coilovers for my car. I recently installed new wheels and tires over the weekend which made me realize how much I need to lower the car (i had factory 18's for the life of the car and just moved up to a 19" wheel).

I'm familiar with most brands as i've been in the VW car scene for many years and have had different setups on my GTI, however i'm totally unfamiliar with how the B8 reacts to different setups and how they ride on these cars/adjustment.

I'm not trying to spend a ton of money, however i don't want to go too cheap. This lead me to H&R and also BC racing---which i'm not familiar with at all. Does anyone have these on their car? If so, how is the ride? I really just want to clear up the gap that I have and maintain a semi decent ride for every day use.... i'm aware it will get a little more stiff... but i dont want something bone jarring. I'm not interested in just springs, i would like the adjustability.

TIA

pic of said car

Why coil-overs? Unless you plan on raising and lowering the car why not get a set of H&R OE springs? Nice drop (approx 1.2"), inexpensive, can install DYI, will hold up to PA winters (coil-overs tend to dislike northern winters - snow, salt, road crud). They are actually a very reasonable way to go and don't require any special care. If you want new struts too, there are several to choose from.

**neubs** · 05-08-2017 06:32 PM

I'd also consider corrosion-resistant coilovers (stainless). I don't think ST coils are stainless, which isn't a problem for some.

**Game** · 05-08-2017 06:34 PM

H&R are very popular here. Can't say I've read too many reviews here from the BC coilovers. As mentioned above, they're popular with the JDM crowd.

I personally have KW V2 and love them.

**08ISF** · 05-08-2017 06:39 PM

I'm not sure about the S4 but I had BC Extreme Lows on my STI and Regular BR's with Swift Springs on my ISF. I would absolutely recommend getting the Swift Spring upgrade on BC's. It's just rides so much nicer. I had 12k/10k BC springs on the STI and eventually went 18k/16k Swifts and they rode smoother. Regular BC springs are bouncy. I'd recommend ordering direct from BC. You can get custom spring rates and if you ever blow out a shock the rebuild kit is only $100 per corner. For the price you really can't go wrong with BC. Another company to check out is Broadway Static. They're a few hundred more but also build custom coilovers with Swift Springs.

**ShelbyM3** · 05-09-2017 05:45 AM

I've got H&R coilovers and love them. My buddy with ST coilovers loves my H&Rs, too. Some say they are too low, but not for me. I like it low.

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**B8 S4** · 05-09-2017 08:02 AM

I have H&R coils, the ride gets a bit bouncy but seem to be good for performance. They do go pretty low, last time I looked my springs were rusting though and I live in Texas.

**Mr.Tan** · 05-09-2017 09:58 AM

Originally Posted by whts4

Why coil-overs? Unless you plan on raising and lowering the car why not get a set of H&R OE springs? Nice drop (approx 1.2"), inexpensive, can install DYI, will hold up to PA winters (coil-overs tend to dislike northern winters - snow, salt, road crud). They are actually a very reasonable way to go and don't require any special care. If you want new struts too, there are several to choose from.

i like the adjustability of being able to raise and lower car if needed. I want it to sit nice and low in spring/summer and raise it up for winter when I put winter wheels/tires back on. I have had coilovers on my GTI for the last 8 years with no issues.

Thanks to everyone for the insight. Seems H&R is the way to go between my choices. I do want something corrosion resistant, so ST's are out of the choice for me. I did look into KW V1s, but i'm not sure i want to spend the money on them.

**youloze** · 05-09-2017 10:41 AM

Originally Posted by DannyDeez

I've only run the ST's on my B8.5 S5. I never had them feel bouncy. I'm picky with ride quality and they were honestly great. I felt they were more comfortable than the factory suspension for regular driving.

I guess bouncy wasn't really the correct word. They aren't bouncy like a Honda with cut springs but I feel that they are under dampened so when you hit certain types of bumps the car will rebound excessively and tend to feel floaty or a bit "bouncy" I guess.

At least that has been my experience with three different cars :-( I still feel they are a great value for the money but I'll be looking to switch to H&R shortly.

**MS203** · 05-09-2017 11:15 AM

Originally Posted by B8 S4

I have H&R coils, the ride gets a bit bouncy but seem to be good for performance. They do go pretty low, last time I looked my springs were rusting though and I live in Texas.

+1. I put my H&R coils on in August last summer. They DO go pretty low, but that's up to you. I have about a 1/2 finger gap all around. But you could have them set different to just produce a modest drop to eliminate that ugly wheel gap, then just raise them a bit in the winter. They definitely stiffened up the suspension and the ride quality took a hit (as expected with any set of coilovers). I certainly feel the imperfections of a road a lot more. However the ride quality is certainly still suitable for a daily driver IMO. Nothing bone jarring at all, unless you hit a major pothole haha.