Installing Bilstein PSS10 coilovers.. few questions/need suggestions.

[KAMP]

I will be installing a set of Bilstein PSS10s on my 2016 6MT S4 soon, but I do have a few questions prior to install.

Anyone know where I could find torque specs for the bolts/nuts?
Otherwise, I’ll be using hand tools but believe I have everything needed. Strut separator tool is in the mail, spring compressors I’ll end up renting from Autozone.

I am not sure if getting a set of new pinch bolts/nuts is necessary, or if I could just remove the two upper control arms from the top(?).. would seem easier to me than messing with the ball joint side(?). I am fairly new to Audi and haven’t done this before but seen some videos which seem like that end would also work.

Additionally, would counting a certain amount threads be best way to lower, or is there a specific height recommended from fender down? (Not looking for slam it of coarse) Please note, I am using the stock black optics wheels (“flower wheels”) and looking for a fairly flush drop. That being said, I would like to run some spacers to make everything look ideal and flush.

As far as spacers go, I was told that a set of ECS 8mm front and 12.5mm rear with the drop should work, avoiding any rubbing if height is adjusted accordingly. Does anyone know anything about that specific setup... I’d assume longer bolts from ECS with the spacers would be necessary for a proper install.

Any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Trying to make this process go as smoothly as possibly. Will be doing this without air tools in my garage and without any additional help at hand. Thanks in advance!

[2by2handsofblue]

I will be installing a set of Bilstein PSS10s on my 2016 6MT S4 soon, but I do have a few questions prior to install.

Anyone know where I could find torque specs for the bolts/nuts?
Otherwise, I’ll be using hand tools but believe I have everything needed. Strut separator tool is in the mail, spring compressors I’ll end up renting from Autozone.

I am not sure if getting a set of new pinch bolts/nuts is necessary, or if I could just remove the two upper control arms from the top(?).. would seem easier to me than messing with the ball joint side(?). I am fairly new to Audi and haven’t done this before but seen some videos which seem like that end would also work.

Additionally, would counting a certain amount threads be best way to lower, or is there a specific height recommended from fender down? (Not looking for slam it of coarse) Please note, I am using the stock black optics wheels (“flower wheels”) and looking for a fairly flush drop. That being said, I would like to run some spacers to make everything look ideal and flush.

As far as spacers go, I was told that a set of ECS 8mm front and 12.5mm rear with the drop should work, avoiding any rubbing if height is adjusted accordingly. Does anyone know anything about that specific setup... I’d assume longer bolts from ECS with the spacers would be necessary for a proper install.

Any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Trying to make this process go as smoothly as possibly. Will be doing this without air tools in my garage and without any additional help at hand. Thanks in advance!

Do you have drive select? If so, using aftermarket coilovers render it inoperable?

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[KAMP]

Yes, I have drive select and can control the: engine,
sport diff and steering but don’t have the suspension option to control. That being said, there is no electronic adjustments for the factory suspension. Based on my research, coilovers shouldn't be an issue in this case. Nor will I need the extra electronic components for those that do have it from factory. EDC or whatever it’s called.

[zcspec]

KAMP, be prepared for a fun project. The B8.5 will require for you to drop the rear subframe to be able to remove the rear spring. I've installed countless number of springs/coils and know this chassis well. The main thing, take your time, no need to purchase new torque to yield bolts unless you want to do everything by the book. PM me your email and I will sent you what I have for torque specs. I am also local, Anaheim.

[KAMP]

Thanks for the replay. PM sent with email. Otherwise, I’ve seen the rears done without fully dropping the rear subframe, simply compressing rear springs and using some downward force on the rear assembly. I assume there can be a few easier and tougher ways to go about it.

[VeeDubbinJetta]

KAMP, be prepared for a fun project. The B8.5 will require for you to drop the rear subframe to be able to remove the rear spring. I've installed countless number of springs/coils and know this chassis well. The main thing, take your time, no need to purchase new torque to yield bolts unless you want to do everything by the book. PM me your email and I will sent you what I have for torque specs. I am also local, Anaheim.

No need to drop the rear subframe for rear spring removal. I just installed the B12 pro kit on my car about 2 weeks ago. The key is a large (~4ft) pry bar. You put the tip of it near where the top of the spring is, remove the rear shock, rear sway mount and place the other end of the pry bar on top of the caliper. Pry down and the spring almost falls out. I learned this technique from a friend who used to work for a local Audi performance shop. I think I had each side done start to finish in roughly 30 minutes a side.

[KAMP]

No need to drop the rear subframe for rear spring removal. I just installed the B12 pro kit on my car about 2 weeks ago. The key is a large (~4ft) pry bar. You put the tip of it near where the top of the spring is, remove the rear shock, rear sway mount and place the other end of the pry bar on top of the caliper. Pry down and the spring almost falls out. I learned this technique from a friend who used to work for a local Audi performance shop. I think I had each side done start to finish in roughly 30 minutes a side.

Thanks for the confirmation, seen it done similarly in a video. I also read someone saying that they dropped the subframe, so there are a few ways possible I’m sure.. I’d prefer to avoid that, seems like a tougher job.

[June2374]

The B8.5 will require for you to drop the rear subframe to be able to remove the rear spring.

You don’t need to drop it. It’s a bitch to do but you can do it with a few pry bars

[Jay@JXB]

It’s 2 bolts to drop it. They’re super accessible right in front of you. It’s totally worth undoing 2 bolts to make taking the rear spring out a breeze. Also, you don’t need a spring compressor for the job at all. There’s only a tiny bit of preload on the front struts, and the rear if you drop subframe the springs will just pop right out. The rear spring is nearly impossible to get a compressor on btw. Before I knew the subframe trick, I used a ratchet strap to compress it and just cut the strap afterwards lol.


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[Solarsuplex]

Easiest case is have somebody stand on the hub for a minute while you yank the spring out. additionally you don’t remove the whole sub frame if you go that route. Just loosen the long bolts a bit so it hangs off the body.


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[Jay@JXB]

Easiest case is have somebody stand on the hub for a minute while you yank the spring out. additionally you don’t remove the whole sub frame if you go that route. Just loosen the long bolts a bit so it hangs off the body.


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That’s a good clarification here. Dropping subframe does not mean loosening all 4 bolts and ruining alignment. It just means loosening the rear 2 and letting it sag.


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[KAMP]

That’s guys for the feedback. I haven’t even dug back there, so I’m not sure where the two bolts are but I’ll keep it in mind.

Otherwise, anyone know anything about the ECS flush kit.. 8 mm front and 12 mm rear spacers? I believe the 5mm May be too small for the look that I want. Although, not looking to potentially rub either and I would like to keep my factory wheels on there. Prefer not to make a separate thread about this.

[TEB]

That’s guys for the feedback. I haven’t even dug back there, so I’m not sure where the two bolts are but I’ll keep it in mind.

Otherwise, anyone know anything about the ECS flush kit.. 8 mm front and 12 mm rear spacers? I believe the 5mm May be too small for the look that I want. Although, not looking to potentially rub either and I would like to keep my factory wheels on there. Prefer not to make a separate thread about this.

I went with 10mm spacers front and rear. I have H&R sport springs and don't have any rubbing issues. If you go significantly lower, you might get a rub in front. I didn't want to stagger the spacers and have different length lug bolts front to back.
Picture:

[KAMP]

Looks good.. are the wheels ET43? I’d assume that the 8mm fronts would works just fine for me. I guess everything should work properly if the car isn't set too low of coarse. Anyone else use the coilovers or same flush kit as I’m looking into using?

[Solarsuplex]

If you look through the wheel threads there are a ton of aftermarket wheels exclusively sold in 19x9.5 et 35. The offset you'll end up with those spacers on stock wheels is fairly similar however the less aggressive width means you'll have more clearance. Those spacers will be fine likely regardless of height. You may need to roll your fenders if you are having rubbing issues but if that is something you are not comfortable with you can just not lower the car that much.

In regards to the rear subframe. once you are under the car with the wheels off, locate the axles and look slightly backwards and up. you'll see a bolt head pointing directly downward with a 3" circle above it. This is the subframe mount. There are 4 of these for the rear. The bolts are about 8" long and you can crank them loose about 1-2inches without them coming out. Then This will cause the rear of the subframe to sag and increase the space the spring sits. You can pop them out at that point, put the new spring in and then tighten the subframe again. Much less aggression required than the crowbar method.

[TEB]

In regards to the rear subframe. once you are under the car with the wheels off, locate the axles and look slightly backwards and up. you'll see a bolt head pointing directly downward with a 3" circle above it. This is the subframe mount. There are 4 of these for the rear. The bolts are about 8" long and you can crank them loose about 1-2inches without them coming out. Then This will cause the rear of the subframe to sag and increase the space the spring sits. You can pop them out at that point, put the new spring in and then tighten the subframe again. Much less aggression required than the crowbar method.

That diagram is the rear suspension of a B5, but your commentary is correct. Dropping the sub-frame is a surprisingly easy step to take and provides a lot of extra room. I wrestled with the decision to fuss with the sub-frame when putting C/O's on my previous B6, but it ended up being a piece of cake. Here's the B8:

[TEB]

Looks good.. are the wheels ET43? I’d assume that the 8mm fronts would works just fine for me. I guess everything should work properly if the car isn't set too low of coarse. Anyone else use the coilovers or same flush kit as I’m looking into using?

OEM B8 Rotors 19x8.5 et43 I believe. ECS has two flush kits (12.5mm rear and 8mm front) and the "aggressive kit" (12.5mm rear and 10mm front). I have a fender roller, so I wasn't too concerned trying the 10mm square. As it turned out, I didn't need to roll.

[KAMP]

Thank you Solarsuplex and TEB for explanation and photos. I’d assume that the rear ednlinks, control arms and a couple of other components(?) will need to be unbolted before the rear subframe is slightly unscrewed and hung down?(NOT fully unbolted and removed out). Again, I’m open to this option if I can’t get the other way to work for me easily. Rather prepare for other options than get stuck for good.

[KAMP]

OEM B8 Rotors 19x8.5 et43 I believe. ECS has two flush kits (12.5mm rear and 8mm front) and the "aggressive kit" (12.5mm rear and 10mm front). I have a fender roller, so I wasn't too concerned trying the 10mm square. As it turned out, I didn't need to roll.

Yeah I ll go with the less aggressive and definitely prefer not to roll fenders. Trying to keep the mods as subtle as possible.

[Jk79]

Check out this coil over install guide. Should have all the information you need.

http://bd8ba3c866c8cbc330ab-7b26c6f3...horizontal.pdf

[KAMP]

Check out this coil over install guide. Should have all the information you need.

http://bd8ba3c866c8cbc330ab-7b26c6f3...horizontal.pdf

Thank you once again 🙏🏻

[Solarsuplex]

Thank you Solarsuplex and TEB for explanation and photos. I’d assume that the rear ednlinks, control arms and a couple of other components(?) will need to be unbolted before the rear subframe is slightly unscrewed and hung down?(NOT fully unbolted and removed out). Again, I’m open to this option if I can’t get the other way to work for me easily. Rather prepare for other options than get stuck for good.

Thanks for the updated photo, i was just grabbing something with the subframe!

1. Jack up car with stands on the pinch welds
2. Remove wheels
3. Unbolt rear strut via top 2 bolts per side
4. Remove bottom main bolt for strut
5. Lower rear subframe until spring basically falls out

Reverse with new spring and strut and you are ready to tackle the fronts. Good practice is to take the wheels off the front and spray ita ll down with whatever penetrating oil you have on all the bolts for the front while you do the back

[KAMP]

Perfect, thanks Solarsuplex. Coilovers came in today, so I started checking everything out. One more question about front struts and the top nut.

Any specific tool needed to remove factory nut from strut, or to torque down the Bilstein locking nut? I’ve seen a specific open socket and Allen wrench combo used for the top nut... but not sure if that’s necessary. Then someone else told me that an air gun is needed to torque it down properly(?).

As I’ve mentioned, I have regular tools/sockets and no air tools at the moment. Although I don’t think an air tool should be used on that top nut to torque anyways.

[TEB]

Any specific tool needed to remove factory nut from strut, or to torque down the Bilstein locking nut? I’ve seen a specific open socket and Allen wrench combo used for the top nut... but not sure if that’s necessary. Then someone else told me that an air gun is needed to torque it down properly(?).

I've done it both ways, the air gun works well, but I was also able to use the socket w/Vice grip and Allen wrench approach w/o issue. I've heard of people who had problems with the strut rod rotating -- but I didn't encounter this. The biggest issues I ever encountered were all pinch bolt related. As Solarsuplex said, get penetrating oil on those bolts early and often.

[KAMP]

Yes, I’m planning on soaking the bolts a night prior with some PB blaster. I have a ‘16 with just under 30k miles.. and I am in California, so I’m hoping for the best. Although I’ve had more than a fair share of experiences with rusty vehicle parts, before I moved from Chicago a few years ago.

[TEB]

Yes, I’m planning on soaking the bolts a night prior with some PB blaster. I have a ‘16 with just under 30k miles.. and I am in California, so I’m hoping for the best. Although I’ve had more than a fair share of experiences with rusty vehicle parts, before I moved from Chicago a few years ago.

Yeah, 3 years old in CA, you should be fine. My B5 spent most of it's life in Cleveland. When I first did CA's and C/O's on that car, I could not get the pinch bolts out. I took it to my dealer and paid them 1-1/2 hours of labor to "loosen every damn bolt I was going to have to remove." It was the best money I ever spent at the dealer, lol. My B6 and B8 were acquired while living in AZ and FL, so no such problems.

[Solarsuplex]

If you intend to do more work on the car I’d suggest investing in a solid kit of Hex bit sockets. Just so you aren’t fighting with cheap little Allen keys and a wrench while balancing the strut or working awkwardly while it’s in a vice on your bench.

Having a set of offset wrenches has come in very handy as well for those top hat nuts as you’ve mentioned.




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[KAMP]

Yeah, 3 years old in CA, you should be fine. My B5 spent most of it's life in Cleveland. When I first did CA's and C/O's on that car, I could not get the pinch bolts out. I took it to my dealer and paid them 1-1/2 hours of labor to "loosen every damn bolt I was going to have to remove." It was the best money I ever spent at the dealer, lol. My B6 and B8 were acquired while living in AZ and FL, so no such problems.

Yeah it’s night and day living in the rust belt.

[KAMP]

If you intend to do more work on the car I’d suggest investing in a solid kit of Hex bit sockets. Just so you aren’t fighting with cheap little Allen keys and a wrench while balancing the strut or working awkwardly while it’s in a vice on your bench.

Having a set of offset wrenches has come in very handy as well for those top hat nuts as you’ve mentioned.

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I believe I have a small selection of Hex sockets with my Husky set, but I’ll have to double-check. I have an offset 18mm/16mm wrench but realize that a 17mm may also come in handy for this project. Might pick one up before doing the job. I’ll check out the Bilstein nut sizes on the front and rear struts later in the garage.

[KAMP]

The Bilstein rear top nut is a 17mm and fronts are 19mm. Any idea what these should be torqued down to? My plan is to use the offset wrench and hex socket (which I checked and have proper sizes) but I’m not sure if tightening them down by hand only will be sufficient.

Otherwise, I assume that I’d need an extended 17mm & 19mm socket to torque down the nut with a torque wrench.

[Solarsuplex]

The Bilstein rear top nut is a 17mm and fronts are 19mm. Any idea what these should be torqued down to? My plan is to use the offset wrench and hex socket (which I checked and have proper sizes) but I’m not sure if tightening them down by hand only will be sufficient.

Otherwise, I assume that I’d need an extended 17mm & 19mm socket to torque down the nut with a torque wrench.

Sometimes!! depending on the offset wrench you have it wont seat fully on the nut inside the top hat. Thats how it was on the b7 at least. Keep that in mind. I always just make them 'tight' and have never had a problem. Throw some muscle at it but dont try and strip the things. You can only go so tight by hand with the hex head anyway.

[TEB]

Sometimes!! depending on the offset wrench you have it wont seat fully on the nut inside the top hat. Thats how it was on the b7 at least. Keep that in mind. I always just make them 'tight' and have never had a problem. Throw some muscle at it but dont try and strip the things. You can only go so tight by hand with the hex head anyway.

Same here, I never actually put my torque wrench on these and never had one cause a problem -- It's a lock nut IIRC.

[KAMP]

Same here, I never actually put my torque wrench on these and never had one cause a problem -- It's a lock nut IIRC.

Yes, all are lock nuts. Someone locally just told me that they just installed their coilovers (different brand), threw them in, and had some knocking of some sort up front since they weren’t tightened down properly. He ended up cutting the metal open under the hood (above struts) to use impact gun to tighten them down. DEFINITELY not something I’d want to do but I guess he didnt want to pull it all apart.

[KAMP]

One more quick question, I’ve had many but definitely appreciate all of the help!! As far as the “pinch bolt” that should be replaced, which one are we talking about exactly? I purchased the two long bolts/nuts that hold the control arm/joints in place up top... BUT would the more necessary bolt be the one that holds the strut in place?.. where the spindle separator tool will sit..?

[bernstma]

I went with 10mm spacers front and rear. I have H&R sport springs and don't have any rubbing issues. If you go significantly lower, you might get a rub in front. I didn't want to stagger the spacers and have different length lug bolts front to back.
Picture:

What kind of wheels are on your Audi? I love these wheels but don't have the name of them? I want to get these in addition to the peelers that came with my car.

[KAMP]

One more quick question, I’ve had many but definitely appreciate all of the help!! As far as the “pinch bolt” that should be replaced, which one are we talking about exactly? I purchased the two long bolts/nuts that hold the control arm/joints in place up top... BUT would the more necessary bolt be the one that holds the strut in place?.. where the spindle separator tool will sit..?

Any suggestions to this last post of mine ^^^^ ?

[TEB]

What kind of wheels are on your Audi? I love these wheels but don't have the name of them? I want to get these in addition to the peelers that came with my car.

I just hear them referred to as S4 Rotors. I believe they are standard with the Titanium package.

[TEB]

One more quick question, I’ve had many but definitely appreciate all of the help!! As far as the “pinch bolt” that should be replaced, which one are we talking about exactly? I purchased the two long bolts/nuts that hold the control arm/joints in place up top... BUT would the more necessary bolt be the one that holds the strut in place?.. where the spindle separator tool will sit..?

Yep, the pinch bolt is the one that holds the two upper ball joints into the top of the steering knuckle. Most people replace this one because they damage it while taking it out -- not due to metal fatigue related issues.

[itr325]

No need to drop the rear subframe for rear spring removal. I just installed the B12 pro kit on my car about 2 weeks ago. The key is a large (~4ft) pry bar. You put the tip of it near where the top of the spring is, remove the rear shock, rear sway mount and place the other end of the pry bar on top of the caliper. Pry down and the spring almost falls out. I learned this technique from a friend who used to work for a local Audi performance shop. I think I had each side done start to finish in roughly 30 minutes a side.

+1 That's what I did. Also removed the inner bolts on the front uppers instead of the pinch bolt....sooo much easier

[KAMP]

That’s again TEB. I purchased both the upper bolts/nuts just to be safe and also the nut/bolt that holds front strut in place. Might just make a trip back to the dealer, in case I don’t use a part or two.