2015 S3 lowering springs and spacers

**ilikecookies** · 02-19-2021 12:32 AM

Hey guys,

Given all the extra time I have now I've decided to finally start modding my car myself since it's out of warranty and learn a little with the extra free time.

Wanted to start with lowering it - trying to decide between H&R Super Sport and the Sport - S3 is equipped with the mag ride

Also with lowering it, would I encounter any problems with rubbing if I installed spacers? Current wheel set up is Michelin Pilot Sport 4s 235/35 on the OEM 19inch. Was thinking going 15mm all around

Anyone have pictures of similar set ups with the OEM 19 wheels? Might just go with 15mm spacers but not sure how that would look as all the pictures I've found seemed to have been lowered.

Thanks in advance!

**MikTip** · 02-19-2021 03:13 AM

Get APR or 034 springs. Or Height Adjustable Springs.

IMO H&R Super Sport drop the car too low...makes for a bump ride...BTDT!

Spacers...this tells ya exactly what thickness to get:

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ecs-part...009811ecs01kt1

**TheDude420** · 02-19-2021 09:37 AM

I've seen good and bad reviews for H&R springs. Visually they look great and I believe lower the car the most out of all springs if you go for the Super Sport. As far as the bad I've read people with them say the ride can be too firm/bouncey and the springs can cause issues/wear quicker than other springs. I have 034 Motorsport Dynamic Lowering Springs on my 2016 mag-ride S3. They are linear springs so the ride is a bit firm. Drop is 0.75in. I've never read a bad review for these everyone seems to like them. I've hear good things about APR roll control springs as well. If I ever switch springs I'll probably go for the Neuspeed Sport springs which lower by 1in all around on mag-ride. Adjustable springs seemed like something I would like but after reading a lot of reviews I changed my mind. The actual process of adjusting the height is not that simple. I would just set the height once and never change it again so for me it wouldn't make sense to spend two to three times as much on height adjustable springs. If your going to track the car then that's different. Coilovers require a mag-ride delete or it will throw codes and lights at you. Regarding spacers, when I was using my OEM wheels I was running 10mm all around for a flush look.

You can see mag-ride S3's with different springs here:

https://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=877031

Here are a few pics of my S3 with OEM 19in wheels, 10mm spacers, and 034 Motorsport Dynamic Lowering Springs. The black wheels are 19in Neuspeed RSE102's (20lbs):

I also have APR Stage 2 High Torque and DSG tune on 93 octane and love it. Unfortunately APR discontinued their Stage 2 tune so you will have to look at Integrated Engineering, REVO, and other tunes instead if you plan on tuning. I highly recommend it. The difference between stock and Stage 1/2 is huge and fun.

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**MikTip** · 02-19-2021 10:04 AM

My 2015 Audi S3...Ive had 034 springs...they let the back look lower than the front with wheel gap...good ride.
I had H&R Super Sport springs. Too low. The actual spring coil binds and the car bounces way too much while driving! It looks good sitting still...but not good for driving on otherthan glass smooth roads. I currently have APR springs...cause I had 034...I like the APR's. They seem to me better than the 034...no rear wheel gap issue. No spacers. 19x8.5 wheels with correct offset for flush with fender look. I pulled the Mag ride shocks off my car after the front shocks went bad....they are $700 each from Audi...so I installed Bilsteins. Which I like better

**TheDude420** · 02-19-2021 10:49 AM

Originally Posted by MikTip

My 2015 Audi S3...Ive had 034 springs...they let the back look lower than the front with wheel gap...good ride.
I had H&R Super Sport springs. Too low. The actual spring coil binds and the car bounces way too much while driving! It looks good sitting still...but not good for driving on otherthan glass smooth roads. I currently have APR springs...cause I had 034...I like the APR's. They seem to me better than the 034...no rear wheel gap issue. No spacers. 19x8.5 wheels with correct offset for flush with fender look. I pulled the Mag ride shocks off my car after the front shocks went bad....they are $700 each from Audi...so I installed Bilsteins. Which I like better

Yea the 034 front gap is larger than the rear. It's not as noticeable on 19in wheels but it's there. Some springs come with pads to make the front and rear gap the same or closer but can cause a forward rake. Your APR springs lower the same amount as 034?

**MikTip** · 02-19-2021 11:03 AM

Originally Posted by TheDude420

Yea the 034 front gap is larger than the rear. It's not as noticeable on 19in wheels but it's there. Some springs come with pads to make the front and rear gap the same or closer but can cause a forward rake. Your APR springs lower the same amount as 034?

The APR springs appear to have settled as much as the 034's with the exception of the rear APR springs still retain even fender gap appeamce...

**ilikecookies** · 02-21-2021 01:08 AM

Originally Posted by TheDude420

Here are a few pics of my S3 with OEM 19in wheels, 10mm spacers, and 034 Motorsport Dynamic Lowering Springs. The black wheels are 19in Neuspeed RSE102's (20lbs):

I also have APR Stage 2 High Torque and DSG tune on 93 octane and love it. Unfortunately APR discontinued their Stage 2 tune so you will have to look at Integrated Engineering, REVO, and other tunes instead if you plan on tuning. I highly recommend it. The difference between stock and Stage 1/2 is huge and fun.

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Thanks for the pictures! Do you think you're able to go out a little wider with the spacers and not have rubbing issues? Also issues currently right now with the springs if your car is under load i.e. 3 passengers + stuff in the trunk?

Thanks!

Originally Posted by MikTip

Get APR or 034 springs. Or Height Adjustable Springs.

IMO H&R Super Sport drop the car too low...makes for a bump ride...BTDT!

Spacers...this tells ya exactly what thickness to get:

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ecs-part...009811ecs01kt1

Thanks for the link

As for the H&R SS too low was my main concern - had a M3 in the past lowered on H&R SS that gave me problems when I had passengers, started scraping everywhere.

**TheDude420** · 02-21-2021 07:16 AM

Originally Posted by ilikecookies

Thanks for the pictures! Do you think you're able to go out a little wider with the spacers and not have rubbing issues? Also issues currently right now with the springs if your car is under load i.e. 3 passengers + stuff in the trunk?

Thanks!

Thanks for the link

As for the H&R SS too low was my main concern - had a M3 in the past lowered on H&R SS that gave me problems when I had passengers, started scraping everywhere.

No issues with passengers or stuff in the trunk. The 034 springs lower by 0.75in. I haven't measured but most springs settle over time so they may be slightly lower now. I've read comments from people here that say they use 15mm spacers with OEM wheels. I haven't seen any pics or know what size wheels and tires they have though. I can say that when I had my OEM 19x8 wheels on 235/35R19 tires the 10mm spacers provided the perfect flush look all around. Now that I have 19x8.5 Neuspeed RSE102 wheels and the same tires I use 10mm spacers for a hellaflush stance in the rear which looks more aggressive. I went with 5mm spacers in the front after another user with the same setup suggested them but I should have gone with slightly wider spacers since it isn't completely flush in the front. Here's a useful image of flush vs hellaflush and other types of stance:

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