Crash Bang Wallop - FR TDI Suspension!

[turly]

After owning a FR TDI for just under a year I must admit I'm finally fed up with the harsh suspension, it's fine when I drive it alone but to see friends and family being thrown about and losing their fillings when driving on all but perfect surfaces has become tiring. I have owned a Golf Mk3 GTI and A3 which both had firm suspension but nothing as harsh as the FR. My question is, is there a reasonably priced solution to fix it without going to expensive coil overs? I have no intention of having it lowered which seems to be the main aim of any suspension mods but rather something to make it more bearable, any ideas?

 

[wheelwright]

Reduce tyre pressure!! ;-)

 

[Chan_P1_TDi_FR]

reducing tyre pressure is not a good idea unless ur pressures are too high in the first place.
people say lowering springs improve the ride. i agree the standard set-up is quite harsh and crashy. i went down the more expensive route of coilovers after i had the car for a year. it rides and corners much better than before.

 

[Street]

I switched to Eibach springs and although lower, they still seem firm, but not as crashy.

 

[Bretty]

I was fortunate to find a set of cupra springs and shocks on ebay, fitted them myself and for £40 its made a big difference.

 

[Jedimaster65]

I have played around with tyre pressures, and it's a play-off but if you drop them below about 29 Psi you will get excessive tyre wear on the outer shoulders of the tyre surface.

 

[pacm0n]

I have played around with tyre pressures, and it's a play-off but if you drop them below about 29 Psi you will get excessive tyre wear on the outer shoulders of the tyre surface.

Are you sure about this? I went to get my tyres replaced yesterday. When they took the tyres off they noticed that they had worn alot more in the middle than the outer edges. I have been running them at 32 psi.

The tyre fitters recommended running the new set at 29psi to try and get even wear. Would you say this is too low? What pressure have you found to be the best?

 

[Chan_P1_TDi_FR]

pacm0n are you running on 18" or 17"? my 18" at front 34/33psi tend to wear slightly more on outside edges, but this can sometimes also be dependent on the tyres. rear tyres hardly wear

 

[pacm0n]

I'm running 17" and Bridgestone Potenza RE050

 

[seremotors]

I was fortunate to find a set of cupra springs and shocks on ebay, fitted them myself and for £40 its made a big difference.

FR and Cupra shocks are actually the same part numbers - looked into it a while ago
Eibach springs help a bit but its still REALLY firm. Cupras have a much better ride than FR's for some reason . . .

 

[freenfast]

FR and Cupra shocks are actually the same part numbers - looked into it a while ago
Eibach springs help a bit but its still REALLY firm. Cupras have a much better ride than FR's for some reason . . .

Are the springs and bushes the same?

If not then can you not just put Cupra springs and bushes on?

 

[seremotors]

Are the springs and bushes the same?

If not then can you not just put Cupra springs and bushes on?

Cupras have different front arms - cast rather than steel. Apart from that and the springs I couldnt find any other differences . . . . I was considering fitting Cupra springs but that would raise it up from the Eibachs I have fitted. Im waiting for someone to find the solution before I spend my hard-earned

 

[flashp]

I think Koni FSD dampers will have a postive effect on the ride of an FR.
I've done alot of homework lately on this and also spoken to an approved UK Koni specialist. The conclusion is...believe the hype...they are as good as they say they are. I'm getting mine fitted next Tuesday, I'll post here again if anyone is interested...and if they turn out to be less than I expect I'll say so.

I'm following advice and just changing the dampers, not springs. FSD's will handle the Eibach Pro kit but not the Sport. However they were designed for OE springs.

See this link....
http://www.koni.com/58.html

 

[FAST AL]

You need to feel the road to get that rush when you drive the fr methinks.If you don't like that get a RRoyce or Rangerover or something like that.

 

[seremotors]

I think Koni FSD dampers will have a postive effect on the ride of an FR.
I've done alot of homework lately on this and also spoken to an approved UK Koni specialist. The conclusion is...believe the hype...they are as good as they say they are. I'm getting mine fitted next Tuesday, I'll post here again if anyone is interested...and if they turn out to be less than I expect I'll say so.

I'm following advice and just changing the dampers, not springs. FSD's will handle the Eibach Sport kit but not the Pro. However they were designed for OE springs.

See this link....
http://www.koni.com/58.html

Konis should also work with the lower springs - the free length is similar to standard springs so they wont dislodge. Only consideration is what setting do you use on the shocks? Dont they need removed to adjust?
I dont mind 'sports firm' but so many manufacturers (even VAG themselves) have done it better in lesser cars.

 

[seremotors]

You need to feel the road to get that rush when you drive the fr methinks.If you don't like that get a RRoyce or Rangerover or something like that.

Done all that with faster and hairier cars and bikes. Now Im 38 I have passengers to consider and after 13000 miles the novelty has worn off.
Im still disappointed my son cant even have a drink in the car without ending up with it round him due to the ride. I still love the car even with all the pros and cons weighed up and glad I chose it - looks, performance, mpg, equipment, space etc vs the only issue - ride quality. I suppose we just want the whole package

 

[flashp]

FSD dampers

What finally did it for me (after many other experiences) was joining the A3 at Bedhampton yesterday. Travelling down the slip road in the direction of Portsmouth and hitting the join in the tarmac that spans the entire road under hard acceleration I found that the front end just about left the ground according to my rev counter...and my passenger was less than impressed.

Thats not a sports car feel...that's just cr*p. I don't mind being able to tell whether a coin may be heads or tails, BUT I WANT MY FILLINGS LEFT INTACT!!!

Hard is what it is...and manners is what it doesn't have. Good suspension is so much more than making it ride hard. It is possible to have both, I'm just hoping that since it appears not be egineered in 'out of the box' I can to some degree remedy this problem. Maybe these dampers will complement what appears to be an otherwise good setup.

I will accept that the car handles superbly in stock trim, and I hope not to spoil that, but in fact add to it.

 

[flashp]

Konis should also work with the lower springs - the free length is similar to standard springs so they wont dislodge. Only consideration is what setting do you use on the shocks? Dont they need removed to adjust?
I dont mind 'sports firm' but so many manufacturers (even VAG themselves) have done it better in lesser cars.

I believe they are preset. They work on frequency and valve system. Hit them hard and fast and you get travel. Load them more slowly and they firm up to around 160%. Normal shocks are about 60-70% I believe. That a very brief description from a non expert...there is alot of material to read about these.

 

[seremotors]

I believe they are preset. They work on frequency and valve system. Hit them hard and fast and you get travel. Load them more slowly and they firm up to around 160%. Normal shocks are about 60-70% I believe. That a very brief description from a non expert...there is alot of material to read about these.

I was a Koni agent years ago but my experience finished with SR Novas
Superb suspension manufacturers with back up second to none - they use Eibach springs which was a big reason in my purchase. Im going to look into this and may even compromise to swapping my springs to the 30mm drop. Plus side - I may stick those 19's on

 

[eltawater]

I've been discussing the Koni FSD's with AMD technik in their forum down below.

They are of the opinion that they don't recommend them due to the build quality issues with them. Unfortunately there don't appear to be any other reasonable options to improve the ride quality of my FR.

Anyone had any experiences with leaky FSD shocks?