KW Variant 3 - Going low and slow for the moment
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Well the day finally arrived where the good old H&R cup kit got taken off and the KW Variant 3s got put on. The H&R cup kit served the car well however as the car developed more power and with the inclusion of the diff allowing me to go much faster into corners it was obvious that something needed to be changed.
I initially thought about getting uprated springs to lower the car by 20mm over the old ride height. This would have lessened the roll and improved the responsiveness of the turn in. I decided against this due to cost and started to consider other options like VF Engineering Drop Links and 034 Motorsport Strut Mounts. However life being the way it is, I had two problems happen at the same time. I got a hole in the turbo outlet pipe which made me investigate what the car was doing when I was going over bumps. Every time I would go on a bump road regardless of whether I was accelerating or rolling in neutral I was get a loud boost / gas release. Investigating further the right hand side of the car was a lot softer than the left hand side, it was obvious then, the right hand side shock internals had gone and it was releasing gas.
To my surprise when the suspension came off, AmD saw a big hole in the turbo outlet pipe. Now I am not sure what broke first however I think that the suspension was giving way a lot more than normal which was causing the pipe to rub on the driveshaft and eventually rubbed the silicone away. Also the fact the pancake pipe being a prototype and not fixed properly didn’t
help.
Moving on, the car now has KW Variant3s. There were quite a few reasons why I chose this kit:
1) My car is not about being fast in a straight line. If you read through my thread its more about having the all round package that can compete with the more expensive cars. KW is a small giant that takes R&D to another level, the craftsmanship of the coilover and internals is one of the best out there.
2) I wanted something that I could adjust and tweak until I am happy. I love the uniqueness factor of this kit and the fact you can tailor it to an individual car is perfect. The fact being a quick TDI that is heavy nosed makes even more sense to get this kit.
3) Having a detailer’s brain the Inox steal is a massive plus especially in the UK. I love the fact that I can clean them and make them look like new.
4) AmD, more specifically Kenny and Ben just wouldn’t let me choose another kit as they felt no other kit would do the car justice.
The Test Drive
First thoughts when sitting in the car was the strange feeling especially when next to ford focuses and 4x4s, just so low! Setting off whilst trying to listen for boost leaks almost made me forget I had coilovers on. This is instantly made me think that the dampening levels were very similar to my H&Rs and on a smooth road where the change in camber and dips in the road are gradual…the dampening seemed almost identical. The differences start to become apparent when going a tad faster; the coilovers seem to let you know exactly what’s happening with the road. For those with a diff on cambered roads it gives you a lot of feedback and makes the car want to turn into tram line much more than usual. The KWs seem to calm this down almost reassuring you and the diff that there will be no nasty surprises ahead. Hitting the first roundabout the lack of body roll just amazed me and I am 100% sure that this has given my worn falkens a new lease of life as they can now have much more contact with the road. This wont stop me moving to Toyo’s however credit to Falken for producing a good tyre for the money.
The Motorway
The KW Variant 3s change their characteristics when you got faster as the rebound and compression changes and nicking what DOLBY said, like KoniFSDs. On cruising speed 60-70 mph the car shapes to every bump, dip, camber change the motorway has to offer. Whilst this is fantastic when you’re going somewhere in a hurry I can see this getting tiring after 2-3 hours. This is not to say the ride is very harsh because it isn’t. In fact being in lots of different Leons with all sorts of suspension kits its well up there with the best. Let’s not confuse the issue, they are not in the same league of a shock and spring setup!
The Ugly Roads
Britain seriously has to do something about the state of the roads! Going on some awful roads where the rebound and compression is tested to the max the KWs soak them up all giving reassuring thuds. When going of ‘deep’ man holes I noticed the car deals with these without crashing, it’ almost like the car is too stiff to fall into them. On sweeping bends on these ugly roads the car stays composed and doesn’t lose its line. My only concern at this stay is that the rear feel bouncy which upsets the balance. Willie has kindly warned me about this in another thread so I will try and adjust the rebound and bump to fix this issue.
Opinions so far
Please note I have not done any driving on A or B roads or pushing the car at all in anyway. All of the the above was normal every day driving. When I can push the car that’s when I will be at AmD tweaking the setup with Shaun+lads at AmD then some further tweaking with my best mates Slick.
Positives
+ Hardly no roll
+ feedback of what the road is doing
+ Reacts well to bumps and remains composed
+ Grip and ride height!
Negatives
- Bouncy at the rear
- Rebound and compression not setup for motorways.
£20-£30 per tyre in the whole scheme of things is nothing.
