Front shocks goooooooooooooooone!

[brad]

I'm rockin the koni fsds, they are softer than I had expected and can take a serious beating too!
I surf almost everyday and most of the time I'm carting a full car down some stupidly rough tracks and the Koni/eibach combo has held up for the past 35000kms, and still going great.
My missus is also up the duff and no complaints from her either.

I wouldn't recommend FSDs from a longevity point of view (they are mega-comfy I believe). Lots of failures if you've ever spent time at BriSkoda. Sure, Koni will warrant the damper but you have to pay R&R each time you make a claim & the turn around time can be a pain as well. OTOH, they are a bit cheaper than the sports yellow (but non adjustable for rebound).

[brad]

1. So, let's get the real problem out of the way first. You are in denial that your needs are better filled by a Superb or a Yeti than a vRS. Perfectly understandable, but keeping your head in the sand while trying to make sports suspension family friendly is going to cost you a lot of money in the long run.



2. So it's already lowered, AND you've got the front row from The Team That God Forgot, and their kit onboard. Just how much travel do reckon was left before bottoming out? No spring compression left + no shock travel left = bent control arm.

3. As much as you don't want to do it - see 1.

1) I have diesel wagon Eibachs on my 1.8tsi petrol sedan (so the spring rate at both ends is higher than normal for the application) with OEM non-RS dampers and the ride is fine (and yes, I know about pregnant women & kids). In fact, it's way better than the wife's Captiva.

I'm getting Konis because the dampers have done 110,000km & are getting a bit sad. Normally on a Falcon or Commodore I'd have binned them at 40,000km, so they have gone above & beyond what I'd expect.

[BottomScratcher]

1) I have diesel wagon Eibachs on my 1.8tsi petrol sedan (so the spring rate at both ends is higher than normal for the application) with OEM non-RS dampers and the ride is fine (and yes, I know about pregnant women & kids). In fact, it's way better than the wife's Captiva.

I'm getting Konis because the dampers have done 110,000km & are getting a bit sad. Normally on a Falcon or Commodore I'd have binned them at 40,000km, so they have gone above & beyond what I'd expect.

With enough time, money, and effort we can get just about any result we want. I was just being a bit cheeky. I'm an old fart, and spent my last dollar trying to turn the car I have into the car I want it to be a long time ago. Purely and simply, if I wanted a softer ride, or load carrying ride, I wouldn't have bought a car with lowered sports suspension. Variable suspensions might be OK for some, but in this instance the guys were in a hurry, and it was an unexpected additional load in the car. Even if boogz had adjustable suspension he didn't have the time to say to his mates, "Hang on boys. I've just got to change my suspension set up, and we'll get going."

Forwards should never be allowed to adjust anything anyhow.

[brad]

I'm not sure where adjustment comes into it.

My springs aren't adjustable & even when I fit Koni Yellows, only the rebound will be adjustable. Based on past experience, I fully expect to find the rebound setting I'm happy with & then leave it alone for about 50,000km & then set it one or 2 clicks firmer.

Dampers control spring oscillations. Springs carry load.

Not sure how fragile you blokes think women are but generally they are tougher stuff than most blokes. I doubt vRS suspension or even uprated Eibach/H&R would have much of an effect on them. Don't let them go trampolining in the last trimester - this can cause a problem.

[BottomScratcher]

I'm not sure where adjustment comes into it.

I was thinking of suspension generally. Even if I had spent a lot of money on flash height adjustable coil overs I wouldn't be adjusting them every time I load up at Dan's, or my 45kg oaf of a dog gets in the back in order to maintain a constant ride height. The same way I don't increase my tyre pressures for loads unless carrying a lot more than usual much further than usual. Not sure if I'm explaining this right, but it doesn't matter.

I enjoy my RS every time I get into it, but every now and then I drive Mrs BS's Golf VI TDI DSG, and am reminded of how much firmer my suspension and seats are. It's not an issue for me, but I couldn't possibly deny that hers is overall a more comfortable car to drive.

[brad]

OIC

Fully agree.

I'm a set & forget type of person too.

[woofy]

An RS is fine for family and kids. Had our 5 mth old in it from new and a pregnant wife. It's actually a lot less likely to make them carsick as well as its much less rolling. Ive still acheived it once on some mountain rds. I wouldn't lower it anymore though, it's enough fun parking at times. Ours is now my wife's car and the narrow width, but huge boot etc work well as her car. 3 kids would be problematic but it works better than a Tig or Yeti for us. They are just too small.

[Tigger]

Hume Highway I'll admit is a smooth piece of road, but can be deceiving. There are humps and dips everywhere. As for the Federal, are you kidding me?! That's about a smooth as a bush track! The closer you get to Canberra (from Sydney) it improves...

I Agree! Shocking bit of road!!!

[Tigger]

I was just thinking that dispite the loads you had, your shocks were probably due for replacement anyway.
Hasnt you car done 160,000kms or so?

So that is not too bad for a sports model.

I would be happy to replace shocks at that kms. Will make it a safer ride for you and your family in the years to come anyway.

[boogz]

Front shocks goooooooooooooooone!



Thanks VW



This is what 167,000 kms looks like



Good as new, my mechanic recommended Sachs which is a ZF brand which does all the aftermarket replacements for VAG. Heavy duty shocks at a reasonable price.

[BottomScratcher]

I might be wrong, but looking at what I can see of it in the pic of the new installation it appears that the dust boot isn't sealed. You might want to check if you haven't already.

[k_rider]

I don't think the boot does actually seal at the bottom, it just sits there loose. Because the strut is topped out in the pic, the bottom of the boot is sitting higher than it normally would when the car is sitting on its wheels. I'm pretty sure mine looked the same when I had to swap out a punctured front tyre. Mind you, that was a few months back and I have a terrible memory!

[BottomScratcher]

k_rider,
You're right of course. I was only focused on the boot, and completely overlooked the fact that the shock has no weight on it, and is at full extension.

[boogz]

Front shocks goooooooooooooooone!

Thanks everyone for the feedback and advice. I've learned a few things...

1. Don't offer lifts to footballers
2. Observe speed limits

Haha... Cheers

[Mysticality]

1. Don't offer lifts to footballers

I think those are just general tips to prolong a little thing called life.
Have you seen what those footballers do in the news? Oh dear.