Kaivorth

Just bought my first Audi!!! 02 A4 Quattro.

Can anyone show me options I have to lift an Audi 1-2" off the ground? I'm looking for some more ground clearance for the New England roads, especially in the winter. Not sure if I need different springs, pads, or if there is a kit available.

Am I better off just getting larger tires?

lyleswk

Wow, first time I've seen this one. Everyone usually wants to lower their cars.

First, I wouldn't just get larger tires. That much larger a tire would really mess up the balance of the car.

Is yours a sport? The 02 and 03 sports are very low and I've noticed in my limited snow driving, do as much snow plowing and gripping. If you do have a sport, you have the option of going to the 04 and on sport setup (about .75 inches higher) or you could simply go to a base setup which is even higher. Maybe cmmartin has a non sport and can part with his suspension (see parting out thread)

Kaivorth

Mine is just a normal A4 Quattro, not a sport or anything. Would just be nice to get a little more road clearance with the roads over here

lyleswk

Hmm, surprised you are having issues with a base quattro unless you are in an area that gets tons of snow. My 2 cents is you bought a sedan and if you want something higher, you should trade for an SUV. I would not raise the Audi, but maybe others have a different opinion.

Kaivorth

I agree with you, of course a SUV would be the best thing for me to do. I just don't like a lot of them. I just wanted a nice looking sedan that could handle the snow, which was why I opted for the Quattro.

Has no one attempted this before lol?

Highmile

Audi quattro with good snow tires will laugh in winter's face. Audi quattro + snow tires = winter battle tank.

I have lived in Vermont and Maine my whole life, my immediate family runs Audi's up here. I drive on the snowiest days because that's the best skiing. Stock A4 ride height is fine for the winters up here. Now if you want to drive logging roads deep in the woods to secluded ponds and streams for fishing, that's a different story.

GavinD

Agreed. I drove a slammed B5 last winter, lower than I really intended to go, and even with the ridiculous snow totals we had in southern Maine, all I ever needed to get around safely was a decent set of snow tires. I blasted UP my driveway with >8" snow on the ground on several occasions, and the only thing that gave me pause was cleaning the snow out of the grille.

In fact, lifting the car is only going to disrupt the handling characteristics, and may negatively impact the car's handling on slippery surfaces. A high center of gravity can cause too much weight transfer, which has a general tendency to exacerbate the worst handling traits of any vehicle, unless you REALLY know how to take advantage of it.

Unless you're going off-road, and you need the clearance to prevent bottoming on hard surfaces, I highly doubt you'll need anything more than a decent set of snows.

Highmile

Highmile whipes drool from keyboard... Because these new RS3 and S3 look somdamn good and the Audi in my driveway dates back to 1999 and looks like I ran over my grandma and then clubbed her dog with the rear door. Sigh.