i'm really just looking for personal opinions on what the difference in ride comfort might be... i've noticed that springs/shocks are almost half as cheap as coilovers.. i do realize that coilovers are more than likely more comfortable and also last longer but if the comfort difference isn't THAT noticeable then i might just settle with springs/shocks because of the cost. anyone think that would be worth it?

also, what would you say the life span difference is between spring/shocks compared to coilovers? would you say coilovers would last twice as long as springs/shocks? thanks in advanced everyone!

 

i bought my car with s-line struts and h&r race springs....the ride for me was wayy too bouncy and it actually made me sick sometime as the roads at the time (highway) sucked. I was going to go with a cheaper set of coilovers (stasis or koni's) but after researching i determined that my bilstein Pss9's where the best for my application. What determined this was not only the reputation of the company but also the fact that their rebound/damping **** is at the bottom of the struts and it makes it super easy and quick changing to a different setting. I've been on these coilovers for about 7-9k miles and i just love them. During the winter, i put them to soft/med and they rode just like s-line but slightly stiffer and without the bounce. It's spring time and it's set on mid/hard and the ride is fantastic. i would have to say hard setting is just too hard and you get annoyed so i found med/hard to be perfect for Vermont roads. Added with my rs4 rear sway the car does not squat into turns and is very easy to control a high speeds. The car i notice has become a lot more stable at higher speeds in turns and it makes it really easy to feel the car in snow. I was able to continuously drive normal driving speeds with 2/3 sometimes 4 inches of snow on the ground. The car was very stable you knew when you needed to slow down. That's just what i got from the coilovers. I cant really compare it to a koni strut/spring package but that's what i got from stock s-line + h&r race springs. GL.

 

how easy is it to change the settings on the PSS9's? and correct me if i'm wrong but are the stasis street sport coilovers adjustable as well? i hear it's kind of a pain to adjust them around though so i'm curious as to how easy the PSS9's compare. thanks for your input vtracer, just still can't make up my mind just because of the whole $$$ factor.

 

i can change the setting in like 5 min on all fours...if you want to dial in mid way then you would need a flashlight to see the numbers on the **** and may take like 10min...i usually only go either super soft or super hard.

I dont know specifics on stasis but i think they use koni's system and the adjusters are on top of the strut whihc you cannot access without taking off the whole suspension setup. My brother is having the same issue with his KW v3 on his a6 but i think he's gonna cut a small hole up top so he can access the adjustment ****.

It all really boils down to what you want out of your car, if your gonna be doing alot of modding and hard corner driving i think the coilovers will be a better choice for you. If you just want a small drop and better handling then go with the spring/strut combo. A huge factor for me was winter driving, i'm not able to raise the car during winter and slam it during spring/summer. GL

 

again, vtracer, thanks for the info. really do appreciate it. just one last question/request. how much lower is the car with your bilsteins? and do you think you can send me or post up some pics of your car at the lowest setting from the side? i'm really trying to get a feel or how it would look before i go ahead and do anything. thanks A TON vtracer, you've been a great help so far

 

Yea, Thankx VTracer you gave me a lot of good info too. I was debating between the Stasis coilovers and the pss9 setup. Your coilovers are the way to go. I had tein on my old car and the thing that sucked was that I had to tear apart my rear seat and quarter panel to adjust the rear dampning.

 

the only issue i have with these coilover and you'll find with many of the coilovers is the fact you have to drop the rear subfram to raise or lower the car. I heard the new pss10's have fixed this issue. So unfortunally i cannot do any adjusting. This is the way it sits now with very little to no wheel gap, any lower i will rub like crazy in the front with my spacers.

Old setup (stock struts + h&r springs, no spacers)


new setup(pss9's 10mm front / 15mm rear spacers)

 

as i just noticed you cant really see the gap...with the stock suspension there was maybe a two finger front gap and rear had about no gap. with the new, the front gap is gone ,and rears were dropped a little to even out the car so a little tucked in the rear. If you can afford the coilover i would totally recommend them, not trying to be sales person for the company just been very happy with them.

 

okay a few things...

#1: your car is NICE
#2: you're not being a salesman for the company but just really a great help to all who are considering coils or springs because you have first hand experience with both
#3: did i mention your car is sexy?

 

Your not being a salesman, your being an honest customer and I think i speak for all of us when I say that it is really appreciated.

I know of the "gap" you are speaking about on a new ride. I got about a 3 finger gap on my car, it makes my ride ready for 4x4 action, but is not too sexy to look at.

I am totally saving my $$ for coilovers as that is the way to go.

Thanks for your feedback.