markpow

Hello, the sport suspension is bothering me here in Ohio. I'm mainly looking for a comparison if anyone knows between the DWS 06 and the P7 PLUS version. These seem to be the best of the best from what I read?

I think the stock oem p7 is supposed be pretty soft but it's also not reviewed very highly. Because of that I'm leaning towards Conti, one is also a UHP vs GT.. I would love the lexus/buick like ride.

Comfort over anything else if anyone has an idea. I read that swapping springs may be possible also.

DB22

Acuransx

I am in MI and understand how you feel. I have sport suspension on 19s and roads here are awful. I try and avoid the worst ones. I have run P7+ and DWS06 on a number of cars in our fleet. P7+ ride the best and are very quiet in my experience. DWS06 are a bit lumpy in the a.m. and seem to flat spot until they run for a few minutes after sitting overnight. They are also a bit noisier than the P7+ and although they are marketed as being decent in snow my experience is they are nothing special in snow. The negative factor regarding the P7+ is that per Tire Rack testing their wet weather capabilities are not all that good. I don't care about cornering in the wet since I take it easy but stopping distances in wet are important when it comes to having to make an emergency stop. I also need to replace the tires on my A6 (has OEM Continental ProContacts) and have same dilemma you have. There is a new Michelin tire that has come out -- see Tire Rack site -- I forget the name it is an all season tire that I'm waiting on Tire Rack to test. My other alternative is to put on a set of dedicated summer tires since I have a set of winters mounted on OEM wheels. Good luck.

Best,
Jeff

gk1

Not sure why you would opt for the sport suspension when looking for a lexus/buick ride quality. Even without sport suspension Audi's never have a lexus/buick ride quality, but anyway...we'll assume you have the 18" wheel otherwise nothing much will help with 19's.
You could try playing with tire size a bit within a couple percent. If stock is 245/45-18 (110mm sidewall) and the Audi winter package is 225/50-18 (113mm sidewall) then you should be ok with a 255/45-18 (115mm sidewall) or try you luck with a 245/50-18 (123mm sidewall) but that would have to be checked carefully for fitment.

DB22

gguy

markpow

Sorry, I have the 19" wheels. I did test-drive cars before this with 19" also and P7 oem's and I just didn't notice the sports suspension on the test-drives.

Thanks all for the detailed replies. One other thread went into replacing the springs as an option I might need to look into. So the P7 standards going to a P7 + is a big difference in your opinion or just little one? I think I will hold off as well and look for the review you mentioned on the new Michelin a/s..

The weird thing is pretty much all of the cars I saw did have the sport suspension on them.. the only one I saw that did not was a loaner vehicle.. Can't believe it rides so harsh.

gk1

In that case sell the 19's (98-102mm sidewall) and get 18's. I would try that prior to getting springs as that will be expensive and labor intensive. The only way to get 19's with a rubber soft enough to make any appreciable difference would be maybe to get full studless snow tires but that is not a practical solution.
Also keep in mind tire air pressure makes a difference in ride comfort. If you are in the US, make sure your tires are NOT inflated to the door sticker pressure with just you in the car. Use the owners manual instead.

UCLABB

DB22