donb

I just ordered a set of Koni Coilovers to replace my Bilstein/H&R Sport suspension. Thanks to a few of the readers/posts on the forums for help on the decision.

<i>Damper Settings:</i>
What do you guys have/recommend? From what I've read 35-40% on the dampers is tight but not too harsh. Should the dampers be set the same front and rear?

<i>Thread Settings:</i>
I'm looking at acheiving a fender lip height (from the ground w/ 225/45/17s) of 25.25"-25.5" How many thread turns is this approximately? Is it a good idea to set it a 0.5" higher to compensate for settling?

I've heard that it's a good idea to use a lot of anti-seize on the threads and "round" then end of the coil before install. Any other tricks?

Thanks for any information!

Don B.
99 1.8TQM
Bilstein/H&R Sport (soon Koni Coilover)
17" Ace Lolas, Borla Catback, APR 1 bar

eharleq

What springs are you using that settle .5"? That is a lot for a real 2.5" spring. The end of the coil should not be rough, it should be flat with a slight tip-up on the very end. The very rough end coils are crap, and those will settle. For the shaft adj. konis, I go for 1/2 front and 1/8 less in the rear. MAx is fun, but way overdampened.

Skip lip height. Strictly poseurland. Go for a level suspension arm when viewed from underneath. All the bottom arms should be level with the bottom of the chassis. If it V's up into the car you will smash the pan; and V's down, you are not getting enough drop.

USE THE BUMPSTOPS. This makes me want to vomit when I see the Konis without the bumpstops. The best stops are celastos (white and tan, some black foam). They add rate and keep the shock/strut from bottoming. The A4 is not as bad in this regard as the strut cars, but you want to protect the suspension from the monster hits.

I don't use anti-seize because *everything* sticks to it. A wax-based bike chain lube works the best for me.

donb

Here are some answer/questions:

<i>What springs are you using that settle .5"? </i> I'm using the 'Koni' springs that come with the kit. I'm not sure who winds them for Koni.

<i>Skip lip height. Strictly poseurland. Go for a level suspension arm when viewed from underneath.</i> Good point. This definately makes sense.

<i>USE THE BUMPSTOPS.</i> Do you find the stock bumpstops to work fine? If not where can a person order celastos?

Nice tip re: the bike chain lube/wax - I have a bottle or two of Pedros.

-Don

s4wood

What does Eric know..he's from Montana... :-)

eharleq

Destroyed a few suspensions on some rally roads. (Don't buy eibach maroon coils or tokico dirtras.)

I've also seen WAY too many cars with the bump stops cut down to nothing or not even on. The stock bumps are fine.

Celastos from ground control or carrera (if they will ever return a phone call). The advantage of celastos is that they don't rebound out of control like rubber. They also add secondary spring rate, with no additional weight.