ArTT Vandelay

what were you running before the KW's

are the KW's "harsher" if you had non-stock previously

what spring ratings are you running

where do you drive and how many annual miles?

Obviously i'm considering upgrading to KW v3 from my Koni/Eibach setup, but i drive 25k miles a year on mostly good roads and don't want to give up too much driveability for the autocross season. I think i'd have to go to a stiff spring to see real advantages at autocross (otherwise whats the point, eh) and i'm even willing to swap springs for the summer if they are that bad. Just looking for some geneeral input...

Oh, and where did you buy them?


Thanks!

MCPaudiTT - DEFCON 1

with them).

The ride is SOFTER when cruising that the stock suspension was (at 35k). Handling stiffens up considerable when you get in to it, though. I would recommend the setup 100%.

At the track, you will benefit from compression and rebound adjusments, without having to change spring rates.

I got mine through KMD tuning, as they could deliver in less than a week. tCarbon has better prices, but you have a little longer wait (I had a tight time constraint or I would have gone with tCarbon).

TT_Nuge

Saved me some decent money by planning ahead and waiting just a bit longer which isn't always necessary.

DasTT

I was on stock with about 10K miles. The KW's are sweet and eliminate roll with little effect for daliy driving. I have both compression and rebound set in the middle. I ended up with the correct springs and worked with Tom at KW to provide data on ride heights. I ended up lowering about 1 3/8 inches. Folks were finding they could not lower the rear as far as wanted. After researching the whole spring thing, there appears to be at least 4 different combinations of springs from the factory based on options. For auto-x, I don't even change the settings, I can't see that changing springs would be advantageous. It's more about the driver anyways and the biggest thing you could do is get R-compound tires. :-) I have to complete in SM2 anyways.

I bought the KWs from TCarbon, but got the wrong ones (for the 3.2) and that's what promnpted the investigation into springs.

--bob

fkacct

The KW rides softer.......I have the rear shocks set at almost full stiff and the fronts set at halfway (the fronts get way too bouncy if you tighten'em up, so no advantage there...)

The KWs seem to handle better when pushed hard, and as McPauliTT stated, they are very soft at cruising speeds (honestly, too soft for my taste) due in part to the unique "helper springs" they come with in the front. These helper springs make the first 1/2" or so of suspension travel very comfty and soft.

A disadvantage with the KW in comparison to the KONI/B&G setup I had is that there is less steering feel. I think its because of the helper springs in the front; they help with comfort at the cost of steering feel.

Oh, I should also note that the KWs feel safer at very high speeds in comparison to my old Koni/B&G setup. The Koni/B&G setup would get too sensative and edgy.

In my opinion, the KWs are somewhat overrated....They are definately the perfect choice for the person who wants the best possible handling with "close to OEM harshness." But if you actually enjoy a pretty stiff ride (as I do) and want higher spring rates, then the revised H&R coilovers may be the way to go (they are cheaper too).

JohnLZ7W

I was a passenger in my car recently and was surprised at how much the front end points at the sky under hard acceleration, I'd never noticed it from the driver's seat.

ArTT Vandelay

I run SM, as i have four seats, and am based on the golf platform, which is not a "sports car" platform, unlike porsches, vettes, etc that usually run SM2. Not that I'm competitive in this car in either class

Thanks for your input on the KW's btw.

fkacct

I DO have more front end lift during hard accelaration with the KWs in comparison to my old setup (probably because of the helper springs and the somewhat soft rated KW rear springs (I have the newer KW 8012 springs on my TTQC225).

fkacct

DasTT

was that with a FMIC and reprogrammed ECU, that bumped me into that class. We have a lot of Bimmers in SM2 here.

ArTT Vandelay

I'm in SFR region and our local interpretation is "It has similar rules to SM, but allows 2-seater cars, and cars too light or small to qualify for SM."

too light? hahahahahahah. there are MR2's and Miata's in our region. weird.