Black BeauTTy

I bought the Sport kit without the height adjustability in the front. The kit came packaged nicely and the couplers and rear height adjustments appear to be very nicely made and out of high quality material. I had AWE Tuning handle the install while they were doing other work to prep the car for Watkins Glen. The install went off without issue and was pretty straightforward.

At this point, I've logged about 700 miles on the kit in all sorts of conditions. I'll do my best to convey the changes but some are very subtle and really only going to be appreciated with a drive. Here are my impressions:

Non-sport mode on street
My car is DD, so this is the mode it spends most of the time. The ride is subtly better...not Lexus-like, but a noticeably smoother edge to the ride. It's difficult to convey in words but those bumps that used to shutter through the car's structure are now muted significantly. You still feel them but it seems like the brunt of the impact is being absorbed to a greater extent and there is less energy making its way to the chassis. On the highway, it is sublime! The Glen is a long way from the Philly area so I had the chance to really experience the change. I always viewed the TTRS as a great cruiser stock, but there is no denying that the MSS Springs have improved upon this characteristic. The suspension shrugs off expansion joints with ease. If I had to put a number on it, I'd say about 25% less impact is transferred to the cabin. Again, you still feel it but it is muted and it sounds and feels more solid somehow. Bottom line, a good cruiser just became a great cruiser that you could drive all day without a problem.

Sport mode on street
This is where the changes are much less subtle. To call it transformative is overstating it, but the improvement is pronounced and awesome! On normal roads while driving in a spirited manner, the car just feels right...like this is how it should have been all along. All the jittery behavior that we all experience in S-mode on streets is GONE and I mean GONE! The suspension in S-mode is smoother and firmer, all at the same time and I have no idea how this is possible. I thought this was a mutually exclusive thing...you had one or the other but never both. Well, I'm here to tell you that you can have your cake and eat it too! This is a "no compromises" kit. It is very odd but it actually gives you the feeling like the suspension is working less hard to control the car versus the other way around. It's hard to convey but it seems to just work better somehow. I rarely drove in S-mode unless the road was really smooth and I was driving aggressively. I didn't care for the nervousness of the suspension and how easily the chassis was upset by road imperfections. That is all gone now. I could drive in S-mode full-time without issue now...other than the twitchy throttle response. How it can be more firm yet more composed and comfortable at the same time is a mystery to me but it is undeniable.

Sport mode on track
I thought sport mode was great on the track for the most part with the stock springs. It was well suited for smooth and flowing pavement and it was stiff enough to manage body roll pretty well. After 2-days on Watkins Glen, let me put it this way...the car felt nothing short of perfect! These springs work so effortlessly with the mag ride dampers, the stability is just silly. My instructor was equally impressed. My car was saddled with crappy P Zero Nero M+S run flats (Toyos didn't pass pre inspection for tread depth) so believe me when I say I was able to explore the limits of the chassis and suspension. I also have the H&R RSB set to the soft setting and based on my experience, would recommend this setup to anyone. The balance was superb and the control of the chassis extremely precise. I'd never call the OEM S-mode bad on the track but MSS affords a whole new level of control...kind of like the difference between a steak knife and a scalpel. I was taking the initial turn into the bus stop with all four tires on the rumble strips and there was absolutely no drama...no chassis nervousness at all, we whipped through that section time and time again without blinking an eye. The other very noticeable difference was under hard braking. The car stays so flat and level it boggles the mind. The forces are immense but the nose has minimal dive and the tail stays planted. Cornering and accelerating exhibit similar flat behavior with little roll and minimal squat. The ability to rotate the car with throttle steer was like poetry. I did this ALOT with the crappy tires protesting every second. There was a specific section of the track between turn 2 and 3 that had an abrupt irregularity on the inner most edge of the track where you wanted to be. You're hitting this section WOT in 4th and I noticed many cars moving left to avoid this section. Not me, I hammered right through that thing every time like it wasn't there. It is simply shockingly stable and composed at the limit and extremely easy to drive hard.

In summary, I couldn't be happier with how this has taken the car to the next level in terms of refinement. It simply does everything well. I love the split personality that the TTRS has and the MSS Springs only add to the character. I just lived it...300 miles to the track...2-days on the track...300 miles back home. It's an amazing machine that continues to impress me and changes like these springs makes it that much better. Audi and all other brands using the mag ride dampers should look at this kit as an option or OE...it is THAT good.

Pics of the beast in action...