ST Coilover review

[moophone]

Hi All.

There really arent that many reviews on the ST Coilovers here, especially on a B8.5 so I thought I'd share my opinion.

Dave@COMotorsports in Nova Scotia installed them and they were purchased from eurocollective. I was reluctant on "cheaping out" on the suspension. I've read a lot of mixed reviews, but Dave said he has installed lots of these on VW's, and that they were really good for the price so I decided to give them a try (he was right!).

First, I absolutely love my B8.5 S4, but the stock non-ADS suspension sucks balls. Flops and rolls all over the place, especially @ Stage 2+ power. I have no confidence in the car's ability to take really aggressive turns, with nose dive during braking, lift during acceleration, vague steering feel (no idea where the wheels are, or what they are doing), and body roll is frankly embarrassing.

Some folks suggest rear sway bars should be at the top of my list; I disagree. I think coilovers should be at the top of the list (at least for those with the non-ADS suspension) because it helps more than just body roll. I do still plan to add a rear sway in the spring.

Honestly, these are absolutely great. To use the cliche, this is how the car should have been stock. The damping is spot on, and its actually really comfortable. Highway driving it feels like its glued to the road. On bumpy roads its a bit quicker to damp, and stiffer springs than stock = a bit of bounce, but its not the kind of bounce you get because its not damped properly, and I think is actually less annoying than the soupy stock bounce you get. I was expecting a jarring ride, but the progressive springs work well. Body roll is gone on up to spirited driving/turns, and reduced on ridiculous transitions (e.g. that I wouldn't have even attempted with the stock suspension because I would be off the road). Nose lift/dive is significantly reduced (eliminated for most driving). It stays flat, and best of all, I can feel all four wheels (or are they now rails??). Car handles sweeping turns effortlessly and its a genuine god damn pleasure to drive. I'm on winter tires (PA4) and replica ECS alzor 8" wheels so I can just imagine what a summer setup will be like. Lets be honest, this is not something you would use for balls out dedicated track use because the spring rates and damping would knock your teeth out driving it. I think its a perfect compromise for a DD though.

I do have one complaint. This is something others have also posted about.. the rear springs sag. I'm about 1-2 fingers above the tire to fender, and that's at maximum height with the spare tire removed. While this is fine for me, there is absolutely no ability to lift it up anywhere near stock height for the winter (I'll post pics tomorrow). I think I'll contact ST to see what they say about it as I am worried that if I put the spare back in, and the springs "Break-in" it will be too low.

My only other suspension mod is the CR-15 upper strut tower brace, which really works well with the suspension. Steering is quick, direct, and with good feedback.

This is the rear wheel at MAXIMUM HEIGHT (!):

[waxxonMTL]

curious how it will hold up with corrosion ? have you done research on that before buying ?

[moophone]

Me as well, and I'm aware of the issue. The one good thing is the grooves are very large, so that helps mitigate any pitting. I have no illusion these will last as long as the KW v1 (SS), but I also don't plan on keeping the car for 10 years either.

I'll probably spray em down with a rust inhibitor at the start and end of each winter as a precaution.

curious how it will hold up with corrosion ? have you done research on that before buying ?

[waxxonMTL]

Any more review ? :)

To be honest, I was looking at buying a set of GMG racing spring because they seems to be the best spring set available for the stock strut, but when you consider it, the ST are approx. 250$ more, might as well buy the coilover lol!

What I'm looking for : similar ride height, ''smooth ride'' and reduce bounciness at high speed / body roll. would you say the ST achieved that ?

[LaCross]

This intrigues me as i ruled these out as an option since when i had them on my b5 the ride was quite bone jarring....

[moophone]

waxxonMTL: I'm really happy with them. They are pretty soft and comfortable, yet improve handling significantly. Highway driving is the most improved. They inspire confidence, and are very well controlled. The stock floaty feeling on turns at 130+ km/hr is gone, and they feel stuck to the road. sweeping turns = very flat and all four wheels stay well on the road. Over rough bouncey roads they do bounce, but what won't and is still drivable? vs stock, these damp faster on the bumps so you don't get a lot of the unpredictable extra rebound.

Its raining here today, and I pushed the car to the edge on an on-ramp with no traffic, and I was amazed at how fast I was able to go in the wet and on PA4 winter tires. The cool thing? When the car started to lose traction is did so in a perfectly neutral fashion, requiring only minor adjustment on the wheel and easing off the pedal to keep things straight. Very confidence inspiring how neutral and progressive the limit is on this setup. Zero under or over steer.

LaCross: Not jarring at all. If anything they are on the soft side. I'm sure each vehicle setup is different though, so your results are probably valid. As my personal preference, I'd even go firmer, but for the cost you really can't beat these (as long as they hold up to our winters..)

[pwhaakej]

Nice review, let us know how they look in the spring. I'll be in the market for coilovers in the spring when I switch to my summer setup and was considering the STs. Only real concern was excessive winter wear, so if these survive the winter no problem I'll probably spring for a set.

Although now I'm also curious now to see how much the back settles. I'd want to be able to have a little bit of extra space in the back if I wanted since adjustability is my primary reason for preferring coilovers to springs.

[moophone]

For sure. I contacted eurocollective and they are asking for measurements for options so we'll see what comes out of that. They are super responsive, and I told them we could deal with this after the holidays.

Either way, when I lower things a bit more in the spring I'll snap some before-and-after cleaning pics so you can get an idea of how kind winter was to them. I'm expecting (hoping) this to be a gradual decline rather than an immediate one year observable.

BTW I see what you did there.. "Spring for a set".

Nice review, let us know how they look in the spring. I'll be in the market for coilovers in the spring when I switch to my summer setup and was considering the STs. Only real concern was excessive winter wear, so if these survive the winter no problem I'll probably spring for a set.

Although now I'm also curious now to see how much the back settles. I'd want to be able to have a little bit of extra space in the back if I wanted since adjustability is my primary reason for preferring coilovers to springs.

[pwhaakej]

BTW I see what you did there.. "Spring for a set".

I couldn't help myself

[moophone]

Update: I was not happy with the rear springs. If you look at them, they are way over compressed hear the middle/top reducing their travel, and causing the rear to sag. I sent measurements to KW, and they are sending me out a set of Avant springs which should be a bit stiffer and taller. They said I should have all the specified range, except for the lowest, which works great for me.

I'll report back when I get the new ones. Something to keep in mind if you are thinking of these, you may want to wait and see how the avant spring goes.

[o1turbo30v]

I think the ST's are junk for this chassis, mine had the same rear spring issues that a lot of other people had (ST/KW sent me out a rear spring spacer), but mine would make a knocking sound when going below 15 mph in the cold (below 40F). KW/ST said my struts where bad and had to be rebuilt (At 2,000 miles), they rebuilt them free of charge but still, if i wasn't a diy i would be pissed paying for a suspension swap 3 times......Personally i would spend another $400 and get the way better H&R's.

[schirm]

Good read considering I was about to pull the trigger on these today.

[jokingjimmy]

Nice review! It doesn't always hurt to "cheap out" hehe.

[SteveYem]

I think the ST's are junk for this chassis, mine had the same rear spring issues that a lot of other people had (ST/KW sent me out a rear spring spacer), but mine would make a knocking sound when going below 15 mph in the cold (below 40F). KW/ST said my struts where bad and had to be rebuilt (At 2,000 miles), they rebuilt them free of charge but still, if i wasn't a diy i would be pissed paying for a suspension swap 3 times......Personally i would spend another $400 and get the way better H&R's.

I wouldn't be so quick to tout the H&R Street Performance coilovers in general. My front end is not low by "moar low" standards (I have about 1 'finger' of gap between the tire and fender, with the collars somewhere in the middle of the adjustment threads), and I found the front coil springs to look like this with wheel on the ground:



Seems like I have only 1-1.5 active coils up front. I'm not sure how this impacts the ride quality but I can't imagine it does so in a positive way.
I also have a gripe about the rear, specifically that I am at the very top of the adjustment range (maybe ~1 thread remaining) and I have barely one 'finger' fender to tire gap. IMO, there should be a lot more upward adjustment in the rears to match that of the front.

So here I am wishing that I had sprung the extra $1000 for a set of Bilstein PSS10 like 90% of everyone else on this forum.

[XLR8 Craig]

Pretty good honest review. We recommend the ST coilovers often as an entry level (for the price, not quality) set and have received a lot of great feedback. Thanks for sharing and hopefully other members that are on the fence of making the purchase can use it for its value.

We are running free shipping on these right now for those who are in the market.

http://vag.excelerateperformance.com.../i-578552.aspx

Cheers!

Greg

[schirm]

Pretty good honest review. We recommend the ST coilovers often as an entry level (for the price, not quality) set and have received a lot of great feedback. Thanks for sharing and hopefully other members that are on the fence of making the purchase can use it for its value.

We are running free shipping on these right now for those who are in the market.

http://vag.excelerateperformance.com.../i-578552.aspx

Cheers!

Greg

I was interested in these and the Solo Works, but the place I want to install them wont sell Solo works because of too many dissatisfied customers, red flag for me I think. And I do not want a saggy ass on the highest setting. Can you order them with Avant springs for the same price?

[GRUMPY-S4]

Im installing my set on Sunday

[moophone]

I wouldn't go with a spacer, because clearly the spring rate is not correct for this vehicle. All that would do is translate your "sag" up higher.

I'm generally satisfied with the ST's, except for the rear. We'll see how the avant springs work out. I expect they will be a much better match for this car.

I think the ST's are junk for this chassis, mine had the same rear spring issues that a lot of other people had (ST/KW sent me out a rear spring spacer), but mine would make a knocking sound when going below 15 mph in the cold (below 40F). KW/ST said my struts where bad and had to be rebuilt (At 2,000 miles), they rebuilt them free of charge but still, if i wasn't a diy i would be pissed paying for a suspension swap 3 times......Personally i would spend another $400 and get the way better H&R's.

[moophone]

that actually looks worse than my ST rear springs. I only have 2-3 coils doing that. Those looks really badly matched!!

I wouldn't be so quick to tout the H&R Street Performance coilovers in general. My front end is not low by "moar low" standards (I have about 1 'finger' of gap between the tire and fender, with the collars somewhere in the middle of the adjustment threads), and I found the front coil springs to look like this with wheel on the ground:



Seems like I have only 1-1.5 active coils up front. I'm not sure how this impacts the ride quality but I can't imagine it does so in a positive way.
I also have a gripe about the rear, specifically that I am at the very top of the adjustment range (maybe ~1 thread remaining) and I have barely one 'finger' fender to tire gap. IMO, there should be a lot more upward adjustment in the rears to match that of the front.

So here I am wishing that I had sprung the extra $1000 for a set of Bilstein PSS10 like 90% of everyone else on this forum.

[moophone]

Could you please let us know how it goes, with pics, and which rear spring you have? 7003 or the avant

Im installing my set on Sunday

[moophone]

Some have purchased the S4 application with the avant springs already included, but I think in general they ship with the 7003 spring. You could check with your dealer, but if I were you I would hold off until I get mine so I can tell you if this actually fixes things or not.

!! BTW note that my rear springs have dropped about 1-2cm more from the rear wheel pic in that first post with the original 7003 spring.

I was interested in these and the Solo Works, but the place I want to install them wont sell Solo works because of too many dissatisfied customers, red flag for me I think. And I do not want a saggy ass on the highest setting. Can you order them with Avant springs for the same price?

[Shimmy]

no issues here on my ST coilovers

[XLR8 Craig]

I was interested in these and the Solo Works, but the place I want to install them wont sell Solo works because of too many dissatisfied customers, red flag for me I think. And I do not want a saggy ass on the highest setting. Can you order them with Avant springs for the same price?

I highly recommend skipping anything related to solo werks, they are not a quality item. We had a customer bring a set for us to install and he immediately regretted his decision, we were hesitant to do so for this reason.

We can do the avant kit for the same price, yes.

[schirm]

I highly recommend skipping anything related to solo werks, they are not a quality item. We had a customer bring a set for us to install and he immediately regretted his decision, we were hesitant to do so for this reason.

We can do the avant kit for the same price, yes.

Thanks for the reply, I am waiting for the feedback on the avant springs then I will pull the trigger.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[moophone]

1034 rear springs arrived this morning. I didn't measure the 7003's, but these look longer. I'll try to book something to have them installed next week.

[waxxonMTL]

thanks for keeping us posted!!

[moophone]

no problem. Booked install for Monday.

thanks for keeping us posted!!

[Neosapian]

I have ST's on my A6 2.7T of similar weight, balance and control arm design. DIY Install about ~6k miles ago with new control arms. I run a very low ride height in the summer with very rigid 235/35/19 S-04's... Tires just barely tuck into fender. Even at "moar low" status ride quality is absolutely OEM+ comfy & compliant with absolutely zero bounce or harshness (I am acutely particular about ride comfort & NVH).

Winter mode I raise the height to clear tread on snow tires - 235/40/18 Hakka R2's. 5mm of fender gap, at most. Even with 5 people & snowboard gear, passengers report smooth ride and cannot percieve a difference over stock suspension.

When I get on it at green lights, on-ramps or the twisties, the ST's make it very evident that the car handles its weight with much more composure and intent. Little less under steer. A lot less roll squat & dive. The tires load up nicely when you lean on them in power on turn.

Excellent build quality as far as I could tell from an external point of view. My main gripes are: adjustment collar could be alloy instead of plastic. Zinc coated steel construction isn't an issue for me because we don't salt roads in my county and because I promptly wash my vehicle after I've visited areas that do salt their roads. Others may prefer stainless steel. Most won't keep their coilovers long enough for it to matter. At any rate, shock body threading is stout and grease is cheap.

I realize my experience is with a different car but thorough reviews for these ST's are few and far between. It's nice to see a write up for the B8. Wanted to reinforce Moophone's experience and add that I will absolutely be running ST's when I purchase an S4.

[moophone]

1034 Avant rear springs installed.

First, ride height. They are still at max rear height currently, but sit noticeably higher than the 7003's. I'd guess about 1.5-2cm taller. As long as they don't sink more than 2cm I'll be perfectly happy.

Next, ride comfort.. unexpected HUGE improvement. The 1034's were clearly the wrong spring for this application. The 1034's are physically beefier and stronger (higher spring rate, can't compress them by hand nearly as easily) and REALLY tighten up the ride making the car seem way more connected to the road. Not just in the back - turn-in is MUCH crisper, overall balance much flatter, and you really feel every detail in the road now. They don't "flop" as much, and recover more quickly.

This should be a no-brainer upgrade for anyone - just make damn sure you get the 1034 springs as the 7003's do not work properly on the B8 S4. Also wouldn't recommend a spacer on the 7003 because that doesn't change the spring rate, only lifts the vehicle with reduced suspension travel and probably even more flop.

[waxxonMTL]

would you mind taking a picture in a few weeks once everything is settle ?

2) please report also on the damping, is it a lot more stiff than oem, similar to oem ? since it's non adjustable, we can only hope it's confortable enought for daily

3) can we buy the coilover with the 1034 spring right off the bat or it's an extra we have to order 2 individual spring ?

thanks a lot for your time and advice it's well appreciated !

[moophone]

I'll snap a pic in a week or so.

Damping seems about the same as the 9003 springs even though they are stiffer. The ride feels much better actually because there is less bounce over bumps.. it has quicker rebound now than the 9003 springs. Also I'm up higher with more suspension travel so that helps I'm sure as well 1034 are less bouncy, and stiffer than 9003 springs and you feel the road more. This is how it should have been from stock. I feel the chassis twist in hard cornering now where before it was flopping around on the suspension. In the spring, I'll will be picking up front+rear sways.

3) Sure,. you can buy the 1034 rear springs. I had them replaced for free since mine were sagging really bad and I just purchased them. KW requires a lot of measurements..

would you mind taking a picture in a few weeks once everything is settle ?

2) please report also on the damping, is it a lot more stiff than oem, similar to oem ? since it's non adjustable, we can only hope it's confortable enought for daily

3) can we buy the coilover with the 1034 spring right off the bat or it's an extra we have to order 2 individual spring ?

thanks a lot for your time and advice it's well appreciated !

[bhvrdr]

I'll snap a pic in a week or so.

Damping seems about the same as the 9003 springs even though they are stiffer. The ride feels much better actually because there is less bounce over bumps.. it has quicker rebound now than the 9003 springs. Also I'm up higher with more suspension travel so that helps I'm sure as well 1034 are less bouncy, and stiffer than 9003 springs and you feel the road more. This is how it should have been from stock. I feel the chassis twist in hard cornering now where before it was flopping around on the suspension. In the spring, I'll will be picking up front+rear sways.

3) Sure,. you can buy the 1034 rear springs. I had them replaced for free since mine were sagging really bad and I just purchased them. KW requires a lot of measurements..

thanks for posting about the rear springs. Do you happen to know if the setup you now have could just be ordered as a different application? For example, If we were to select the ST kit for a 2012 A4 Avant I would get p/n 90618 but if I select them for the FWD A4 all the way to the S4 it gives p/n 90607. Can we just select p/n 90618?

Thanks again,
mike

[moophone]

You'd have to check with your ST/KW Dealer on that one. I read some folks were able to swap them out at purchase time, while others had to deal with it (like me) as a warranty issue. I personally would check into it first, as dealing with this as a warranty issue is a pain in the butt.

To be honest, now I' thinking I'd like a slight increase in the front spring rate as well, but I have no major complaint with this setup now. At some point I plan to go USS + Alu Kruez, but with a baby on the way, I probably won't have time to care about this anytime soon.

Here are pics with rear all the way up. It may not look like a huge delta from my orig pic, but they sagged significantly after the original pic. Also it is higher, its a bit of an illusion due to angle. The handling improvement across the board is worth it. I'll lower somewhat in the spring both front and back.

BTW Check out the salt. I'll snap a pic when I raise it in the spring to see what kind of damage this winter did on the struts.

thanks for posting about the rear springs. Do you happen to know if the setup you now have could just be ordered as a different application? For example, If we were to select the ST kit for a 2012 A4 Avant I would get p/n 90618 but if I select them for the FWD A4 all the way to the S4 it gives p/n 90607. Can we just select p/n 90618?

Thanks again,
mike

[waxxonMTL]

this got me thinking I should look into ST and/or KW V1 :) thanks for the feedback

[ASDBS]

I have had ST's (with larger rear perches) never had any sag in the rear, ride wasn't too my liking though.
switched them after approx. 7k km's for H&R coils and have never looked back.
I have friend's running both ST's and Solowerks and both are very satisfied.