Buy a B8 to replce a B7?

[kingDL]

Hello,

I currently have a 2005 B7 which I have owned for about 3½ years now. Its in super nice condition and has about 105.000km on the meter (~6500 miles).

I have also a small mountain of tuning parts, but Im now getting 2nd thoughts about the whole thing. I'm thinking the car is becoming too old and also it is red which draws too much attention(I drive like a maniac so having a car that is easy to remember is not good for me).

But the main reason for writing this post is that I would like to know how the suspension is on the B8 compared to the B7. I have the S-line sports package on my B7 which includes the extra hard s-line sport suspension(dunno if you even can get this in the US). For suspension OEM equipped on a family car, its unbelivably hard. No problems on the highway, but in the city witch bad roads its not overley pleasant. I have driven A6's with the same suspension package, and its no way near how my car feels. In my mind, this is somewhat due to the distance between the axels, which is quite short on the B7. The B8 has a much longer distance there, compared to the overall lengt of the car.

So my question is: Is a B8 with S-line sports supsension just as hard and unforgiving as the B7?

(If I change to a B8 I can still use most of my tuning parts, except the IC's )

If there is any other pros/cons with a B7 to B8 swap, please let me know.

[b6Hate4]

Honestly why not just get new suspension setup with adjustable dampening?

And yes I do believe we have that same suspension package.

[Project Quattro]

I have the sports suspension and it rides very similarly to the standard springs on my previous B8. It does handle better, though. I haven't been in a sports package B7 so I can't really compare them, but it would probably be worth driving to check it out.

Like B6 said, the cheapest option there is probably getting a set of coilovers like Solo-Werks which have a soft ride. I realize that certain kinds of mods are difficult to legally do for safety reasons in some European countries though.


Sent from the Pedal Responce boardroom

[kingDL]

Yeh car inspection is a bicth here, the law here says (like most eu countries) that you may not replace ANYTHING, not even the exhaust, or change size of the tires! But the law is one thing and reality another, they let most stuff thru if it's not too obvious. Hence no top mount turbos or shiny pop off valves. BUt coilovers, naaw, they dont care.

Its not amoney issue really, having a too old car means you become a more obvious spot on the cop radar. So my car is very nice, but you can buy a B7 with tons of miles for like $4000 already, soon that will be $2000 and soon some B7's will be the choice of your local speed junkie. I like driving around at odd hours and I don't appreciate being pulled over for nothing "a car like yours was recently spotted at a burglary". That happened to me too many times already. I know for a fact this doesnt happen when you have a nice(not too nice!) and new car.

Are you guys sure audi offered the s-line suspension in the US? Its quite abit stiffer than the "regular" sports suspension. I mean when I look at us classifieds at b7's I can hardly find a car that has sport seats, compare that to sweden where I would say at least 99.9% of all B7's have sport seats and like 95% sport suspension. Very few cars here have the suspenion I have on this car, as the only way to buy it here was as a part of the s-line sports package which had a cost of about 15% of the car's base price.
(BTW why does most cars over there have the standard seats? It cant be because you are big, Im 300 pounds+ and sit like a king in those sports seats)

Guess I should test a few B8's...but they are so hard to find with the right eqipment over here.

[zokissima]

On smooth roads, the S suspension is perfectly fine; even on a standard suspension on a B8 in rough road conditions there's not terribly good isolation into the cabin.

[B7AudiSline]

I would say the B7 and B8 sports suspension are about the same, my old B7 had the sports suspension like my B8 and handled pretty much the same. I would say the biggest difference is going to the electric power steering, that took me a few weeks to get use to the feel.

[kingDL]

Uhh it has electric power sterring?? Man...I only heard bad things about that

[Project Quattro]

Uhh it has electric power sterring?? Man...I only heard bad things about that

It's very light, but that was never an issue for me... The only time it really bother me is on a highway when there is a cross breeze trying to blow the car sideways. The system doesn't seem to know how to react and it gets an inconsistent feel. Electric steering is only on the B8.5, at least in the US.


Sent from the Pedal Responce boardroom

[kingDL]

It's very light, but that was never an issue for me... The only time it really bother me is on a highway when there is a cross breeze trying to blow the car sideways. The system doesn't seem to know how to react and it gets an inconsistent feel. Electric steering is only on the B8.5, at least in the US.

Hmm yeah it might be different - the gearboxes are different for sure. You guys get the 8 speed tiptronic while EU gets the 7 speed dual clutch.

[Acme]

I'm coming from a B7 which had 140000 km on the clock when I sold it just last week... I loved that car. I sold it for various reasons, the km being one, it had rust issues I didn't want to deal with, and after 4 years I was ready for a change...

The B8.5 is a very nice car, a lot more "mature" than the B7 was. A lot more comfortable I would say also. I love the look, I love the interior (I have an S-Line with Alcantara), I love how the 2.0TFSI pulls compare the the 2.0T (stock to stock comparison, can't compare to my stage 2 B7 which had a lot more torque at low rpms). I also have adaptive suspension (ADS), which I would say would be the best option in your case because it's the best of both worlds IMO. Our roads are pretty harsh here and although I'm usually in dynamic mode, sometimes I switch the suspension to comfort on long rides on the highway. The difference is noticeable.

I can't compare to my B7 though, I installed a set of Koni FSD with Eibach springs on it as soon as I got the car, and didn't drive much on the stock suspension.

I would also say that the electric steering wheel (which is for the B8.5 only, so 2013 and up) is indeed weird and there's a definite "learning curve". I'm still not used to it yet after a couple thousand km. It's been very windy here in the last 2 weeks, and like Project Quattro said, it doesn't know how to react to the car being pushed side to side by cross winds. You don't get the feedback you expect from the wheel, and it's strange. I'm not saying I hate it, it's just different. But I liked the B7 a lot more in this regard.

And to answer your question, from my perspective.... If you like your B7 a lot, and it has no issues, 105 000 isn't a lot of km. I did most of my mods around 100 000 km and drove the car for 2 years after that. It's a good car and it's very fun to drive. It's not black and white and maybe like me you just need something new. But the B7 is still a great car, if it has no serious issues I would seriously consider keeping it!

[B7AudiSline]

I thought all B8's from 2009+ have electric power steering, mine is the 2012 model and has electric power steering?

[Acme]

I thougth it was a hydrolic system before 2013... But could be wrong...

Sent from my SM-G920W8 using Tapatalk

[Project Quattro]

I thought all B8's from 2009+ have electric power steering, mine is the 2012 model and has electric power steering?

I thougth it was a hydrolic system before 2013... But could be wrong...

Sent from my SM-G920W8 using Tapatalk

US models 2009-2012 should have hydraulic, 2013-2016 should have electric. ROW I have no idea but I think you'd likely just subtract one year from each of those numbers.

[kingDL]

Just a comment...even if it is electric, it's still hydralic?

[Acme]

Just a comment...even if it is electric, it's still hydralic?

As I understand it, all the system is electric and there's no hydraulic part anymore...

[hyperunion]

Coming from a previous b6.... Which is pretty much same suspension as b7.. And on pss9s with H@R rear bar... B6 handled on rails... Now with new b8.5 on H@R coilovers and both front and rear sway bars.. Ride is not as stiff as pss9 equipped b6 ( probably due to lower spring rate... ).. But due to the numerous chassis improvements on the b8 b8.5 platform, I feel it handles much better and flatter while being much more compliant..

[kingDL]

Thanks for your answers guys, I will definatley try out a few B8's.

Don't think Ill find one with adaptive suspension though hehe, you can hardly even find an A4 here that hasn't got textile interior.

[kvitrafn]

Well, I drive a B8 2.0tq avant with the euro S-line suspension and S-tronic driveline. And while it is a much better car overall, I miss the honest mechanical feel of the B7. I just grew tired of the constant maintenance issues and the rust. Also, it was too much fun to drive fast for my own good.

The B7 sport S-line suspension is known to ride rough and is not an attractive option for resale. Even a 50mm drop on Bilsteins was an improvement. I My B8 has the S-line sports suspension and rides pretty good. It's good enough that I haven't bothered to lower it to get rid of the wheel gap because the ride/comfort tradeoff is so good right now.

I don't know if that means anything in the real world, but it's the first stock car I've ever owned. It is softer and larger, but the 211 TFSI and s-tronic is such a great package,

[kingDL]

Well, I drive a B8 2.0tq avant with the euro S-line suspension and S-tronic driveline. And while it is a much better car overall, I miss the honest mechanical feel of the B7. I just grew tired of the constant maintenance issues and the rust. Also, it was too much fun to drive fast for my own good.

The B7 sport S-line suspension is known to ride rough and is not an attractive option for resale. Even a 50mm drop on Bilsteins was an improvement. I My B8 has the S-line sports suspension and rides pretty good. It's good enough that I haven't bothered to lower it to get rid of the wheel gap because the ride/comfort tradeoff is so good right now.

I don't know if that means anything in the real world, but it's the first stock car I've ever owned. It is softer and larger, but the 211 TFSI and s-tronic is such a great package,

The rust..hehehe...tell me about it I have replaced both front fenders and the drivers door...splash guards is a must in our end of the world.

[kingDL]

Well, I drive a B8 2.0tq avant with the euro S-line suspension and S-tronic driveline. And while it is a much better car overall, I miss the honest mechanical feel of the B7. I just grew tired of the constant maintenance issues and the rust. Also, it was too much fun to drive fast for my own good.

The B7 sport S-line suspension is known to ride rough and is not an attractive option for resale. Even a 50mm drop on Bilsteins was an improvement. I My B8 has the S-line sports suspension and rides pretty good. It's good enough that I haven't bothered to lower it to get rid of the wheel gap because the ride/comfort tradeoff is so good right now.

I don't know if that means anything in the real world, but it's the first stock car I've ever owned. It is softer and larger, but the 211 TFSI and s-tronic is such a great package,

Btw what Bilsteins did you use?

[kvitrafn]

Bilstein B12 Sprintline kit with the H&R Springs (50mm). The Eibach springs (35mm) probably ride better.