Coilover Options

[wwhan]

The 2019 RS5 SB is the best compromise vehicle I can find. There is nothing that comes closer to my needs & wants.

The RS5 would be perfect, if the DRC suspension was not so bouncy. It is the tradeoff, I live with.

[workerONE]

If you don't mind a firm suspension all of the time, and want handling that is more go-kart-like, coilovers and heavy anti-roll bars could be a good option.

The ABT coilovers allow for a more composed ride. Like you said you do not keep the ability to adjust suspension with the press of a button, but you can use a simple car jack to access the adjustment knobs, if you want to set it up for the track.
You provided a lot of great information here but your characterization of coilovers being limited to firm and go-kart like is not accurate.

edit: without DRC I had body roll, so I added a 034 rear (anti) sway bar. I really feel like I got lucky with the parts I chose and the coilover settings. I'm sure people could add coilovers and end up with a worse ride if they don't get them dialed in (don't go too hard especially in the front) and worse performance without a sway bar. I'll just say that it is possible to improve the suspension and handling. Maybe if you have patience and time you can get it just right.

[Dan99]

The ABT coilovers offer ride quality that OEM cannot compete with. Like you said you do not keep the ability to adjust suspension with the press of a button, but you can use a simple car jack to access the adjustment knobs, if you want to set it up for the track.
You provided a lot of great information here but your characterization of coilovers being limited to firm and go-kart like is not accurate.

I understand that you can set up coilovers to be on the softer side, but there is not the same level of convenience.

For example, if I'm driving along with the stock suspension in Auto and the road surface is fine, but then suddenly hit a bad stretch of road I can just hit a button and go into Comfort and get instant relief. As soon as the road surface gets better I can go back to Auto. Or, if I drive a distance to attend an HPDE, I can press a button to switch to Dynamic when I get there, then press Auto again for the return trip home. Or, my wife tells me I've been elected to drive us and our neighbors out for dinner, I can press Comfort when we leave and Auto when we get back.

You can't do that with coilovers.

Regarding the firmness of coilovers, my comments were made in the context of disabling DRC. If you disable DRC but you still want to limit pitch and roll, you necessarily need the coilovers to be more firm than the stock suspension because you don't have the additional counter forces to keep the car level. The same goes for anti-roll bars. You will need to install more firm anti-roll bars to limit body lean in turns, and this will firm-up your overall ride. And finally, if you want to limit nose dive during braking to resemble the behavior with DRC, you need springs that are much more firm. So, configuring coilovers to also control pitch and roll body movements will necessarily make them more firm. If you don't want your coilovers and anti-roll bars to be more firm, expect more body movement.

But, I'm not knocking coilovers. They are more flexible in their setup. They are just less flexible in use, and they can't fully replicate what DRC does without making the ride more firm. But I'm not arguing that one is better than the other. They are just different. Choose the option that's best for you.

Finally, I want to point out that my purpose in this thread had nothing to do with coilovers. I just wanted to make sure that everyone knows what DRC does, so they do not spend a lot of money changing their suspension to later learn what they have disabled. If coilovers are the right solution for you, get them, just understand the trade-offs.

[ywang98]

The 2019 RS5 SB is the best compromise vehicle I can find. There is nothing that comes closer to my needs & wants.

The RS5 would be perfect, if the DRC suspension was not so bouncy. It is the tradeoff, I live with.

I could not live with the trade-off, so I got the Comp. It IS the best compromise for this car. Not too harsh, absorbs the small bumps (better than the DRC), and the large bumps, it just eats it then total control of bounces. I smile every time I drive the car and marvel at how good the suspension is.

I had an R32 that I put on some V1 KW coilovers. That was a stiff ride albeit with great control, but the Comp's suspension is so civilized when compared to that.

[Dan99]

I could not live with the trade-off, so I got the Comp. It IS the best compromise for this car. Not too harsh, absorbs the small bumps (better than the DRC), and the large bumps, it just eats it then total control of bounces. I smile every time I drive the car and marvel at how good the suspension is.

I had an R32 that I put on some V1 KW coilovers. That was a stiff ride albeit with great control, but the Comp's suspension is so civilized when compared to that.

I have read similar things about most of the coilover options, but the Competition Package seems to make people a lot happier than the aftermarket options. I've tried unsuccessfully to find one to drive (there are at least 10 Audi dealers in the metro area) but, so far, all of the ones in stock are spoken for and unavailable for a test drive.

Again, I am not against coilovers, and I am not advocating to either use them or avoid them. I just see an ongoing lack of understanding of what DRC actually is and want people to know what it does before deciding to remove it. Coilovers will be the perfect option for some people, and the wrong one for others. It just depends on what you want from your car.

Does anyone have experience with the ABT springs (not coilovers), that allow you to retain DRC while altering the ride?

[jdm-v35]

I have read similar things about most of the coilover options, but the Competition Package seems to make people a lot happier than the aftermarket options. I've tried unsuccessfully to find one to drive (there are at least 10 Audi dealers in the metro area) but, so far, all of the ones in stock are spoken for and unavailable for a test drive.

Again, I am not against coilovers, and I am not advocating to either use them or avoid them. I just see an ongoing lack of understanding of what DRC actually is and want people to know what it does before deciding to remove it. Coilovers will be the perfect option for some people, and the wrong one for others. It just depends on what you want from your car.

Does anyone have experience with the ABT springs (not coilovers), that allow you to retain DRC while altering the ride?

I do not have the ABT coilovers but do have the H&R VTF adjustable springs which retain DRC. In comfort it rides very smoothly but is too soft for me personally. I usually leave it in Auto which is pretty stiff but about perfect and how I expect proper coilovers to usually feel. In Dynamic it is very stiff and jarring, which I don't mind for spirited driving, but is pretty uncomfortable daily unless the roads are perfect. On smooth roads in dynamic it rides on rails, but if the road is bumpy I almost lift off my seat on large bumps/whoops.

[Dan99]

I do not have the ABT coilovers but do have the H&R VTF adjustable springs which retain DRC. In comfort it rides very smoothly but is too soft for me personally. I usually leave it in Auto which is pretty stiff but about perfect and how I expect proper coilovers to usually feel. In Dynamic it is very stiff and jarring, which I don't mind for spirited driving, but is pretty uncomfortable daily unless the roads are perfect. On smooth roads in dynamic it rides on rails, but if the road is bumpy I almost lift off my seat on large bumps/whoops.

What year RS5 do you have, Coupe or SB?

Does this resolve any of the common complaints about DRC - underdamped, bounce, etc?

How would you compare the ride in Auto with the stock springs compared to the H&R?

Do you ever track your car? If so, how does Dynamic work in that environment with the H&R springs?

[VVG]

Great conversation. Many thanks to Dan99 for all the really great information and analysis. I wish to add a few points.

1. Firstly, I think most people recognize that DRC is independent of the suspension calibration, but simply refer to it as the "DRC suspension".

2. Trying to get people to agree on soft vs stiff on a suspension is like trying to get people to agree on loudness for an exhaust. Other than at the absolute extremes, opinions will be all over the place.

3. This is my second DRC suspension. My first was my B7 RS4, which I replaced with Stasis Motorsport coilovers. Spring rates were 800F/1200R. And yet, with the proper shocks, the ride was firm and yet very supple and not harsh at all. The car also instantly felt like it was 600lb lighter. My wife has a 2023 S5 with the base suspension, and honestly, I find that suspension to be better than the RS5. That being said, I find the RS5 suspension to be very dependent on the road surface. I will say this, however. My RS5 is my daily driver and I have Porsche as a spirted pure toy. As such, I don't feel a need to do anything to my RS5's suspension. It is not a superb suspension, but it does an admirable job of meeting the conflicting needs of a 4000lb luxury sedan that is also trying to perform like a sports car. If it was my only car, I would change out to coilovers. The only option I would consider in doing so would be the KW V4. Yes, they are pricey, but the vast adjustability would ensure that I could dial in exactly the overall spec that I would want. Over the years, I have found that I really don't need or care for adjustable suspensions. On cars with such an option, there is usually just one setting that I like the best and I just keep it there like 99% of the time.

4. As a different, but nonetheless related topic, I just want to point out that if you end up having a DRC system leak, and you are running aftermarket springs, the repair will not be covered under warranty. And it can be a very expensive repair. I am on a fully stock suspension, but if I was was on aftermarket springs and was denied warranty coverage for a leaking DRC system, I would switch to coilovers in that circumstance also.

[JohnEnglish]

Does anyone have experience with the ABT springs (not coilovers), that allow you to retain DRC while altering the ride?

The only post I can think of about ABT springs and the RS5 with DRC is this one: https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...1#post15001913

[SlowRolla]

I have the ABT HAS kit waiting to be installed on my B9 RS5 with DRC and was under the impression I retain all DRC function. Maybe Mops @ Nemesis has more information.

[JohnEnglish]

I have the ABT HAS kit waiting to be installed on my B9 RS5 with DRC and was under the impression I retain all DRC function. Maybe Mops @ Nemesis has more information.

There’s the ABT coilover kit which removes the DRC function since it replaces the OEM shocks and there’s the ABT HAS kit which retains the DRC functionality since it only replaces the springs and leaves the OEM shocks in place.

[SlowRolla]

There’s the ABT coilover kit which removes the DRC function since it replaces the OEM shocks and there’s the ABT HAS kit which retains the DRC functionality since it only replaces the springs and leaves the OEM shocks in place.

Thank you for the clarification. This thread got so far into detail, I legitimately wasn't sure anymore lol.

[JohnEnglish]

Let us know what you think of the ABT HAS kit once it’s installed.

[jdm-v35]

What year RS5 do you have, Coupe or SB?

Does this resolve any of the common complaints about DRC - underdamped, bounce, etc?

How would you compare the ride in Auto with the stock springs compared to the H&R?

Do you ever track your car? If so, how does Dynamic work in that environment with the H&R springs?

I have a SB. Damping feels better/compensated due to stiffer springs, but rebound is more harsh. Feels more planted and less boat like in all modes. If the roads are flat then in dynamic it feels much more firm and planted and less body roll. But if the roads are bad or very bumpy it definitely has a more harsh, sharp bounce to it.

Overall I would say that it basically moves the stiffness of all modes up a notch. If your roads are bad I would just leave it in comfort, or at best auto for daily use.

I do not track it but do some spirited driving from time to time and the stiffer springs eliminate some body roll. I have been and still am on the fence about doing sway bar upgrades, but it doesn't feel like an absolute must have with the spring upgrade. I would say that if anything it may even make it too stiff with upgraded sways; but I am sure I will eventually order them and do it anyway.

[ZacCT]

Ok so i finally got my 19' SB with 42k miles to the dealer. Suspension has been knocking for a few months now. They said all 4 struts are leaking and quoted me $11k to replace, not covered under CpO warranty. I laughed. I am torn between the KW v3's and the ABT from what I've read on here as they are similar in price. I wonder how long the ship time is for the ABT since they come from Germany. Unless someone here knows someone in the states that carries them.

[Mops@Nemesis]

Ok so i finally got my 19' SB with 42k miles to the dealer. Suspension has been knocking for a few months now. They said all 4 struts are leaking and quoted me $11k to replace, not covered under CpO warranty. I laughed. I am torn between the KW v3's and the ABT from what I've read on here as they are similar in price. I wonder how long the ship time is for the ABT since they come from Germany. Unless someone here knows someone in the states that carries them.

We don't have any stock, but I'll see if ABT Germany has stock. KW has no V3 kits in stock, but they show ~6/17 for more to be available.

[wwhan]

Other alternative to KW V3 & ABT coilovers...

The KW COILOVER KIT V4, Part #: 3A7100CJ comes with the DRC Deactivation kit: https://www.kwsuspensions.com/produc...-3a7100cj.html

KW COILOVER V4 rear springs are progressive rate, the front springs are linear rate.

[TJUNER_RS4]

@ZacCT same here, 18' RS4, knocking started with 35k miles and one central valve was replaced. Then at 49k miles again knocking sound and the second central valve was replaced. Now at 62k crazy knocking and they don't want to replace the central valves on warranty anymore, although they're not even one year old. Instead they wanted to quote me on 4 new shocks - although none is leaking - but emphasized that if the knocking doesn't goes away, the central valves has to replaced as well. In fact, that was it for me with the offical workshop.
Now, I will try at an DRC-specialist to drain and refill the system and hope that it goes away and keeps me away from having to buy aftermarket coilovers.

Long story short, DRC is while in it's environment, curvy roads, a beast. I'll drove all my life coilovers from KW, but once I experienced the DRC's full potential I've decided for the first time in my life to not lower the car and leave the DRC.

But the down side is, that is it not reliable at all! I had so much issues with it, that I really need to motivate myself to not throgh it out. I'm fully aware, that the driveability in some ares will be worse, according as for which use you set the standard coilovers up.
Altough I have a very good personal relationship with the guys from KW in Germany, I will go the way with Ohlins. If I would have money to throw, then it would be the V4. But on the level of V3, for myself the Ohlins has some more advantages, as the ability to rebuild it very easy. Almost every internal and external part is purchasable, body is from aluminium, springs with different rates very easy orderable and so on......

[TJUNER_RS4]

@wwhan You don't need the DRC deactivation kit, just disable the DRC ecu in the gateway ecu list and pull a fuse!

[Mops@Nemesis]

@ZacCT

ABT has come back with a 6 week lead and KW a 3 week lead for both the V3 and V4 kit.

[wwhan]

@ZacCT

ABT has come back with a 6 week lead and KW a 3 week lead for both the V3 and V4 kit.

Have you installed any of the KW V4 or ABT coilover kits. Any thoughts on the those two options?

[BlindingRS5]

@wwhan You don't need the DRC deactivation kit, just disable the DRC ecu in the gateway ecu list and pull two fuses!

PM Sent for a how-to. Thanks

[VVG]

Has anyone looked at getting actual Audi competition suspension components and retrofitting them to replace the DRC suspension?

I think that as long as my DRC suspension is functioning properly, I will just stay with it. However if it starts to fail in any way, I am going straight to ABT or KW V4 coilovers. I am not going to fuss around with trying to have the DRC system repaired. But I am still curious about using the actual Audi comp components.

[TJUNER_RS4]

@VVG just for the sake of completeness, here are the OE part numbers for the AUDI competition HAS, which is very similiar in terms of construction, to the KW V4.

front left 8W0412021AL
front right 8W0412022AL
rear left 8W0513021AR
rear right 8W0513022J

The competition HAS is quoting roughly about € 8'000.-. excl. VAT.

[Mops@Nemesis]

Have you installed any of the KW V4 or ABT coilover kits. Any thoughts on the those two options?

We have the ABT kit on our B9.5 Coupe and have installed quite a few of them at our Audi store in DE. I have no experience with the V4 other than driving a Comp car for short period. The ABT kit feels really good.

[IMG]53353666859_d89eb78935_o by Nemesis Autosport, on Flickr[/IMG]

[wwhan]

@VVG just for the sake of completeness, here are the OE part numbers for the AUDI competition HAS, which is very similiar in terms of construction, to the KW V4.

front left 8W0412021AL
front right 8W0412022AL
rear left 8W0513021AR
rear right 8W0513022J

The competition HAS is quoting roughly about € 8'000.-. excl. VAT.

The above shock & strut numbers don't seem to include the springs or other hardware?

The retail price for KW V4 coilover seems cheaper (~ $7100) than the RS5 Audi OEM competition parts, which is to be expected.

======================

Strut - Audi (8W0-412-021-AL)
https://www.genuineaudiparts.com/oem...ut-8w0412021al
MSRP = $2300
sale price = $1872

Strut - Audi (8W0-412-022-AL)
https://www.genuineaudiparts.com/oem...ut-8w0412022al
MSRP = $2300
sale price = $1872

Shock ABS - Audi (8W0-513-021-AR)
https://www.genuineaudiparts.com/oem...bs-8w0513021ar
MSRP = $3465.72
sale price = $2838.42

Shock ABS - Audi (8W0-513-022-J)
https://www.genuineaudiparts.com/oem...abs-8w0513022j
MSRP = $2,224.73
sale price = $1,822.05
=================================
Total MSRP = $10290.45
sale price = $8404.47

[workerONE]

In case anyone's wondering about lead time for the ABC coilover kit, once mine shipped I received it in about 4 days.

[Dan99]

I could not live with the trade-off, so I got the Comp. It IS the best compromise for this car. Not too harsh, absorbs the small bumps (better than the DRC), and the large bumps, it just eats it then total control of bounces. I smile every time I drive the car and marvel at how good the suspension is.

I had an R32 that I put on some V1 KW coilovers. That was a stiff ride albeit with great control, but the Comp's suspension is so civilized when compared to that.

I have read similar things about most of the coilover options, but the Competition Package seems to make people a lot happier than the aftermarket options. I've tried unsuccessfully to find one to drive (there are at least 10 Audi dealers in the metro area) but, so far, all of the ones in stock are spoken for and unavailable for a test drive.

I was finally able to drive an RS5 Sportback with the Competition Package (CP), and compare it back-to-back over the same roads with my B9 RS5 Sportback, which has the Sport Suspension Plus with DRC (SS+DRC).

First, I have to agree with @ywang98 that the CP is a really nice suspension. Whether or not it is the right suspension for you depends on what you want from your car.

My test drive was over a mix of high and low speed roads, smooth and rough, with some favorite turns mixed in. My overall impression is that Audi did a fantastic job with the CP. While the lowered suspension adds some challenge in our area with steep drive entrances and speed bumps, the CP is very poised, balanced and flat in turns, and the steering feels tighter and more precise without being overly heavy. It feels planted, is easy to rotate the car in turns, and it inspires more confidence. It is reminiscent of the suspensions in my previous Porsches, despite the additional weight. It's a nice option.

Since this thread is about coilovers, and not CP, it's important to remember that CP has many changes making it is hard to isolate the effect of just the coilovers when it also has track-oriented tires, different steering, different anti-roll bars and ride height, weight reduction through removal of sound insulation, changes to the transmission and Sport Differential tuning, etc. But I think I can draw enough of a contrast for those trying to decide.

Overall, my younger self would get the CP in a heartbeat; my current self is less inclined to do so despite the obvious performance enhancement. It boils down to personal preference and priorities.

The CP is "on" all of the time and it provides a level of handling that my car does not have. My car is not bad, but the CP is better. Some of that is due to the coilovers and some is due to other changes. If handling is your primary concern, and you are buying a new RS5, the CP is the obvious choice.

On the other hand, if you want a more comfortable ride in your GT car, the suspension in my car is the obvious choice. I drove the CP over the test route first. When I switched back to my car, the differences in comfort were immediately obvious. First, I did detect some bounce in Dynamic in my car over a section of road that the CP handled with no bounce. However, that bounce disappeared in Auto in my car, so blame the Dynamic damper setting, not DRC. I was left with the impression that Dynamic was over-damped for compression, not under-damped. The rear of the car would go up with each imperfection in the road, rather than absorb it. Auto absorbed these imperfections and there was no bounce.

In addition, my car in Auto felt silky smooth in Auto compared to CP. I've never thought of my suspension as silky smooth, but that was the first thing that came to mind after driving the CP over the same section of road. For example, I could feel expansion cracks in a relatively smooth concrete road with the CP, but they were non-existent with the Auto setting in my car.

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, I drove sports cars for most of my life and loved the go-kart level of handling and wanted to feel the road all of the time. Expansion cracks in concrete were not an issue for me. The CP is that type of suspension, but I eventually grew weary of feeling everything all of the time. My wife was a willing partner through all of my cars. She loved the Porsches as well and did not mind the road feel, and even spent time on the track with me, but we eventually decided that it's nice to be able to travel in a bit more comfort. My RS5 does that, but the CP does not.

If your tendency is toward sports car handling, the CP is the obvious choice. If your tendency is toward GT level of performance and comfort, I believe the Sports Suspension Plus with DRC is a better option. When my car is in Auto or Comfort it is much more comfortable yet it still corners relatively flat with DRC. So, all of this confirmed earlier discussions. CP corners flat but it is accomplished through a suspension that is more firm all of the time. DRC corners relatively flat, and does so with softer suspension settings. CP is better from a performance point of view; I prefer SS+DRC from a comfort point of view.

So, how do you translate all of this into installing third party coilovers and removing DRC? First, you will have to change more things than just the coilovers to achieve a similar outcome to CP. Tires, wheels, anti-roll bars all need to be changed, along with removing sound insulation to reduce weight, and some things can't be replicated such as steering and programming. It will also be difficult to match spring rates and damping options with third party coilovers. However, if you take a wholistic approach to the project and do more than just coilovers, it should improve handling and still corner as flat or flatter as DRC, but it will necessarily be more firm all of the time.

So, that's the trade-off. Coilovers can provide a higher level of performance and level handling over SS+DRC, in exchange for a ride that is firm all of the time.

Once again, it just depends what you want from your car. In my view, if you are looking for sharper handling in turns and don't mind a suspension that is constantly firm without being harsh, and you can live with less ground clearance, CP is the clear winner, and third party coilovers can approximate that if set up correctly. However, if you want more of a GT car and you want comfort along with performance, I think SS+DRC is the better option.

Ultimately, you should test drive them for yourself and then decide which one best fits you, but that's my take on it.

[workerONE]

Since there's only a few of us here that went with ABT coilovers, I'll add my update which is that I didn't want to adjust mine too firm so I added a 034 rear anti sway bar and it is a big improvement to body roll and in corner handling.

[djmika]

I'm curious about the Competition HAS. Does anyone know for sure if these do or don't come with the springs?

Europrice has this listed as complete with a MSRP of $15K with their price as $11K. I guess it could be that they're just trying to charge more but $2600 more seems extreme.

https://europrice.us/suspension-pack...mpetition-plus

[wwhan]

I'm curious about the Competition HAS. Does anyone know for sure if these do or don't come with the springs?

Europrice has this listed as complete with a MSRP of $15K with their price as $11K. I guess it could be that they're just trying to charge more but $2600 more seems extreme.

https://europrice.us/suspension-pack...mpetition-plus

Those are coilovers, shocks and springs, similar functionality to the KW v4

https://www.kwsuspensions.net/audi_rs4_rs5

[TJUNER_RS4]

I want to bring this up again and report an interesting find I made with my DRC suspension on my RS4 B9. As I tried to get rid of the well known knocking noise on my DRC I visited a DRC specialist, which drives 24h endurance on the green hell with his Porsche race car and has a lot of experience in suspension.
He informed me, that he's doing every week 1-2 RS cars with DRC from all over Europe and it's always the same. When he attaches the filling device and start the bleeding process. If there are visible blisters and in fact air in the system, knocking noise is there. As soon as he manage to bleed all air out, there is no knocking. As my dampers had seen already 70k miles, they aren't a 100% leakproof anymore and the line front left to rear right starts to pull air after bleeding it for several minutes. And you see while pushing on the dampers that more blisters appear. He then stated, that knocking will be still there. After a test drive it was almost perfect, just a little knocking sound, barely noticable. So, he stated that if there would be somebody to rebuild or reseal the dampers, that they would be perfect and like new afterwards and 100% no knocking sound. Of course sometimes it is just the line, that needs to be replaced to get rid of having air in the system and almost never it was the central valves.

Anyway, what is very interesting, the DRC system on RS4 needs to be filled at 16bar pressure. But while he was working on the car, I reported that dynamic mode is almost to not usable on this cars. His recommendati was, to go up with the pressure. He then increased the pressure to 18bar and I was sure, that this will be undrivable. But a test drive prooved something different and the car felt, as if I would have mounted KW, Öhlins dampers. Very settled and firm, but not to hard and the dynamic mode was still on the harder side but not as bouncy as before. It was so driveable that I then drove it in dynamic mode at 300kph on the German Autobahn and I was impressed, how good the car and suspension felt.
Since, I drove it 7k miles and on highway and curvy mountain roads, I always use dynamic mode now, which in for 6 years before I never used.

[VVG]

I want to bring this up again and report an interesting find I made with my DRC suspension on my RS4 B9. As I tried to get rid of the well known knocking noise on my DRC I visited a DRC specialist, which drives 24h endurance on the green hell with his Porsche race car and has a lot of experience in suspension.
He informed me, that he's doing every week 1-2 RS cars with DRC from all over Europe and it's always the same. When he attaches the filling device and start the bleeding process. If there are visible blisters and in fact air in the system, knocking noise is there. As soon as he manage to bleed all air out, there is no knocking. As my dampers had seen already 70k miles, they aren't a 100% leakproof anymore and the line front left to rear right starts to pull air after bleeding it for several minutes. And you see while pushing on the dampers that more blisters appear. He then stated, that knocking will be still there. After a test drive it was almost perfect, just a little knocking sound, barely noticable. So, he stated that if there would be somebody to rebuild or reseal the dampers, that they would be perfect and like new afterwards and 100% no knocking sound. Of course sometimes it is just the line, that needs to be replaced to get rid of having air in the system and almost never it was the central valves.

Anyway, what is very interesting, the DRC system on RS4 needs to be filled at 16bar pressure. But while he was working on the car, I reported that dynamic mode is almost to not usable on this cars. His recommendati was, to go up with the pressure. He then increased the pressure to 18bar and I was sure, that this will be undrivable. But a test drive prooved something different and the car felt, as if I would have mounted KW, Öhlins dampers. Very settled and firm, but not to hard and the dynamic mode was still on the harder side but not as bouncy as before. It was so driveable that I then drove it in dynamic mode at 300kph on the German Autobahn and I was impressed, how good the car and suspension felt.
Since, I drove it 7k miles and on highway and curvy mountain roads, I always use dynamic mode now, which in for 6 years before I never used.

Good to know, although if your system is leaking, I would imagine that the higher pressure could possibly make that problem worse, no?

[Bagy]

I want to bring this up again and report an interesting find I made with my DRC suspension on my RS4 B9. As I tried to get rid of the well known knocking noise on my DRC I visited a DRC specialist, which drives 24h endurance on the green hell with his Porsche race car and has a lot of experience in suspension.
He informed me, that he's doing every week 1-2 RS cars with DRC from all over Europe and it's always the same. When he attaches the filling device and start the bleeding process. If there are visible blisters and in fact air in the system, knocking noise is there. As soon as he manage to bleed all air out, there is no knocking. As my dampers had seen already 70k miles, they aren't a 100% leakproof anymore and the line front left to rear right starts to pull air after bleeding it for several minutes. And you see while pushing on the dampers that more blisters appear. He then stated, that knocking will be still there. After a test drive it was almost perfect, just a little knocking sound, barely noticable. So, he stated that if there would be somebody to rebuild or reseal the dampers, that they would be perfect and like new afterwards and 100% no knocking sound. Of course sometimes it is just the line, that needs to be replaced to get rid of having air in the system and almost never it was the central valves.

Anyway, what is very interesting, the DRC system on RS4 needs to be filled at 16bar pressure. But while he was working on the car, I reported that dynamic mode is almost to not usable on this cars. His recommendati was, to go up with the pressure. He then increased the pressure to 18bar and I was sure, that this will be undrivable. But a test drive prooved something different and the car felt, as if I would have mounted KW, Öhlins dampers. Very settled and firm, but not to hard and the dynamic mode was still on the harder side but not as bouncy as before. It was so driveable that I then drove it in dynamic mode at 300kph on the German Autobahn and I was impressed, how good the car and suspension felt.
Since, I drove it 7k miles and on highway and curvy mountain roads, I always use dynamic mode now, which in for 6 years before I never used.

Gruetzi :)

Can you tell me where? i am from Germany, would know where he is :)

[TJUNER_RS4]

@Bagy Grüezi here you go https://kappeler-autoservice.de/

[djmika]

Reviving an old thread.

After driving a 2024 RS5 Comp yesterday, I'm strongly considering biting the bullet and ordering the suspension for my car. I've found right around $7K, so the same price as KWv4 now. I have what I think is the rear sway bar which is part number 8W0-5110395-AR. Does anyone know what front bar goes with the comp? I can't seem to find anything. Maybe the front bar doesn't need to be replaced...

[B6_Dolphin]

Reviving an old thread.

After driving a 2024 RS5 Comp yesterday, I'm strongly considering biting the bullet and ordering the suspension for my car. I've found right around $7K, so the same price as KWv4 now. I have what I think is the rear sway bar which is part number 8W0-5110395-AR. Does anyone know what front bar goes with the comp? I can't seem to find anything. Maybe the front bar doesn't need to be replaced...

As a Competition owner myself, the Comp bars are different - their diameter isn't much bigger than a standard RS5, but they are solid vs hollow for a higher spring rate. FWIW, I still wasn't happy when pushing my Comp at the limit, so I installed Eurocode Tuning FRT & RR STBs with their endlinks. I have the front STB at its lowest rate (outer-most) position (out of 3), and the RR STB at the middle position (out of 3), and I get just a bit of rear end drift at the limit (oversteer), vs a front end push (understeer).

https://www.ecodetuning.com/ec0202-0...ategory_id=608

I also have the 034 Motorsports Front Strut Tower Brace:

https://www.034motorsport.com/034mot...-aluminum.html

Even though I'm running Michelin Pilot A/S 4 tires for the Fall/Winter/Early Spring vs the Pirelli Corsas on stock Comp wheels, there's some give-up in overall grip, but it's not too terrible considering. It might also have to do with getting my RS5 re-aligned with slightly more camber up-front along with corner balancing it, too, since that can be done with the stock coilovers.

Good luck with your suspension changes - I think you'll find it's well-worth it!

[djmika]

Thanks B6_Dolphin. Good info.

As I say, I can tell that the Comp rear bar is different because I was able to find the part number. I can't however, find a front bar that's specific to the Comp. There seem to be multiple part numbers for B9 and 9.5 front bars.

You may be step or five more hard core than I am. Unless someone knows and can say that it'd be a mistake, I'm inclined to keep the front bar and add the Comp rear bar if/when I do the Comp suspension upgrade.

FWIW, it looks like the EuroCode bars have poly bushings but no grease zerks for service. That'd be enough of a reason for me not to go that route. Did you look at 034's setup, out of curiosity? Interestingly, they show grease zerks and they claim their teflon-lined bushings don't need grease. Maybe they made a change but left old pics... They also offer the option to go to spherical end links for more performance. Again, probably not my thing. I absolutely will not do anything that adds NVH. My goal is for my car to feel like the Comp I drove.

Lastly, to address Dan99, I've had a different experience. I felt that the Comp I drove was more comfortable than my car with DRC in any mode. The small stuff is soaked up much more effectively in the Comp. So while there are times when the sport suspension is softer, namely in Comfort mode, that'd be more mid-low speed movement. Over the high-speed stuff (road imperfections, cracks, etc.) the Comp soaks that up better than any DRC mode. To summarize, I find the stock sport suspension too stiff over small stuff underdamped everywhere else. It's easy to get the Sport + DRC suspension to lose composure. The Comp, much less so. And lastly but importantly, the car I drove was very lightly used. By that I mean, it had 750 miles on it. Crazy. But it COULD have been adjusted by whoever had it for the short time. Which brings up the point that, just test driving a Comp may not tell someone everything they want to know. Luckily, it did for me. It took me less than 30 minutes behind the wheel in that car to know that the Comp suspension is near-perfect for my needs/wants.

[Dr. Jekyll]

Thanks B6_Dolphin. Good info.

As I say, I can tell that the Comp rear bar is different because I was able to find the part number. I can't however, find a front bar that's specific to the Comp. There seem to be multiple part numbers for B9 and 9.5 front bars.

You may be step or five more hard core than I am. Unless someone knows and can say that it'd be a mistake, I'm inclined to keep the front bar and add the Comp rear bar if/when I do the Comp suspension upgrade.

FWIW, it looks like the EuroCode bars have poly bushings but no grease zerks for service. That'd be enough of a reason for me not to go that route. Did you look at 034's setup, out of curiosity? Interestingly, they show grease zerks and they claim their teflon-lined bushings don't need grease. Maybe they made a change but left old pics... They also offer the option to go to spherical end links for more performance. Again, probably not my thing. I absolutely will not do anything that adds NVH. My goal is for my car to feel like the Comp I drove.

Lastly, to address Dan99, I've had a different experience. I felt that the Comp I drove was more comfortable than my car with DRC in any mode. The small stuff is soaked up much more effectively in the Comp. So while there are times when the sport suspension is softer, namely in Comfort mode, that'd be more mid-low speed movement. Over the high-speed stuff (road imperfections, cracks, etc.) the Comp soaks that up better than any DRC mode. To summarize, I find the stock sport suspension too stiff over small stuff underdamped everywhere else. It's easy to get the Sport + DRC suspension to lose composure. The Comp, much less so. And lastly but importantly, the car I drove was very lightly used. By that I mean, it had 750 miles on it. Crazy. But it COULD have been adjusted by whoever had it for the short time. Which brings up the point that, just test driving a Comp may not tell someone everything they want to know. Luckily, it did for me. It took me less than 30 minutes behind the wheel in that car to know that the Comp suspension is near-perfect for my needs/wants.

Europrice sells the comp front and rear sways as a package. They don't list the part numbers though.

Thanks for the DRC vs. Comp suspension comparison. My DRC is still kicking, but when it's sub 45 degrees out, it clunks. If/when my DRC finally fails, I plan to replace it with some KW's. Based on your comparison, the V4's appear to be the way to go.

[Dan99]

...Lastly, to address Dan99, I've had a different experience. I felt that the Comp I drove was more comfortable than my car with DRC in any mode. The small stuff is soaked up much more effectively in the Comp. So while there are times when the sport suspension is softer, namely in Comfort mode, that'd be more mid-low speed movement. Over the high-speed stuff (road imperfections, cracks, etc.) the Comp soaks that up better than any DRC mode. To summarize, I find the stock sport suspension too stiff over small stuff underdamped everywhere else. It's easy to get the Sport + DRC suspension to lose composure. The Comp, much less so. And lastly but importantly, the car I drove was very lightly used. By that I mean, it had 750 miles on it. Crazy. But it COULD have been adjusted by whoever had it for the short time. Which brings up the point that, just test driving a Comp may not tell someone everything they want to know. Luckily, it did for me. It took me less than 30 minutes behind the wheel in that car to know that the Comp suspension is near-perfect for my needs/wants.

The Competition suspension is definitely more settled and composed and, as I said above, the younger me would have purchased the Competition model in a heart beat. My older self no longer likes to feel every blemish in the road surface, so the Competition model was a bit too firm for my current taste. During my test drive I could feel every expansion crack in the highway in the Competition model. I then took the exact same route in my DRC RS5 and the same expansion cracks were imperceptible in comfort and auto. The one I drove was new and right off the dealer's lot, so perhaps the shocks had been adjusted some on the one you drove...? Anyway, I have nothing against the Competition suspension. I think it was well done and the right choice for anyone who wants the most aggressive handling from an RS5.