Shock absorbers & springs

[mikey vrs]

Im thinking of replacing the shock absorbers & springs on my vrs,i dont really want to lower it or stiffen the ride anymore than it already is,what replacements have you used & are happy with? 

[dakar]

Sod that Mikey,looks far better lowered a touch

[wiilydog]

I can recommend b6 shocks if you are not planning to lower

[mikey vrs]

I can recommend b6 shocks if you are not planning to lower

What springs would you suggest with these? 

[mikey vrs]

Sod that Mikey,looks far better lowered a touch

Not bothered about how it looks,after 70k the originals are struggling on the crappy roads im driving on to work & back,i suffer with a bad back so dont want it any stiffer than standard,cant afford to change cars so vrs will have to stay for a few more years. 

[wiilydog]

Stock or OEM replacements such as kilen springs. If your original springs are fine there is no reason to replace them unless they rusty or sagging.

[brad1.8T]

Not bothered about how it looks,after 70k the originals are struggling on the crappy roads im driving on to work & back,i suffer with a bad back so dont want it any stiffer than standard,cant afford to change cars so vrs will have to stay for a few more years. 

Stiffer doesn't necessarily mean harsher.  I find the ride on my Eibachs & Koni Sports to be better than OEM.

 

I can understand why you don't wish to lower it though.

 

Have a look at KYB OEM replacement springs or Lesjofor?  Otherwise, if you are happy with the current spring rate & height then go with OEM.

 

I really like my Koni Sports dampers.  Disregard the adjustability - I've done it once in 60,000km.  The Bilstein B6 are good too.

[willy0329]

Bilstien b4 shocks are a direct oem replacement only £200 for the vrs on ebay at the moment . like brad 1.8t said KYB springs which euros sell .

[mikey vrs]

Thanks Guys. 

[jeallen01]

Bilstien b4 shocks are a direct oem replacement only £200 for the vrs on ebay at the moment . like brad 1.8t said KYB springs which euros sell .

I'm having considerable regrets about fitting new standard KYB estate rear springs & shocks to my estate last summer!

The ride is absolutely AWFUL at low speed on anything like a bad road (and we have a lot of those in London!) and not much better at higher speeds. There seems to be no suspension travel at all over very small ridges and potholes, and you feel every bump, ripple or dip in the road surface when crawling along in, say, a traffic queue.

My back, and that of my wife, can't take much more of this and so I'm looking to change at least the rear shocks first. I say "first" because I had a very similar ride problem when I fitted Koni Yellows adjustables (even on the softest setting) to the rear of my old Mk IV Golf estate but the ride got a LOT better when I changed those to the softer Koni Red adjustables - which, most unfortunately, are not available for the Octavia.

Therefore I'm now looking for good quality soft(ish!) rear shocks to replace the KYBs - any suggestions?

Note: GSF have a "41% off everything" on-line deal this weekend (BTW: the discount code is "VAL41") and I was trying to make use of that as they do list a Bilstein standard rear shock for this vehicle. GSF's P/N is 513VG1041 but when I rang the local branch at Feltham, the guy I talked to was absolutely useless when I tried to find out which type of Bilstein it is (I knew more than he did, and all he could do was to read stuff off the same website screen that I was already looking at!).

NB: If that's not possible then I might have to consider an Eibach+Bilstein combo - but I really don't want to lower the rear of the vehicle unless there is no other alternative!

[jeallen01]

Update: Just used GSF's on-line chat service to ask what type of Bilsteins their P/N 513VG1041 are - turns out to the B4.

So, GSF's current listed price is £63, but with the VAL41 41% discount that should work out at £37 each - sounds like a very good deal and so any comments?

[jeallen01]

Update No 2: bit of searching around for comments on the B4 shocks also showed that you can get them very slightly cheaper elsewhere - around £67->69/pair delivered, but the difference is not much.

[Awesam]

Won't you need the B4 Sports if you are going to be using lowering springs?

[jeallen01]

Won't you need the B4 Sports if you are going to be using lowering springs?

Not sure if that comment is directed to me, but, if it is, then lowering springs is the very, very last resort and I would choose appropriate shocks!

[willy0329]

I'm having considerable regrets about fitting new standard KYB estate rear springs & shocks to my estate last summer!

The ride is absolutely AWFUL at low speed on anything like a bad road (and we have a lot of those in London!) and not much better at higher speeds. There seems to be no suspension travel at all over very small ridges and potholes, and you feel every bump, ripple or dip in the road surface when crawling along in, say, a traffic queue.

My back, and that of my wife, can't take much more of this and so I'm looking to change at least the rear shocks first. I say "first" because I had a very similar ride problem when I fitted Koni Yellows adjustables (even on the softest setting) to the rear of my old Mk IV Golf estate but the ride got a LOT better when I changed those to the softer Koni Red adjustables - which, most unfortunately, are not available for the Octavia.

Therefore I'm now looking for good quality soft(ish!) rear shocks to replace the KYBs - any suggestions?

Note: GSF have a "41% off everything" on-line deal this weekend (BTW: the discount code is "VAL41") and I was trying to make use of that as they do list a Bilstein standard rear shock for this vehicle. GSF's P/N is 513VG1041 but when I rang the local branch at Feltham, the guy I talked to was absolutely useless when I tried to find out which type of Bilstein it is (I knew more than he did, and all he could do was to read stuff off the same website screen that I was already looking at!).

NB: If that's not possible then I might have to consider an Eibach+Bilstein combo - but I really don't want to lower the rear of the vehicle unless there is no other alternative!

It sounds like you have the wrong rear springs fitted, if they are as hard as you say, saloon spring will fit the estate they just have different weight ratings or golf/audi models share the same design spring its happend before from non main dealer supplyers to give out parts that fit but not model specific,

 

I would go to TPS and get genuine parts then you know you will have the correct parts and oem plus cheaper than maindealer,

[jeallen01]

It sounds like you have the wrong rear springs fitted, if they are as hard as you say, saloon spring will fit the estate they just have different weight ratings or golf/audi models share the same design spring its happend before from non main dealer supplyers to give out parts that fit but not model specific,

 

I would go to TPS and get genuine parts then you know you will have the correct parts and oem plus cheaper than maindealer,

The springs I fitted are KYB RH6788, which a lot of searches will show to be the KYB spring for the rear of the 1Z5 estate like mine - so they should not be "too hard" -, and the shocks are KYB Replacement Shock Absorber 344459, which again are listed for the 1Z5!

 

Thus, this should be a compatible combo - in fact, I bought the shocks several years ago, but did not fit them until last summer, when I specifically chose the springs from the same manufacturer to match the shocks!.

 

Saloon springs are a possible option but they are slightly shorter, which I do not want because I sometimes carry heavy loads in the back and do not want any bottoming out - but also, as I said in my first post, the problem is very similar to that I had with the Golf estate on Koni Yellows and that was pretty much solved by going "down" to the softer Koni Reds (which are also fitted to the rear of my wife's Mk IV 2 litre "GTI", which rides far better  - albeit on 15", rather than 16", wheels - than the Octy ).

 

Therefore, any suggestions on softer shocks would still be appreciated.

 

However, I do take your point about possibly going to TPS for gen replacements, and will check out how much that's going to cost for a set of rear springs & shocks.

[jeallen01]

PS: IIRC, the KYB shocks felt very stiff before I fitted them!

[Guest DobriKnotzGutenMorgan]

jeallen01.     Hello there.....I'm looking to upgrade my car which is the same spec as yours and after some research I will be getting Bilstein B4 Sports Dampers £210 DPMPERFORMANCE.

 

Toss up between Eibach,H&R and Voagtland for lowering springs to match £176-30mm, £167-35mm, £175-35mm. Or they do kits too.

 

Yes B4's are similar to OEM but are infact much better all round especially with the lowering springs above. TPS prices are also very similar these too or if you have a friend who has really good trade discounts.

 

Hope that helps and for anyone else.

 

Cheers

[jeallen01]

Today I finally bought a pair of standard B4s for the rear of the Octavia from partsoutlet24 in Germany (£105 delivered) because no-one in the UK appears to have 2x to sell for immediate delivery at anything like a reasonable price - only a full set of 4 which I don't need. Apparently Bilstein in the UK quoted a 4-week delivery for 2x shocks but the German shop had them on the shelf today.

 

OTOH, when you try to place an order on the website, it states that they can't deliver to the UK - but if you use the "Contact us" approach and mention that they email you and then can treat it as a direct order and can ship on receipt of the requisite amount by Paypal.

 

John

[Vegasphil]

Prices are very reasonable on that website. Can get a set of B8 shocks for my FL vrs for well under £400

[jeallen01]

Prices are very reasonable on that website. Can get a set of B8 shocks for my FL vrs for well under £400

Need to bear in mind that the website prices don't include the P&P costs, which are only evident when you get to the Checkout which is where you enter your address - and that's when you find out that the website says they can't ship to the UK and so does not give you the P&P price!

 

Then you have to contact the company using the website, or their email address which is [email protected], and they will let you know the shipping costs - for the 2x B4s it was 30 Euros, but I guess that for a full set of 4x including the front struts then it would be substantially more.

[jeallen01]

Update on my posts above:

 

The shocks were shipped by GLS late last night - but from Italy and not Germany! So partsoutlet24 looks another of those websites which are not actual shops/dealers with items on "their own" shelves but which pick parts from a range of warehousing facilities across a wide area.

 

So, I'll wait until the shocks arrive and then post again (BTW: my previous recent experience with a shipment via GLS from the Czech Republic tells me that it's not very quick, and so it will probably be about a week before they are delivered, and that that will probably be by Parcelfarce).

[Scribbler]

Bilstein B12, that is all.

[jeallen01]

Bilstein B12, that is all.

Which post was that in reply to????????????

[Scribbler]

Which post was that in reply to????????????

 

None otherwise it would have included a "quote".

It was my suggestion, I have them fitted I don't think they can be beaten without going to adjustable coilovers but given the OP's requirements the B12 is perfect.