I knew when I ordered my FL vrs that I would be unhappy with the comedy ride height so I added the "Lowered Suspension Kit ZGB1Z3071677" from the OE accessories catalogue - I believe these are just repackaged Eibach Pro springs.

On my previous car (Mk 5 GTI) I'd heard of some poor experiences where stock dampers were retained with lowered springs, so i started to do some research as to what the options where for an improved quality damper that would be better matched to the eibachs. Main criteria was an improvement to the ride quality - very important given that this is the family transport, not a ring /track day warrior!

The research I did whilst the car was on order had lead me to beleive that Koni FSD would be the best option for me and I managed to buy a low mileage used set off a forum member for a lot less than the new price.

I ran the car with stock suspension for approx 400 miles, then swapped over to the eibach/FSDs for a further 14k miles. I'd become increasing dissatisfied with the FSD's over time and replaced them this week with Weitec GT coilovers.

Comparisons between FSD and Weitec:

FSDs;

in most road conditions they are very good, doing exactly what they're meant to - smoothing out small imperfections and bumps / potholes and making the ride nicer - but still firm enough in the corners. If you only ran around at cruising speeds on smooth-ish roads you'd think they were the bees knees. HOWEVER: the only time i think they don't work is when you hit a hump or dip in the road surface - they just don't seem to react fast enough and this gives you a floaty feeling which saps your confidence if you're "pressing on". I don't know whether this is maybe just an octavia thing (ie they are not very well matched for the car as i've not heard similar things on other forums where fitted to other vehicles..?) Their inability to deal with this type of road issue is enough to really **** me off - even though they are comfy for 90% of your driving, the other 10% is lousy it ruins the car - maybe less important on a lower powered/slower vehicle but for a vrs you really need to be able to throw it down a "B" road and know that its going to cope - mine really didn't. Problem was even worse if the car was fully loaded - it just seemed to be under-damped to me.

.. added to that there have been a number of instances of fsd's failing - lots of stuff on this forum about that - if you bought new you've got a warranty - i didn't... and over time mine got softer - making the floaty problem even worse.. no leaking, just a feeling i had that they were not as firm as when i first got them. Even if you'd bought a set new and got the warranty its still pretty **** poor to have a set of supposedly "premium" dampers fail after such a short life. (n.b. mine were meant to be from a "secondary" batch before anyone asks) even if you have a warranty and they are replaced for free its still hassle you could do without.

I was also a little disappointed at the ride height with the eibach/FDS's on. The car was not level front to rear (rear lower than the front) and it was not really low enough overall IMO.

Based on the above, i'm not really a fan of the fsd, certainly for the vrs.

Weitecs:

as expected much firmer than fsd... You get a lot more "information" about the road surface - unlike the konis - if they were adjustable i'd prob wind them back just one notch if I'm honest.. but its not too much to live with. Its definitely not a "bone shaker". Its firmer also than the stock suspension but as a comparison I'd say its no stiffer than say, the OE set up on my dads old Mk4 R32 or any S-Line Audi.. in fact its very similar in ride to my previous GTI. Good news is they do not, under any circumstances, "float" ! Definitely a quality product - fit/ finish looks excellent. Pressing-on B road driving they are very, very good - the car feels really "planted" and tied-down - i'm prob driving the same roads 10mph faster than I would have done with the FSDs and it feels great - very well damped and reminds me of driving my elise actually. Makes the car feel much more like a sports car overall. Roll in the corners is virtually eliminated so in the bends its awesome.

I've not got the ride height as I want yet, it can come down at the front another 10mm to match the rear I think.. seems to be plenty of room on the adjusters to go higher or lower, so a little more set up is required. I've also made some minor adjustments to tyre pressure to see what suilts them best..

So, conclusions? Well, the weitecs are very good, but don't buy them if you're looking for a "magic carpet" ride. I'll never have a set of Konis again.

Edited 4 February, 201115 yr by rob_e

Good write up

Damian @ DPM Performance

Rob,

Excellent report. Totally agree with you about the FSDs. They are a great level road and open corner cruising suspension but cant cope with rapid rebound. Crossing over cat's eyes at speed is even a bit dodgy...how bad is that. These are my second set (version 1 failed under warrenty...i think version 2 are gonig the same way). Coilovers for me i think, unsure if to got with KW or Bilstein though....

Enyone tried The Bilstein B12 Kit ?

I searched high and low for info on coilover performance on the vrs before i bought mine. I didn't find any info on the bilstein kit on a skoda, sorry. The only reviews of that kit that may be comparable were on audis where the feedback was that it was pretty hard..?

The AP coilovers are a popular choice on here (and good VFM too). I went with Weitecs as i was advised that the quality may be a little higher than the AP. There are now a few people with KW V1's also on this site. AP, KW and Weitec are all made by the same company I believe and its probably true that you get what you pay for when changing your suspension = weitecs are galvanised (i think) and APs are stainless etc..

If anyone wants to have a ride in mine with the weitecs on and you're local just let me know.

Ace info

Glad to hear the Weitec are doing a great job

Mike

As someone running FSDs on stock springs, I would have to agree with the comments above although I would not have been as harsh against the Konis. To me, they still feel a lot better than stock and are a good compromise for my daily commute. However, if I could do it all again, I'd probably go with the coilovers for some of the reasons mentioned above although I could not justify dumping the FSDs as others have done.

To those who might be put off my the FSD performance on the Octy2, but thinking a coilover setup might be unnecessary, there is the Weitec Hicon GT kit. Pete8tch has them fitted after swapping from FSDs as is pleased with the swap.

That's the way I'd probably have gone, had I not found a good deal on KW V1s (Inox-line coated version). Again, if anyone wants a demo drive and are local, just shout. After some time with them and altering the ride height a little, they offer good compliance and tight control. A bit more harsh over broken surfaces but that's to be expected. The way it now goes round a corner as opposed to the std Elegance 'Sports' suspension is like night and day.

Steve

Nice Write up Rob

Any pics of the car on the new suspenders.

Edited 22 October, 201015 yr by vRSCarl

Nice Write up Rob

Any pics of the car on the new suspenders.

yep, here:

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/173418-weitec-pictures/

I think I'll add this to my signature..

:yes:

Am I right in thinking the lower you take them the firmer the ride? Seriously considering these instead of FSDs on my new vRS.

i went the coilover route, and whilst in germqany and on track they were great, id had enough of them within a month of moving back to the UK. Id happily sacrifice the outright track potential to have a slightly more comfortable road car. I found on bumpy roads traction became an issue with the suspension being so stiff as well.

Next time i will probably go for the Bilstein b12 setup. Im booked in for a test drive of a DSG TSI vRS on wednesday.........

Am I right in thinking the lower you take them the firmer the ride? Seriously considering these instead of FSDs on my new vRS.

yes. When mine were right down the ride got worse. Raised it 10mm and it improved. I'd suggest you try and get as many rides in as many different cars with different setups as you can before you make a choice, as it's a fair chunk of money and you need to know what you're going to end up with ...

yes. When mine were right down the ride got worse. Raised it 10mm and it improved. I'd suggest you try and get as many rides in as many different cars with different setups as you can before you make a choice, as it's a fair chunk of money and you need to know what you're going to end up with ...

I agree but easier said than done though. I am not looking for something really low but standard ride height is just too high. I've always thought the Mk5 R32 sits perfectly and that's the sort of height I am looking for.

I agree but easier said than done though. I am not looking for something really low but standard ride height is just too high. I've always thought the Mk5 R32 sits perfectly and that's the sort of height I am looking for.

where are you based?

if you don't want height adjustability then spring/shock kit would prob be the best way to go. the eibach springs give you an OE ride quality and a small drop (20mm IIRC) - match these with some good quality dampers and you'll probably have a better ride than some coilovers.

where are you based?

if you don't want height adjustability then spring/shock kit would prob be the best way to go. the eibach springs give you an OE ride quality and a small drop (20mm IIRC) - match these with some good quality dampers and you'll probably have a better ride than some coilovers.

I am based in Newcastle. I've heard that eibach springs on standard dampers is a very firm ride.

Anyone on here in the North East with a TSi vRS with modified suspension setup?

Ok, quick update: the Vrs has done just under 30k miles now (12 months old) with the last 15k run on the Weitec GT Coilovers.

Overall I'm very happy with the ride/handling balance on these. I think they have softened a little since new (a good thing) and after the first few thousand miles and a couple of adjustments at JKM the height is perfect. They are firmer than the OE Vrs setup but not in any way harsh or crashy, just very well damped.

I'm currently running 36mm below stock ride height which looks LOW compared to all the other Vrs's I see but not over the top. I could go another 5 mm lower and still be within the KW recommended parameters but at this level its just fine IMO.

As a comparison I've had my 2011 WRX STI now for about a week and the ride on the Vrs with weitecs is BETTER than the Subaru on its OE suspension.

I've only once found them to be too much for road use - that was with a fully loaded car driving on some very badly potholed roads in west yorkshire - but to be fair that was just one time and I expect even on OE suspension it would have been bloody uncomfortable!

As I've said before, anyone who's considering coilovers there's no substitute for having a ride in a car equiped with the setup you want - its extremely hard to give objective feedback and comparison and every one has different views of what "good" is. Again, no problem if anyone wants a ride in the Weitec'd car.

HTH.

That's a good update and will be very helpful for people considering suspension options, seeing as you've done a decent amount of miles on them now

Like you say though, there isn't really any substitute to actually taking a trip out in a car equipped with the setup you're considering, ideally over a known route.

Cheers,

Steve