Bilstein B8 dampers fitted as replacement for DRC
Posted: Wed Nov 09, 2022 6:39 pm
After 126,000 miles my DRC finally failed, given away by what sounded like golf clubs rattling in the boot. I bought the car at 76K miles and as far as I could establish from Audi it hadn't had any DRC parts replaced before then so I guess the original system did pretty well.
Had the car transported by the RAC to Martin at Unit20 for his evaluation and recommendation. Simply put, the DRC would have needed £3-4K to replace most of the pipework and knackered damper units so I took Martin's advice to have a full set of Bilstein B8s fitted.
I am delighted with the result - my car has Suspension Plus so it is naturally firmer than standard so my aim was to match the original ride/handling and avoid an even firmer ride. The car now feels as it did when I first bought it - minimal body roll and a very compliant ride even on our crappy roads.
I'm not sure who else on this forum has gone that exact route - I searched for B8 posts but didn't find anything. I have read most of the relevant posts on the subject including other Bilstein units and of course KW and Koni alternatives so this is me throwing my hat in the ring for others to consider.
While the car was being fixed I asked them to investigate a weird creaking noise under hard braking - turned out to be the front subframe bolts needed tightening which was a whole lot better than bushes or arms needing replacement.
Had the car transported by the RAC to Martin at Unit20 for his evaluation and recommendation. Simply put, the DRC would have needed £3-4K to replace most of the pipework and knackered damper units so I took Martin's advice to have a full set of Bilstein B8s fitted.
I am delighted with the result - my car has Suspension Plus so it is naturally firmer than standard so my aim was to match the original ride/handling and avoid an even firmer ride. The car now feels as it did when I first bought it - minimal body roll and a very compliant ride even on our crappy roads.
I'm not sure who else on this forum has gone that exact route - I searched for B8 posts but didn't find anything. I have read most of the relevant posts on the subject including other Bilstein units and of course KW and Koni alternatives so this is me throwing my hat in the ring for others to consider.
While the car was being fixed I asked them to investigate a weird creaking noise under hard braking - turned out to be the front subframe bolts needed tightening which was a whole lot better than bushes or arms needing replacement.