S4 Handling question...

[jammyhl]

Well - put 650 miles on the car (Falmouth return via Portsmouth from London) at the weekend. First impressions are that is has great midrange, but the seating is not as comfortable as I'm used to (still have a stiff left shoulder - think a s/s to reduce gearstick throw might help) and the suspension is a helluva lot softer than I'd like. What are the recommendations for stiffening the car up without making her unusable in town?

Thanks,

Jammy
1998 S4 Avant

[Nige_RS4]

Plenty of options available to you ;
New S4 shocks/springs
New/used RS4 shocks/springs
New/Used RS4 GmbH shocks/springs/rear ARB
New H&R springs - sounds like you need dampers though

Probably a few more out there, but these are the most common ones.

IMHO, if you are one a budget, go for used RS4 (<20k miles). If not, buy the GmbH stuff - £900 'ish new)

Nige [img]images/graemlins/thumbs.gif[/img]

[Joshie]

Enjoy your S4!

David T runs his S4 with the H&R coilover setup and around Oulton park recently I can certify that his car was very quick through the corners - realkly makes a significant difference. The SS (Tanoga or others) is also superb as it transforms the gearbox.

[Dippy]

Jammy, I only have experience of the H&R coilovers, but I think they're fantastic and transform the handling. They are stiff but IMO quite acceptable unless the road is really bad surface.

[Prawn]

I am running RS4 dampers and springs and the H&R anti roll
bar kit.
This is not too stiff but certainley more than good enough for the road and IMHO also good enough for track use.

Agree with Joshie, the SS is the best upgrade you can get.

Enjoy

[Golich]

I converted to used RS4 suspension. It was a considerable improvement over the worn stock S4 suspension. The surprising thing was that my stock suspension was pretty knackered at around 50k.

I didn't bother with ARB the stock set up was hard enough for daily road use. But definitely too soft for the track.

I definitely wouldn't buy new RS4 suspension or even new Quattro GmbH. These are specifically designed for the RS and it's surprising how different my new RS4 suspension feels over the modded S4. The RS4 stuff actually feels more compliant?

But of course the RS ARBs weren't fitted and although I don't know for sure it wouldn't surprise me if the geometry of the RS4 suspension is different. What I do know for sure is that the main suspension arm/wheel bearing housing is all Aluminium where as the S4 is cast steel.

You may also want to note the lessons I learned when trying to remove the bolt that pinches the two upper Aluminium arms. (see attachment) If your car has done anything like 50K miles chances are this bolt is seized and a pure bugger to remove.

The Audi dealerships don't have a VAG tool to remove this. They opt for the GAS AXE option which can cost you the two upper arms at £55 each and there are two a side!

Only a couple of weeks ago I advised another member of this and where to get his suspension fitted because the Specialist Tuner Star performance has a special tool (which I've now seen) specifically designed for the problematic bolt. However even his £250 special tool broke and the lad resorted to drilling which is almost impossible to do while the unit is on the car and usually ends up unsuccessful. I had mine pressed mine out after attempting to drill.

The ideal option is to try before you buy. Try and get yourself along to a meet where someone is running modified suspension. You never know you might even get a shot of one with a S/S.

[philipwalker]

I too have fitted H+R coilovers to my S4....This made the handling much better, the ride quality is very good however the roll needs to be addressed....A Newspeed roll bar for the rear should do the job....

[dog]

Is the Quattro GMBH kit the same for the S4 and the RS4?

[DavidT]

I don't think there is a GMBH kit for the S4.

I have the H&R coilovers which AmD fitted and it is an excellent setup. I would not want to do lots of road miles on it but compared to standard S4 suspension (which is very good for rolly-polly road driving) H&R is superb for track use.

Philip, maybe the ride height is your problem, how much did you lower the car by ?

[philipwalker]

Initialy I lowered the car almost to max, then raised it to about 50mm lower from original. The turn in is good, however when you load up a corner in say a large roundabout it tends to get a bit lardy.
The original rear roll bar is rather thin, the Newspeed is a fair bit thicker, which should help.
I prefer roll bars to hard springs as the ride quality can be retained

[dog]

So those with a Quattro kit use the one developed for the RS4?
How is it?

[grichell]

I have 19mm Neuspeed rear ARB. Nice bit of kit complete with strengthening brackets. It has two holes of adjustment - tried soft one then settled on stiffer one.. Makes for great turn in without affecting ride.

[Richness]

Hi mate. I had ABP Motorsport install the Eibach Pro-Kit springs and do 4-wheel geometry check. It absolutely transformed the car and I would recommend it to anyone without a doubt. Car still fine on bumby roads but all aspects of handling improved imeasurably [img]images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[kozmos]

Dippy,

Are you using H&R 'Street', H&R 'Ultra' or H&R 'PCS' coilovers?

[Dippy]

Sorry, I don't know. They're just what Scott at AmD recommended.