RE: suspension

["Patrick Sherman" <patrick@volkswagen.org>]

I can say I am very happy with my Bilstein Sports and Neuspeed sport setup..
tight, and not very rough at all..



Patrick Sherman
mailto:patrick@volkswagen.org
"97 Vento VR6"


> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-jettaglx@igtc.com [mailto:owner-jettaglx@igtc.com]On Behalf
> Of Khan M. Klatt
> Sent: Thursday, September 03, 1998 2:04 PM
> To: jettaglx@igtc.com
> Subject: Re: suspension
>
>
> At 4:35 PM -0400 9/3/98, Talitmon@aol.com wrote:
> >Okay, Okay lets talk about springs now.  I was thinking of
> upgrading the stock
> >springs on my 97 GLX to the softsport, or sport springs from
> Neuspeed, or the
> >HOR ones from autotech.
> >
> >Has anyone experienced the different ones in your own car or
> friends GLX's
> >
> >I want to tighten things up on my car, and am tired of the body
> roll, and the
> >bouncy-ness that the stock springs offer.  Please explain the
> ride difference
> >since that is important to me.  I want to still retain a smooth
> ride so when I
> >give my Mom a ride, I don't have to listen to her complain more
> than she has
> >to....
> >
> >Thanx fellow GLXperts
>
> Talat (sounds like a Turkish name, btw)-
>
> Here are excerpts of what I recently posted about my Sofsport springs,
> which sound A LOT like your reasons... I have not experienced the Neuspeed
> Sport springs (although Patrick Sherman seems to like his) but they lower
> the car, and have a much stiffer ride (Perhaps enough to cause your mother
> to complain about the ride?).
>
> I have heard NOTHING about the HOR springs, which means that my comments
> come from only having driven my setup, having heard about Patrick's, and
> knowing nothing about the HOR springs.
>
> > The reasons I wanted to upgrade these three items (respectfully) were:
> >
> > Improved cornering, and reduced body roll, without a significant hit in
> > comfort and everyday driving
> >
> > I had the option of picking up all four shocks for $200 from a friend on
> > the list, and took advantage of it (Thanks, Jeff!). So, the
> choice of the
> > Bilstein HD's were primarily made by the economic factor (great
> price). I
> > figured I might be able to get a different/better set of shocks, but for
> > the price I decided not to pass them up, and they are excellent
> shocks as
> > it is.
> >
> > As far as the springs, being that my choice was to not
> significantly affect
> > the ride of the car, but improve cornering and reduce body roll, the
> > Neuspeed SofSport springs were the right choice. They don't
> lower the car
> > very much, they stiffen the suspension at a progressive rate as
> needed, and
> > don't make a big impact on every day driving comfort (at least
> that's what
> > people on the Internet and the marketing lit. for the springs said)
> >
> > What I got out of these elements were:
> >
> > The shocks and springs do what I expected them to do. Significant
> > reduction in body roll, and now the car takes corners without
> buffeting me
> > about the seats as much. Much more control going in and out of
> the turn. At
> > this stage, my suspension is good enough to expose the weaknesses in my
> > Eagle GA's. Perhaps there might be room for disappointment in the
> > suspension setup if I go to some agressive tires, such as the
> Toyo Proxes
> > I've been considering. But with the GA's, I can't complain.
> >
> > Regarding the ride quality, I would say that the ride has not suffered
> > much, but it certainly is different. Hitting sharp bumps is more
> > controlled, but you feel it more, it feels quite a bit stiffer.
> Soft bumps
> > are handled nicely, you don't even come close to bottoming out
> (because the
> > car isn't lowered much at all) and IMO feels better than the stock
> > configuration. No more "floaty" feeling over small bumps. The car feels
> > more solid, if you will.
> >
> > As far as taking sidewalks (like to park your car in a
> driveway) I can take
> > them at the same speed and carelessness. I have yet to bottom out, and I
> > drive like I did before.
> >
> > As far as lowering the car, the car was lowered only about 1/2" in the
> > front, and 1" in the back. At first the car seemed like it was riding
> > "front high" but I like the way it looks, and feels lower. It
> looks a lot
> > lower when four adults are in the car too :)
> >
> > All in all (other than a slightly skewed alignment that I'm
> about to go get
> > fixed this afternoon) I got exactly what I was looking for out of the
> > upgrade.
>
> P.S. My CD changer has not skipped once due to rough handling, and I drive
> the car just as hard as ever.
>
> -Khan
>
> --
> Khan Klatt
> 1997 VW Jetta GLX, Emerald Green
>  --> Biber Beige Leather
>  --> All-weather Package
>  --> Bilstein HD Shocks & Struts
>  --> Neuspeed SofSport Springs
>  --> Mintex Redbox Brake Pads
>  --> K&N Air Filter
>  --> Clarion CD Changer (Trunk-mounted)
>  --> Velcro-mounted CD Storage in Trunk
>  --> Locking Gas Door
>  --> AirCondition Mod
>