Bora Suspenion Upgrade

[dylan8]

Looking to upgrade my stock MKIV suspenion in my 2001 2lt Bora.
Can anyone give me some advice? Only want a small drop i think, have been reading about the koni/eibach combo guys have got on here, seems like the way to go as i think my shocks need replacing. How much would i be looking at for this combo? Is there anything else id need to replace when i do the upgrade? What size drop are people getting from what springs. Pics would be awesome!

Or are there other options iv skipped?

My car only sits level when it has a full tank of fuel and a sub onboard, does the mean i need lower springs on the back compared to the front or will this be sorted..?

Thanks in advance

[Manaz]

Look at Bilstein as an option - I've not heard good things about Konis of late...

[Mrk_Mickey]

Looking to upgrade my stock MKIV suspenion in my 2001 2lt Bora.
Can anyone give me some advice? Only want a small drop i think, have been reading about the koni/eibach combo guys have got on here, seems like the way to go as i think my shocks need replacing. How much would i be looking at for this combo? Is there anything else id need to replace when i do the upgrade? What size drop are people getting from what springs. Pics would be awesome!

Or are there other options iv skipped?

My car only sits level when it has a full tank of fuel and a sub onboard, does the mean i need lower springs on the back compared to the front or will this be sorted..?

Thanks in advance

Personally I love Koni's, I've got them in my car and I enjoy the ride. When replacing the suspension you should really replace the strut top mounts and bearings, and then keep an eye on all your bushings and stuff because mine were all old and eventually went after i put stronger suspension in.

As for price, my kit was about 1000 all up when the previous owner purchased it but they are height adjustable because the eibach springs were matched to Ground-Control Coilover Sleeves. Tis good.....:D

Oh, and your boot will be higher than the back in your car because they make them that way. It compensates for the possibility of a full boot so that your suspension doesn't bottom out etc.

Here's a pic of my car just for reference of height...I think it's probably about 70-80mm or around that.
http://www.vwwatercooled.com.au/forums/images/imported/2009/02/IMG_2172-1.jpg

[dylan8]

Look at Bilstein as an option - I've not heard good things about Konis of late...

Thanks, will check them out too


When replacing the suspension you should really replace the strut top mounts and bearings, and then keep an eye on all your bushings

Ok, thanks for the advice. Could you explain to a complete idiot what replacing all these involves, what im best to replace them with, is it possible for myself to do it etc?


Oh, and your boot will be higher than the back in your car because they make them that way. It compensates for the possibility of a full boot so that your suspension doesn't bottom out etc.


Yeah, i kinda guessed that, but mine is super high when its low on fuel/boot load, like it doesnt even look right :duh: i guess your right. Id have to sit it next to a stock bora to see if its just me losing it...

Oh and Mrk_Mickey. If i had a white MK3, id want it to look like yours. Looks sweet!!!!

[Mrk_Mickey]

Haha cheers mate, it's taken some effort to get it there for a small price but I've done it :)

With the general replacement of items, it's usually best to either go for stock stuff or upgraded stock stuff, ie heavy duty items. You can get them where you get all your OEM stuff, it's usually just up to you whether you want it to be stiffer or not (that's talking about bushings and strut top mounts).

Replacing most of them is pretty straight forward, although (and lol..especially with my car) it can be a bit of a pain sometimes, especially if you don't have the right things around you. Control arm bushings are best done with a press, tie-rod ends, ball joints and swaybar links aren't too hard to do without a normal tool set. Strut-top mounts are a bit difficult, it's usually best with two people.

With your boot thing, something similar happened to mine. I worked out that my front strut mounts were completely shagged so the car sat a bit lower than it should have done, even when the car was lowered. Your front mounts could be doing the same thing, and your rears could be fine/possibly recently replaced, depending how long you've owned the car. That's not definitely the problem, but it's a possibility!

[dylan8]

With your boot thing, something similar happened to mine. I worked out that my front strut mounts were completely shagged so the car sat a bit lower than it should have done, even when the car was lowered. Your front mounts could be doing the same thing, and your rears could be fine/possibly recently replaced, depending how long you've owned the car. That's not definitely the problem, but it's a possibility!

Ahh ok, ill have to do some research to what i want then, got the old man, think hes done some engine work before so im sure we could work it out.

actually good point, iv only had the car 2 yrs of its 8 year life. i dont know if its possible, but there was minor damage covered up on the back of the car when i got it, (looked like something (eg tree branch)) had been dropped on the back on the car, wonder if it had done damage when it was pushed down and they replaced part of the suspension in the back? But yeah, who knows.

[Mrk_Mickey]

If you're lowering the car you probably don't need to worry about it at all mate :) Just get new mounts/bearings, replace them with the suspension and you'll be a happy camper in only half a day!

[william]

hey mate mickey has covered all bases and is correct, it is well rule really that if you do your suspension change the bushings they usualy only cost $50each including bearing for mk4/bora so $200 all up and most suspension places suggest doing it anyway, labour cost for a place like pedders to fit would be around $500

alot of guys are going to coilovers because they are $850-$1000 thanks to evorobin who is a importer of hottuning most the other kits are upwards of 2k depending on what you want. so it all comes down to what you wana spend really.

[dylan8]

If you're lowering the car you probably don't need to worry about it at all mate :) Just get new mounts/bearings, replace them with the suspension and you'll be a happy camper in only half a day!

Ok, mounts and bearings. Where do you guys get yours from?


hey mate mickey has covered all bases and is correct, it is well rule really that if you do your suspension change the bushings they usualy only cost $50each including bearing for mk4/bora so $200 all up and most suspension places suggest doing it anyway, labour cost for a place like pedders to fit would be around $500

alot of guys are going to coilovers because they are $850-$1000 thanks to evorobin who is a importer of hottuning most the other kits are upwards of 2k depending on what you want. so it all comes down to what you wana spend really.

yeah, coil overs interest me, except the price. but 850-1000 sounds good. if i was to go the hottuning coilovers, what else would i be looking at doing to the car? same as the springs? Also dont MK4 (and maybe other cars) need strut bars or what not when you go 40mm+? sorry for my misunderstanding of all this? try to read some other forums but yeah :bangheadwall:

[dylan8]

being doing more research. think iv made myself more confused :duh:. hoping someone could clear this up.. if you put coilovers in, you dont have shocks anymore..?

[Yevvy]

No, no, no. Coilovers come with the shocks in them :biggrin: coil goes over the shock and you get...coilovers! (not the rear ones thou)

[dylan8]

No, no, no. Coilovers come with the shocks in them :biggrin: coil goes over the shock and you get...coilovers! (not the rear ones thou)

haha thanks, so because i prob need new shocks also, coilovers could work out cheaper then getting both new springs and shocks? specially if i went hte hottunning option

[Mrk_Mickey]

haha thanks, so because i prob need new shocks also, coilovers could work out cheaper then getting both new springs and shocks? specially if i went hte hottunning option

This is true, although it depends how you want your ride to feel. As I said I'm not actually on coilovers, I'm on a Koni/eibach shock-spring setup and I prefer that to the hottuning ride. You probably will pay more for a decent shock and spring setup than a simple coilover, although if you payed a bit extra and went for a decent COILOVER setup, you'll be well chuffed ;)

[dylan8]

This is true, although it depends how you want your ride to feel. As I said I'm not actually on coilovers, I'm on a Koni/eibach shock-spring setup and I prefer that to the hottuning ride. You probably will pay more for a decent shock and spring setup than a simple coilover, although if you payed a bit extra and went for a decent COILOVER setup, you'll be well chuffed ;)

yeah, as usual, i want the lowest height for less $$ haha. ride is still important to me, but thinking i could give this up for being low.

So again, if i went coilovers (hottunning to be exact) what else would i be looking at doing to the car? Is there anything i have to do, or really should be doing to handle the drop? or can it cope as is?

[Manaz]

For the price, the Hottuning coilovers seem an excellent option.

I recently looked at suspension options for my Bora V6 4Motion. Unfortunately the Hottuning coilovers don't fit on the 4Motion version of the Bora, but I managed to pick up a set of K-Sport coilovers instead (which should be fitted shortly).

I looked at several strut and spring replacement options, and found that a semi-decent setup (Koni based) was about $1,400 before fitting.

[dylan8]

For the price, the Hottuning coilovers seem an excellent option.

I recently looked at suspension options for my Bora V6 4Motion. Unfortunately the Hottuning coilovers don't fit on the 4Motion version of the Bora, but I managed to pick up a set of K-Sport coilovers instead (which should be fitted shortly).

I looked at several strut and spring replacement options, and found that a semi-decent setup (Koni based) was about $1,400 before fitting.

Yeah thats what im thinking, i can get 30mm lower eibach springs for cheap, but if i put them in and find i need new shocks id be looking $600+ from my research. and then id be equal cost to the hottunning coilovers and id be at whatever hieght i wish not stuck at 30mm.

Be keen to hear how you find you K-sports!

[Water Boy]

Lowered springs on some uprated shocks should be alrite!

Could get some King springs and Koni shocks im sure for a very good price!

[Manaz]

Could get some King springs and Koni shocks im sure for a very good price!

Such a waste of Konis to put them with King Springs...

[dylan8]

Lowered springs on some uprated shocks should be alrite!

Could get some King springs and Koni shocks im sure for a very good price!

Whats price would i be looking at do you know?


Such a waste of Konis to put them with King Springs...

think kings have bn the most loved and hated springs ever!

does anyone know of any 2lt boras that have been lowered in both springs/coilovers? i guess its fair enough to say this brand is best or this combo wont work, but im sure its going to make a big difference depending what car they are on