spring rate colour codes dar dar dar , dit dit

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d4v1d sm4rt

A2OC Donor
I have my Koni FSDs on order now and want to know what springs are recommended...
I have what i think are the sport springs so i dont want to get some aftermarket springs that are just the same, here is my colour code:
Front
2 red dots
3 blue dots

rear
2 orange dots
1 green dot
2 blue dots

does anyone know whether they are actually lower or just stiffer as my car looks lower than most but it does have a bodykit on it which could be misleading.

There does not seem to be any info from audi regarding spring rates or heights. I have trashed 4 17" wheels in 6 months so have reverted to 15" rims now with 195/60 15s which help a great deal
 
Hi d4v1d sm4rt,

the different colour codes of the Audi springs do not necessarily belong to a certain engine version, since the individual equipment of each A2 has to be considered (climate, sport seats, open sky system, etc). So there are A2s with the same engine setup but with different (front) spring rates (=different colour codes) out there.

As for your colour code, you have the same spring set my A2 75 HP TDI had stock. So I assume you drive a 1.4 TDI or the FSI. These springs are non-lowered/non-sport version, leading to a vertical distance between fender and wheel hub center of about 35 to 36 cm.

The Audi sport edition springs will generate a distance of about 34 cm.

Please take a look at the large suspension thread, there are listed many high quality sport spring manufacturers.

http://www.a2oc.net/forum/showthread.php?t=4727


Due to the frequency selective nature of Koni FSD, you can only use lowering springs to a maximum amount of lowering of 35 mm (equals 32,5 cm distance).

More info about FSD here: http://www.a2oc.net/forum/showpost.php?p=45498&postcount=80


So if you finally decide for lowering springs for better appearance in combination with the bodykit, a set of 30 mm relatively soft sport springs are of interest. I personally do recommend the WEITEC 30/30 mm springs. They work generally well on 1.4 Diesels and FSIs (best with good sport dampers) and still can be combined with Koni FSD shocks. Skipton01 has upgraded to this combo.

Cheers


P.S. What exactly happened by trashing four 17“ wheels in 6 months? What rim and tyre size did you use? Driving a FSD prepped A2, you don’t need the 15“ wheel soultion any longer. The comfort factor mainly should be based upon the spring/shock combo, not the wheels.
 
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Dear Schnelletrecker
thanks for that info, very helpful. it is a 1.4 tdi .I did see your excellent earlier post and read the thread too. The car is quite low and i have to contend with speed bumps quite a lot so i would not really want to go lower or use up valuable suspension travel. I would only consider replacing the springs if i can get a more progressive travel from them. i.e more compliant in the earlier part of the stroke and harder at the end,(what do you think?) however this is what i would expect the FSD shocks to do anyway so i would not look to change springs for the sake of looks alone (as i already have a rather baloony look with the 15" rims and 195/60s) Ichanged the wheels because they were trashed just through general driving over bumps and pot holes as roads in parts of the UK are extremely bad now due to the councils giving their money to the lovely EU rather than actually fixing the roads with our cash. They were the 17" rims with standards 40 series tyres
 
OK - the 17 S-Line wheels are often prone to buckling with the standard 205/40 tyres size on A2s. This bad behaviour can’t be stopped by mounting 215/40 sadly. A considerably bigger (too large for A2) tyre size would be required for that.


d4v1d sm4rt said:
I would only consider replacing the springs if i can get a more progressive travel from them. i.e more compliant in the earlier part of the stroke and harder at the end,(what do you think?)
Click to expand...

Well, all Audi springs for A2s are linearly wound. However A2s generally will benefit from springs with progressive characteristics because

- due to the lightweight A2 body there’s comparable low initial spring response if using the stock linear springs. So ride comfort indeed can be improved with progressive springs. But then you need to switch to FSDs or sport dampers because progressive springs call for strong damping capabilities.

- bottom-out tendencies won’t occur with well working progressive springs and high quality sport dampers.


Regarding springs quality, several German A2 owners changed from the low quality Audi springs to high quality sport springs because of the permanent danger of breaking. Too many standard (non-sport) front springs cracked in the past, see:

http://www.der-a2.de/vbtest/showthread.php?t=17553&highlight=Feder+kaputt!

http://www.online-translator.com/ur...&autotranslate=on&psubmit2.x=57&psubmit2.y=16

So using high quality aftermarket springs will dodge that epidemic failure.
 
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d4v1d sm4rt said:
...i.e more compliant in the earlier part of the stroke and harder at the end, however this is what i would expect the FSD shocks to do anyway...
Click to expand...


Damper characteristics usually are not progressive but mostly degressive. That makes sense as the damping force directly depends on the shock piston speed. If it would be progressive, high piston speeds would lead to a brutal harsh ride over bumpy streets - absorbability would completely disappear. Handling and balancing on the other hand would clearly suffer, because at low piston speeds only little damping force would be supplied.

What you are contending with - on your daily drive - are not mainly speed bumps and pot holes, but rather the almost unacceptable damping/spring setting of any stock A2. The combination of much too weak shocks and linear springs on a light car obviously is disadvantageous in our case. Not to mention the very diverging axle load between front and rear.

Generally, if the compression damping force is quite potent, then you don’t need the large residual spring travel of stock springs to cope with speed bumps. For instance even with coilovers delivering only little spring travel, bottom-out never happens if the compression damping characteristics are sophisticated. BTW - here in Germany many roads are bad also.



Last not least a wheel size recommendation:
Because of the bodykit 15“ wheels really do look unfavourable. So what about a sporty yet still comfortable set of 16 inchers? The size of 7x16 or 7.5x16 ET35 to ET 25 does fit perfectly with 195/45, 205/45 or 215/45 tyres. For comfort reasons and for better rim protection the 215/45 size would be best suited in your case.

Cheers
 
My previous opinion of "sport" springs was that they were just springs that were either harder or lower or both, this was what put me off the idea of just changing to a "sport" spring. However if you are saying that some of the sport springs are indeed progressively wound in some way then that would be more attractive. Having ridden motocross for many years has taught me about suspension tuning and the difference between the different factors involved. It seems that Audi have not really done the required testing on the aluminium frame that they should have to ensure proper suspension. Do you know offhand which of the manufacturers offer a progressive standard height spring? Presumably the numbers attached to your previous posts and spring information denote the lowering front and rear. Thanks for your knowledgeable input i trust others in a similar position will also be similarly enlightened.
 
d4v1d sm4rt said:
Do you know offhand which of the manufacturers offer a progressive standard height spring?
Click to expand...

Unfortunately theres no (sport) spring set available for A2s providing both stock car height and progressive spring characteristics. The reason for that might be the relatively high centre of gravity of the A2 construction. Distinctive pitch and roll movements would be the consequence if using the cheapy subdamped standard Audi dampers.

However your request for only little amount of lowering can be satisfied if using the FSDs by Koni, because often these pressurised dampers do lift A2s by about 10 mm. So if using 30 mm lowering springs your A2 “only“ drops about 20 mm net (= 34 cm distance).

It appears that most aftermarket sport springs are of more linear than progressive type. The 30/30 Weitec set is more progressive than the 35 mm ABT springs for instance. Generally both sets are highly recommended, whereas the Weitecs mostly lead to a better appearance on Diesels (front little lower than rear).

Maybe Skipton01 will chime in to provide first-hand experienc of the Weitec/FSD combo on UK roads. If he lives nearby your home you should meet him for a test drive.

I bet all in all his custom suspension setup, combined with 17“, does ride considerably smoother than any A2 stock suspension with balloony 15“ wheels. :)

Cheers
 
Once again, Schnelletrecker shows his extensive knowledge of all things suspension-wise.

The Koni FSD/Weitec setup on Tank is, as he predicted, superb. The car rides so well and is so 'planted' on fast roads, yet is supple enough to absorb small bumps and even cobbled roads are no longer a problem.

If you anywhere near me then you are quite welcome to come and see how this setup works.

By the way, I have Weitec springs on the front only, the rears are still standard sport springs as I didn't want any great degree of lowering as I often take heavy loads in the back.

I can't comment on my setup versus 15" wheels with baloony tyres, but I can guess that the roadholding will not be anywhere near as good as Tanks setup.


Cheers,

Mike
 
Thanks for the imput guys,
this forum is really great now and there is a depth of knowledge and experience that was not present before.
It sounds like the Weitec is the way to go, can anyone say where to get them in the UK? (by private mesage if need be to avoid any advertising restrictions on the forum) The Konis will be a couple of weeks and if i am taking them off i might as well do the springs as well. I use the car every day for work and travel to customers all over london so the suspension is really important to me. Thanks for the offer but i am based down here and hardly ever travel up north, but i might have to go to Stealth soon...
 
Hi d4v1d sm4rt

Are you planning to change the springs and shocks yourself? If so I can pass on my experience of fitting the FSd's (including a few tips from Robin who works at Stealth) if you'r interested

Cheers Spike
 
Really really old thread and a good read :)

Just wondering if a progressive standard height sports spring exists for the rear to rid me of the dreaded rear droop on Weitec 30/30s?
 
d4v1d sm4rt said:
I have what i think are the sport springs so i dont want to get some aftermarket springs that are just the same, here is my colour code:
Front
2 red dots
3 blue dots

rear
2 orange dots
1 green dot
2 blue dots
Click to expand...

Front springs with 2 red dots, and 3 Blue dots is OEM part number 6Q0411105AC

--><!--

Front axle, steering Suspension shock absorbers front AUA,AMF,BBY, BAD for 2005 Audi Audi A2 Europe market
www.oemepc.com www.oemepc.com

Rear springs with 2 orange dots, 1 green dot, and 2 blue dots is OEM part number 8Z0511115R

--><!--

Rear axle Suspension shock absorbers rear for 2005 Audi Audi A2 Europe market
www.oemepc.com www.oemepc.com

d4v1d sm4rt said:
...it is a 1.4 tdi
Click to expand...

Although 6Q0411105AC is a fairly normal front spring for the 1.4TDI, the 8Z0511115R rear spring appears to be a standard sports spring as it is not only 35mm shorter than the more normal 8Z0511115AS rear spring but the coil spring thickness is 0.5mm thicker (10.25mm instead of 9.75mm).

No wonder the OP (in 2007) felt the need to change his 205/40R17 tyres to oversize 195/60R15 tyres. Changing the rear spring to the more normal 8Z0511115AS rear spring would also have made a big difference to ride comfort.

Although 8Z0511115R is listed at 303mm in length (Eibach R10474 specification) and 8Z0511115AS is listed at 338mm in length (Sachs 996648 specification) the difference between the two unladen ride heights would be a little less due to the harder 8Z0511115R rear spring compressing less than the softer 8Z0511115AS rear spring.
 
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