nielsn

I just put Eibach springs on our 2009 3.0T. non-sport suspension. The car sits about 1.5 inches lower- not the 1.2 that eibach says. that being said the fender gap is below 1 inch now. the ride is much better than stock, but not stiff or jolting. the biggest difference in handling and feel was a from a different wheel/tire package though. before the springs went on we jumped from the stock 245/40/18 all seasons to some 265/35/19 summer only contis' from an S6 with a 19 inch aftermarket rim. that made a BIG difference. I wouldn't worry about sacrificing ride- especially if you aren't changing out shocks. Now if you put high pressure sport shots in conjunction with the springs, along with lower profile wheels/tires, then you will notice a difference and you might not like it. just springs though- you should be fine- and the car looks a LOT better! Niels.

jj1960

Would be great to see a photo of your car. I'm thinking of putting on Eibachs and keeping everything else standard - but don't want to look like a boy racer. Thanks

nielsn

OK, lets try this again, didn't work the first time. OK, so I measured the drop. in the rear its 1 inch between tire and fender, front is 1.2 inches. So about a 1.5 inch drop all around from stock. here are pics. current and past with the aftermarket wheels. both with drop and without. I have new wheels coming with 255/35/19's and a 45 offset, so these will fit much better.
the first are w/o drop, with drop and aftermarket wheels, and with drop stock wheels. sorry about the poor pic quality of the last couple- was take in my garage, with a cell phone. anyway, the car looks better, handles better and no issues with rubbing or rough ride. I'd say its a win win- unless you just don't want to spend the extra $$$

Nedrager

Here's a 3.2 with H&R coilovers, 20x9 ET45 with 265/40s. Ride is very tight but not harsh. It's more comparable to a sports car. This would be the other side of the spectrum...

cgabb1

Thanks for posting the pics, V6UnderPressure and Neilsn. They look great. Does the lowered ride cause any front end scrapes on inclines?

nielsn

inlines haven't been a problem yet. its not really that low. I mean the car isn't slammed- I still have quite a bit of clearance underneath. There is still almost an inch of clearance between fender and tire. I suppose if you went with H&R springs or a coil over and had it on a very low setting- for a 2 to 2.5 inch drop, then you'd probably start scraping stuff- Nedrager? Speed bumps aren't a problem. I will say this though- just from my limited experience with two different rims and two different z-rated summer performance tires- 2 things.

First- if you use non- audi rims, be very careful to make sure that you get the plastic hubcentric rings- otherwise you WILL get front end vibration. Even with the rings, you aren't going to get the same smooth ride as on Audi or OEM reps- Like Hartmanns that are already hubcentric. This is JUST MY EXPERIENCE. Second- with the combination of larger 19 inch aftermarket rims and low profile 19 inch summer tires with aggressive tread and stiff side wall- you will get a LOT more feedback from the road into your steering wheel. you will feel everything- again, I drive alot, I'm very sensative to the feel of the car- I notice every little change. you may not. it handles better with the larger rims, sport tires, and springs, but you feel more. Its just way it is. I'm going to have the front wheels looked at for balance here pretty soon as I think I'm feeling a little too much vibration. Either that or my plastic rings aren't correct. we'll see. All I can say is that the stock audi 18X8 rims with the Continental all seasons that came with the car are VERY smooth, quiet and track well. they don't handle well in corners, and are squishy, but you don't get the vibrations, road feel or occasionally weird tracking. Again, this has been MY experience. So far, I've had 265/35/19 Conti procontact II's on 19X8.5 rims and currently, Michelin PS2's 255/35/19 on 19X8 Konig Lace with a 45 offset. I don't THINK its a rim quality issue, and definitely not a tire quality issue! I just think that this car is VERY sensitive to changes to rims/tires. Never had this issue with 3 series Bimmers- you could put almost anything on those and it didn't mess with the ride like this. Must be the fact that the A6 is a luxury car- who knows. Anyway, here's some pics in its hopefully, final configuration. OH, except now my wife wants to have the lip portion of the wheels chromed or machined and clear coated. she doesn't like the entire wheel blacked out- I do, but its her car. so at some point they will have a polished lip. then we'll be done- thank Goodness!!!!!

AlteredEgo79

That Sh#t looks hott! I have about 80K miles on my ride and I think the shocks need to get changed. Im about to order the H&R coilovers myself. How is the cornering and overall handling with the H&R's? and did you have stock Audi shocks or the Sport suspension before?

AlteredEgo79

btw, the tires your running got to be 265/30's not 40's right?

Nedrager

Sorry you're right. They're 30s not 40's. I had the standard suspension before, no sport pack or air ride. It handles like a slot car compared to stock. It rides harder, stiffer suspension and tires with no side wall... The H&Rs I have are not the same as the ones in the states. Mine are part number 29201-1. I think they're a lot stiffer than the "street comfort" you get in the states.