'01-S8

Im thinking about getting some H&R springs to lower her down an inch or two....

I see some people are using the whole H&R spring and coilover setup or even the K2 setup....

are there any other options? anything you fellow S8 owners would recommend? I kno the S8 already has a beefed up suspension over the A8..... But what is the S8 "Sport Suspension" i see mentioned from time to time....

thanks guys

S8ilver

From Audi, S8 as compared to A8: "A retuned, 20 millimetres (0.8 in) lowered sports suspension included a 30% stiffer spring rate and 40% more compression damping in the shock absorbers."

I've been having the same thoughts, a 1" drop would look perfect I think. From my research, the H&R setup is listed for A8 only, so their stated lowering #'s are based on a stock A8. Of course, will still fit on S8.

Check these out too...
http://www.ecstuning.com/Audi-D2_S8-...ion/Coilovers/

'01-S8

So then every S8 has the "Sport Suspension"?

I want to get just the springs. My struts seem to be in great condition and my buddy just put the same springs on his E92 ///M3 and it lowered it the perfect amount and feels great.

So if I got A8 springs, and the S8 springs are already .8" lower and the H&R claims 1.25-2" drop and i put those on my car, does that mean it would lower it by .45-1.2" lower than stock??

I would love to get the K2 V2 setup but i dont have the $$ right now.. few other things before full suspension...

S8ilver

Yes all S8's had the same 'sport suspension.' If I were you I would call H&R and talk to a rep. I'd be interested if just the springs would do the trick. Seems though that you could lose some damping characteristics by keeping stock struts. However, I've read (on a BMW forum no less) that anything around 1-1.25" lowering should be fine if struts are in good shape, and it sounds that yours are. After the 1.25" lowering you'll be bouncing all over the place.

What's your mileage at?...I just broke 70k and would be thinking about new struts anyways, assuming mine are original.

If you were going for 2+ inches I would advise on shorter struts...and then you'd be looking at a full coilover system anyways.

Let me know what you find out...I too can't justify spending big $$ on an already great suspension when all I want is just a BIT lower ride height.

silverd2

Plus if considering going to lower than S8 height, you're probably gonna have an excess negative camber problem (bad inside tire wear). The S8 already has a little more negative camber than the A8 (closer to the spec limit), because it shares the same suspension arms with A8 suspension...the lower it compress, the more negative camber...made that way to stay leaned and planted for cornering.

Amazingly enough, the camber is NOT adjustable on D2's, it can only be "centered", by shifting the sub-frame (part of a regular front end alignment to check...and adjust if uneven side-to-side).

Only custom or adjustable upper control arms ($$$) can bring camber back into specs, if lowered too much.

S8ilver

Silverd2, that's an excellent point. Sure would corner though

silverd2

Absolutely!

Years back, the negative camber on a P-928 of mine was accidentally set radically wrong (WAY too much)...my first clue way that it cornered like a race car...WAY too good, knowing the car well. After just a short drive, the inside tread on the front tires was hot enough to burn my fingers, while the outside was cool.

brad131a4

Guess I missed the H/R springs for the A8 in their new catalog. All I saw were the coilovers listed. Eibach has a set also for the A8 listed with a 1.2 inch drop. I too am trying to find out if this is on the stock A8. I just put on a set of bilsteins and would like just another inch lower too. What I really want to know is if the spring rate is the same as the stock S8 spring.
Trying to get spring rates is like asking for a raise from a republican never get a straight answer. That is sarcasm so just keep your panties on if you feel offended.

S8ilver

I know this post was a while back, but I was getting the itch again for a drop. Thoughts?

http://www.034motorsport.com/chassis...8-p-21347.html

Adjuster

Oh, I wish I'd known about the adustable upper links/arms prior to buying replacements.

That's the way to go, totally rebuidable and with boots, they would last awhile too before needing to be re-done.

I've run some fabricated arms on a Supra before, in the rear suspension, and they worked fine for many tens of thousands of miles, but I don't think they move around as much as the front ones do since the rear wheels just go up and down, but the knuckles don't turn to steer the car.

And that was without the rubber boots.

At about 550RWHP the stock stuff was just moving around too much, and it would "steer" the car as you acclerated and boost came on. With the spherical end joints, there was ZERO movement, and the car would just hook up and go. (And it cured the wheel hop issue on my Supra too.)

I'd have to think the S8's front suspension would be low wear with the right stuff in there, especially if you have the boots on the joints, and don't spend all your days driving in snow/rain or salty roads back in the Midwest/East coast.

And the cost of a set of tires saved nearly pays for the upgrade.