Woe is me!

Sorry for the confusion - I've spent a huge amount of time in the past year reading their various pages as well as many here and it is very easy to lapse into 'insider' jargon. Febi-Bilstein and Bilstein are different brands within the same German entity that do subsets of different bits we need for the suspension jobs. I suspect you'd need to go to the "about" page, but from what I remember Fe-Bi is the abbreviation of the founder's names in a very German manner of what they refer to as "silbenkurzwoerter" - syllable abbreviations : taking pairs of letters out of constituent words and then making a not-quite-acronym out of them - probably the best known in English is NAtional soZIalismus" - national socialism political movement / NaZi, and so on. Ferdinand Bilstein was the founder - from whom FeBi is derived. Bilstein are their well known suspension brand who make springs and shock absorbers, much as do Sachs and other companies like that. The Febi brand make pretty well everything else from drop links, to nuts and bolts and washers, to fuel filler caps, all sorts of engine sensors, to rubber bits in suspension etc.

In a nutshell - don't worry about it. Get Bilstein B4 shocks using Damadgeruk's link because it is the best price by far for a really good middle of the road oem-grade shock for our A2s and the difference in price will pay for a bunch of other components you need such as the drop links and ARB bushes etc. - and other bits as you have planned. Meyle HD are just as good, as are Lemforder for some of these. If the springs need replacing, go for whatever you believe suitable. I used Monroe SP3248s from a recommendation here along with B4s and they have proven fine for my Tdi (just done another 550 mile each way drive this last week along the country and they were great again) - firm/absorbent over Dartmoor and Scottish highland roads but not harsh (this is with 16" SE wheels, 195/55/16 Uniroyal RainSport3 tyres from Camskill) so there is plenty of sidewall and suspension travel to cope with ruts etc.

Hope this helps. Good luck!
 
I'd say that tyre choice plays a far bigger role in dictating the quality of the ride than any mainstream damper / spring combination choice. I have 195/50/16 Contis on my SE wheels and the improvement over the (cheapo brand) 185/50/16 tyres that came with the car was like night and day. I'm impressed that Robin has even taller boots; my courage failed me at that point I'm afraid.
Even better for ride quality is to go for 15" wheels with increased tyre height. The more flex your tyres offer, the more comfortable the ride.
 
O.k., Getting things ordered. I can get a full set of Bistein B4 shocks and springs for £250, delivered. The Bilstein springs have part numbers 37-147679 and 36-147717. I had intended to purchase Monroe SP3248 front springs (not sure what springs I should have purchased for the rear). This is a diversion, but I could still go for them (the Monroes) So this is what I'm asking .... Is that a good price for the complete Bilstein set-up and how will the Bilstein springs perform? I'm looking for comfort and a smooth ride over poor quality roads. When I get your help, here, I can complete my ordering and get the A2 back in use ... Thanks

David
 
The wheels are 15" Audi 12-spoke alloys. The tyres are Uniroyal Rainexpert 3, 185/60 R15.
So far, I have ordered the Meyle HD drop-links @ £31.95. Then I've ordered the complete list of other parts, shown in #1 of this thread https://www.a2oc.net/community/index.php?threads/the-definitive-suspension-parts-list.27044/ and also the extra components ( 1J0513425A, 1J0513353D, 1J051235A), mentioned in #81 of the same thread. The cost of those parts? Well, ONLY £382! And that's Trade through "TPS"!
A local (and friendly) garage are likely to be charging me over £200 labour. They MAY be able to do this, this week!
So this is what it may be costing .... £32 (drop links) + £250 (Bilstein shock absorbers and springs) + £382 (ancillary components + ~£200 (labour).
That's a cool £864! There have been a few complete cars sold recently for around that amount!
Oh well, it's only money!
I have delayed ordering the Bilstein springs until I receive more advice from A2OC members. I'm hoping that'll be fairly soon, so I can complete the ordering, tomorrow ....
At least I will have an A2 with a completely overhauled suspension system, and that will be satisfying to know.

David
 
I wonder if an A2OC member could advise as to the use of Bilstein B3 springs in conjunction with the B4 shock absorbers? Also, is the offer of £250, delivered, a good price for a full set of shock absorbers and springs? Thanks

David
 
DJ 190 said:
The wheels are 15" Audi 12-spoke alloys. The tyres are Uniroyal Rainexpert 3, 185/60 R15.
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Thanks for that info, it's good to know that you've got a sensible set of wheels rather than something I would view as particularly stiff. I would hope that you'll be happy enough with B4s and B3s so long as you don't have unrealistic expectations about what is possible, and £250 seems very reasonable for a full set of shocks and springs.

My advice however is worth little as I haven't yet had to upgrade my own suspension, which remains entirely original thus far; I've been expecting to need to get the work done this past year or so.
 
My A2's back today! All the work was completed by my (very) local and friendly garage! So that's every component and Bilstein B4 shocks and B3 springs, front and rear. They work very quickly which seems to make those labour times mentioned here as rather on the protracted side? The drivers-side front strut was no problem at all! The labour charge, all-in? Well, £160! (I did say that it's a friendly, village garage!) I don't think that they use a torque-wrench, though? I'll get him a bottle of good wine and some eggs from our chickens!. I drove back here and the steering is SO sharp! I'll go out tomorrow looking for any bumps or potholes, to try out the new shck absorbers! LOL!
Quite a few things seem to have been sorted, recently ..... I've gone from seeming to be cursed to now being blessed! That's life, I suppose ....

David
 
DJ 190 said:
My A2's back today! All the work was completed by my (very) local and friendly garage! So that's every component and Bilstein B4 shocks and B3 springs, front and rear. They work very quickly which seems to make those labour times mentioned here as rather on the protracted side? The drivers-side front strut was no problem at all! The labour charge, all-in? Well, £160! (I did say that it's a friendly, village garage!) I don't think that they use a torque-wrench, though? I'll get him a bottle of good wine and some eggs from our chickens!. I drove back here and the steering is SO sharp! I'll go out tomorrow looking for any bumps or potholes, to try out the new shck absorbers! LOL!
Quite a few things seem to have been sorted, recently ..... I've gone from seeming to be cursed to now being blessed! That's life, I suppose ....

David
Click to expand...

Where do you get the springs and shocks?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
DJ 190 said:
As is well known, this is a very good club for help and advice! I also own a Mercedes SLK and on the owners club "SLK World" I can wait a long time for a reply .... even a day or two! Well, thanks! ..... What about the rears, then? I might as well do those at the same time .... And all the other "bits" that I need to do this work? What are they? Finally, should I be able to do this? Thanks!

David
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Hi How do you like the SLK? I'm considering buying one seems to be plenty on choice a y advice would be appreciated.Thanks Andy
 
Edwrai said:
Where do you get the springs and shocks?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
It's in this very thread, #5, spring-loaded.co.uk . AND I've mentioned the great price of £250 for a full set of shocks=springs, sent ...

David
 
Naedugs said:
Hi How do you like the SLK? I'm considering buying one seems to be plenty on choice a y advice would be appreciated.Thanks Andy
Click to expand...
It is truely iconic in it's design! I adore it! I've converted it to liquid propane injection. Like anything I own (and not just cars) I've improved and embelished it .... AND it's ongoing! I was out in it only last night .... WHAT a smile it puts on my face! Pay me a visit, anytime, and I'll show you the SLK and you can have a drive ....

David
 
Glad everything now on the mend. Glass half full A2 is very resilient and a little tlc goes a long way, at a price. New suspension does feel strange at first, probably because the old set gradually deteriorate and we do not notice it. If you drive many vehicles you get a feel for each ones handling and then it is easier to spot differences. Failure of a component surprisingly is not always felt, have known people drive around for a year with a broken spring and not aware is was broken....
 
Apologies for not responding to your spring question confirmation earlier in the week - busy time at the moment and I haven't checked into a2oc half as much as normal. Very glad to hear that your suspension refresh went smoothly - certainly sounds like it's made a positive difference. £160 for the front end job is a very friendly local garage - I thought that just north of £200 for ours was a good price considering the fiddly nature of the job.

I know with our first 2 A2s that having replaced everything from the strut bearing down to the ARB bushes both cars steer very sweetly indeed albeit with different ride feel - my car has relatively little roll and quite rapid response to steering inputs (without being harsh), while in comparison my other half's car feels lighter on its toes but slightly softer over road imperfections without being wallowy - it reminds me of a 90s Clio. Same B4 shocks and other components barring springs (Monroe on mine, Suplex on hers), tyres (Uniroyal RS3 195/55/16 on mine, Aoteli 607 195/50/16 on hers) and mine is the 1.4Tdi to her 1.4i so obviously a bit more weight on the front along with concomitantly much beefier springs.

Hope everything else keeps heading onwards and upwards! Happy Easter!
 
Robin_Cox said:
£160 for the front end job is a very friendly local garage -
with different ride feel - my car has relatively little roll and quite rapid response to steering inputs
Hope everything else keeps heading onwards and upwards! Happy Easter!
Click to expand...

And a happy Easter to you! Just off to Manchester for a marvellous get-together and food a-plenty! You've got it wrong with the cost .... £160 for both front and rears! There's no VAT with this small (but very busy) garage. He really knows his cars .... especially old classics, and we go back 20 Years! As I've said, I think that they go by "feel" for tightness and don't bother with a torque-wrench!
You can still feel bumps, but it IS an Audi A2, after all! Steering is VERY quick, now, and there's an absence of internal noise, now.

David
 
DJ 190 said:
and there's an absence of internal noise, now.

David
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I've just had mine done and i notice a distinct road noise that wasn't there before. We never had any noises before except the odd squelch going over speed humps. The car was a little floaty at the front (1.6 fsi) the oil misting front shocks were obviously very worn but it was very comfortable. What top mounts did you use?
 
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