KONI FSD'S or BILSTEIN B6'S

S

sojah

A2OC Donor
Just over a month ago i had a really bad clonking sound coming from the drivers side, and from what i've read on here it would suggest that it's a top mount and bearing issue! So when my mechanic took a closer look he found that the excessive movement wasn't the mount but from the Koni Fsd shock that i had bought 12 months ago. He got the leg off and on closer inspection he found that there was no fluid left in the tube at all, he then checked the other side and found that this one also has signs of oil leakage around the shock leg too so that one had to come off and on went my sports shocks and springs.
I got in contact with my supplier and they said to ship them back and they will send them off to Koni for inspection, this has now taken around 4 weeks and on friday they called me to say that there is a brand new pair on it's way to me and will be with me before the end of this week.
I've checked the rears and they are fine and have been working really well, so now i want to try something else so these Koni Fsd's will be up for sale soon but i don't know if i should sell them with the used rears or keep them on and use them with the Bilstein B6's which i considered when i first thought about the upgrade!

Help and Advice needed, please. :cool:
 
nice. So this could also be the reason I have issues <sigh>.

I would go B6. I don't think they're *that* much stiffer than FSDs.

Bret
 
Hi sojah thats not good at all and the first time i have heard of such a failure so i think the replacements will last better. From what i understand the b6's are a good option but are a firmer ride due to them being non variable. i see your running lowered springs so would the b8's not be a better option?
hope you get it sorted soon mike
 
bretti_kivi said:
nice. So this could also be the reason I have issues <sigh>.

I would go B6. I don't think they're *that* much stiffer than FSDs.

Bret
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Hi bretti, would the shocks work out stiffer if i used my original sports springs on B6's and B8's, or carry on using the weitecs i already have?
 
a2sumo said:
Hi sojah thats not good at all and the first time i have heard of such a failure so i think the replacements will last better. From what i understand the b6's are a good option but are a firmer ride due to them being non variable. i see your running lowered springs so would the b8's not be a better option?
hope you get it sorted soon mike
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Hi Mike, I've been reading on a few forums who have also has experience with Fsd's failing on their car's and it seems like if you were one of the people who got a set of the earlier batches of Fsd's then your ok, this is going to be my second set of top mount and bearings just putting my old sports shocks back in. It's getting expensive now as i read that new top mount and bearings should be used, they say you need a reciept to show they were installed by using a reputable garage and not having these can invalid the shocks according to the warranty. I've gone through a set of Lemforder drop links which were bought a year ago, Knackered now:mad:. I've just bought some anti roll bar bushes as they need to be changed too. Where i live the roads are not the best and having the car lower doesn't help at all.

:cool:
 
Do keep us posted if you go B6/8 as I'm interested in a direct comparison on the same car. I might be putting my OE springs back on, so I was also considering replacing my FSDs with B6. There isn't anything wrong with my FSD though, just itchy for a 'change' ;-)
 
ha, I got whined at on my last MoT that my rears were "on the limit" and, after reading this and some other escapades about FSDs, I wouldn't be surprised if they were at least contributing to my issues.

- Bret
 
humps said:
Do keep us posted if you go B6/8 as I'm interested in a direct comparison on the same car. I might be putting my OE springs back on, so I was also considering replacing my FSDs with B6. There isn't anything wrong with my FSD though, just itchy for a 'change' ;-)
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I'm going back to OE springs now as the state of our roads makes the Fsd's and weitec springs bottom out going over bumps and rough roads, they are smoother than my sports but they still have difficultly coping. I'll have had my car just over two years now and everything that's gone wrong has been suspension related.
So my weitec springs wouldn't be going back on and all the bits that are like drop links, roll bar bushes, top mount and bearings will be new and i'll see how i get on from there. My weitecs will also be up for sale too.

:cool:
 
sojah said:
I'm going back to OE springs now as the state of our roads makes the Fsd's and weitec springs bottom out going over bumps and rough roads, they are smoother than my sports but they still have difficultly coping. I'll have had my car just over two years now and everything that's gone wrong has been suspension related.
So my weitec springs wouldn't be going back on and all the bits that are like drop links, roll bar bushes, top mount and bearings will be new and i'll see how i get on from there. My weitecs will also be up for sale too.

:cool:
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I'm just waiting on the delivery of a set of Bilstein B6s which will hopefully be fitted sometime next week. I spent absolutely ages deciding what springs to combine these with & ended up taking a punt on a set of Cobras. They have a 30mm drop and come with TuV and a 5 year guarantee (fwiw) but the main reason I went with them is that they are progressively wound so I'm hoping they'll provide a little more compliance at low speeds/potholes etc than the standard Weitec/KW sport lowering springs.

One thing to note however, is that the springs have a max front axle weight of 805 KG which may rule out some depending on spec.

Cheers,

Andy B
 
Was looking on their website but it does'nt have a listing for A2's, can you post a link of which one's you looking at please?

:cool:
 
My FSDs have now been on around 2.5 years and 35000kms. I treat them badly (drive a lot of gravel, crappy surfaces and snow) and so I wouldn't be surprised if they're on their way out already.

- Bret
 
If i were to go Bilstein B6/B8's would i still get the raised front effect if i were to buy a new set of OE sports springs from Audi ?

I also still have the Koni Fsd rear shocks still on the car and are in perfect conditition and with the OE sports shocks back on the front i now drive with that raised effect and can feel it too, as i do have a brand new set of Fsd front shocks i'm thinking do i sell the lot together or seperately as i'm not sure about warranty when selling them on in this way!!
 
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The B6s are for standard springs and lowering up to 30mm with the B8s used for lowering beyond that. I understand they have exactly the same damping with the B8s having a slightly shorter piston arm. Both also use internal bump stops on the fronts. See their FAQs at http://www.bilstein.de/en/products/search-service/faqs.html

I was also toying with the idea of using standard springs, and perhaps even better Bilstein's own ones (B3s) to which they may be better matched, but I started to develop an unhealthy interest in tyre to wheel arch distance and so I went for 30mm of lowering. The B6s will raise things a little, say 5 - 10mm (??), due to their gas pressurisation and I'm hoping this will result in a nice day to day usable ride height.

My way of thinking is that if the standard sport springs are firm and they are matched with firm B6s then the ride can never be anything but firm. So personally I've tried to match a 'softer' (albeit progressive) spring with a firm damper to give some controlled compliance - there again I could be talking bollocks and will be proved wrong in a couple of weeks after fitment :eek:

From the time I've spent research all the suspension options it does still seem to be a bit of a black art and one which could end up requiring lots of trial and error not to mention expense :eek:

Cheers,

Andy B
 
So matching Bilstein B6's and the weitec springs maybe an options to keep that raised effect away and not having that nose diving look also, but then there may still the firm ride issue!! I hear what your saying about trial and error...!:confused:
 
Some owners are reporting good results with the latest Monroe shocks, cost less too and work with standard springs. However my FSD's have been on 80k miles and still seem ok in spite of the 3rd world standard road surfaces we increasingly 'enjoy' in the UK.
 
Adrian888 said:
Some owners are reporting good results with the latest Monroe shocks, cost less too and work with standard springs. However my FSD's have been on 80k miles and still seem ok in spite of the 3rd world standard road surfaces we increasingly 'enjoy' in the UK.
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Yeah, i've read some owners had gone for the Monroe shock as they are fitted to a whole list of brand cars. In truth i could say that i was unlucky that my FSD's failed within its first year of ownership, whereas other members have had them for quite a while with no issues and i really thought i wouldn't be messing around underneath my car once everything was done with brand new parts. Where i live the roads are bad in some areas that getting out of your car to see if something might have fell off after going through potholes and ruff surface that its become a little bit of a norm!!! :-(
I'll take the rest of this weekend to decide what's going on the front and at the moment it looks like the Bilstein B6's and Weitec springs route.

:cool:
 
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Just took delivery of my Bilstein B6's this afternoon from Rob at Larkspeed, the turn around from ordering had been 5 days so i'm well pleased with the service

as they have kept me informed with delivery dates and a call to tell me when i should get them.

They look bombproof and well made, i just need to source some springs now!

:cool:
 
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