# anyone with an A3 2.0 quattro with sport suspension seeing body roll?



## iceorbital (Jul 2, 2011)

I'm not super nut about cars, but i drive a 2012 Golf R, and i love it.

Got an A3 sedan 2.0 quattro with sport suspension/sport package for the wife. The comparison is a bit unfair because one is a nice sedan, and the other is a little beast, but i just don't like how the A3 is cornering when at speed. It just doesn't feel as decisive and stable as the golf R taking turns, and i had hoped that with the sport suspension the feeling would be a little bit more similar between cars. Is that the so called body roll? 
So, i was thinking if some anti-sway bars would help making the car better when cornering or not. I don't want to replace a bunch of things on the suspension since the car is brand new and i don't want to get in trouble with audi (not to mention i don't want to spend the $$$ in the wife's car) but if the sway bars are going to vastly improve the driving/cornering, i'm happy to go for it. 

Anybody has installed any sway bars on a 2.0 sedan quattro and would make a recommendation?


----------



## CbutterK (Feb 27, 2015)

iceorbital said:


> I'm not super nut about cars, but i drive a 2012 Golf R, and i love it.
> 
> Got an A3 sedan 2.0 quattro with sport suspension/sport package for the wife. The comparison is a bit unfair because one is a nice sedan, and the other is a little beast, but i just don't like how the A3 is cornering when at speed. It just doesn't feel as decisive and stable as the golf R taking turns, and i had hoped that with the sport suspension the feeling would be a little bit more similar between cars. Is that the so called body roll?
> So, i was thinking if some anti-sway bars would help making the car better when cornering or not. I don't want to replace a bunch of things on the suspension since the car is brand new and i don't want to get in trouble with audi (not to mention i don't want to spend the $$$ in the wife's car) but if the sway bars are going to vastly improve the driving/cornering, i'm happy to go for it.
> ...


I think you will feel bigger improvement with lowering springs than you would with a swaybar. In another thread, there has been discussion about how the A3 sport suspension is actually same part number swaybars as the stock S3 ones. So, if you feel the sport suspension still rolls too much, you may consider springs 1st.


----------



## davera3 (Jul 26, 2014)

I have an A3 with sports suspension that I had H&R sports springs installed on. While the springs have certainly helped a lot with the bounce, I still find that there is a good amount of body roll, and was literally looking this morning about an H&R (or someone elses) rear sway bar.

So... you're not alone.


----------



## A3_yuppie (Jun 5, 2006)

davera3 said:


> I have an A3 with sports suspension that I had H&R sports springs installed on. While the springs have certainly helped a lot with the bounce, I still find that there is a good amount of body roll, and was literally looking this morning about an H&R (or someone elses) rear sway bar.
> 
> So... you're not alone.


I have an A3 with Sport Package. I don't think the roll is too bad, but the damper rebound could be increased a bit to decrease float when driving fast over undulating roads.


----------



## DBVeeDB (Aug 3, 2007)

A3_yuppie said:


> I have an A3 with Sport Package. I don't think the roll is too bad, but the damper rebound could be increased a bit to decrease float when driving fast over undulating roads.


A3 with sport sport suspension here as well, and this comment is dead on with my experience. I am very happy with turn in, and spring feel, but rebound is loose. Any sort of bump while turning makes me lose confidence in the rear for a split second, on these struts I worry adding a bigger RSB will just increase this "risk". Its certinaly not a huge problem, but my previous car (4mo passat) never experienced this issue on stock hardware. 

Looks like bilstein makes just struts for our cars - I wonder if anyone is running them ($200 for the rear pair on ECS)

Also - what struts are on the non-mag ride S3? If they are a little tighter it might be a good buy for A3 guys. (my A3 part # is 5Q0 512 011 KP - if anyone feels like checking their S3 to compare :thumbup: )



davera3 said:


> looking this morning about an H&R (or someone elses) rear sway bar.


I have only been able to find H&R, and Superpro offers one for the Quattro/GolfR cars. Anyone find others yet? Im anxious to see if APR or Hotchkis comes up with one.


----------



## Va_TTer (Dec 27, 2011)

DBVeeDB said:


> I am very happy with turn in, and spring feel, but rebound is loose. Any sort of bump while turning makes me lose confidence in the rear for a split second, on these struts I worry adding a bigger RSB will just increase this "risk". Its certainly not a huge problem, but my previous car (4mo passat) never experienced this issue on stock hardware.


Thanks for putting into words something I'd been feeling but hadn't quite been able to articulate. It isn't so much the turn-in, it's how the car responds to anything other than a smooth, well banked turn. There's one particular turn I take every day going home from work, with a bridge joint at the apex of a curve. My old TT would blip over it as if it weren't there; in the A3 I have to slow down before I get to it as I'm concerned I'll lose the back end if I cross it at speed. 

Do you have the sport wheels in addition to the sport suspension? I test drove one with the sport suspension and sport wheels, but then bought one with just the suspension and not the wheels (they made me a deal I couldn't refuse in an on-lot version). I'd been wondering how much of what I was feeling was the all season tires vs. lower profile summer tires. If the problem still exists with the sportier wheel / tire setup, I might need to think suspension tweaks instead.


----------



## DBVeeDB (Aug 3, 2007)

I agree - the transitions on corners seem to be the most sketchy. 

I have the 17's (base) wheel and tire package, and you are probably correct that these 45 series all seasons do contribute a bit to the problem. While minimal, some of the test drives I took in 18" cars did feel a bit more dialed in. But the seat time was minimal. I have been looking for a cheap set of take offs in my area but everyone wants too much or they aren't frequently available. Tires always make a good difference in handling, but I do still feel the suspension is mostly to blame for the issue we are discussing.


----------



## A3_yuppie (Jun 5, 2006)

DBVeeDB said:


> I agree - the transitions on corners seem to be the most sketchy.
> 
> I have the 17's (base) wheel and tire package, and you are probably correct that these 45 series all seasons do contribute a bit to the problem. While minimal, some of the test drives I took in 18" cars did feel a bit more dialed in. But the seat time was minimal. I have been looking for a cheap set of take offs in my area but everyone wants too much or they aren't frequently available. Tires always make a good difference in handling, but I do still feel the suspension is mostly to blame for the issue we are discussing.


I have the 18" OEM Sport Package wheels with Continental Sport Contact 2 summer tires (225/40-18) and the rebound float over road undulations when making quick lane changes (i.e., weaving through traffic) is sometimes quite disconcerting. I am hoping that when I get my new wheels, which should be quite a bit lighter, this phenomenon will decrease.


----------



## ThorMjolnir (Apr 9, 2014)

Simply adding sport springs to crappy struts is like taking a Mexican shower. Adding sport springs to crap struts may be nice for a year, but your struts will fail. That is not the solution to your problem. Also, although you may think adding $250 sport springs doesn't void any warranties, IT WILL VOID ALL SUSPENSION RELATED WARRANTIES. And we all know how much pride Audi takes in their suspensions. With that said, get coilovers or nothing at all. PSS10s are about as good as you'll find and worth every penny of $1,700 to $2,400.


----------



## gamegenie (Aug 24, 2014)

There is a little bit of body roll, but I'm okay with it because I rather have the luxury comfort drive than a teeth grinding stiff harsh ride.


----------



## s3u4ic (Sep 27, 2014)

CbutterK said:


> I think you will feel bigger improvement with lowering springs than you would with a swaybar. In another thread, there has been discussion about how the A3 sport suspension is actually same part number swaybars as the stock S3 ones. So, if you feel the sport suspension still rolls too much, you may consider springs 1st.


This my major complaint about the stock S3, the sway is pretty serious particularly when you brake in a fast turn, its scared me a few times.


----------



## Syrome (Jun 12, 2015)

Put a rear sway in and some springs. You'll notice a world of difference. Also upgrade the tires. The stock rubber sucks. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------

