VW Mk7/Mk7.5 & Audi 8V A3/S3 Suspension Guide

The MQB based Mk7/Mk7.5 Golf, GTI, Golf R, Sportwagen, Alltrack, Audi 8V A3 and S3 represent the latest in suspension technologies from VW. However, that doesn't mean that there isn't room for improvement.

Over the past few years we've built our fair share of MQB chassis vehicles. From daily driven Sportwagens to our own widebody Stage 3+ track day focused Mk7 Golf R and everything in between, we've installed just about every possible suspension upgrade for the MQB platform. As a result, we are imparting our knowledge and experience in this handy MQB suspension guide so that you can properly build the street hot rod or time attack monster that you've always wanted.

The guide is divided into sections that cover suspension upgrades from mild (lowering springs), to wild (track coilovers, air ride) as well as all of the supporting parts and upgrades that go along with them. So buckle up and get ready to have some MQB suspension knowledge dropped on you.

What vehicles does this guide cover? What is an MQB Chassis?

All of the vehicles in this guide fall are built on the VW MQB chassis. At this point, some of you may be saying "But wait, I have an Audi not a VW. How will this guide help me?" VW (also known as VAG or Volkswagen Auto Group) is the parent company that owns Audi. We realize that while many of you have been enthusiasts for years and already know this, but there are others that are just getting into the scene and may not be aware of this.

The MQB chassis is highly modular and encompasses many different vehicles ranging from sub-compacts to full sized SUVs (though we will have a guide that approaches those models due to some differences). The chassis is designed to be easily changed to fit the vehicle application as needed. Because these vehicles are all based on the same chassis, they all share a very similar suspension system. Some vehicles do have slight differences in their suspension systems (such as different strut/shock diameters), but overall, most vehicles based on the MQB chassis utilize the same general suspension system. We'll be sure to inform you in this guide if there's a difference that you need to be aware of. Below you'll find a list of the vehicles that are covered in this guide:

2015-2021 VW Mk7, Mk7.5 Golf
2015-2020 VW Mk7, Mk7.5 Golf Sportwagen
2017-2020 VW Mk7, Mk7.5 Golf Alltrack
2015-2021 VW Mk7, Mk7.5 GTI
2015-2021 VW Mk7, Mk7.5 Golf R
2019+ VW Mk7 Jetta
2019+ VW Mk7 GLI
2015+ Audi 8V A3
2015+ Audi 8V S3
2015+ Audi 8S TT
2015+ Audi 8S TTS
2015+ Audi 8S TTRS

Air Ride? Coilovers? Springs? Struts and Shocks? Sway Bars?

We realize that while many people want to lower their Audi or VW, not everyone understands the language of lowering. This guide will help you to better understand and choose the suspension setup that is best suited to your needs.

If this guide doesn't have enough information for you, feel free to contact us at any time with any MQB chassis suspension questions you may have.

What's NVH and why do you mention it in this guide?

NVH stands for Noise, Vibration and Harshness. Some of the upgrades in this guide by their nature will increase these characteristics while driving. Whenever we mention NVH, we're specifically referring to those aspects and how they may affect your ride quality.

What is your goal?

When choosing a suspension, it is extremely important to set a goal of what you are trying to get out of your car. This way, you can plan around obtaining the appropriate components to reach that goal. The goals below are fairly basic, but chances are that what you're trying to accomplish will fit into one of these categories.

Lowering Springs

I just want to lower the car enough to make it look and handle a little better.

This is a fairly easy suspension goal to accomplish. For this, we recommend lowering springs. Lowering springs are available in several different brands, but they all do the same basic job: lower your car.

Lowering springs replace your factory springs and install over your existing struts. Most of these springs feature a stiffer spring rate that will also improve your handling in addition to lowering your vehicle.

034Motorsport, APR, H&R Sport, Neuspeed Sport, Racingline and Vogtland springs are fine to use with factory struts and shocks.

What am I compromising with Lowering Springs?

When the right parts are installed, not much. However, installing higher performance lowering springs without aftermarket struts can result in a rough and lumpy ride. In addition, most lowering springs do not offer any sort of adjustability whatsoever. If the ride height is not where you'd like it, you're stuck with it.

Do I need to replace my factory Struts/Shocks?

Most MQB lowering springs are ok to install with your original, factory struts, but there are a few that should only be installed with heavier duty, aftermarket struts. Most MSS, H&R Super Sport and Neuspeed Race springs should have aftermarket struts installed along with them. This is because these springs go low enough to bottom out your factory struts or may feature spring rates that do not work well with the more softer, more comfort oriented factory struts. This is because these springs go low enough to bottom out your factory struts or may feature spring rates that do not work well with the softer, more comfort oriented factory struts.

To help with this situation, we carry several aftermarket struts and shocks that are well suited to the more performance oriented lowering springs on the market. Due to their outstanding attention to detail and high quality, our current favorite aftermarket strut and shock brands are Bilstein and Koni. For most high performance lowering springs, we recommend the Koni Sport or Bilstein B8 Performance lines of struts and shocks. Both are well designed, tested and are sure to satisfy the most demanding performance handling needs.

Coilovers

Coilover Suspension Kit

I want to lower my car a good amount or I want really good handling with decent looks.

A lot of people fall into one of these two suspension goals. The typical solution we have for most people is a proper coilover suspension kit. Coilover suspensions come with a strut that is matched to a spring. They also feature a threaded section on the strut assembly that allows you to adjust the height of your vehicle to your liking. This comes in handy when you want to raise the vehicle in the winter due to snow but still want to lower it during the nicer months.

Some people may have noticed that we placed an "or" between the two goals above. The reason behind this is because while you can continue to lower your car further (and often make it look really good in the process), you will quickly hit a point where your handling is negatively affected. Because of this, we've separated the coilover section of this guide.

A quick note on DCC/EDC factory suspensions. If your car came equipped with an electronically adjustable suspension system, you will need to choose a kit appropriate for it. Pretty much any coilover suspension system made for your vehicle model will physically install, but may leave you with a pesky check engine or suspension light on the dash. To avoid this, choose a kit that is designed for use on vehicles that came equipped with electronic suspension or pickup a cancellation kit.

I want my car to look amazing, screw the handling.

For this goal, we recommend going with a coilover kit such as the H&R Ultra Lows.

I want really good handling while still looking good.

The good news is that there are many good coilover kits will help you reach this goal. The bad news is that you have to make the choice of only one coilover kit (though if you want to buy more than one coilover kit for your car, we're not going to stop you). Coilover kits in this category range from relatively inexpensive ($800-$1199 or less) to moderately priced ($1,200-$1,999) to expensive ($2,000 or more). It's important to note that spending more money on coilovers does not neccessarily just give you "better" handling. Many of the more expensive coilover kits are made for specific uses and aren't made for daily driving on the street. So don't feel bummed out that you can't afford to purchase a set of the latest Bilstein, H&R or KW Clubsport coilover kit.

Coilovers for the Street or Light Track Use

Our own Type I, Vogtland and Bilstein B14 coilovers fall into this category. These coilovers will give you great handling and just the right amount of lowering (1" - 2.25" on average) to make your car look great. Coilovers in this category have struts that are valved for just about everything that the street will throw at your car. Whether you're driving on a twisty backroad or the highway, these coilovers give your car a good bump in the handling department. Expect big increases in road holding capabilities. Most of the coilovers at this price point do not feature any adjustability other than height.

Coilovers for Street or Regular Track Use

Bilstein B16, H&R Street Performance, KW Variant 1 and Variant 2 coilovers fall into this category. These will give you even better handling and similar levels of lowering to the previous category of coilovers but also add the ability to adjust damping and in a few cases, rebound or compression as well. These coilovers feature struts with valving that works well on the street or the track. No matter if you're on the street or the track, these coilovers will be well suited to whatever you throw at them. Most coilovers in this category can handle pretty much everything except actual repeated race use.

Coilovers for the Track or Hardcore Street Use

Bilstein Clubsports, H&R RSS Clubsports, KW Clubsports, KW Variant 3 and Ohlins coilovers fall into this category. These coilovers will offer you the ultimate in handling for your vehicle. They will also lower your car, but handling is the real reason you are spending more money on these. These coilovers are in most cases completely adjustable in every way possible. Some of these coilovers also feature remote reservoirs for additional cooling or camber plates for even more adjustment.

What am I compromising with Coilovers?

Coilover suspensions by their nature offer you many benefits, but they aren't without their downsides. For instance, while some of the more hardcore coilover kits offer amazing handling, the ride comfort may not be the best. Similarly, some lower priced coilovers may offer great street handling and comfort, but do not do well when pushed to the limit on the track.

Air Ride

Air Ride Suspension Kit

I just want to slam my car on the ground, make it look amazing and drive it wherever I want.

A lot of us enjoy the look of a car on the ground. There's just something about a car sitting freakishly low that puts a smile on your face. While you can come close to achieving this look on some coilover kits, you're more than likely going to have some issues getting around town at that height. This is where Air Ride suspension kits come in to play. Air ride kits are utilize a system of air bags, one or more air compressors, an air distribution manifold and a management system to give you the capability to raise or lower your car on command. When you're ready to drive, simply air up your bags and roll out. When you get to your favorite space to hang, park your car and let it air out.

Air Ride makes it convenient to enjoy a comfortable ride with good handling. You're free to set the ride height wherever you want, whenever you want. There's just no downside to it. Or is there?

What am I Compromising on with Air Ride?

At this point you're probably wondering to yourself, "if air ride is so convenient, why doesn't everyone just install it on their car?" There are a few reasons for this:

For one, air ride is typically more expensive than other suspension options. While you can get into a set of lowering springs for less than $250 or buy a set of our Type I coilovers for under $800, chances are that you're not going to find a good air ride kit with proper management for less than $2,500. This is simply due to the increased complexity of an air ride system. The cost of required air compressors, fittings, manifolds, lines and digital management systems adds up quickly. Due to the increased complexity and the increased number of parts used, installation is also typically more extensive and as a result, more expensive.

In addition, air ride systems on average require a bit more care than your average spring or coilover kit. Winterizing your air ride system is key to keeping things running smoothly in colder weather. Failure to do so can lead frozen air lines that can leave your car unable to air up.

Another reason that some may not be into air ride: handling. Now before the air ride purists come out and massacre us, we're not saying that you can't have good handling with an air ride suspension. Air ride has certainly come a long ways in terms of handling. The Air Lift Performance kits that we sell do an a amazing job of giving you comfort and good handling as well. However, a simple fact remains: an air bag cannot fully replicate the handling capabilities of a traditional spring design. Also, going back to the increased cost of an air ride installation, if you spend the same $2,500 or more on a full-on track coilover kit, it's going to completely outclass an air ride kit in terms of handling (as it should).

Versatility is Key

If we were to use one word to describe Air Ride systems, it would be versatility. No other suspension system gives you as great of a blend of comfort, convenience and handling. Air Ride kits simply give your car an all around improvement in the suspension department. There's just no easier way to improve both the looks and handling of your car dynamically with the press of a button.

MQB Air Ride Quick Links

Performance Sway Bars and End Links

Performance sway bars are a great way to increase the handling capabilities of your car no matter what suspension upgrades you already have installed. For vehicles with lowering springs or very little other suspension modifications, we recommend starting with a smaller rear sway bar. For vehicles with a more dialed in suspension system, a larger sway bar can be used. Most of the sway bars we offer feature multiple settings for fine tuning the sway bar rate to your liking.

Solid or hollow? This is still a heavily debated topic, but the important thing that you need to know regarding hollow vs solid is diameter. A solid sway bar will require a smaller diameter thickness to achieve the same rate of transfer as a larger diameter hollow sway bar. This means that a 24mm solid bar more or less has the equivalent rate increase as a 28mm hollow bar. Keep in mind that this is a very simplistic way to look at it and there are other factors that need to be taken into consideration such as the inner diameter of the hollow bar. In most cases, whether you choose a solid or hollow bar shouldn't be a major point of contention on a street driven or lightly tracked car. However, if you are planning on building a track only vehicle, you may consider looking into the further pros and cons of each setup (feel free to contact us regarding this if you have any questions).

When upgrading your sway bar, it's also a good idea to install a set of upgraded sway bar end links. Your factory end links were not designed to constantly cope with an aftermarket sway bar that may have a 200% increase in rate over the factory sway bar. As a result, we carry the most popular sway bar end links from 034Motorsport, APR and SuperPro. Sway bar end links are available with either spherical or ball joints. We typically recommend ball joints for cars that will be primarily driven on the street and spherical joints for those primarily driven on the track. This is because most spherical joints tend to wear out quickly and are often much noisier than their ball joint equivalents. However, spherical joints do tend to offer a slightly quicker and more direct rate transfer. Some end links such as those from APR feature ends that can be interchanged, so that you can use the spherical ends at a track event and change them out for ball joints when you're done. The sway bar end links that we offer can be easily found in the same categories as our sway bars (see links below).

MQB Chassis Sway Bar Quick Links

Other Suspension Accessories

Strut Mounts and Bearings

When replacing most of the suspension kits in this guide, you will end up removing the factory strut mounts. Unless your car is relatively new, we highly recommend replacing your factory strut mounts and bearings. Over time and mileage, the rubber portion of the mount starts to compress and the bearings start to seize up. For these reasons, we highly recommend replacing your strut mounts and bearings while you're installing your other new suspension components. Driving your car on bad strut mounts or bearings can lead to unusual squeaks, rattles or clunks.

Rubber Strut Mounts

The factory strut mounts that came equipped on your car are rubber. These strut mounts work great under a variety of driving conditions and provide the most comfort out of any of the other mount options. If you're in doubt of which option to choose, go with a pair of these.

In addition to the factory strut mounts, we also carry the great 034Motorsport density line of strut mounts. These mounts feature a stiffer durometer rubber for decreased bushing deflection and movement which in turn gives your car increased handling capabilities. The 034Motorsport density strut mounts are the most popular strut mount option that we offer as they cope well with all levels of suspension upgrades. We recommend using them for both track and street driven vehicles.

Camber Plates

For the track day enthusiast looking for even more alignment adjustability, look no further than camber plates. Camber plates feature slots that make it possible to adjust the amount of negative or positive camber in the front suspension. We highly recommend camber plates to anyone that regularly tracks their vehicle. In addition, camber plates are often the only way to correctly dial in the proper amount of camber in the front suspension of your vehicle. This is because the factory method of shifting the subframe only allows for minor camber adjustment. Other upgrades such as the TyrolSport Deadset locking collar kit below also remove the ability to adjust camber using the subframe, which means camber plates are often the only way to easily adjust it.

Camber Mounts

For those that want increased camber but don't need adjustability, we recommend camber mounts. These feature a preset amount of increased negative camber for better handling. No adjustment is possible or needed. We currently offer camber mounts from both 034Motorsport and SuperPro. Both camber mount kits add 1.4° of negative camber to your front suspension.

TyrolSport Deadset Locking Collar Kit

From the factory, the subframe on a VW Mk7, Mk7.5, Audi 8V or 8S vehicle is prone to movement under load. This is because the standard factory alignment procedure allows for the subframe to shift around to adjust camber and toe. The TyrolSport Deadset locking collar kit eliminates movement by essentially locking the subframe into place. This ultimately results into a much better handling car that is more planted, has more direct steering and is quicker to turn in. Brake pedal stiffness is also positively affected as well, resulting in a better, top of the pedal feel.

Polyurethane Bushings

SuperPro Polyurethane Suspension Bushings

Factory suspension bushings are produced from flexible rubber to give you a good blend of comfort and handling, often leaning more towards comfort than handling. They help to soak up imperfections in the road such as potholes. Polyurethane bushings on the other hand, tend to lean heavily in favor of handling at the sacrifice of comfort. Since they do not move nearly as much as your factory rubber bushings, polyurethane bushings are able to increase the handling of your car by reducing the amount of deflection or suspension travel. In comparison to your stock rubber bushings which are designed to give you a more comfortable ride, polyurethane bushings are significantly stiffer (and much more solid). Because your car isn't having to fight against the bushing flex nearly as much, this translates into quicker turn in a more immediate response to steering input.

This increased handling doesn't come without a downside however. The stiffer polyurethane bushings will result in a noticeable increase in NVH. In addition, you will be able to feel imperfections in the road much more easily and noises that may not have been present before will become apparent.

Due to their excellent production quality, commitment to performance and amazing warranty, our preferred polyurethane bushing brand of choice is SuperPro. We've installed them on several of our own project cars including our Stage III+ Mk7 Golf R. SuperPro bushings are available individually or in complete kits.

Control Arms

Your factory control arms do a great job of adjusting to varying road conditions and relaying your steering and driving input to the road. However, many aftermarket control arms feature modifications that make it easier to fine tune your suspension settings to your liking.

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