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How can I get less travel from the rear of my Audi B7 A4

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  • How can I get less travel from the rear of my Audi B7 A4

    Whaddup guys!
    Since my new setupthis year with aaggressive poke on my A4 B7 I have been struggling with getting less travel to eliminate rubIin the rear. Going from ST coil oversI ccurrently have in the rear 7" 1300# Hypercoils with Air Lift performance struts. I went with these struts for thec30 way damping. They are height adjustable but I'm not sure how that would help. As lso the springs are separate and not true coil overs in the rear. Any suggestions? Thanks!!

  • #2
    Stiffer but shorter springs in the rear would be one option, though that would resist motion, rather than eliminate it.

    Depending on how your rear shocks mount and how much load you feel comfortable placing on their mounting, have a look at how W124s and similar era Mercedes do their bumpstops - it's a semi-hard foam rubber "donut" that goes around the shock shaft. Once the shock reaches a certain amount of compression, the bumpstop interferes with the shock compressing any further.



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    • #3
      Never thought about bump stops... Maybe I should research them. I am not sure what the deal is with the Air Lift bumps stops that I have. Also I have tried so many springs that I am up to my ears in them. Maybe it won't hurt to go down an inch. Any farther and the car would sit too low as I have had 6" springs in the past.

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      • #4
        If the over-the-shock-tube style don't end up working for you for whatever reason, you might also have a look at the bumpstops designed for XJs and TJs - they fit inside the coil spring and limit its upwards travel. It would require fabbing an attachment mechanism, but it might be easier than trying to find a place to mount a bumpstop elsewhere on the suspension system. You can also get nice progressive ones such that tapping the bumpstop doesn't instantly stop the car with a bang, but slows the suspension's upward travel smoothly and gradually.



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        • #5
          What about extending what's on the strut? I have an XJ so I am familiar but I feel that riding the bumpstopwould make the ride bouncier.

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          • #6
            What is currently on the strut that you're thinking of extending? If it's a rubber bumpstop, that's basically the W124 / W201 setup I mentioned earlier, and you certainly could extend that piece if you're comfortable putting additional load on your rear mounts.

            In either case, to limit travel in the rear, you're ultimately looking at increasing the spring rate of your system at least at a certain point of its travel. That may mean a stiffer, shorter spring, which will probably only get you part of the way there, or it may mean a bumpstop. A firm bumpstop will basically increase your spring rate to infinity, so you're not likely to see tons of extra bounciness out of that, since there's no give, but the ride will be uncomfortable and noisy as you bang off the stop. A softer stop will gradually increase your spring rate as it compresses, which will add bounce and require additional damping, but it'll be a lot gentler on both you and the car.



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            • #7
              Okay, I did some thinking and I got a plan! I really appreciate you taking the time to help cuz I'm learning a lot. My struts are height adjustable. I don't know the properties of the bumpstop that is currently on there but I figure I can adjust the strut height higher, meaning as the car sits at right height, the strut will be closer to maxed meaning I can get the bumpstop where I want it with some tweaking. The reason that they are adjustable is essentially the same reason for guys with air to shorten the strut and get more travel so the wheels tuck where you want them. I will play with that. Also, I am getting more and more broke with all these projects so the next best spring I can get with Hyperco is still a 1300lb but at an inch shorter. I can't swing Swift springs right now and the flat I got this morning kinda is a wrench in the spoke as well. This sounds like a plan, you think?

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              • #8
                You already have 7" 1300lb/in springs in the rear, correct? So, going to a 1" shorter spring at the same rate would be counterproductive to what you're trying to accomplish here. If you're currently happy with the spring rate you have, I'd probably just leave well enough alone in terms of the springs.

                The other part of the plan, however, to adjust the shocks such that the extant bumpstop contacts earlier in the suspension system's travel, that's moving in the right direction. You're likely to have to do some trial-and-error to get the system's travel limited the way you want, but that should be straightforward enough.



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                • #9
                  Be careful with extended use of bumpstops, they can do some serious damage to strut towers over time. I would say a solid 30% of guys who use them have some sort of issues in my experience. A lot of the guys who have had success, run a rear strut tower bar or have something similar. You can def get away with it, if a new pill had 70% success rating, it would go to market.

                  I don't know if airlift revalves shocks, but I would try and do something with the valving as that shock in off the shelf form doesn't come close to handling that spring. If you look, there are a lot of companies who use the same MFG for shocks as that airlift shock, they can probably also help.

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