Koni FSD struts and Eibach Pro Kit springs. Before and after w/pics!

My car came with "stock" springs that made it look like it was ready to attend Monster Jam and crush some cars. Maybe that is true stock ride height but it was way too high for my taste. However, the car came with Koni FSD struts and shocks. So I debated and debated and decided to go with Eibach Pro Kit springs to lower the car. For those of you who like to read here is why (if you don't care, skip to the pics):
Why I chose the Eibach Pro Kit springs: When my brother-in-law first started dating my sister he had a 2-door Honda Accord that looked great and rode great too. I told him multiple times that I loved the right height and really really liked the way it rode. Come to find out he had installed the Eibach Pro Kit springs and had been through two other suspension setups that he did not like but he loved the Eibach's.
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I had installed Tein H-Tech springs on my previous car, another 2003 Jetta TDI, and I really liked the way they rode and made the car look with its lowered stance. But having already installed the Tein's on my last Jetta I wanted to try something different this time and chose to go with the Eibach's.
Stock springs side shot:


Eibach Pro Kit side shot:


Front measurement - 22.5" at the mouth of the tape measure:


Rear measurement - 23.75" at the mouth of the tape measure:


Front measurement - 21.5" at the mouth of the tape measure:

Rear measurement - 22.5" at the mouth of the tape measure:


The car is getting an alignment tomorrow and I supply an official on how it handles and rides after the alignment. So far the car rides great, better than the previous "stock" springs.

Well I don't have any super good news because the car has increasing vibration when you are at speed in a corner. New alignment and everything. Not sure exactly what is causing it but the only thing I can think of are the axels now that it has been lowered. At low speeds (leaving a stand still, in a parking lot, etc) there is no noise from the axels at all but once you are going 35 mph and are into a decent curve in the road there is vibration in the car. My first thought was wheel bearings but those would have a wirring noise if they were having trouble and not cause vibration. The vibration feels like every time the wheel turns over. Turning left or right. I'll dig into it some more and report back.

However, the car does ride better. Ride quality is improved over the stock springs - much smoother in a straight line. I can't push it in corners yet due to the above paragraph but so far I really like the ride quality.

So are you getting vibration on acceleration? Only on acceleration? That would be inner CV joints, but it is also apparent on straight line acceleration, so probably not the inner CV joints.

Usually outer CV joint problems manifest as clicking in turns.

I had a problem where the wheel bearing had been peened and it was apparent at all speeds, and varied with vehicle speed. It was a single bump, even though there are more than 1 ball in the bearings. My problem with fixing it was to correctly locate which side was the culprit.

Lowered ride height will put more stress on the wheel bearings since it is more likely that the wheel bearings are not level during most driving activity. Maybe you will just need to replace both sides and see. If you can do the replacement yourself, it will not be terribly expensive.

Cheers,

PH

Also, my problem announced itself long after the original event, and sounded much like it was coming from the opposite side from where the problem actually was. Hence, it took me 4 or 5 months before I finally bit the bullet, bought some pullers, a wheel bearing kit from Harbor Freight, and fabricated a crude brace to use in extracting the hub prior to doing the r&r on the new bearing.

There's a how-to you should read. It shows everything you need. Now that I have all the tools I need, I can do this in a couple of hours if I do my usual and take my sweet time.

Cheers,

PH

I have the Eibach pro kit springs on my Jetta but with the Koni SRT (oranges). No vibrations at all at any speed. See if you have any signs of the axle rubbing anywhere. I didn't think these would be low enough to cause interference, but I know the 'moar low' folks have issues with axles rubbing sway bars or the body.

My previous tires were crap and rode harsh and made a lot of noise. Fresh tires (with the new wheels) and it's smooth as glass.

I should be right about where you are ride height wise:

Thanks for the help with suggestions. The "problem" with the situation is that a few items remind me of my issue with what sounded like the turbo sound having a frequency along with the vibrating when accelerating prior to the lowering springs. Come to find out it was the axels, or at least one of them. The local specialty VW shop fixed one axel and replaced the other axel with another axel from a used VW they had on the lot (they have a lot of VW's on their lot). Prior to me lowering the car the vibration under acceleration seemed to have gone away and so did the noise from the turbo that was the exact frequency/vibration as the vibration under acceleration.

The vibration is while I'm in a corner at speed. At very low speeds, like leaving a stop sign, etc, there is no noise at all. No clicking, etc. But while in a turn there is enough vibration that I always back off and go about 10 mph under the speed suggested for the corner.

Having said the latter I have noticed very slight vibration under acceleration while going straight. It is BARELY noticable but it is there...again, yet VERY VERY slight...while accelerating going straight.

I did some snooping around and it seems like I can't go to Autozone, O'Riley's, etc, and grab replacement axels for the six speed transmission. I went ahead and bit the bullet and ordered new axels from Raxels and they should be here tomorrow. Yes they are expensive but they're actually a little bit lower in price than buying the axels from Euro axel mfg's.

Powder Hound said:

So are you getting vibration on acceleration? Only on acceleration? That would be inner CV joints, but it is also apparent on straight line acceleration, so probably not the inner CV joints.

Usually outer CV joint problems manifest as clicking in turns.

I had a problem where the wheel bearing had been peened and it was apparent at all speeds, and varied with vehicle speed. It was a single bump, even though there are more than 1 ball in the bearings. My problem with fixing it was to correctly locate which side was the culprit.

Lowered ride height will put more stress on the wheel bearings since it is more likely that the wheel bearings are not level during most driving activity. Maybe you will just need to replace both sides and see. If you can do the replacement yourself, it will not be terribly expensive.

Cheers,

PH

Click to expand...

PH,

Thanks. My concern is that it is a vibration, not any kind of wirring noise and the vibration is on the side of the wheel that is under a load and it happens on both sides (turning right and turning left).

Most notably I can ever so slightly feel a vibration while accelerating, which is what made me take it to the specialty VW repair shop (Guy Roberts VW) in Newton NC prior to the lowering springs being installed. So the more I type and think about what is causing the vibration in corners and also the shuttering/slight vibration under acceleration is all leading to the axels.

Raxels came today. Man they are good looking! Shame to hide them under the vehicle.

I opened the bags on a Raxel to take a closer look:

A little back-story: I had the car in for service for the previous stock axels and the job the shop did seemed to work just fine. After installing Eibach Pro Kit springs the vibration under acceleration came back a little bit but after the lowering springs were installed there was HEAVY vibration when turning at speed. Low speed (parking lot, etc) turns were fine but anything faster than 20 mph presented a huge problem with the stock'ish axels. I'm talking about having to go 20 mph in a 45 mph turn to avoid the car vibrating itself to death. The vibration while turning was VERY VERY bad and while Guy Roberts VW here in Newton is a specialist VW repair shop I found myself questioning their suggestion of the axels because I was thinking it was the wheel bearings, suspension bushings, etc.

But I went with it and had the custom pair of Raxels installed today. All I can say is WOW, HOLY ****, JESUS! The car has ZERO vibrations now - in a straight line, in turns, anywhere. The Raxels have literally transformed my car from a car I was scared to drive into a thing of bliss. I can now corner with ease and confidence - no more worrying about corner speed limit signs and needing to immediately drop at least 10 mph under the suggested speed. My car is now an absolute pleasure to drive.

Yes Raxels are expensive ($700 per pair) but if you have a 6 speed swap in a car that wasn't supposed to have that transmission in it to begin with AND you have any issues with the axels I highly recommend purchasing a pair of Raxels. Huge, HUGE, improvement by 1000% and they're guaranteed as long as you own the vehicle no matter what upgrades you do to it.

Raxels installed pictures. Not much to see as they are obviously under the vehicle but they sure are pretty. The difference in these Raxels versus the previous axels that came with the 6 speed conversion is...well saying "night and day" is not doing it justice. More like "in the middle of a black hole versus sitting on the surface of the sun" is more like it. I was hesitant that the Raxels would solve everything that was happening but they have solved everything. I am super happy with their performance.