Suspension...Higher

Joined
Dec 21, 2018
Location
Florida
TDI
2015 VW Passat CVCA DSG; 2015 Jetta Facelift CVCA DSG (x2)
Hello tdi crew, was curious as to raise the nms (some refer to as b7) to fit larger tires. I am staring at the spring perch and a 255/55/18 will fit but perfectly cuts the perch in half - looking at it from side on ground and doing measurements. I was looking at the Atlas front struts, Atlas adventure springs, Atlas rear irs parts, neuspeed 28mm rear sway/ +endlinks. (not a huge fan of spring/strut spacers but they work brilliantly)

On the flipside, performance wise I was looking at H&R sport/race springs depending on availability and teeth vibrating, 2" (30mm) lift spacers - remember height, still 28mm sway/+endlinks.

The spring perch to hub on the front strut is my only/main limitation.

Jettas can run tiguan struts/springs/hardware and get the lift/clearance, what is the option for the passat? (Sledge Hammer- Hammer time?)

mkvi facelift jetta can run 235/50/17 just fine with zero rubbing on factory wheels and suspension, I am pulling hair out with 2015 passat. Also diesel, spring psi/rating is irritating. My goal is to run A/T's, and eventually R32 or Golf R Calipers/rotors/braided lines.

Travel cross country (north america) florida-washington state, ferry ramps suck approach/center/departure (tide timing isn't always available) and enjoy the freedom between pavement and gravel/drainage ditch/whatever to get around object/ tree/ dead carcass/ flooding. TDI options are limited as we all know, Australia has the diesel subaru outback
 

Jetta_Pilot

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 14, 2005
Location
West Hill, Ont.
TDI
2015 Passat Highline TDI Candy White (SEL Premium) long gone 2002 Jetta TDI
Maybe I'm missing something, but my 2015 came with 18" wheels/tires from the factory.
 

pedroYUL

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 8, 2011
Location
MI, USA
TDI
2015 Passat CVCA; 2015 GSW CRUA; 2012 wagon CJAA; 2004 wagon BEW
OP doesn't want bigger rims, I believe he/she wants more overall wheel dimension (diameter specifically).

My NMS also has 18 in rims, but the tires then have a lower aspect ratio...at the end they are not much different diameter than my 195/65R15 in my mk4.
 

740GLE

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 19, 2009
Location
NH
TDI
2015 Passat SEL, 2017 Alltrack SE; BB 2010 Sedan Man; 2012 Passat,
I run 215-65-16 (27") for winter tire set up on stock suspension without issues, this is a step up over stock 16" size of 215-60-16 (26.1").

I think typical pinch points aren't due to suspension height but front rocker clearance at full lock, wider wheels and offset will play a huge factor in clearing. Can't compare a 6.5" width wheel to an 8" wheel.

255-55-18 are 29" tall tires, i'm gonna go with a hard no those will clear rockers, unless you want to start modifying rockers or limit steering angle.

Also the rear suspension of the NMS is based off the Mk5 Golf, the chances of a RSB from an Atlas is very slim to nil. Springs and shocks are one thing but RSB is different. H&R 24mm bar is a great upgrade, I can't imagine driving around with a 28mm.

I did see someone rocking massive meaty tires here in 17" flavor but forget the exact size
 
Joined
Dec 21, 2018
Location
Florida
TDI
2015 VW Passat CVCA DSG; 2015 Jetta Facelift CVCA DSG (x2)
Thank you

So dealing with pepboys I had every guy behind the counter (same guys who installed my 235/50/17 on mkvi facelift Jetta 17” sel et51 factory wheel) tell me my 255/45/18 tires wouldn’t fit. I asked to please install them anyway as /35/‘s gave me 2” from hub to spring perch clearance and /55/‘s cut the spring perch directly in half when looked at from the side.
/45/‘ absolute max clears everything with no rub! Gained a little height which was what I wanted. Tire made for 8.5 rim.

Fitted on VMR V710’s 18x8.5 5x112 et45 57.1mm hub (I think) to Federal 595 RPM. Rides beautifully, also my speedo is now exact. Looks beefy.
Attempt to post a pic....
Factory suspension
 
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740GLE

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 19, 2009
Location
NH
TDI
2015 Passat SEL, 2017 Alltrack SE; BB 2010 Sedan Man; 2012 Passat,
try braking and turning see if the inside tire rubs with the wider tire.

255-45-18 is right at the same as 215-65-16 that I run for winters, at 27" but much wider. Should handle the bumps much better with the more sidewall.
 

pedroYUL

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 8, 2011
Location
MI, USA
TDI
2015 Passat CVCA; 2015 GSW CRUA; 2012 wagon CJAA; 2004 wagon BEW
I also want more clearance, but perhaps not as much as you.

Bought H&R Tiguan lift springs 29037-1. Installed the rear ones and gained about 0.8" in the back.
Waiting for new struts and mounts to do the work just once in the front. I will report back.
 

pedroYUL

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 8, 2011
Location
MI, USA
TDI
2015 Passat CVCA; 2015 GSW CRUA; 2012 wagon CJAA; 2004 wagon BEW
Decided to write a how-to:

 
Joined
Dec 21, 2018
Location
Florida
TDI
2015 VW Passat CVCA DSG; 2015 Jetta Facelift CVCA DSG (x2)
Decided to write a how-to:

Meant to thank you for the update a while ago, suspension just starting to feel weak as I approach the 100k tic on the odo. I have fr/r 2" spacers to put on, prob only do rear spacers with the rest of your setup. My question is tire wear, notice any difference?
Curious if I may need Tiguan front/rear arms, think the axel length is fine. Staring at the 28mm rear sway as well and disconnecting the front. I need more distance between spring perch and where it fits the A-arm, have maybe 1/2" to 1/4" room at the moment with michelin pilot all season 4 255/45/18. 27" before on federals (tire molding issue) now 27.4" with michelins.
The idea is to put on some Advan wheels 18x10 et25 (clearance to run from height adjustment) and possible toyo A/T's with some fender messaging/cutting (prob linex or pickup bed spray the interior after) not a racecar (wheel/tire weight +/-), or go sparco 16x7 with Vred's 205/55 29" tirerack (prob fit nice with lift and no cutting). Love the wider tires to put the torque down, but like the cutting through standing water better instead of riding on top with the skinnies.
 

pedroYUL

Veteran Member
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Sep 8, 2011
Location
MI, USA
TDI
2015 Passat CVCA; 2015 GSW CRUA; 2012 wagon CJAA; 2004 wagon BEW
My question is tire wear, notice any difference?
Curious if I may need Tiguan front/rear arms, think the axel length is fine.
No weird tire wear, but I'm not driving as much these days.
Don't do Tiguan lift springs in the front, they are too stiff (read my last entry in the other thread), perhaps just regular Tiguan springs in the front is a better choice.
Perhaps you will need Tiguan arms when trying to fit larger tires. I could easily put on larger tires, but not sure how much bigger.
 
Joined
Dec 21, 2018
Location
Florida
TDI
2015 VW Passat CVCA DSG; 2015 Jetta Facelift CVCA DSG (x2)
No weird tire wear, but I'm not driving as much these days.
Don't do Tiguan lift springs in the front, they are too stiff (read my last entry in the other thread), perhaps just regular Tiguan springs in the front is a better choice.
Perhaps you will need Tiguan arms when trying to fit larger tires. I could easily put on larger tires, but not sure how much bigger.
Was looking at your struts, are you on 215/60/16's? Since those are different struts (tiguan?) I was curious as to how much space is between the top (like a ruler on tread) of your tire and the spring perch of the strut (I call it that, if you know the actual name please correct me).
If I really only need stock tiguan springs and those struts on the front with the tiguan lift springs and 2" spring spacer for the rear I'd be a happy camper.
b2bfab.com apparently has a lift kit in the works for the pre-mqb passats supposed to be ready by the end of the year, no details were given to me as for how they would actually do it. Their Atlas rear shock upgrade has me interested as far as using it on the nms passat, did you upgrade your rear shocks with the added height/length?
 

pedroYUL

Veteran Member
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Sep 8, 2011
Location
MI, USA
TDI
2015 Passat CVCA; 2015 GSW CRUA; 2012 wagon CJAA; 2004 wagon BEW
@Kicking Fire 3 : My new struts are for NMS not Tig. I'm running 215/55/17 but could easily fit taller tires. Also, I haven't changed the shocks, yet.

My idea was since I wanted to change the strut mounts and springs, to change the struts regardless and be done with the hard job.

What I wanted was/is to remove too much spring sagging, because if you do put longer struts you will be changing geometry and risk putting too much strain in the powerline. Same deal in the back, but less of an issue if you raise it higher.

Now, I can't find just rear Tig lift springs, but in the front you don't want the longer springs.

These for the front:

Regular Tiguan springs are slightly shorter than NMS actually, but much beefier and will sag much less with the weight of the car.

I did measure the distance from the top of the tire to the lip of the strut perch: 1.5in.
 

740GLE

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 19, 2009
Location
NH
TDI
2015 Passat SEL, 2017 Alltrack SE; BB 2010 Sedan Man; 2012 Passat,
Spring sag will always be there depending on how you load up the car, unless you go sky high then it'll ride like a truck when empty.

Airlift helper bags would allow you to adjust "spring rate" on the fly. They work great on our Alltrack.
 

pedroYUL

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 8, 2011
Location
MI, USA
TDI
2015 Passat CVCA; 2015 GSW CRUA; 2012 wagon CJAA; 2004 wagon BEW
Yeah, for sure bags is the way to go for more adjustability, but I didn't want an extra switch and wiring, find a place for the compressor to live, route air lines...
 
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