S Line Suspension. What to choose?

**hawkesbaynz** · 27-07-2008,03:24 PM

Hi,
Hoping to order a 2 litre diesel Avant S-Line with Multitronic gears.

I have read that the S-lines suspension is preferable (Channel 4 car review) and I think that it has added value for the Zenon's, sports seats etc. However a little confused by: 'sports suspension (lowered by 20mm, with the S-line pack taking it 10mm further down)'. Is the further 10mm reduction purely a cosmetic, sporty appearance issue. I am hoping for improved suspension as am over my Boy Racer phase. Hope a better informed person can help me.

Anyone dealt with DrivetheDeal the Internet Broker as the prices are very keen?

Ta
Roger

**2.7 S-line** · 27-07-2008,05:25 PM

my take on it - having driven a demo in a 30mm drop 2.0tdi and a 20mm drop 2.7tdi is that to 30mm gives a slightly firmer drive (more jarring over uneven surfaces) but the handlings pretty much the same maybe even a little worse in the 30mm drop as it was a bit unsettled

the increased drop is to give it a lower slung sportier look rather than better performance as far as i could tell

parked side by side you could just tell the difference - but i would defy anyone to be able to tell if an isolated car had 20 or 30 mm drop without another car to compare to

having seen and driven them i chose the 20mm as the 30mm was visually not enough of an improvement for a significantly worse ride - obviously that's just my opinion and i'm sure lots of folks with 30mm drop cars will disagree

**2.7 S-line** · 27-07-2008,06:02 PM

forgot to say - have been driving a 2.0tdi SE for the last 3 weeks as a loan car , so i've also had a chance to try the standard (non-sports) suspension too - is a bit more comfortable on uneven surfaces but really wallows about on fast turns

significantly slows me down on fast A roads , makes it feel like you're really pushing it at speeds that in my old A3 (which I've traded in) would have felt quite pedestrian

**B6Andy101** · 27-07-2008,07:38 PM

I'd echo the comments above and have also gone with the 20mm suspension drop. I've also been able to squeeze the 19" alloys from my budget which maintains the full wheel arch look the 30mm drop gives.

Don't ask the dealers for their opinion on this and base your decision on their reply. They have struggled to get their heads around colours yet alone specifications in my experience. Go with your gut feeling.

**kevspi** · 28-07-2008,10:13 AM

Is there anyway I can tell if my car is 20mm or 30mm lower. This may sound stupid but mine is a company car and my boss who arranged the deal didn't go for the 30mm like i wanted but I called the dealership before the order went through to make sure it was dropped by 30mm. Now the sales guy says it is 30mm but how can I know for sure?? Thanks.

**hawkesbaynz** · 28-07-2008,11:22 AM

Thanks for the feedback.

Kevspi how comfortable is the ride? Also how do you find the seats. I have a bad back. Sat in the S-line but not had a test drive - only in the SE in various guises.

**DobarDabar** · 28-07-2008,11:29 AM

And now an opinion from different angle of view.

I would strongly choose non-sport suspension. I can't think of even one advantage of sport suspension, further sport suspension + 19'' wheels, omg do you have your own motorway? I would rather take R8 then. Big alloy wheel and sport suspension is for cars in saloon to attract customers imo. Remember! you are driving car from the inside and you pay your money to Audi to enjoy nice, comfortable and quiet ride. So I would recommend normal suspension it's totally fine, I tried it on curved roads and it holds very well.

But neglect all I said if you like, its personal preference that I want to share.

Regards.

**Moodshadow** · 28-07-2008,01:52 PM

Try Motorlogix, their prices are even keener than drive the deal and one punter has used them on here with no problems.

I intend to use them next year when I change my car if the dealers are not prepared to discount sufficiently.

AUDI-NUT · 28-07-2008,02:22 PM

Originally Posted by hawkesbaynz

Hi,
Hoping to order a 2 litre diesel Avant S-Line with Multitronic gears.

I have read that the S-lines suspension is preferable (Channel 4 car review) and I think that it has added value for the Zenon's, sports seats etc. However a little confused by: 'sports suspension (lowered by 20mm, with the S-line pack taking it 10mm further down)'. Is the further 10mm reduction purely a cosmetic, sporty appearance issue. I am hoping for improved suspension as am over my Boy Racer phase. Hope a better informed person can help me.

Anyone dealt with DrivetheDeal the Internet Broker as the prices are very keen?

Ta
Roger

I am fortunate enough to have driven the SE, S-Line with 20mm drop and my preference which is why I bought it, the S-Line with 30mm drop.

The ride comfort is all about personal opinion of course but I have driven the S-Line extensively, over 3 weeks with the 20mm drop and more recently the S-Line with 30mm drop which for me doesn't ride that much differently to the 20mm apart from the fact it obviously holds the road that much better and much nicer/tighter going into corners, the servotronic steering makes it so much nicer too and I would seriously recommend it.

If its the S-Line you are going for, the 30mm wins for me, it does look better, I realise some say you don't notice the difference but you do.
Forget the 19inch wheels though if you are going for the 30mm drop, it doesnt work, the ride is seriously compromised with the 19's and will end up being more common than the standard 18's anyway. Even with the 19's on the 20mm drop the steering felt heavy to me and a little lifeless.

You will notice I haven't mentioned the SE, if its pure comfort you are looking for without the good looks of the S-Line then go for the SE, its a less exciting drive and nose heavy but its all about preference and still a nice enough car.

By the way, I am talking saloon here and not Avant so cannot comment on that.

Whatever you choose I am sure you will enjoy it.

**kevspi** · 28-07-2008,02:26 PM

Originally Posted by hawkesbaynz

Thanks for the feedback.

Kevspi how comfortable is the ride? Also how do you find the seats. I have a bad back. Sat in the S-line but not had a test drive - only in the SE in various guises.

On the second day I had the car I did a 650 mile trip in one day and got out the other end with no back problems at all. I'm 6ft 4" and have had trouble in the past too. The seats (half leather with cloth) are excellent and the adjustment very good too. The suspension surprised me in this car as I had read so many comments to suggust my skeleton would be shaken apart after my first drive. I found it to be firm but not firm enough to cause me any distress. I drove an A3 sportback 2.0tdi 170 s-line last year and its ride was 50% worse than my new B8. I had read on an earlier post on this forum that Audi had listened to early owners of the s-line and softened the ride somewhat on later models like mine (I don't know if this is correct?).

I've had 2 people stop me an ask me if it was an "A6" as I've had it debadged. At work I park next to my old car which is a B6 A4 and I can see how to the untrained eye it could look that way.