Hello Everyone,
I would like to share my feedback on the KW DDC coilovers for the MK7 R so everyone could be aware before putting an order on these.
My car is a 2015 LSG MK7 R / DSG/DCC, few mods that are a set of VWR BBK as i do some track days, 034 Motorsport dogbone insert, JB1, VWR R600.
I was looking for a good set of coilovers that would fit the purpose of both road and occasional track use, I generally loved the stock suspension of the MK7 R both in track and on the road, managed to post some super fast laps in Dubai Autodrome and Yas Marina, most of the time giving Porsche GT4's a run for their money.
My Main purpose was to keep the DCC function so the car can remain comfy, lower the car a little for better looks and I thought any improvement on stock suspension would be welcome. (most springs in the market can only do one of those 3 things IMO, which is why i went the expensive way)
Made an order on these expensive coilovers a few months back, installation was nice and simple, first drive impressions, wow, forgot that the car was actually in race mode, it was very slightly harsher than stock on the road, turn in and handling initially felt better but i was nowhere near the limit.
Photo of them installed and the ride height:
The next day, I went to a nice stretch of empty roads to test the handling, and that is where problems have started.
First off, the handling was improved, however the behaviour of the car at the limit was not good at all, a lot of understeer that did not transfer into a lift off oversteer unless you were going very fast, stock suspension feels more neutral front to back but that was not even the real problem.
The real problem was when i started hearing massive clunking noises everytime I hit a slight road imperfection, or take a corner a bit faster than usual, upon further inspection, all front springs were massively binding against each other, and in ;ess than 300 kms only, the protective coating on the springs was wearing off (See photos).
I emailed KW about this issue, after going back and forth with loads of emails (one of the emails, I was advised that this suspension is not suitable to be used for track days!!!!!!!! see screenshot), I was asked to take loads of measurements for them to determine the issue, a few weeks, turned into a couple of months chasing KW for a solution to my problem, roughly 2-3 months down the line, I receive revised springs for the front only, the new springs had different part numbers.
I was happy to receive the new springs as i thought this would solve my issues, and i can enjoy the car again, went and paid for installation of new springs again, drove very well for the first few hours, no knocking noise anymore, handling improved massively with less understeer and a tail that was happier than ever, i thought the nightmare was finally over, to my surprise, the springs collapsed again once i drove over the next slight road imperfection and been knocking at any bump / turn since then as the front springs completely collapsed under normal pressure.
Bottom line of the story, you pay for a +3k $$$ worth of suspension, you pay install charges 3 times (because you have been use as KW's test pig), and then you get told that these should not be run on track.
I got so sick of this that I put my stock suspension back on because i cannot drive my car anymore the way it is.
Ive emailed KW on this subject yesterday, I'm hoping that KW would be decent enough to admit their mess on this suspension kit and refund my money, however I'm sure this will take weeks and weeks and the only victim here in the customer who paid +3K $ and installation charges 3 times (first time, second time, then back to stock).
For the record, there are a few others running the same suspension with similar issue so please beware before you order a KW DDC kit.
Please read carefully before ordering such kits, KW must resolve this issue as this is one of the worst experiences ever.
Regards,
I would like to share my feedback on the KW DDC coilovers for the MK7 R so everyone could be aware before putting an order on these.
My car is a 2015 LSG MK7 R / DSG/DCC, few mods that are a set of VWR BBK as i do some track days, 034 Motorsport dogbone insert, JB1, VWR R600.
I was looking for a good set of coilovers that would fit the purpose of both road and occasional track use, I generally loved the stock suspension of the MK7 R both in track and on the road, managed to post some super fast laps in Dubai Autodrome and Yas Marina, most of the time giving Porsche GT4's a run for their money.
My Main purpose was to keep the DCC function so the car can remain comfy, lower the car a little for better looks and I thought any improvement on stock suspension would be welcome. (most springs in the market can only do one of those 3 things IMO, which is why i went the expensive way)
Made an order on these expensive coilovers a few months back, installation was nice and simple, first drive impressions, wow, forgot that the car was actually in race mode, it was very slightly harsher than stock on the road, turn in and handling initially felt better but i was nowhere near the limit.
Photo of them installed and the ride height:
The next day, I went to a nice stretch of empty roads to test the handling, and that is where problems have started.
First off, the handling was improved, however the behaviour of the car at the limit was not good at all, a lot of understeer that did not transfer into a lift off oversteer unless you were going very fast, stock suspension feels more neutral front to back but that was not even the real problem.
The real problem was when i started hearing massive clunking noises everytime I hit a slight road imperfection, or take a corner a bit faster than usual, upon further inspection, all front springs were massively binding against each other, and in ;ess than 300 kms only, the protective coating on the springs was wearing off (See photos).
I emailed KW about this issue, after going back and forth with loads of emails (one of the emails, I was advised that this suspension is not suitable to be used for track days!!!!!!!! see screenshot), I was asked to take loads of measurements for them to determine the issue, a few weeks, turned into a couple of months chasing KW for a solution to my problem, roughly 2-3 months down the line, I receive revised springs for the front only, the new springs had different part numbers.
I was happy to receive the new springs as i thought this would solve my issues, and i can enjoy the car again, went and paid for installation of new springs again, drove very well for the first few hours, no knocking noise anymore, handling improved massively with less understeer and a tail that was happier than ever, i thought the nightmare was finally over, to my surprise, the springs collapsed again once i drove over the next slight road imperfection and been knocking at any bump / turn since then as the front springs completely collapsed under normal pressure.
Bottom line of the story, you pay for a +3k $$$ worth of suspension, you pay install charges 3 times (because you have been use as KW's test pig), and then you get told that these should not be run on track.
I got so sick of this that I put my stock suspension back on because i cannot drive my car anymore the way it is.
Ive emailed KW on this subject yesterday, I'm hoping that KW would be decent enough to admit their mess on this suspension kit and refund my money, however I'm sure this will take weeks and weeks and the only victim here in the customer who paid +3K $ and installation charges 3 times (first time, second time, then back to stock).
For the record, there are a few others running the same suspension with similar issue so please beware before you order a KW DDC kit.
Please read carefully before ordering such kits, KW must resolve this issue as this is one of the worst experiences ever.
Regards,
