So it started out with a good deal on front and rear Hotchkis sway bars. I dropped the subframe to do the front, so car on jackstands, subframe dropped, steering rack unbolted and front swaybar removed in 45 mins. I had help, lol. Anyway, I go to install thefront sway and something seems off. Further investigation reveals I'd been shipped inch and a quarter bushings instead of inch and an eigth. Damnit. So after a couple hours looking for an unavailable part number, I found an energy swaybar bushing that looked to be correct. Right size, greasable, picture was identical to the one I needed. Ater I ordered it, I started thinking about the fact that I'd need to replace all the torque to yield hardware I'd pulled from the subframe. But rather than replace it all with stock stuff, I decided to pull the trigger on a front and rear Deadset kit from Tyrolsport. A couple bourbons later, I ordered an APR pendulum mount, since I needed that hardware too.
I get an email a couple days later (Monday) from Tyrolsport telling me the bronze collars for the front weren't currently in stock and would be backordered until mid June. At this point, the car had been on stands for about a week. After a call to TS, they found the original prototype bronze collars and offered to send them. So off they went. Around the same time, my Energy bushings arrived. They weren't even close.
So checked on the forum where I'd found the deal on the sways (and immedieately warned other members to double check their parts before dropping the subframe), lo and behold, there was a local who was willing to let me borrow his front bushings until my replacements from hotchkis arrived. Hot damn, sometimes the internet is rad. So I zip on up there to grab the bushings (maintaining social distance) and ripped home. Perfect fit. As luck would have it, my pendulum mount from Achtuning showed up while I was gone. Score.
The next day I haf to work, but when I got home, the deadset kit was waiting for me. The car had been in the air about 18 days at this point. The next morning i head out to the garage, slapped in the bushings, got fresh steering bolts from the local VW dealer, installed the deadset kit, and was 90% done with the install. I needed an extra set of hands, so I called my buddy James, who'd helped initially, and we got the subframe lined up, torqued, I put torque stripes on all the fasteners (witness marks) and put the car back down.
Next day, I decide to attack the rear sway bar and deadset kit. Dropped the subframe, thanks to the write up, I knew about the two small bolts that Tyrol doesn't replace in their kit, so 15 mins after the car was back in the air, the subframe was dropped enough to sneak the collars on top. Too easy. Swaybar was next, again, easy. Then I broke the stock swaybar endlinks trying to transfer them to the new bar. Damnit.
After ordering some Moog swaybar endlinks (awesome product), I ordered the hardware from the local VW dealer and waited. Once all the parts were in my hands (hadn't driven the car in 3 weeks at this point), the install continued. Torqued everything to spec and marked the fasteners to monitor rotation.
Now for the first startup, I was expecting SOME vibration, but I was not at all prepared. There was zero additional vibration. None. Read that again. The car was quieter than before.
A test drive to Rampage and a torque check, and doneso. The car is neutral, composed, additional throttle mid corner and it feels like the car pulls tighter into the corner. GTI S PP. I'm currently APR S2, so I decided to launch the sucker and see if wheelhop had diminished. Spun through first, flicked the paddle into second, still spinning, no hop. Flicked the paddle again toward the top of the gear at the same time the dsg decided to upshift, so into 4th I went . Still, no wheel hop, no vibration.
I'm impressed. Great products, great support, easy installs. Don't be afraid to drop the front subframe. Just be careful, follow the directions, watch for wires, replace the hardware and use a torque wrench. would recommend, 5/5.
Side note, I'd estimate the deadset kit and pendulum mount only added an hour, total between the front and rear, and I'd highly recommend both.
I get an email a couple days later (Monday) from Tyrolsport telling me the bronze collars for the front weren't currently in stock and would be backordered until mid June. At this point, the car had been on stands for about a week. After a call to TS, they found the original prototype bronze collars and offered to send them. So off they went. Around the same time, my Energy bushings arrived. They weren't even close.
So checked on the forum where I'd found the deal on the sways (and immedieately warned other members to double check their parts before dropping the subframe), lo and behold, there was a local who was willing to let me borrow his front bushings until my replacements from hotchkis arrived. Hot damn, sometimes the internet is rad. So I zip on up there to grab the bushings (maintaining social distance) and ripped home. Perfect fit. As luck would have it, my pendulum mount from Achtuning showed up while I was gone. Score.
The next day I haf to work, but when I got home, the deadset kit was waiting for me. The car had been in the air about 18 days at this point. The next morning i head out to the garage, slapped in the bushings, got fresh steering bolts from the local VW dealer, installed the deadset kit, and was 90% done with the install. I needed an extra set of hands, so I called my buddy James, who'd helped initially, and we got the subframe lined up, torqued, I put torque stripes on all the fasteners (witness marks) and put the car back down.
Next day, I decide to attack the rear sway bar and deadset kit. Dropped the subframe, thanks to the write up, I knew about the two small bolts that Tyrol doesn't replace in their kit, so 15 mins after the car was back in the air, the subframe was dropped enough to sneak the collars on top. Too easy. Swaybar was next, again, easy. Then I broke the stock swaybar endlinks trying to transfer them to the new bar. Damnit.
After ordering some Moog swaybar endlinks (awesome product), I ordered the hardware from the local VW dealer and waited. Once all the parts were in my hands (hadn't driven the car in 3 weeks at this point), the install continued. Torqued everything to spec and marked the fasteners to monitor rotation.
Now for the first startup, I was expecting SOME vibration, but I was not at all prepared. There was zero additional vibration. None. Read that again. The car was quieter than before.
A test drive to Rampage and a torque check, and doneso. The car is neutral, composed, additional throttle mid corner and it feels like the car pulls tighter into the corner. GTI S PP. I'm currently APR S2, so I decided to launch the sucker and see if wheelhop had diminished. Spun through first, flicked the paddle into second, still spinning, no hop. Flicked the paddle again toward the top of the gear at the same time the dsg decided to upshift, so into 4th I went . Still, no wheel hop, no vibration.
I'm impressed. Great products, great support, easy installs. Don't be afraid to drop the front subframe. Just be careful, follow the directions, watch for wires, replace the hardware and use a torque wrench. would recommend, 5/5.
Side note, I'd estimate the deadset kit and pendulum mount only added an hour, total between the front and rear, and I'd highly recommend both.
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