Which coil overs are best for my situation

[up4speed]

I have a 981 Cayman S, which I would highly recommend but also the GTI is more fun in general hehe. Cayman is sooo easy to drive hard tho and sounds amazing

Please explain the GTI being more fun.
I decided against doing the suspension on the GTI, and buy a Cayman exactly for that reason. I feel like I would have way more fun in the Cayman than the GTI.
I never tracked my Porsches, and the GTI has been a blast, but its shortcomings have been annoying me lately. I have tracked Porsches that weren’t mine (Boxster GTS, Cayman GTS, 992 S) and they were a blast, and felt like an extension of my body, which is exactly what I’m looking for.

 

[SierraCarrera]

Please explain the GTI being more fun.
I decided against doing the suspension on the GTI, and buy a Cayman exactly for that reason. I feel like I would have way more fun in the Cayman than the Boxster.
I never tracked my Porsches, and the GTI has been a blast, but its shortcomings have been annoying me lately. I have tracked Porsches that weren’t mine (Boxster GTS, Cayman GTS, 992 S) and they were a blast, and felt like an extension of my body, which is exactly what I’m looking for.

You won't get any argument from me on pure performance and capability. If that connected feeling is what you're looking for then hands down get a Cayman. I guess to put it bluntly, the challenge of driving the GTI hard, to me, is more engaging. The Cayman is effortless, borderline easy at the limit(not that I'm the best driver), but with the steering weight, linear power band, and car balance being so direct that's the feeling I get. Obviously I'm biased but can't go wrong in either direction so my suggestion is keep the GTI and get the Cayman as well

 

[up4speed]

You won't get any argument from me on pure performance and capability. If that connected feeling is what you're looking for then hands down get a Cayman. I guess to put it bluntly, the challenge of driving the GTI hard, to me, is more engaging. The Cayman is effortless, borderline easy at the limit(not that I'm the best driver), but with the steering weight, linear power band, and car balance being so direct that's the feeling I get. Obviously I'm biased but can't go wrong in either direction so my suggestion is keep the GTI and get the Cayman as well

Oh ok. Thanks for the clarification. I got scared that I missed something!
The main thing I really like about the GTI is that it's worry free when I track it. It truly is an amazing car, and it is one of the few cars that can be totally practical, and also play on a race track. However, I like to have a car for each focused purpose. But the fight I have with myself is that I also want to slim down the amount of cars I have as much as possible. So it really isn't an easy task, nor cheap, unfortunately. In this case, at least I will get rid of 2 cars and add one.......and that's how I sell it to my wife, lol
Hopefully I don't have any regrets..

 

[geokilla]

With the new GR86 and Subaru BRZ, forum members said overfilling it by 1L have done wonders in helping retain oil pressure on right turns. I guess there's no overfilling issue that you normally expect. Wonder if I should overfill my MK7 a bit when I'm at the track just to maintain oil pressure.

 

[up4speed]

The

With the new GR86 and Subaru BRZ, forum members said overfilling it by 1L have done wonders in helping retain oil pressure on right turns. I guess there's no overfilling issue that you normally expect. Wonder if I should overfill my MK7 a bit when I'm at the track just to maintain oil pressure.

GTI doesn’t seem to have any oil pressure issues. Just fill it to the high line. The only issue I had was under certain circumstances, driving aggressively on the track, I would get a puff of smoke because the PCV system wouldn’t keep up with the g forces. I added a Racing lline catch can/PCV system (they actually call it an oil management system), and have not had an issue since then. on the website, they claim that it prevents oil starvation. So I guess that’s good. The GTI has been rock solid for me, and I push it pretty hard.

 

[scrllock]

I wouldn't overfill these cars. The high-g/vacuum problem would probably be worse in that situation. Unfortunately these ECUs don't have direct oil pressure sensors so we can't easily log what's going on, but the TCR racecar comes with a stock pan. The Mk8 swapped out the windage tray for baffling on the lower pan. The few rod bearing failures I've seen look more like fuel dilution than pressure loss. Not really a problem on these motors.

 

[up4speed]

You won't get any argument from me on pure performance and capability. If that connected feeling is what you're looking for then hands down get a Cayman. I guess to put it bluntly, the challenge of driving the GTI hard, to me, is more engaging. The Cayman is effortless, borderline easy at the limit(not that I'm the best driver), but with the steering weight, linear power band, and car balance being so direct that's the feeling I get. Obviously I'm biased but can't go wrong in either direction so my suggestion is keep the GTI and get the Cayman as well

I hear you loud and clear. The crazy part is that I'm so confused as to which way to go with it. Today I'm swaying back to keeping the GTI and trying out the Coil over option to see if it satisfies me enough to just stick with the GTI as a track car. I looked at Caymans for sale, and if I go that route, it seems like I will have too much trouble getting one that I would be happy with. Hopefully, if I try out the suspension, and still not happy, that I can recoup at least 1/2 of my money if I sell the car. Maybe I would get lucky, and find the buyer that can appreciate the mods on the car.

 

[DerHase]

I hear you loud and clear. The crazy part is that I'm so confused as to which way to go with it. Today I'm swaying back to keeping the GTI and trying out the Coil over option to see if it satisfies me enough to just stick with the GTI as a track car. I looked at Caymans for sale, and if I go that route, it seems like I will have too much trouble getting one that I would be happy with. Hopefully, if I try out the suspension, and still not happy, that I can recoup at least 1/2 of my money if I sell the car. Maybe I would get lucky, and find the buyer that can appreciate the mods on the car.

Short notice, but if you can make it out to VIR on Feb 17-18, the Tidewater Sports Car Club usually has 7-12 MQB cars showing up and driving on track. Would be glad to talk to you about setup, etc. It's an amazing track if you haven't experienced it yet also.

PERSONALLY I like doing a lot with a little. I'm a big fan of improving the driver instead of focusing solely on the car. Passing 911s and Caymans in another Cayman? Psshhh. Doing it in a GTI? Hilarious.

 

[up4speed]

Short notice, but if you can make it out to VIR on Feb 17-18, the Tidewater Sports Car Club usually has 7-12 MQB cars showing up and driving on track. Would be glad to talk to you about setup, etc. It's an amazing track if you haven't experienced it yet also.

PERSONALLY I like doing a lot with a little. I'm a big fan of improving the driver instead of focusing solely on the car. Passing 911s and Caymans in another Cayman? Psshhh. Doing it in a GTI? Hilarious.

Thanks, but unfortunately I can't make it.
I have to agree. I definitely get joy out of hearing the event organizers, while pointing at me (while I'm far but still in ear shot) "that guy has the best lines, follow him if you want to improve. He's the one to beat"
It feels great to pass cars that I have no business passing, lol
My main complaint about the GTI, is that I don't like front wheel drive on the track, and I don't even have the better differential, so I can't really power out of the turns as hard as I would like. Plus I enjoy the balance and skill required to extract everything out of a rear wheel drive car.
Hopefully if I go the route where I change the suspension, I will be able to renew my excitement for the GTI, because it truly is an amazing car overall.

 

[up4speed]

Pretty happy with my Ohlins I just installed. It's not much stiffer compared to stock. -2.3 degrees of camber in front with 034 camber mount, rears are at -2.0 degrees of camber. Only lowered the car a little more than 1/2" all around. Only noticed more NVH when I hit a super hard bump that can bend a wheel, otherwise no noise. Stockers were making squeaking going over speedbumps.

Did you do the 034 mounts that just add -1.4 camber, or did you do the 034 mounts that do -1.5 camber and 1 deg of caster?
Also, did you need any other parts, other than the Ohlins suspension and the 034 mounts (other than hardware that you chose to replace)?

 

[up4speed]

To get the camber squared-up side to side, the subframe will need to be loosened and shifted. You can also likely loosen the top bolts for the strut mounts and get *a tiny bit* of play side to side to maybe help. Mine are about dead even side to side both front/back and I have the Tyrolsport deadset kits f/r. Bottom line - the f. subframe has some wiggle room and that is likely what is going on, most quick toe alignments will not mess with it so find an alignment shop that does a more thorough job and explain what you want them to do, there are 4 main subframe bolts and the four smaller ones on the backside of the r. brakets.

If I install the deadset kit when I install the coil overs, will that automatically center the sub frame and create equal camber left and right?
I can install everything, then get the car aligned properly when I'm done.

 

[scrllock]

If I install the deadset kit when I install the coil overs, will that automatically center the sub frame and create equal camber left and right?
I can install everything, then get the car aligned properly when I'm done.

it will likely be pretty close, but tolerances vary. I had -2.7 on both sides once, -2.2 and -2.3 once, and lastly -2.7 and -2.1. i think at least one of those actually got worse after an alignment since that's what it took to set toe. those were all with aftermarket suspension stuff, a deadset kit, but stock strut mounts.

 

[IGM2019]

Did you do the 034 mounts that just add -1.4 camber, or did you do the 034 mounts that do -1.5 camber and 1 deg of caster?
Also, did you need any other parts, other than the Ohlins suspension and the 034 mounts (other than hardware that you chose to replace)?

Only the camber mount. I also got powergrid front adjustable endlinks since some people posted they had issues with stockers and other aftermarket ones. DDC delete kit, probably not applicable for your gti. All new bolts/nuts that you'll have remove to install the suspension.

 

[up4speed]

Only the camber mount. I also got powergrid front adjustable endlinks since some people posted they had issues with stockers and other aftermarket ones. DDC delete kit, probably not applicable for your gti. All new bolts/nuts that you'll have remove to install the suspension.

Thanks, I will also get the Powergrid end links.
Do you think it's better to add the plates that also increase caster by 1, to increase stability at higher speeds? Or is it better to leave stock caster?
Also, just to confirm, with the Ohlins, and 034 plates, there is absolutely no modification to the car strut towers, etc. Right?

 

[IGM2019]

Thanks, I will also get the Powergrid end links.
Do you think it's better to add the plates that also increase caster by 1, to increase stability at higher speeds? Or is it better to leave stock caster?
Also, just to confirm, with the Ohlins, and 034 plates, there is absolutely no modification to the car strut towers, etc. Right?

I would say the toe setting would affect the stability more vs caster. Haven't seen anybody running the camster plate and posted up reviews on it so I didn't want to chance it having any issues with installation fitments. I'll leave it up to the more knowledgeable track guys to chime in if you should get more caster or not.

No need to modify the strut tower since the shocks are inverted so the adjuster is on the bottom, and the camber plate is fixed.