Which struts/shocks for max comfort?

[Bigsmallguy]

Hello all, just got my 1st gti and am so stoked! Used 30k mi, mk7 sport, stage 1 manual ofcourse cmon now..

I’m wondering what should I get in my suspension for maximum comfort, something that can handle bumps and rough roads here in LA. I don’t want to lower the car. Im looking for max comfort , I don’t care if it slightly lowers performance, I just need it to handle bumps better.

Moreover, I’m pretty sure there’s something wrong with a shock/strut front left. When I first bought it , it wasn’t too bad. But stiff. Hit a small pothole , now it’s clunking and clanking over any bump or rough surface, especially small potholes. I have an appointment to get it looked at next week. I live in LA, there’s potholes and rough roads everywhere, I can’t drive more than 45 mph without bouncing my head and clunking, feeling like the wheel will fall of over bumps over 40 mph. Extremely frustrating as I truly can’t even drive it over 45 mph on the roads without feeling like I’ll lose my wheel!! Freeways are okay. But still a bouncy rough ride.

What do you guys recommend? Just struts? Springs as well? OEM or aftermarket? Bump stops? I did research and it seems like the koni special actives are meant for this comfort im looking for. But I truly don’t know if I should get any supporting parts like springs etc., that’ll truly improve comfort. Or if just struts are fine. I’m trying to keep it under $1000, much preferably under $600. Tire rack.com has the koni special actives for around $170 per strut. Again am not trying to lower the car. What do you guys recommend?

 

[scrllock]

OEM. Konis aren't softer.

 

[Bigsmallguy]

OEM. Konis aren't softer.

Really? From what I’ve researched, the koni special actives are designed for smoothening out rough rides and for maximizing comfort, and they’re not to be used with lowered suspensions, no? There’s a ton of YouTube reviews saying how well they are with handling bumps and rough roads. I know other koni models are more for performance

 

[scrllock]

I have owned Koni special actives. They were rougher than my OE struts.

The cheap aftermarket stuff is all designed to be "sportier" which the majority of consumers assume to mean firmer. There aren't lowering springs that will make the car comfier.
If you want to spend more, you can get a set of KW street comforts, or any off the shelf coilover valved and sprung for flat ride with low rates. But something that will genuinely be comfier is going to be more than $1000, and definitely much more than $600.

 

[manu97]

I'd honestly think that going from 18's to 17's would improve ride quality more. Just my 2 cents

 

[xabhax]

Dcc retrofit. For real

 

[Bigsmallguy]

I have owned Koni special actives. They were rougher than my OE struts.

The cheap aftermarket stuff is all designed to be "sportier" which the majority of consumers assume to mean firmer. There aren't lowering springs that will make the car comfier.
If you want to spend more, you can get a set of KW street comforts, or any off the shelf coilover valved and sprung for flat ride with low rates. But something that will genuinely be comfier is going to be more than $1000, and definitely much more than $600.

Hmm, that’s weird almost all reviews of the koni special actives day they’re much better at handling bumps and confort than oem. I’ve read some that said they’re better than bilsteins in terms of comfort. I also talked to a specialized VW mechanic, he said bolstering b4’ would be best for comfort, but really he said they’re only slightly more noticeable in comfort. Whereas all higher number bilsteins are more performance less comfort.

The koni Special actives aren’t really meant to be used with lowered cars. They’re also one of the more expensive shtruts I believe, but now on a good sale. Is your car lowered? I don’t plan on ever lowering. Also, when you say rough, do you mean in terms of handling bumps and potholes? After seeing all reviews, even on this site, so many ppl are saying the special actives are much much better than OEM in comfort over bumps and potholes. Now I’m super confused lol

 

[Bigsmallguy]

I'd honestly think that going from 18's to 17's would improve ride quality more. Just my 2 cents

I’ve heard that a smaller 17 rims are comfier than 18’s, but only very slightly

 

[scrllock]

Hmm, that’s weird almost all reviews of the koni special actives day they’re much better at handling bumps and confort than oem. I’ve read some that said they’re better than bilsteins in terms of comfort. I also talked to a specialized VW mechanic, he said bolstering b4’ would be best for comfort, but really he said they’re only slightly more noticeable in comfort. Whereas all higher number bilsteins are more performance less comfort.

The koni Special actives aren’t really meant to be used with lowered cars. They’re also one of the more expensive shtruts I believe, but now on a good sale. Is your car lowered? I don’t plan on ever lowering. Also, when you say rough, do you mean in terms of handling bumps and potholes? After seeing all reviews, even on this site, so many ppl are saying the special actives are much much better than OEM in comfort over bumps and potholes. Now I’m super confused lol

no, i put new stock springs in at the same time.
and B4s are valved stiffer than OEM, and there are both monotube/twin-tube B4s, so hard to compare.

I’ve heard that a smaller 17 rims are comfier than 18’s, but only very slightly

taller profile tires absolutely make a difference. 245/40s are a good compromise of performance and comfort. on 17s you can go up to a 255/40 which would be even better.

 

[Bigsmallguy]

no, i put new stock springs in at the same time.
and B4s are valved stiffer than OEM, and there are both monotube/twin-tube B4s, so hard to compare.


taller profile tires absolutely make a difference. 245/40s are a good compromise of performance and comfort. on 17s you can go up to a 255/40 which would be even better.

Nice okay, I’ll get the 245’s/40’s as my next tires. I can’t afford new rims yet, but maybe I’ll later get 17’s so I can get that 255/40. I wanted to eventually get rims anyways , I really like the Audi style, something like a silver, 5 spoke is what I really want.

Regarding struts, hmm I’ve done a lot of research and it seemed throughout so many boards , ppl where swearing by koni “special actives” as so much better than OEM for bumps and rough roads, as well as YouTube reviews. I’m really frustrated now lol. The bilsteins would only be a slight upgrade in comfort , per the VW mechanic specialist I talked to, and they’re more expensive than OEM. And this is all assuming a standard, not lowered, suspension.

I really wanted to get aftermarket struts that can handle bumps and small potholes really well, especially for these horrendous LA roads, are you saying OEM is the best for comfort? And when you said cheap aftermarket struts, I also read that everyone was saying the special actives were the most expensive for comfort struts on their original price, they’re on sale now however

 

[Bigsmallguy]

I have owned Koni special actives. They were rougher than my OE struts.

The cheap aftermarket stuff is all designed to be "sportier" which the majority of consumers assume to mean firmer. There aren't lowering springs that will make the car comfier.
If you want to spend more, you can get a set of KW street comforts, or any off the shelf coilover valved and sprung for flat ride with low rates. But something that will genuinely be comfier is going to be more than $1000, and definitely much more than $600.

Other than comfort, we’re the special actives better in other areas? There’s a lot of reviews on this site saying the special actives were great for handling corners as well. Also, it seems that a lot of ppl don’t like other model koni struts, but the ppl looking for comfort seem to absolutely love the special actives.