Information regarding your suspension
It is often the case, you stand in front of your Alfa and ask yourself, "what would be the best springs for my Alfa?", or "what would be the shocks for my Alfa?"
These questions are not so easy to answer, the answer depends on what parts are to be exchanged, how you drive and so on. We will give you some basic information to this problem (there will be a very detailed report to be read here at alfisti.net):
The optimal suspension does not exist!
You always have to make a compromise between comfort, price, etc. With this in mind you will then ask yourself the question:
What do I want to achieve and what will I achieve with the changes in the suspension?
Having a great optical impression and just driving in the city is a different story to having a car which drives flat out on the motorway or even on the racetrack, these are just two of the options open to you, yes nightmares are included, those long sleepless nights, lower, wider, just one spoiler or maybe sport shocks? What can I afford?
Below you will find a short resumee of things that can help, hopefully!
Lowering the chassis by changing the springs
This is the cheapest way to lower your Alfa, you do this at the cost of top speed handling. Here we note the following; lower looks better but it is at the cost of handling, the lower you go the worse the car will handle, even if you use those "harder" springs, the geometry is just not made for this type of punishment, it will get its revenge on you sooner or later. Facit: This method is only for those who drive in the city or cruise at around 80 mph in the countryside.
Lowering the chassis by changing the springs and the shocks
This is the best solution for the "sporty" driver. If you decide to replace your springs and shocks (yellow Konis or Bilstein B6/B8), you will notice the handling is definately better than original when going into those tight corners, the Alfa sits on the road as if it's glued, an uneven road is better absorbed than above in the first option. This option though has the comfort as the price to pay, your Alfa feels harder but this is justifiable. I would recommend a value of 40 mm, no more, otherwise the handling will suffer. With this option you will only notice the better handling at higher speeds and high speed cornering, in the city or at lower speeds there is no difference to be noticed. When using the 40mm shorter springs and shocks it would be adviseable to use the shortened Bilstein B8 shocks.
Adjustable coilovers
This is the luxury option for all those of you out there. A suspension that can be raised or lowered to your own specs. With this setup you can cover the complete range, from soft to hard, from sport to cruising, what more do you want? But beware!, there are various types available, some are cheap and nasty, they allow little or no adjustment, this has an adverse effect to the handling. Be careful, ask us, tell us what you want, how much you are willing to spend, we will push you in the right direction!
Our tip
There should be very few compromises between the chassis and suspension, this includes tyres as well as brakes, these are the systems that are vital to your safety, this also applies to all those tuning parts, only well known manufacturers like Eibach, H&R and Novitec for springs, or KW, Koni, H&R or Bilstein for shocks, these are names you can trust. A coilover suspension from KW/Novitec can in some cases be no more expensive than a complete springs and shocks change, but it has more possibilities. For those drivers who like to drive on the motorway or racetrack we would recommend the Bilstein B16 solution. With this option there is the time factor to be taken into consideration, you'll need plenty of time to try out all those varying adjustments! If you have no time or just too lazy, this option is no good for you.
These questions are not so easy to answer, the answer depends on what parts are to be exchanged, how you drive and so on. We will give you some basic information to this problem (there will be a very detailed report to be read here at alfisti.net):
The optimal suspension does not exist!
You always have to make a compromise between comfort, price, etc. With this in mind you will then ask yourself the question:
What do I want to achieve and what will I achieve with the changes in the suspension?
Having a great optical impression and just driving in the city is a different story to having a car which drives flat out on the motorway or even on the racetrack, these are just two of the options open to you, yes nightmares are included, those long sleepless nights, lower, wider, just one spoiler or maybe sport shocks? What can I afford?
Below you will find a short resumee of things that can help, hopefully!
Lowering the chassis by changing the springs
This is the cheapest way to lower your Alfa, you do this at the cost of top speed handling. Here we note the following; lower looks better but it is at the cost of handling, the lower you go the worse the car will handle, even if you use those "harder" springs, the geometry is just not made for this type of punishment, it will get its revenge on you sooner or later. Facit: This method is only for those who drive in the city or cruise at around 80 mph in the countryside.
Lowering the chassis by changing the springs and the shocks
This is the best solution for the "sporty" driver. If you decide to replace your springs and shocks (yellow Konis or Bilstein B6/B8), you will notice the handling is definately better than original when going into those tight corners, the Alfa sits on the road as if it's glued, an uneven road is better absorbed than above in the first option. This option though has the comfort as the price to pay, your Alfa feels harder but this is justifiable. I would recommend a value of 40 mm, no more, otherwise the handling will suffer. With this option you will only notice the better handling at higher speeds and high speed cornering, in the city or at lower speeds there is no difference to be noticed. When using the 40mm shorter springs and shocks it would be adviseable to use the shortened Bilstein B8 shocks.
Adjustable coilovers
This is the luxury option for all those of you out there. A suspension that can be raised or lowered to your own specs. With this setup you can cover the complete range, from soft to hard, from sport to cruising, what more do you want? But beware!, there are various types available, some are cheap and nasty, they allow little or no adjustment, this has an adverse effect to the handling. Be careful, ask us, tell us what you want, how much you are willing to spend, we will push you in the right direction!
Our tip
There should be very few compromises between the chassis and suspension, this includes tyres as well as brakes, these are the systems that are vital to your safety, this also applies to all those tuning parts, only well known manufacturers like Eibach, H&R and Novitec for springs, or KW, Koni, H&R or Bilstein for shocks, these are names you can trust. A coilover suspension from KW/Novitec can in some cases be no more expensive than a complete springs and shocks change, but it has more possibilities. For those drivers who like to drive on the motorway or racetrack we would recommend the Bilstein B16 solution. With this option there is the time factor to be taken into consideration, you'll need plenty of time to try out all those varying adjustments! If you have no time or just too lazy, this option is no good for you.