VW Driver Gear Springs 5k4-071-677-a

[Nitrorea]

Can't wait to put these on.....

 

[Nitrorea]

Well good news and bad news. First with the good news. Finally had a chance to install these on the car this weekend. I went with Bilstein "touring" from ECS. They were a good price and offered OEM type ride and coupled with the springs offered a mild drop which is what I'm looking for. This is my daily so I don't want anything too extreme.



New mounts and bearings.



So I started with the rear, figured it would give me some confidence and it was the easiest. Turns out glad I did!

Here is OEM stock, passenger side.



And OEM stock, drivers side.



Don't forget HID light leveler is on the drivers side.



Dis-assembly was not too difficult. The lower shock bolt was the hardest to get off. Long breaker bar and gently force did the trick.

Here is spring out...



Compared to Driver Gear spring...



New strut in...



And both spring and strut in..



So after that onto the front, this is where the bad news comes in. Took both wheels, unbolted the ABS bracket and the HID leveler on the drivers side. Took out the pinch bolt no issues. Started to unbolt the sway bar end link, got it loose or so I thought but turns out that the nut and bolt were both turning, just spinning.

I tried everything, 5mm allen in the end, T-30 torx , Vise.....nothing I tried would stop the bolt from spinning so I could get the nut off. After many curse words and a few bruised knuckles I gave up.

I don't have an impact or a cut of wheel or new end links. So there was really nothing I could do.

So now the car site with Driver gear springs on the rear and OEM on the front. I made an appointment at a local shop to install the new ones, quoted me an hours labor and that is it. Should be done on Wednesday.

Now though since I "loosened" the end links and have no way to get them back tight I'm getting really bad 'clunking' and 'popping' as I drive along. I'm hoping the shop will be able to do the work without replacing the end links. If so, no biggie but it will cost less.

Guess lesson is that if you have one with lots of miles and don't have impact then make sure to get the M6 triple square tool that is OWM for the Sway bar bolts. It fits in the end and prevents it from spinning.

I read many, many DIY's and no one else needed to use one so I didn't bother. Oh well, lesson learned.

 

[golfballer78]

really, i just put coilovers in yesterday, endlink nuts came out fine, but putting them back on I had to use an internal allen on the threaded stud while tightening the nuts with an open end wrench, same style the ball joints use.

 

[Nitrorea]

really, i just put coilovers in yesterday, endlink nuts came out fine, but putting them back on I had to use an internal allen on the threaded stud while tightening the nuts with an open end wrench, same style the ball joints use.

Nope, soaked them with PB to start with started to turn and the threaded stud was also turning. I used allen but I think I stripped out the internal on the stud. Nothing I had would work. Clamped Vise Grips down and wouldn't hold either. I was sooooooooo pissed.

I'm afraid they will need to be cut off and replaced. Hopefully the shop I'm going to will be able to zip them off with air impact :iono:

 

[Nitrorea]

Also, not real sure about the drop in the rear yet. There isn't much change in ride height....I realize they won't give much but right now there is no difference. I'll give them a week or so to settle and see where is goes from there.

 

[Nitrorea]

Also, not real sure about the drop in the rear yet. There isn't much change in ride height....I realize they won't give much but right now there is no difference. I'll give them a week or so to settle and see where is goes from there.

 

[golfballer78]

i had those spring in the gli before, its not a dramatic drop, but springs are kinda stiffer

 

[Nitrorea]

I noticed from the pic, they appear to be about the same height but many more "coils".

 

[avenali312]

Also, not real sure about the drop in the rear yet. There isn't much change in ride height....I realize they won't give much but right now there is no difference. I'll give them a week or so to settle and see where is goes from there.

With a 2009, you won't see as much. It was a pretty drastic drop for me and my 4x4 2006.

 

[Nitrorea]

I finally got around to getting the front's on. Here are some pics after installation. Not really impressed with the drop in the rear....

Driver's front.


Driver's rear


Passenger Rear


Passenger Front