....I'm risking making myself unpopular by saying this, but:
Reading
some of the posts on lowering here and on other car sites, too many people are more concerned with the
look of their car rather than the handling. What I've learnt from experienced people in full-on motorsport and who also actually build cars, is that you should consider
ALL the suspension components. In the case of a practical but fast road car, that means springs, shocks (dampers), and anti-roll bars. You should consider all 3 and how they work
together appropriately for the particular car. Even brakes are a factor. I've read and know of so many cases of forum guys fitting what is without doubt a quality component but then finding it gives their car problems - Tyre rubbing, hopping, too stiff for road, camber issues, etc. Spacers are not wise either.
We all love the slammed down look, including myself, but it's only suitable for the track and asking for trouble if you want to drive fast (not necessarily illegally!) on the average public road. I considered the Bilsteins but they are overkill for the road - So are coil-overs on the Mk5 GTI if the truth be known. I was advised professionally and took the good advice and have KoniFSD+Eibach ProKit+Eibach ARB's - Very good feedback, not harsh, no nose-dive under hard braking, extremely flat and planted around corners. I constantly get passengers who are performance car drivers commenting uninvited about my suspension and those I trust to drive. I drove a Porsche yesterday and found the ride feel to be surprisingly similar to my GTI - Awesome exhaust soundtrack too, at all revs, and plenty of torque, but I digress!
Sure, I'd love my GTI to look lower and fill the arches more but
NOT at the expense of any handling. Go on an airfield CarLimits course where you take your car to its absolute limits, and
then consider how best to mod
ALL your suspension. Road and track are different!
