tiggers

Yes it really has come to this.

UK STI 03 - when we bought it the thing bounced like crazy. Called the dealer and was told the car we'd test driven which felt great had sports suspension (he obviously didn't understand the question after the test drive when I asked 'Is the demonstrator standard' as he replied 'Yes' ).

I asked which and he said he couldn't remember and it had now been sold, but Prodrive springs should do the trick. So we fork out another £400 for the springs and the car comes back still bouncing like crazy over any undulations.

Get told that it is a characteristic of the car and we'll get used to it. Since then have added Prodrive 18" wheels as people told me this would make it better and it has, but only a little. Have now lived with it for 6 months and tried to ignore it, but whilst giving my mother a lift in the car the other day she commented how bad it was and you know what she's right.

I'm not going to put up with it any more so what suspension kit do I need to sort it out properly. If I can't find a solution it's going as if I wanted a rollercoaster ride everytime I drive I'd work in Blackpool wouldn't I? Please don't tell me it's not that bad as when you have to travel 60 miles on the M60 round Manchester everyday you'll soon change your tune.

Sugegstions are most welcome - thanks in advance.

tiggers.

sideforce

Has your dealer checked it out properly, no car, even a oldish half shagged one should be as bad as you make this one sound. Something must be amiss..no car could handle at all (even safely) with that reaction to bumps..

But surely it cant be too soft? or just have been set up with way out damping settings? Haveyou got adjustable shocks on it?

You can control ride height and bump damping on many quality dampers...as you already have suitable springs this should sort it, for sure.

Otherwise summits foooked.

tiggers

Funny you should say that as I don't think it's right . It's not like I'm new to Scoobs or anything. This is my 4th and I've had them since 1996 so it's not like I'm coming to them from a different type of car altogether.

Basically the dealer has checked it out and many on here say they drive like that, but frankly I'm not sure whether mine's worse than others as it really is quite bad. The M60 between Middleton and Stockport is a shoddy piece of road building admittedly, but I don't notice the bumps in my Honda Integra the way I do in the Scoob. It really is quite bad and doesn't engender confidence in the vehicle's handling at all.

It's defintely a damping issue as it's not like it's soft - it just isn't controlling the reaction to undulations in the road surface.

Any idea what shocks/dampers might be best to go for.

tiggers.

ozzy

I've been in a MY02 STI and driven a MY03/04 and neither felt bouncy. OE dampers + Prodrive springs are a great combination and do you really want to spend £1000-£1500 on some adjustable dampers/coilovers?

Something definetely doesn't sound right and I'd get them to check the dampers and springs. Take a mechanic out for a test drive and show him what it's like. You do get some bounce on particular surfaces, but that's pretty rare for OE.

sideforce

Sounds like your rebound damping is completely shot, a damper is broken, or some link is snapped somewhere. If you had scoobs before, or any other performance car this should not be happening. Dampers now are incredibly good, even the OE ones..In F1, F3 and most other motorsport disciplines they now control ride height completely through the dampers.

So this should definately NOT be happening i dont think, and no matter what you buy wont cure this problem whatever it is. I only replied origionally as it IS NOT the way any scoob, or any car should handle.

Get it checked over properly by someone local found via this website, who knows what they are looking at! and for. I think then you could go back to your dealer/supplier and demand whatever is found is fixed properly.

Are your dampers on the car at the moment adjustable?

crusher

As said by the previous contributors it sounds like mismatched dampers and springs...Does the car predominately bounce at the back or front?...or is it an all over sort of thing?....Could be that a shock has a dodgy internal valve or seal but is not leaking and dealer can't be arsed to work it out as " They all do that Sir " sort of story...makes their life easier....I've driven 03's on the original setup and it was not as bad as you describe.....

tiggers

The car is a UK STI and is running standard suspension except for Prodrive springs. As far as I know they're not adjustable.

The bounce is an all over feeling not from just one corner. Ran her across the A50 tonight from the M1 to the M6 - this road has a bad concrete section in the middle of it that used to make my previous Scoobs undulate a little - the STI made me feel positively sick.

I agree that something is wrong, but my dealer says not - anyone want to suggest an independent specialist in the Manchester area I could take it to instead. This needs sorting as otherwise I'm getting rid - I'm pi55ed off enough as it is with the service from the dealer (long story) and this will be the final straw.

Thanks for your help so far by the way,

tiggers.

911

Tiggers, go to the www.sidc.co.uk site and find DP Motorsport in Warrington on thier links. i think these are good guys, but for the Real Deal cruise to Roger Clark Motorsort by Hinckly, not too far. Very capably people.
You car should be a joy, not crap.
911

tiggers

Thanks for those. I know of DP Motorsport as I used to work virtually next door to them. First I will look up Roger Clark though and give them a go I think.

Cheers,

tiggers.

Steve PPP

My STi MY02 with PPP and Prodrive springs sounds just like yours. It has done approx 14,000 miles and bounces all over the place. It has always done it, springs helped a bit, but it's still there.

The car has a floaty, wallowy kind of feel to it and doesn't feel "planted" at all. After every bump it keeps undulating and is definately under-damped.
I e-mailed Whiteline for advice on products to cure it, they replied that it definately sounded like a damper problem.

I've just learnt to put up with it, but I actively dislike the feel of the car, it can be very unpleasant at times.

From what I read on this forum the Type 25 coil-overs (AKS?) from Powerstation are the answer, but I don't want to spend £850 to cure a faulty car, think I will speak to my dealer, or like you I may just sell up, but what to get instead?

Steve W

currymonster

Oops was going to say what the guy in the thread above did (blush).

I suppose the point is that the car should handle well as standard. I have heard of a problem with many of the type UK STIs, the word bounce coming up in similar threads I've read.

Your more than right to feel very agrieved by the dealers stance and lack of ability to rectify it. It's criminal that the people that sell these cars under the guise of "dealers" actually seem to know and care very little about them and their upkeep in an unfortunate number of cases, even though their more than happy enough to claim top dollar for , in some cases, shoddy service.

Cal

sideforce

Well said, exactly why i wil lnot ever buy a new car again and have to rely on dealers. They are appaling, and they are all the same haviing had new audis, bmw's etc, etc. I had enough of being ripped off and being treated as a fool

I will only ever buy a 2nd hand car with good independant specialists..

Going back to this though, all the scoobs i have driven so far handled reasonably well. So have you been anywhere yet to get it looked at, surely there must be something wrong.
.

tiggers

Haven't had the time as yet, been working over in the US, but will be going to Roger Clark in early June to get some advice.

I've had four Scoobs and this is the only one that has behaved like this - like others I can't beleive it's not a design fault, but the dealers are f**king useless so there's no way it'll ever be sorted by them.

Will keep you posted.

tiggers.

jaycee

Hey tiggers, have you got any further with this problem yet? I took an 04 sti out yesterday and that seemed very bouncy. I asked the dealer about prodrive springs and he said they give a softer ride which would lead to more bounce.


Jason

MikeWood

Jason

Your dealer is somewhat uninformed as he may not have driven a car with the springs fitted. The ride is more compliant and we've changed the bumpstops to help with the 'bounce' but it is definately not "softer so it will bounce more"!

Mike

JohnD

iTrader: (5)

Both my son and me have 03 STi's He has Pzero Nero's on 18" OZ's and I have Toyo's on 18"PFF7's
With the standard suspension the ride was awful on mine, just as described. My sons car was noticably better!
We both changed to the Prodrive springs and I noticed an improvement on mine, although still not as good as my previous 99my and still not as good as my sons car! I believe the wheel/tyre combination must be the culprit? The Toyo's look slightly stretched on the 8" wide PFF7's and this must be having an effect on the sidewall stiffness?
The ride was so bad on occasions with the original springs that the wife fully endorsed the spring swap! (The only mod she knows about!)
JohnD

tiggers

Haven't had a chance to do anything yet - been working like a mad thing. Will hopefully get a chance next week to get some advice.

BTW I have Prodrive suspension and have recently put on Prodrive 18" wheels with Goodyear F1's, but it is still bouncing along, It's not as bad as on the original wheels/springs, but it's still pretty bad.

tiggers.

jaycee

Mike, I spoke to 2 dealers last week, 1 said the springs were necessary to improve the handling and the other said not to bother as they were designed to give a softer ride and would spoil the feel of the car. Now Maybe 1 wanted to sell me something I wouldn't really need or 1 of them didn't know what they were talking about! Please could you shed some light for me?
With so much mis-information out there it's difficult to get a straight answer.
I want to firm up the ride and reduce the slight body roll and lower it slightly but the lowering is more for aesthetic reasons.

By the way, why do Prodrive recommend changing to 18" wheels after getting the PPP?

Cheers

Jason

p.s. sorry tiggers for hijacking your thread!

Old_Fart

I had the bounce on my '03 STI PPP with pzero neros and PFF7's, standard springs. It was one of the straws which broke this camels back...I did sell the car.
However, if that was my only gripe I would have gone to Powerstation and had a drive of one of their demo's...think they have a great coilover solution which they fit to the T25 etc which people rave about.
Rgds
Chuck

MikeWood

Changing the springs reduces the 'bounce', particularly on an 03/04MY car as we change the front bumpstops as well. The car is lowered slightly, bodyroll is reduced but the ride improves. Don't assume that as the ride improves the handling will be 'softer' or that a hard ride gives better handling.


The reason we suggest changing to 18" wheels and tyres is to use the increased performance in a more controlled way. The std 17" tyres have a habit of breaking away in a rather non-progressive manner when the traction limits are reached, as well as tramlining somewhat.

Mike

ozzy

Mike, is that just a chractaristic of the Pirelli tyres (and not wheel size) that you/IM supply with the cars?

Stefan

tiggers

No worries mate, it's all relevant stuff.

tiggers.

ForceFed4

Sorry if this is obvious/stupid; I'm a noob here, from the US.

People over here w/ STi suspensions have also complained of bounciness/undulation. Many have seemed to trace it back to the standard strut/spring top-hats, and claim that switching over to the hardened GrpN pieces cures the problem, independant of the actual springs used on the car.

Sorry if this isn't relevant to your problems; I don't have any personal experience with this, I'm just regurgitating what I've heard from others.

-FF4

JohnD

iTrader: (5)

FF4
That's interesting. I would like to know how a non-complient component such as the top-caps could allow enough flexibility to promote this characteristic? MW- Prodrive comment please? The bounce, to me, has the hallmarks of mis-matched spring/damper rates!
JohnD

ForceFed4

JohnD - You may be absolutely correct.

For US cars, The standard WRX and WRX STi both come with the same rubber strut top mounts. I'm not sure if UK cars are equipped the same, but the consensus seems to be that the rubber's too soft for the STi suspension.

Apparently, over certain bumps, the rubber topmount is indeed quite compliant, and can effectively work as an undamped spring, resulting in bounciness.

Most of the people who have replaced the standard strut tops with the hardened STi GrpN units claim it solves the problem to a large degree.

Of course, if the UK STi is equipped differently with a more solid strut top from the factory this is all useless to you guys.

JohnD

iTrader: (5)

FF4
Yes, I can see the possibility now!
Does fitting a more solid assembly result in a lot more road noise transmitted? (as the rubber was there for insulation purposes) If it does, the cure could be worse than the ailment!
JohnD

ForceFed4

JohnD:

The hardened STi GrpN topmounts also contain rubber, but of a harder durometer. Otherwise they look and function exactly like the OEM units. Fitting solid topmounts, say with a pillowball joint, will give the maximum possible stiffness, but I'd imagine that would certainly come at the cost of road noise and comfort.

The GrpN units seem to be what everyone (here in the US that I've talked to) considers the best compromise, relieving the problem without much increase in road noise.

I've personally ridden in a friend's car that has a JDM MY01 STi Type RA spring/strut combo along with the harder top mounts on his WRX, and it handled much better than my plain WRX with absolutely no loss in ride quality that I could detect. It really went against what I thought I knew on the matter, but I sat in the car and felt it myself; the match-up between the parts must have been near ideal.

JohnD

iTrader: (5)

Is there anyone here in the UK who has tried or considered the above approach? There have been a number of threads on the subject of the 03 "bobble" but I can't remember the top mount being considered as the culprit?
JohnD

jaycee

Any updates yet Tiggers?

Jason

Xbox

If you end up going for new suspension, I can recommend Cusco adjustable coilovers all round with camber adj topmounts. My car came with it from Japan, wrx ra classic. Absolutely no lift/bounce up at all, great for smooth corners at 100+ (in wet!) & corners completely flat, but deffo jangles your eyeballs along the M62 over those subsidence dips, oh & duffs your neck/shoulder, but thats the pay off I guess. Sticks solid & follows every undulation, without snappy breakaway.