Re: Anyone use 4kq rear strut assemblies/suspension on a urq?

[ejfluhr@austin.ibm.com (Fluhr)]

>Our urq is an early model with the rear swaybar.  I noticed that the newer
>urqs have the 4kq style rear suspension.  Was this a cost saving issue with
>Audi or a performance improvement?

I read in a book that the rear suspension changed because of concern
about the car becoming difficult to handle at its limits, and a few
q-listers have mentioned the same thing.  The only large visual difference
I noticed about the 4Kq versus the urq rear suspension is the mounting
location of the tie rods on the rear subframe.  The urquattro mount is
much higher up and on the inside of the subframe, while the 4Kq seems 
more horizontal and on the outside of the subframe.  I haven't worked 
out the geometry, but it sounds like the older suspension design may 
have had an issue with the rear tires changing toe-in/toe-out as the 
suspension compressed/uncompressed.  I think the 4Kq suspension may have 
been designed to mitigate that, although it is speculation on my part.  
Now the question becomes, "Is the 4Kq suspension good enough to compensate 
for the lack of a rear sway bar?"  Not having driven a 4Kq enough to 
compare to my urq, I cannot comment on that.

>OTOH, since the car handles so well (balance is great), maybe I shouldn't
>mess with anything.

My opinion is that if you use the same Eibach springs with the 4Kq 
suspension as you now have with the current urq suspension, you will 
find that the car understeers more.  The basic suspension geometry
appears to stay the same, so you would be essentially removing that
rear sway bar from the car without adding stiffer rear springs to
compensate.  You may find the car more forgiving at the limit
because of the design change, but turn-in and body roll will have
suffered.

Later,
Eric
'85 CGT, '82 urq
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Eric J. Fluhr                                Email:  ejfluhr@austin.ibm.com
630FP Logic/Circuit Design                   Phone:  (512) 838-7589
IBM Server Group                             Austin, TX