I finally got a chance to upload some pics of my KW - V3 suspension coilover install. I've actually had these on for about two weeks, but I just now got around to hosting them on the internet.

When I ordered these I had done a bunch of research to see if anyone else had these on their 996’s. I didn’t find anything and it seemed as if most people were running the Bilstein’s or H&R’s. I’ve had both of those systems on my other cars in the past. Although they are both really nice systems, I’ve been dealing a lot with KW suspensions in the last year, So I wanted to go with the KW’s for my own ride.

I’ve also found that a lot of tuners and owners in Europe are running the KW’s but I don’t understand why there weren’t more Porsche owners running them in the states. They’ve already been proven in Europe. A 996 GT-2 with KW variant 3’s currently holds the fastest lap time for a road registration capable car at Nurburgring. So I decided that I would be the ‘guinea pig’ and try them out for myself.

Here is a look at the coilovers in and out of the box. When I ordered them, I got them in 10 days from the day I ordered them and that was coming from Germany. So naturally I was pretty anxious during the waiting days… but really impressed that they could come across the ocean that fast.



Here is a pic of my front suspension after the stock strut and spring assembly came out of the car. I didn’t get a chance to watch my mechanic take it out so I couldn’t even begin to tell you how he did it. But I’ve heard of people in the past pulling the entire steering knuckle and it taking quite a few hours. Obviously as you can see all that extra work wasn’t needed and it really didn’t take as long as I had expected it to, at least to get to this part.


Here’s a look at the dampening adjustments for the front and rear.
Front:

Rear:


Here is some pics of my mechanic putting them into the car… SCARY!! The fender gets really close.. but my mechanic is really experienced with ‘luxury/nicer’ cars.. so he knows how to be careful. But it’s still scary to see how close the suspension was to the fender. He did a little ‘maneuvering’ to get the assembly in and it all went in nicely.



So next was the rear suspension. The rear speaker box had to come out and the carpeting had to be pulled up. Not too bad but again, if you’re not ready to see your cars interior pulled apart it can be a little ‘startling’. This needs to be pulled out to access the top mounting points. Once everything is out they are easy to work on.



Again, I didn’t get a chance to watch my mechanic pull out the stock assembly but here are some pics that I did get a chance to take. The upper spring cup and perch needs to be replaced with one provided by KW. You’ll see why when you install your set, it’s hard to explain but you’ll see why right off the bat.




Here is a pic of the KW coilover installed on the rear of the car.



And.. finally.. here is a pic of my 996 once it was on the ground. I had to do a little ‘fine tuning’ to the dampening and the height to get it were I wanted it but there was plenty of adjustment for me to go more or less in either direction.



I’ll post some more pics of the car when I get a chance. I’ve got a Carbon Wing from MA Shaw getting an extra layer of clear coat right now. I’ve also got my wheels order—HRE Competition C21’s. Today I will be pulling my lower valences off the stock kit to have them color matched. So I’ll post more update pics of the 996 once I get all the other stuff installed.

By the way…I have driven on the car with the suspension on it now for a few weeks and the ride quality is great.

 

Nice! I have KW V3's on my S4 and love them. Much better than the H&R's I had before.

 

I had an S4 with H&Rs also, I also switched to KWs. I noticed you had JICs how do you like them? Joe

 

Awesome!!! I have V3's on my M3.... Couldn't believe the ride quality after having H&R coilovers.... I have PSS9's on my Turbo, I kinda miss the adjustability.... Congrats......Car looks awesome!

 

Yup ride quality and adjustability is why I went with KWs-- enjoy them on your M3---- JOE

 

Are they pretty quiet?

 

I run KW V3's on my GTI and love them. Good choice.

Pete

 

No noises at all. KW uses a weld on canister which is designed for noise dampening, as seen in my pics. My car rides great and I have a lot of adjustments that can be done for all types of road conditions or track conditions-- I can't say enough about the ride quality-- How do the JICs ride, that was my other option.

 

nice post man. i believe Manthey also uses KW v3 coilovers, but with their own valving, and with so many euro tuners using KW, am surprised the v3 is not as popular on US turbos.

 

Yeah there are a few European tuners using KW, I didn't find anyone using them here. Once again can't say enough about ride quality.

 

Nice work, im in the process of getting these myself, looks great!

 

JICs are very nice. I like the fact that they are adjustable like the KW's. Ride is stiff but comfortable. I just got them cornerbalanced and realigned and it made a huge difference in the hanlding of the car. (obviously)

 

Awesome, I just found out KW is about to make coilovers for my GTO that should be out by the end of the month. I'd love the 3's but think I'll only be able to swing the 2's. Do you guys have any feed back on those?

Also, do any of you have any contacts at KW that can verify they are about to release these?

 

Awesome upgrade, im sure your loving it! BTW paint the front lip and side's

 

KMD Tuning in NJ is a great shop with very reasonable pricing. Talk to Dion and tell him Alan sent you. 201-664-4563...