Broken coil spring

[19TW80]

Evening All,

Took my Edition 30 for its MOT today and it failed due to a broken offside coil spring. Has anyone's Mk5 suffered the same fate? Quoted 1.8hrs labour and £63+VAT for the part - does this seem reasonable? Any advice on whether to just get the broken one replaced, or do both sides?

Thanks in advance.

[pudding]

Very common.  I would replace both, and use genuine ones if you can.

1.8 hours is ridiculous.  It's literally 10 mins a side to swap a spring out DIY.   Make sure the garage replace the bolts as they are the use once variety.

[Octoparrot]

If it's a front spring then 1.8 hrs is probably correct. Rears are much easier to change. Ideally your meant replace springs in pairs. I found OEM springs much dearer than the VWR lowering springs so that's what I replaced mine with.

[19TW80]

Thank you @Pudding and @Octoparrot

My fault - should have specified that it’s offside front coil spring that’s knackered.

[GTi-Tecnix]

Suffered the same fate on my near side passengers side coil spring.

I just changed the broken side and top mount and was fine. They were going charge me a lot but just changed the one that needed replacing with my own mechanic.

They do always recommend to change in pairs for good reason but it wasn’t nescesary in my case and refused to pay in extortion.

The whole suspension leg has come off for them to access the spring and putting it back on to the strut can be a headache.

[19TW80]

Thanks for your reply @GTi-Tecnix

@Octoparrot has given me some food for thought, and I'm now seriously tempted to just bite the bullet and get these fitted - https://www.awesomegti.com/shop-by-brand/racingline-performance/racingline-sport-spring-set-vw-golf-mk5/

[neilw]

I did the same thing afew weeks back. Broke a back spring. Fitted Eibach sportlines as it was cheaper. Search back abit for my post if u want more info.

Sent from my SM-J510FN using Tapatalk

[19TW80]

Quick update...

Having researched coil springs, shocks, top mounts etc. to death, and taken on-board some pretty sound, independent advice from various sources; I’ve decided to get the VWR Sport Shock Absorber & Spring Kit fitted. The case for getting the front nearside coil spring replaced at the same time as the broken offside spring made sense. Then I was warned that the stock shocks might need replacing (soon) down the line due to knock-on impact of the slight lowering. And having to shell out for more hours of labour, if the shocks did need replacing didn’t fill me with joy, so it seemed prudent to buy the kit and replacement top mounts. I’ll let you know how I get on once car is collected on 13 January.

[Octoparrot]

Pretty similar to my train of thought when I was in the same situation, you may as well get the whole lot done at once and just pay one hit of labour, I also found that both me rears had broken when I removed them. Good luck, I'm sure you won't be disappointed. 

[4ndy]

Ive got a snapped nearside front spring. Waiting for a  complete set of EIBACH pro from Germany. No hurryfitting I'm off work till 9th Jan.
  The bottom 100mm has gone
 

[Bracey]

I’m in a similar but slightly different situation! My aftermarket suspension, that was on the car when I bought it, needs replacing as all four shocks are leaking and knocking. I have the original shocks, but only two springs that came with the car. Can anyone tell me the colour dot code for the front and rear springs of a five door manual edition 30? I can then get the two springs I need, put the original suspension back on and look at getting the aftermarket stuff refurbed.
Cheers.

[pudding]

What is the aftermarket stuff?  Worth rebuilding?  Could be a good time to upgrade 

Best thing with the springs is to get them from VW, they will know the right ones based on your year and VIN Number.   Probably not a good idea to rely on internet information because I find it's often incorrect when I go to the dealer with it.  Springs from VW aren't cheap though, be warned.  Cost a lot more than the dampers!

[Bracey]

That makes sense, thanks for that. I’ll go into my local dealer tomorrow and see what the damage is!! If it’s to expensive then I’ll look at second hand. Is the suspension in the GTI and the Edition 30 exactly the same?

[19TW80]

Kind of backs-up what my mechanic said: fit aftermarket springs with stock shocks, and there's a high probability that sooner or later the shocks will leak.

Quick update from me two months on from having the VWR/Racingline shock and spring kit fitted...

The ride is no less comfortable than before - possibly a touch softer - although I would say it's slightly stiffer and more sensitive to lumps and bumps in the road, which I would say is to be expected. Hope that doesn't sound too contradictory. Living in London I've definitely had to recalibrate how I approach sleeping policemen and the like. Handling wise, night and day over the stock setup, and actually shows up the Ed30's suspension as being pretty dire - such a shame that VW skimped on this element and the brakes. Loads of confidence when cornering, and overall the car just feels so much more planted, especially when at speed. Aesthetically i.e. the drop height, it's exactly what I wanted. I was careful when choosing the springs that the car wouldn't look Barry'd/slammed and IMO it's now sitting beautifully - approx. 15-20mm lower. Interested to see how it copes on the track this summer. Recommended.

All work done by BMS Cars in West Sussex - www.bms-cars.co.uk

[Tattooroo]

Just removed 2 broken rears on mine. Both bottom coils gone