Wheel hop fix?

[ZoliWorks]

Massive amounts of wheel hop in 1st gear and past 3.5k till redline in 2nd, regardless of driving conditions, temperature etc.

• K04 Swap, stock injectors, 280-300hp
• New OEM replacement engine, gearbox and dogbone mounts with aprox 15k km on them
• Vredestein Ultrac Vortii+ 18" summer tires with aprox 6k km on them
• New OEM reinforced lower control arm bushings with aprox 15k km on them
• Stock 20 year old shocks with 150k km on them
• Stock 20 year old springs with 150k km on them
• Every other bushing is 20 years old on the car with 150k km on them
• Stock anti roll bars with 150k km on them

I've been planning on replacing the shocks with Bilstein B4's cause I've read they are about 10% stiffer than stock  but also work with both stock springs and eibach Pro-Kit (black) lowering springs. I have a set of these springs leftover from my old mk5.

I figured first I'll try just the shocks and the stock springs, but if it doesnt change anything, I'll try the sports springs. I'm quite happy with the stiffness of the stock springs and I remember I got annoyed with the Eibach's cause they were a bit too stiff for long drives.


How should I go about reducing wheel hop, what are people's recommendations? I'll swap in the S3 injectors later this year/early next year to finish the K04 swap and probably call it a day but if I have this much wheel hop now, I dont even want to think about what it will be like then. The car is mostly a daily driver, about 80km per day, both inside and outside city.

I'd like to retain some amount of comfort where possible but fixing the hop is more important.


Edit: Been meaning to replace all bushings as well but both of the techs I took my car to said they are fine and dont need replacing. Back then I didn't really attempt to do any kind of work on my car but now, a year later, after swapping the turbo, intercooler and all the rest of the bolt-ons, I'll probably do the bushings myself. Found this kit, thoughts? https://psbushings.co.uk/product/vw-golf-mk5-mk6-full-set-front-rear-psb-polyurethane-bushing-kit-05-18/

[mjmallia]

Shocks will help and bet the fronts will be dead when you inspect on removal.

The control arm bushes with S3 inserts will also help

I also changed the ball joints on the front while it is all apart

I have the B4's with Sportline springs, S3 bush core inserted into original alloy  and it drives great for a daily and a bit of spirited driving.

A full wheel alignment is a must when done


I had initially gone down the PSB route, but they tend to squeak after a year and need removal and silicone greasing regulary...........so opted to remove and put OEM bushes back in MUCH BETTER!

[mjmallia]

S3 bushes have no voids like the GTI etc




I used these to replace my original voided ones:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B006DHY58W/ref

[ZoliWorks]

S3 bushes have no voids like the GTI etc




I used these to replace my original voided ones:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B006DHY58W/ref

I have those fitted. That's what parts dealers here call reinforced bushings.

Saw a video earlier of a guy wrapping the poly's with teflon tape before greasing and he's saying they never squeak.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbgEvh-rSl4

[pudding]

Wheel hop is hard to get rid of completely. S3 bushes and anti-lift kits help a bit but on my car it was tyre and suspension quality that ultimately got rid of it in the end. 

More negative camber helps as well because under hard acceleration the front end lifts and makes the camber more positive (hence the name 'anti lift' kit) which massively reduces grip. If the tyre can stay more flat on the tarmac, it won't slip as easily.

[ZoliWorks]

Will look into it this coming spring. Yesterday I've had a laser wheel alignment done (every wheel was out of factory specs) and now it seems to hop less overall.

[ZoliWorks]

So, I've been giving it some thought. These are the steps/conclusions I've come to. I'll be going through every step till I get to a point where I've eliminated wheel hop or minimized it to a point where it isn't an issue.

I'll mention it here as it's relevant in step 1, my car came with a sport suspension package from the factory. It has almost 150k km on it now. While getting an alignment done, they've checked the sticker in my service book and the suspension code is of a sports suspension. It's stiffer and also lower than my other Jetta, which is a standard suspension.


Step 0

• I'll be replacing all the sway bar end links, sway bar bushings and the tie rods

Step 1

• I'll replace my dampers with Bilstein B4's (sport version) and give the Eibach Pro-Kit (black coils) another shot. After driving for about a month, (40-60km daily) I'll decide if I want to keep them or switch back to the OEM sports coils.

I did look at B8's but the price difference is massive. From my local dealer, a B8 front is ~240 euros while a B4s front is ~60. A B8 rear is ~120 while a B4s rear is ~45

Step 2

• I'll replace my S3 bushings with an anti lift kit, probably a WALK. I dont think there's much to say here. It shouldn't add any more harshness or vibrations for the most part

Step 3

• 034Motorsport engine/gearbox street mounts and their dogbone inserts

Step 4

• 034Motorsport solid dogbone bushing. The "silver bullet". If wheel hop doesnt want to play nice, neither will I.

 Would appreciate any input that y'all may have.

[pudding]

Pro springs with the B4s should work nicely. You wouldn't like B8s on busted up urban roads anyway as they very harsh, but the trade off is better body control than the B4s on windy rural roads.

The SuperPro anti-lift I used on mine didn't introduce an NVH.

The street density mounts should be good but solid dogbones will definitely dump some NVH into the cabin!

[mjmallia]

I have the B4's with Eibach sport lines and they work great as a daily for me.

[ZoliWorks]

Glad to hear, thanks for both of your input.

Yeah I've heard that the solid dogbone ads a lot of NVH, that's why I've put it as a last resort solution.

I've researched a bit about the B4s before doing this post and most conclusions came down to it being more comfortable than b8 since b8 is harder. But as a sports suspension, b8 is much better. One video compared them saying b4 would start losing control at the same times your tires do while b8 wouldn't lose control and you wouldn't really feel that your tires are losing control either, while in reality, they are.


I've had brand new OEM KYB shocks on my old car, paired up with the prokit springs and that was quite bad. Too stiff imo. I've had to use spacers on the rear (to get an even fender-wheel gap) and to also reduce the harshness cause it felt like riding on solid bars.