Does anyone else with these think they are total shite?
they've been on mine since i had it, and they are just awful, the ride is horendous, it wont handle because its just too bouncy, and if you do put it on a smooth road its skippy and a bit unstable, are they all like this, or is it just me?!

They have been rebuilt, running 280 ib springs front and unknown rear.

 

had avo coilovers on 2 cars.both leaked after 2-3months then had trouble with avo to get them changed.both sets were repaired and leaked again after 3months.ended up throwing them away.ride with these units was crap

 

what did you change them for?
i love the way mien sits, so i dont want koni's and +8 foot springs.

 

on my escos i put gaz coilovers on but it is a total show car.think they have been on for 6yrs now and still ok and look good as new.on the golf ive put kw variant 2 and these are brill in all departments.on the evo6 tommi mak ive put bc coilovers on .these have been abused big style and even after a year of all seasons the 1st wash of them showed no areas of rust on the threads or nuts.lots of people have used them on evos and subs and are having knocking probs from the rear! i believe bc are at this moment trying to solve it which i suppose is ok.for me budget on a ford i would choose gaz

 

got gaz for mine mate, also know a friend who had gaz and they were superb

 

i use avo on my little escort and theyre good ! not brill on track as too soft springs up front and too stiff on rear

but for the road theyre awesome !

 

I use avo coilys, and think they are ace, have used most makes as well over the years, I have on more than one occasion got comments from rear seat passengers that this was the most comfy cossie they had been in, opposite locks friend also commented to this effect.
The spring rates may not be to everybodys liking but these are easily changed, indeed avo will exchange the springs once for free on new sets if you don't like the rates, I use 300lb 9" front and 200lb 12" rear.
From your description I think you have more than suspension issues.
The biggest problem is the cossie is a pile of shit in the suspension department at the rear, it's quite laughable for this sort of car, or bloody dangerous if looked at another way!!
They might just as well fitted the beam on with bungee ties, would have worked just as well.
Stability can be improved 100000% with a poly diff mount and a 22mm arb on the rear.
tabetha

 

its got poly diff mount, solid beam mounts and everything else it polybushed, its more the ride quality that's bad, its so damned hard/bouncy.
Obviously 35 series tyres dont help at all, but even on the standard 15"s, its a bit crap.
Maybe its just the roads round here?

 

Avo are shit full stop!!!everyone and every car iv ever been in with them are horrid..
Either too soft or to hard and dont last five minutes...
For the money go gaz and if you want to do fast road and track go gaz golds much better and will last longer...

cheers danny

 

thanks for the advice, Danny, and everyone else.
Suppose i best get saving

 

Danny makes me laugh, too hard or too soft, note to danny, avo and others are not clairvoyant so don't know what each customer likes, everyone is different, some people think that a certain set up is crap for whatever reason but may well not be due to what they are thinking, avo offer a FREE spring replacement if you don't like the rate, what works on one track rate wise won't be the ideal for another track even more variables on the road when people buy coilys wanting comfort, if you do go with KONI adjustable and avo/chassis dynamics std ride height/bayjoo, awsome on the road comfort and excellent grip.
We have the usual boy racers round here cars on the deck nice grippy tyres etc getting blown away on the bends by std cars who do have suspension travel, hence they don't bounce off the road, when hitting a bump mid corner.
tabetha

 

Here in Spain, AVO has not had a good name, many friends had problems with them and the shop stopped selling them ... A friend is very happy mount GAZ and for my project I'll buy GAZ gold because i go in go to circuits.

 

From a personal perspective I run AVO on my 500. Yes one leaked but it was 5 years old and was repaired free of charge... returned in 48 hours. On the road it can feel like it skips when set hard... on the track it is spot on with the very same settings.

Obvious really - but with adjustments and experimenting we can now get a good road setting too.

What I will say is that AVO have been excellent and responded quickly - even when I sent them back a second hand set to refurb. These are the ones now on the car and we are more than happy with them.

Speak as you find - I am inclined to agree with Tabatha here... just ask the other 500 owners who tried to match our cornering last year - apparently our car 'looked planted' on the track.

35 series tyres were never meant for these cars remember. As Lee here will testify - his 500 skipped all over the place and was transformed with a wheel change.

 

Just a thought - have you had the car corner weighted before you pull anything off it?

 

i haven't, no, do you think its worth it?
I'm just wondering if the rear springs are too hard and its effecting the whole car, it didn't ride nice, even on 15"s, obviously 18"s are worse, but not massively.
They are on the softest settings too, i agree with you about AVO's customer service, i have always had very quick response from them.

 

Koni's and bayjoo springs for fast road dan.

 

Soft setting on hard springs will accentuate short travel bounce / rebound - not very technical speak so maybe someone here will explain it better. The spring finds it easier to move - but stiff ones don't move a lot... so you get a kind of short skip on the lightest of bumps.

These things can take a fair bit of setting up so I hand mine over to some pro mates to sort for me... but it does sound like you have springs that are too hard for your needs I'm afraid.

 

I have Gaz coilovers (not gold) on my 4x4 and in my opinion the car feels awful. it is as said too soft or too hard and found it difficult to find anywhere in between.

the car fees a little wallowy (spell check) at times and the car just feels uncertain, it is the second car i have bought with Gaz already fitted. My Mk6 RS2K also had the same issues albeit that i wasnt running over 300 bhp. To me it still had the same noticeable characteristics.

in my opinion and in my experience Gaz are not for me, when you lower them too much the characteristics of the spring change and it really does affect the feedback to the driver

just my thoughts

 

Everyone has their own preference.

I use AVO on my 4be (not coilovers) and the ride is more comfortable than 5 year (15k) old standard 4x4 Cosworth stuff direct from Ford. The car is 2mm lower @ the front and 29mm @ the rear. No understeer, nice handling and can be provoked to a little oversteer when wanted in tight corners.

I know someone in another Club I used to be in that actually works for Gaz and he won't have them on any of his cars as he says that they are **** himself. And he makes them!!!