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Q4 lowering options

51K views 205 replies 32 participants last post by  Tomi77 
#1 ·
Hi all, i m seriously considering lowering my 2017 giulia Q4, but a lot of springs/ coilovers are only design for Rwd models. Some suggested their springs are for all models, some only for rwd. I m looking for something that just lower the wheel gaps by an inch or so, while still retain much of the driving / ride qualities.

Thats why this thread is to call for those who lowered their giulia Q4, what brand of springs / coilovers u used, and any feedback/ problems and pictures are appreciated. Thank you all
 
#2 ·
What year? I guess that the 2017 year had lower springs, Alfissimo states they can drop you about 3/4"... Hope I'm remembering that correctly.
 
#5 ·
> I think that is true only for Quad models
Not according to Alfissimo. All 2018 Giulia variants ride higher than their 2017 counterparts, and the lift varies from model to model - e.g. Q4s got more life and Q2s got less. As a result, there are quite a few different OEM lowering options for 2018 owners.

I have a set of 2017 springs on order for my 2018 Q4. Estimated drop is 1.3". Will report back with pics and impressions in a couple weeks once installed.

For me, I wanted something that lowered the CG for handling and reduced the fender gap for appearance, but without killing the ride comfort or bouncing off the bumpstops. I believe the 2017 springs will accomplish this. In fact, I speculate that the optimal ride & handling setup for the Giulia is the 2017-spec and the lift in 2018+ cars was a concession to daily-driver practicality concerns.
 
#7 ·
Not according to Alfissimo. All 2018 Giulia variants ride higher than their 2017 counterparts, and the lift varies from model to model - e.g. Q4s got more life and Q2s got less. As a result, there are quite a few different OEM lowering options for 2018 owners.

I have a set of 2017 springs on order for my 2018 Q4. Estimated drop is 1.3". Will report back with pics and impressions in a couple weeks once installed.
Yes please!! Report after install. Did you get the 2017 Q4 or Q2 springs?
 
#6 ·
BTW, I believe the springs are interchangeable across all Q2s and Q4s, however, the Q4s have a different front shock mount. This prevents Q2 coilover options from working on Q4.
 
#8 · (Edited)
Q4 spring difference in spring length (non-sunroof-315mm/sunroof-310mm) is 15mm.
2017 Springs are 15mm shorter than 2018. 15mm roughly equates 1/2"+/- lower. 30mm equates to around 1" drop +/-
Spring compressed: 17' 84mm( 85mm sunroof)/ 18' 98mm (100mm sunroof) (RWD 76mm)

My 17' Q4 is around 1/2"+/- lower than all the 18> Q4 models. Similar results with RWD/Q2.

I don't like the idea of using RWD lowering springs for the Q4. I do think that there is a possibility for using the RWD Q2 springs on the Q4 (310mm spring height)
 
#15 ·
~110 lbs I believe
 
#17 ·
2017= non-sunroof-305mm/sunroof-310mm Spring height of released spring.
Compressed = 76mm/79mm
2018= non-sunroof-306mm/sunroof-304mm
Compressed = 63mm/67mm

So Q2 would be lower for 2018 springs actually are lower vs. all the others who were raised up in 2018. I am not sure this will result in more lowering but could.
 
#20 ·
@ Alfissimo, after reading your charts, i m more puzzled than ever.. o_O. In simple terms, from my 2017 Q4 , of the 4 sets of springs (17 QV/Q2) and ( 18 QV/Q2) which one will lower it by 1" or so all around, and which set of springs are most firm, or soft for that matter?
 
#21 · (Edited)
@ Alfissimo, after reading your charts, i m more puzzled than ever.. o_O. In simple terms, from my 2017 Q4 , of the 4 sets of springs (17 QV/Q2) and ( 18 QV/Q2) which one will lower it by 1" or so all around, and which set of springs are most firm, or soft for that matter?
You can “kind of” guess the hardness by looking at the wire diameter and the distance of full travel. Thinner and longer springs “should be” softer than thicker and shorter.

Also keep in mind that if you put a spring designed for a lighter car, say the q2 on a q4, you will get a bigger drop than expected. It’s not easy folks!

Thanks alfissimo this table helps a lot. I will definitely order some in the next few months
 
#23 ·
From my 2017 Q4 with sunroof, which is at 315mm, i mean , theres not really any point of going to any of the springs with 310/304 mm, so my only viable choice left would be the 17/18 QV springs, which is at 270/283 mm( 1.6"/ 1.28") drop and it has more stiffness to compensate for the height drop. Am i interpreting the chart correctly?
 
#24 · (Edited)
2017 has the better springs so it would be pointless. You could see a slight drop though with the 304/306 RWD (sunroof version) but I am not advocating for that and I have not tried it yet. Qv springs won't fit. if you want to try this I can offer a discount on the springs for being a Guinea pig.

Not sure why you's want to go any lower than you are? The ride height is pretty low and drivability will be compromised with a lowering spring; plus they are not Q4 specific and again I don't care what anyone says if they will work they just want to sell springs. There is a variance in heights, 17' springs for Q4 offer the best results for bringing it down within spec. Since in 18' all springs(exc: RWD) including Qv were raises up and AR replaced 18' springs on QV for owners to 17' spec springs.
People will say, if alfa has different heights than lowering springs beyond spec are fine. Not really the case as AR is moving within a specific geometry they know is optimal and aftermarket springs do not take that into account, those springs are just for looks. 17' is about as low as I would go, this car would be almost un-driveable any lower. Just a warning. I have already have a few buy 17' springs, replacing lowering springs they purchased (red ones and black ones).
 
#26 · (Edited)
Difference in winding. I'd have to measure the distance between coils to to give you a more detailed summary of this.


2017 # "effective" Coils. The coils on the ends will not be an effective coil, it will be there for mounting/height. The effective coils are in blue: 4.25 coils are effective or active. The pink is the non-effective coils.

2017 RWD below with 4.13 effective coils.
90503


This one is a bit harder to see as I don't have a pic of the QV springs separated. 3.70 effective coils. The other coils are dead coils that give height to the car.

The increase in spring diameter is doe to having more effective coils which raised the vehicle.

QV 2017 coil Dia. 13.60+/- with 3.70 effective coils. Spring pack 79
QV 2018 coil Dia. 13.80+/- with 4.66 effective coils. Spring pack 64mm ( I am wondering if this is a typo and should be 94mm)??
(hence the almost 1" height difference but with similar performance.) Spring pack most likely due to how it was wound.

2017 3.70 effective coils:
90509



Q4 2017 (non-sunroof) 12.80+/- .05 with 4.25 effective coils. Spring pack 84mm
Q4 2018 (non-sunroof) 13.20 +/- .05 with 5.11 effective coils. Spring pack 98mm
Not only almost a mm thickness change but a .86 coil height difference, close to 1 full coil which is about 1". We can see that in the ride height of the 17' vs the 18'.
 
#28 ·
No. Not sure except to use lowering springs but that will not work for ride quality. What tires are you running?
If you get a bit more meat on the wheels that gap tends to fade away more. ;)

Before:
225 stretched tires. Looked like a rubber band on there and gave the perception of more gap between fender and tire.

90511


After with 255 rear still 225 front but I would go 235/265 next. Anyway, These tires give it a better look for the 2017. I would not go lower than this. Ride quality and drivability will be lost. The michelins fill in gap more. Looks way better without changing suspension springs for lowering which I would not do anyway. :)
90512
 
#34 ·
A couple of notes:

Higher coil pitch makes the spring harder.
Larger diameter wire makes the spring harder.
The stiffness of steel is pretty much independent of alloy and/or hardening treatment, so no need to wonder about some special alloy affecting the above.

Other spring materials include titanium and beryllium. Titanium coil springs are about 60% lighter than steel springs for the same specifications. Titanium spring stiffness does vary considerably with alloy composition. Beryllium springs are usually beryllium bronze (mostly copper), are only made in tiny sizes and cost the earth.

Problems I remember being reported caused by lowering springs:

Broken headlight adjuster (specific to 25W HIDs prior to some cutoff date).
Blown out front(?) shock.
Scraping things on the ground.
Left front wheel rub, threatening to burn through a wiring harness (this was a QV with wide tires and very low).
 
#37 ·
A couple of notes:


Problems I remember being reported caused by lowering springs:

Broken headlight adjuster (specific to 25W HIDs prior to some cutoff date).
Blown out front(?) shock.
Scraping things on the ground.
Left front wheel rub, threatening to burn through a wiring harness (this was a QV with wide tires and very low).
Not to mention:
Reduced ride quality
Suspension geometry off
Reduced longevity of components in suspension, including bushings.
Perceived improved handling when in-fact it is hindered
Rubbing of everything
Active Suspension shocks blown or wear out very quickly ($800 each).
Standard Struts wear out quickly.
 
#199 ·
Da budem iskren, 17' Q4 opruge bi se mogle koristiti na modelima sa stražnjim pogonom, s većim promjerom to bi trebalo dati malo više performansi bez spuštanja automobila! Prije smo koristili automatske opruge na automobilima s ručnim pogonom za poboljšane performanse.
[/CITAT]
Alfissimo
Imam Giuliu Q2 2017 RWHi D s OEM oprugama. Dobio sam OEM stražnje opruge od Q2 2018 AWD. Bile su 311 mm. Htio sam malo spustiti stražnji dio pa sam naručio u firmi koja se bavi proizvodnjom opruga i oni su ih tehnološkom obradom spustili na 295 mm. Ako ih stavim na svoj Q2 2017 umjesto sadašnjih hoće li ići niže straga, što mislite?
 
#48 ·
Can't say enough good thing about Eibach's Q4 springs. I've been extremely happy with their performance and the look of the car. Have had them on for a year now with no adverse effects. The only place I noticed them initially was the rear feeling slightly stiffer when coming down from speed bumps, especially with rear passengers, but nothing in daily use.

See my post here for visuals: https://www.giuliaforums.com/threads/eibach-for-q4.13602/page-3#post-720898
 
#52 ·
So i got email back from the ST rep, they did design the springs for Q4, its around $300 usd + shipping. Frt springs are 230mm and thw rears are 276mm, it is designed to b 20mm/20mm lower all around, he did mention theres sport suspensions for giulia which will not get 20mm becoz it sit lower already.

@ alfassimmo- the table u provided, is it only rear springs? 2017 Q4 with 310mm gets 34mm lowered to 276mm makes sense to u?
 
#55 ·
So i got email back from the ST rep, they did design the springs for Q4, its around $300 usd + shipping. Frt springs are 230mm and thw rears are 276mm, it is designed to b 20mm/20mm lower all around, he did mention theres sport suspensions for giulia which will not get 20mm becoz it sit lower already.

@ alfassimmo- the table u provided, is it only rear springs? 2017 Q4 with 310mm gets 34mm lowered to 276mm makes sense to u?
Get those as that sounds like what you want. They are front springs on table.
 
#58 ·
Fronts are what the chart shows, the front is the main indicator in height with these cars. Front 17' Q4 springs start with a PINK dot, Brown Dot sunroof which is shown in the chart.

Q2 Orange Dot is the start of the sequence. Shown in second picture.

QV Blue Dot Shown in third
 

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