For several years now, our KW suspensions brand has been manufacturing suspension systems through our special construction and custom-build department that do not allow continuous lowering, but instead increase ground clearance as off-road capable suspension kits. These have mostly been for older, air-cooled Porsche 911 models for North American customers.

Due to the growing “overlanding” trend, we at KW suspensions are now establishing a Safari Style product group. Our new KW Safari Style suspensions are by no means limited exclusively to SUVs; they are also available for other vehicle models.

What exactly is “overlanding”?

In addition to classic “overlanding” with SUVs or pickups, a distinct movement has established itself, originally in the North American off-road community, that equips ordinary station wagons, compact cars, sedans, and sports cars with raised suspensions, all-terrain tires, and roof racks for off-road use.

Vehicles that were not designed from the factory for off-road adventures thus become practical everyday cars for overlanding trips.

Overlanding, by the way, refers to self-sufficient, vehicle-supported travel away from paved roads, combining camping and off-road adventures. The first KW V3 Safari Style suspensions with official approval certificates are now available for selected Porsche and VW models — in future we will also offer these raised suspension kits for other car models aswell.

Our new KW V3 Safari Style suspension kits in detail

Essentially, the KW V3 Safari Style suspensions are off-road capable stainless-steel coilovers with official approval certificates (“TTG” and “Teilegutachten” in Germany) that, instead of continuous lowering, enable an increase in ride height.

In other words, you can increase ground clearance within a tested and vehicle-specific adjustment range.

The first vehicle models for which the new KW V3 Safari Style suspension is available are the Porsche Cayenne (9PA), the VW Touareg (7L), and the Porsche 911 (996 and 997 series).

On the Porsche Cayenne (9PA) and the geometrically identical VW Touareg (7L), ground clearance can be increased at the front axle from 0 to 30 millimeters and at the rear axle from 5 to 30 millimeters.

It is similar with the KW V3 Safari Style suspension for the Porsche 911 Carrera 4 and Carrera 4S of the 996 series. Here you can raise the 911 at both axles by between 20 and 30 millimeters. The same range for increased ground clearance is also offered by the KW V3 Safari Style suspension for the Carrera 2, Carrera 2S, Carrera 4, and Carrera 4S of the Porsche 911 (997).

How the KW V3 Safari Style suspension kits perform?

Even with the KW V3 Safari Style suspension kits we rely on our multi-valve technology, in which the compression and rebound stage valves are designed in two stages. The difference compared to the KW V3 Clubsport, KW V3 Leveling, or the well-known KW V3 coilover is that the damper valve configuration is designed for use far away from paved roads.

With our V3 multi-valve technology, the compression and rebound stage valves are adjustable in the low-speed range, while the valves in the high-speed range cannot be adjusted manually. The high-speed valves also do not need to be adjusted, because we have already set them vehicle-specifically during production.

When the suspension encounters long undulations or when the car is cornering on smooth surfaces, situations that only produce slow damper movements, the KW V3 operates in its low-speed range.
On gravel tracks or unpaved roads, however, damper velocities become much higher. In these cases the high-speed valves open and allow a greater volume of oil to flow through. As a result, the damping force increases more gradually despite the faster piston speed, so even hard impacts are absorbed cleanly.

The Safari Style suspension already damps undulations and transverse joints in its preset setup. It controls strong body roll and compression without compromising ride comfort.

The preset damping setup of the low-speed compression and rebound stage valves can be further fine-tuned with twelve clicks in compression and 16 clicks in rebound.

With the low-speed settings of the compression and rebound stages you can influence the handling characteristics as well as respond to pitch and roll movements when cornering.

Compared to our other KW coilover kits, the Safari Style suspensions differ through their longer struts, damper housings, spring rates, piston rods, and so on — everything is designed for the adjustable increase in ride height and also for the fitment of off-road tires. Nevertheless, our KW V3 Safari Style suspensions are not competition suspensions for professional rally use. They are raised suspension kits designed for overlanding tours

Raised suspensions for further models from other vehicle manufacturers are also in the planning stage, and we are not only thinking about Safari Style suspensions for the VW Golf. More on this soon on our landing page at www.kwsuspensions.com/de-en