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Thu Apr 23, 2009 2:42 pm

I am trying to put together my front suspension and the springs are proving a challenge. Once I get the springs compressed and the shock connected to the control arm, is it OK to let the shock assume all the force of the spring?

I haven't gotten this far yet but want to be sure I don't ruin my shocks. It appears the sway bar and upper control arm to steering knuckle are the only other points that would assume the force of the expanding spring.

Any tips on getting the springs in ??? I tried the bentley method first, connecting the control arm at the chassis and using the jack to jack up the arm with spring in place and compress the spring that way. I had a hard time getting the shock bolt holes on the shock/control arm to line up. Using the spring compressors seems difficult due to access of the rods.

Working with springs just freaks me out :(

Thu Apr 23, 2009 11:27 pm

OK. Spent several more hours with no progress. Quite frustrated. Is there any trick to getting the springs in? I have the strut style spring compressors but they don't seem to fit unless you space them pretty close together which I am hesitant to do. Will the style of spring compressor that goes inside the spring work if the shock is out?

I have tried using my jack to squeeze the springs into position and I can't seem to get the hole for the shock bolt to line up with the shock?

Do 86 springs indeed have a top and bottom? I saw that note in Bentley about a straight section at the end of the coil but I couldn't discern this looking at mine. Hoping its something stupid like this.

Help!

Fri Apr 24, 2009 1:20 am

kshbaja,

Definitely a top/bottom. If you sight down(or lay a straight edge on) the outside of the spring you should notice that the end (bottom) will project slightly outside the circumference of the spring. The other way to tell is set the spring on a solid level surface .............. if it stands almost vertical the spring is standing on its bottom :lol: if it falls over it was on the top.

If you follow the installation sequence in Bentley then all the force of the spring will not be on the shock absorber alone. None if you get the tire on and set back on the ground.

The way the spring locks (now that you have the orientation sorted) in as you compress it with the jack makes it very unlikely to pop out ...... just be very sure that the jack is well oriented and stable ......... you would also do well to calm the nerves by running a 'safety line' through the side of the spring and tie off to the frame.

Quote: Working with springs just freaks me out :(

Take your time and turn that frown upside down :)

Hope that helps.

Chris

Fri Apr 24, 2009 5:24 am

Did you remove the cone shaped spacer for the lower shock bolt?

Page 40.7 shows the bolt and the small spacer. The spacer gets wedged into the control arm hole when the bolt gets tightened. If you don't knock the spacer out it can be a bch of a job to get the lower shock hole to line up.

Mark

kshbaja wrote: OK. Spent several more hours with no progress. Quite frustrated. Is there any trick to getting the springs in? I have the strut style spring compressors but they don't seem to fit unless you space them pretty close together which I am hesitant to do. Will the style of spring compressor that goes inside the spring work if the shock is out?

I have tried using my jack to squeeze the springs into position and I can't seem to get the hole for the shock bolt to line up with the shock?

Do 86 springs indeed have a top and bottom? I saw that note in Bentley about a straight section at the end of the coil but I couldn't discern this looking at mine. Hoping its something stupid like this.

Help!

Fri Apr 24, 2009 8:58 am

In addition to what has already been said, I have always found it easiest to put upward pressure on the spring (jack under the control arm as close to the lower ball joint as possible) then install the shock, attaching the lower control arm bolt first, but leave it loose. Then attach the upper shock mount, tightening it to spec and finally tighten the lower shock bolt. It is perfectly safe/acceptable to let the shock fully extend and contain the pressure from the spring.

Fri Apr 24, 2009 9:30 am

Thanks guys. This gives me motivation to give it another shot today.

I think I have been able to identify the bottom of the spring. It looks like the VW part number is stamped near the bottom if I am doing this right. Can anyone confirm this? The springs will stand up on either end, but seem to fall over more easily when placed what I now think is upside down.

A problem I was having yesterday, and I am hoping this is because I had the spring upside down, is that as I started to compress the spring, the whole spring/control arm combo would sort of veer slightly towards the front of the van. It wouldn't be straight up and down like the shock. The force of the spring was pushing the control arm forward. This was making it very difficult to get the shock bolt lined up. My first thought was I will just get the radius rod in there and tighten it down and push the control arm/spring back to vertical, but the orientation was such that I couldn't get the radius arm threads started into the control arm with the other end of the radius arm in the hole where the bushings sit. Should I be able to connect up the radius rod after getting the spring compressed and shock connected? I know I disassembled it like this.

Fri Apr 24, 2009 10:06 am

Ah, this makes more sense now. You definitely want to connect the radius arms before you attempt to install the spring.

Fri Apr 24, 2009 10:15 am

I'll be replacing my springs this weekend. Last time I did it when I replaced my shocks I just unbolted the shock and got the springs out with a little force. Is it really necessary to take abpart suspension components? This time I'm going to try some spring compressors but I think that's all I'll need to do.

Fri Apr 24, 2009 10:24 am

The only other item that I remove, other than the shocks and the ball joints, when changing springs is the anti-roll bar mount. I don't actually remove the mount, but simply remove the nut and washers that hold it in place. This allows the lower control arm a little more freedom of movement and reduces the overall spring rate slightly so that the spring itself can be compressed as easily as possible.

Another trick that can make life easier (sometimes) is to remove the two small upper ball joint bolts and release the upper ball joint from the upper control arm instead of seperating the lower ball joint from the lower control arm. If your only changing springs, there is no reason to seperate the ball joints.

Fri Apr 24, 2009 10:29 am

I see. This is very encouraging. When I first considered this, it seemed pretty difficult due to the geometry involved to have the radius arm assembled and threaded through the bushing hole with the control arm low enough so that an uncompressed spring can be inserted? Is this to be expected and something I just need to "coerce" a bit to make work?

Fri Apr 24, 2009 11:03 am

kshbaja wrote: Is this to be expected and something I just need to "coerce" a bit to make work?

Yes! Since you have to assemble the bushing end of the radius arm anyway, leaving it somewhat loose (fully assembled, but not fully tightened) until the spring and shock are installed may help a little.

Fri Apr 24, 2009 3:16 pm

I had my entire suspension apart because I was replacing all my bushings/ball joints. I thought it would be easier this way, but in fact it seems the opposite.

FYI, Dan Hall on Killingsworth is now tooled up to do this on late model vanagons if you are looking for someone with recent experience in pressing out/in the front end bushings/ball joints.

Sat Apr 25, 2009 6:18 pm

I wanted to close the loop on this thread and thank Mr. Loogy for preserving my sanity. With the radius arms on the control arm the job was quite easy. Maybe 30 minutes per side. I don't dare say how much time I spent trying to get the control arms in without the radius arms. The trickiest part was getting the metal collar on the forward radius arm bushing nestled inside the opening the radius arm passes through.

Sat Apr 25, 2009 8:13 pm

Nicccccce Loogy and congrats to kshbaja ............. glad to hear you got it put back together!

Mon Apr 27, 2009 11:11 am

I installed new springs this weekend. After trying to cheat the first one in on the front without loosening anything and having no success, I decided to follow some procedures here.

Unbolt the two upper ball joint hex bolts (this took the use of a torch to get them to break free). Swing the upper bracket up and out of the way. Remove the sway bar bracket bolt and let it hang. I also removed the front nut on the bar that connects to the lower arm (don't know what that's called) to gain more downward movement. Install the bottom of the spring first and the top goes in with a little coaxing. No spring compressors used.

The first spring took me 2 hours to figure out, then the other three were done in an hour and a half. The bently procedure for front spring removal is very similar.

Thanks for the advice here. It helped.