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bmlb929 Samba Member
Joined: May 13, 2018 Posts: 40 Location: AL
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Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 5:20 pm Post subject: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Amateur mechanic. Learning as I go. My driver's side is lower than my passenger side even when I am not in it. Have changed the shocks and that did not help. When I jack the car up, the driver's side comes of the floor after the passenger side does. Can somebody tell me where to start? Limited budget so I have to do most labor myself. Thanks |
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joey1320 Samba Member
Joined: September 12, 2006 Posts: 2325 Location: Cleveland, OH
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Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 6:17 pm Post subject: Re: !977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Absolutely nothing wrong with doing things yourself.
You gotta be proud of that.
It's difficult to say without seeing the vehicle in person, so can you post pics of the issue? Can you also post pics of the underside of the car and the suspension? _________________ **1971 Super Project
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=...mp;start=0 |
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bmlb929 Samba Member
Joined: May 13, 2018 Posts: 40 Location: AL
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Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 6:29 pm Post subject: Re: !977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Will do. Might be a day or two. Thanks |
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cletus_zuber Samba Member
Joined: January 08, 2010 Posts: 2400 Location: Gladstone, Ore
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Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 6:34 pm Post subject: Re: !977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Front or rear? were 77's standard still sold in the US, I forget.
if standard and in front I would suspect broken torsion leaves inside the beam. _________________ 1972 1302
HPMX 40's & 019 |
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Q-Dog Samba Member
Joined: April 05, 2010 Posts: 8687 Location: Sunset, Louisiana
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Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 7:43 pm Post subject: Re: !977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Beetles are heavier in the rear than in the front, so when a car leans to one side that issue can often be narrowed down to a problem in the rear of the car. _________________ Brian
'69 Dune Buggy
'69 Beetle Convertible
'70 Beetle |
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bmlb929 Samba Member
Joined: May 13, 2018 Posts: 40 Location: AL
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Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 8:45 pm Post subject: Re: !977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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It's the front. Driver's side. Will post pics as soon as possible. I really hope it's not the torsion bars. That maybe over my head. |
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bmlb929 Samba Member
Joined: May 13, 2018 Posts: 40 Location: AL
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Posted: Sun Jul 22, 2018 4:02 pm Post subject: Re: !977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Here are the pics. Let me know of any other angle that would help.
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andk5591 Samba Member
Joined: August 29, 2005 Posts: 16754 Location: State College, PA
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 7:58 am Post subject: Re: !977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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couple things - Try jacking the front of the car under the center of the beam and see how the rear looks. Will help you identify which end of the car has the problem.
You have really ratty ball joint boots that need to be replaced, assuming your ball joints are any good. If you replace those, you can pull the control arms and spring packs to look for any damage and can replace them if needed.
Something else - when you push down on the front, do both sides go down about the same? Couple possibly be a bound up ball joint, but kind of doubt it. _________________ D-Dubya Manx clone - 63 Short pan,1914.
Rosie 65 bug - My mostly stock daily driver.
Woodie 69 VW woodie (Hot VWs 7/12).
"John's car" 64 VW woodie - The first ever
Maxine 61 Cal-look bug - Cindy's daily driver.
Max - 73 standard Beetle hearse project - For sale
66 bug project - Real patina & Suby conversion
There's more, but not keeping them... |
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Chad1376 Samba Member
Joined: January 29, 2005 Posts: 1435 Location: Henderson, Nevada
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 8:45 am Post subject: Re: !977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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One more thing to check - is the frame head twisted. A quick check is to look down the bottom center of the car from the rear, and see if the front beams appear parallel with the pan. _________________ My never ending 1302 Autocross Project:
http://www.shoptalkforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=51&a...02b8f83f22 |
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GArBa Samba Member
Joined: January 27, 2014 Posts: 2103 Location: Milano, Italy
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 9:18 am Post subject: Re: !977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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someone removed the anti-roll bar leaving its bushings in place, this makes me believe the beam has been tampered with. _________________ cars:
'97 type 1 1600i
'14 type AA Seat Mii (sadly dead after 270.000 km)
'22 type C1 T-Cross
'23 type AC3 Hyundai I10 (VW no longer makes small cars!)
-------------------------
moped:
'82 Benelli Magnum 3v |
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bmlb929 Samba Member
Joined: May 13, 2018 Posts: 40 Location: AL
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 10:22 am Post subject: Re: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Thanks everyone. Guess I got my work cut out for me. |
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SdAufKla Samba Member
Joined: October 01, 2016 Posts: 103 Location: Piedmont Piney Woods, SC
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 10:59 am Post subject: Re: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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What is the "U-shaped" bar / rod piece under the bottom end of the shock mount?
(See the 2nd photo, down.)
There is no comparable part under the bottom of the other - driver's side - shock mount (see the 3rd photo).
Maybe the problem is not that the driver's side is sagging, but that the passenger side is being held upwards by something. |
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bmlb929 Samba Member
Joined: May 13, 2018 Posts: 40 Location: AL
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 11:36 am Post subject: Re: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Good point. I did not see that. Will check today |
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ashman40 Samba Member
Joined: February 16, 2007 Posts: 15975 Location: North Florida, USA
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 2:18 pm Post subject: Re: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Two comments on your issue....
The sway bar (yours is missing) provides some level of balance between the two sides. If one side is more compressed than the other, the sway bar tries to force the other side down by the same amount. Lacking this, your front end can appear uneven. This is probably NOT the primary cause but may be exaggerating it.
After 40+ years... springs sag. When driven, the car will ALWAYS have a driver adding weight to the left (driver's) side, but may not always have a passenger. This leads to the driver side springs wearing out (sagging) earlier than the passenger side. This is a common problem with classic cars.
This applies to the front springs and the rear. The rear torsion springs are adjustable by rotating the torsion bar on either the inner and/or outer teeth and you can often get the ride height in the rear corrected. For the front... you probably need to buy a new set of torsion leaf packs (top & bottom).
SdAufKla wrote: |
What is the "U-shaped" bar / rod piece under the bottom end of the shock mount?
(See the 2nd photo, down.) |
That looks sort of like a tow loop?? Maybe something a PO welded in place?
My RHD Beetle had a similar loop but it was welded to the bottom of the lower tube and extended forward horizontally. _________________ AshMan40
---------------------------
'67 Beetle #1 {project car that never made it to the road }
'75 Beetle 1200LS (RHD Japan model) {junked due to frame rot}
'67 Beetle #2 {2019 project car - Wish me luck!} |
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allenw Samba Member
Joined: September 20, 2016 Posts: 221 Location: Dalton, GA
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 4:07 pm Post subject: Re: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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The bumper looks higher on the passenger side than the driver side |
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Chris333 Samba Member
Joined: July 30, 2017 Posts: 656 Location: Ohio
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 4:35 pm Post subject: Re: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Are the shocks different? |
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bmlb929 Samba Member
Joined: May 13, 2018 Posts: 40 Location: AL
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 5:18 pm Post subject: Re: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Front shock are the same. Just replaced. |
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Chris333 Samba Member
Joined: July 30, 2017 Posts: 656 Location: Ohio
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 5:23 pm Post subject: Re: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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You could need new torsion bars. Maybe the driver side is sagging after so many years with only a driver. |
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sleeper bird Samba Member
Joined: August 27, 2017 Posts: 119 Location: Louisiana
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Posted: Mon Jul 23, 2018 5:26 pm Post subject: Re: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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although the front is not even the bumper makes it look worst,its cocked down |
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bmlb929 Samba Member
Joined: May 13, 2018 Posts: 40 Location: AL
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Posted: Sat Jul 28, 2018 9:13 pm Post subject: Re: 1977 Beetle is lower on one side than the other. |
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Ok. Thanks for all the help. My next question is where do I start? I know the ball joints need replacing and a sway bar added. Should I check the torsion leaves and torsion bars first before I start buying parts? And should this novice mechanic try to remove the torsion bars or bite the bullet and try to find a shop? |
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