Reviving a Syncro

[joetiger]

[joetiger]

Back from a Thanksgiving trip to New Orleans, flying not driving, and wish we had driven. Anyhoo, I had a few hours yesterday and, having amassed all the parts I think I need, decided to jump into springs and shocks.

Bilstein B6, Schwenk standard springs, rear LCA bushings, all new hardware.

Please note that I've done springs and shocks multiple times and on every van I've owned. The rears are a walk in the park. They are the easy end and I thought I'd ease into the project.

Pigpen had other plans.

The driver side required the use of every tool in the shed. The bottom shock bolt was fused to the shock bushing. Eventually it all came apart after torch, sawzall, and grinder.

(pay no mind to the u-joint on the impact wrench--it was a dumb idea.)


All back together.

The passenger side started off harmlessly enough. The bottom bolt came off easily; I had broken the original clean off a while back so that bolt was new. The spring came out as it should.

The top bolt, though. On the drivers side, I'd preemptively heated the bolt with a torch until things got nice and smoky, and it broke loose without issue. I used the same technique on the passenger side but it would not budge.

With the help of a cheater bar, it finally popped loose and will turn. However, the shock bushing is fused to the bolt.

I can't get the f**ker off. I tried everything I could think of yesterday and lost a perfectly good fingernail and a chunk of forearm in the process.

I think I need to get the shock out of there so I have some room to work on the bolt/shock bushing. My plan is to try to get the Dremel up there to cut across the round part of the shock and get the shock out of there so I can cut the bolt. Unless anybody has any better ideas?

What a hassle. Any suggestions are appreciated!

(I am aware that I'm working very near the fuel system. I will put protective coverings over the filler tube, vent line, and gas tank before the sparks start flying.)
_________________
Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'04 GTI 1.8T
'04 Golf R32

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Available Now! Vanagon to Louisiana--A Two-Lane Reckoning Through Past and Present

www.josephtrussell.com

[4Gears4Tires]

Sawzall and angle grinder. Cutting the shock off for space sounds good but be careful. I'd use a sawzall over a dremel. Wear full eye and respiratory protection in case you overheat/cut too deep and it comes out as a vapor. You don't want that in your respiratory system. A guy on the e30 forums years back cut his bumper shocks down (they're really high pressure) and it squirted/vaporized into his face. 6 months in the hospital. Nearly died.

When you say it's loose, you can rock it back and forth a quarter turn but no more because it's seized on to the bushing right? I'm surprised you can't force it to turn more because of the captured nut. Sounds similar to the trailing arms. I had to cut all 4 bolts off on both sides. PITA.
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'87 Syncro
Ferric Oxyhydroxide Superleggera Edition

[joetiger]

[danfromsyr]

honestly welding up/repairing that shock mount/tab is a farily easy thing to do once the shock is cut out
any grade/quality welder or welder work should suffice. there's little working load in the pull/down direction..

so don't fret it too much, get that sumbitch outta there and deal with the fix'n next

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[joetiger]

Thank you, Gents, for the suggestions and moral support. It turns out all I needed was a shitty day back at work to cultivate some good, healthy anger. That and a few Dremel cutoff wheels, the grinder, and a crowbar made short work of it.

Scissors for the shock rubber

Exposed and easy to cut with the grinder.

Thankfully the captive nut was not damaged and I was able to bang the outer rim of the bracket, which had bent outwards a little, back in place with a BF hammer.

I'm sure the front will be nice and easy.
_________________
Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'04 GTI 1.8T
'04 Golf R32

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Available Now! Vanagon to Louisiana--A Two-Lane Reckoning Through Past and Present

www.josephtrussell.com

[MsTaboo]

Good work! Did you use some anti-seize on the new bolts?

Start the fronts by soaking everything in PB Blaster overnight and use a decent spring compressor.
Front shocks/springs on a Syncro can be a bit of a pain if you haven't done them before.
_________________
Currently:
'90 Syncro Westy 3 knob w/Zetec

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[dkoesyncro]

How do these Bilsteins compare to the OME? I'll be venturing down this road soon, currently I'm stock springs and OME. It works but I don't have anything to compare.

[Escorial Syncro]

[joetiger]

[sanchius]

Well done, epic repair! Encountering the rare rust-stuck bolt like that really makes me feel for those who live in wetter/saltier regions.
_________________
The Syncro years (2005-16) - The 2WD years (2017-23) - Westy & WBX rebuild spreadsheet - Sanchius & Tuna: The Video
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[joetiger]

[erste]

[sanchius]

[tjet]

[dobryan]

[joetiger]

I installed new front shocks and springs on Saturday.

Major thanks to Sodo for the idea of using conduit as a spacer on spring compressors. It worked like a charm.

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=671406

I think daily soakings with PB Blaster really helped with the bolts.

I didn't have any trouble threading the upper shock bolt into the top mount. The problem I had was getting the bottom mount into the control arm and aligned properly. That is a TIGHT fit. With enough profanity and my trusty hammer, everything eventually went together.

Removing the radius rod completely was the only way I could get to the front lower shock nut. That seems like a dumb design.

The van rides like a Ferrari Cadillac now. You never realize how worn out shocks are until you install new ones.

With new shocks and springs, I'm sitting at 18 1/2" in the back, 19" in the front. I'll drive it around a bit and let it settle in and see where I end up.

The best(?) news of the day is that my 4 year old upper ball joints are trashed. They were dry, rattling/loose, which means my tires aren't unbalanceable and hopefully I've found the source of my front end wiggle. I'm installing Lemforder HD UBJ's from autohaus.az in anticipation of T3 Technique's new ones being available. (I ordered from Autohaus because Van Cafe only had one UBJ in stock.)

After UBJ's, I'll get a fresh alignment.

Thanks for the tips! I was very sore after this one. I dare crossfit people to spend a day doing suspension work on a Vanagon.
_________________
Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'04 GTI 1.8T
'04 Golf R32

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Available Now! Vanagon to Louisiana--A Two-Lane Reckoning Through Past and Present

www.josephtrussell.com

[MsTaboo]

[joetiger]

"Dad, aren't we getting a Christmas tree today?"

"I'm sorry honey, no. My new upper ball joints arrived early. Christmas will have to wait until tomorrow."

All buttoned up, the front end feels tighter and better on the road for sure but I still have that steering wheel shimmy at 65 MPH and up. Not as pronounced as before, but it's still there.

I'll get it aligned and go from there.

I found this thread, which makes me queasy in its discussion of an unbalanced VC:

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=...mp;start=0
_________________
Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'04 GTI 1.8T
'04 Golf R32

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Available Now! Vanagon to Louisiana--A Two-Lane Reckoning Through Past and Present

www.josephtrussell.com

[elizer]

The joys of owning a syncro. Time for 3 knob? Christmas can wait until the little one is 18.