Alternatives to Gabriel HiJacker 49307 Rear Air Shocks

[OldSchoolVW's]

After reading through recent posts on this topic and recent product reviews, I see that the Monroe equivalents to these Gabriel air shocks seem to be a disappointment, so I'm hoping to find another alternative. I called Gabriel today and they said the 49307 air shocks are not in stock and could not provide a production date ... so maybe it is the end of the road for these shocks.

Like others, I don't want to go through the considerable hassle of adjusting the rear torsion bars to achieve the 1" to 1.5" lift needed to even out the stance. I have seen the point raised that the shock mounts are not meant to support the weight of the car. Probably not, but they should be able to handle the weight of an excess load that is placed in the rear. The amount of "weight lifting" air shocks would need to do for a very minor lift should be well within the capacity of the shock and shock mount. I used air shocks years ago to raise a sagging rear on other non-VWs without a problem, and it seems others have done so on their bugs.

Have any of you used a different air shock from Gabriel or other brand for the rear on your bug? I have a '69 (all stock), but I imagine any year with IRS would have the same shock.
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Tom

"Following distance is proportional to IQ."

"It's okay to think."

"If you don't do it this year, you'll be one year older when you do." Warren Miller

'63 Beetle Sedan
'69 Beetle Sunroof
'70 Beetle Sedan
'73 Type 3 Fastback

[Cusser]

[OldSchoolVW's]

[Cusser]

[OldSchoolVW's]

So I called Gabriel this morning ...

The good news:
They are not discontinued.
Currently made in the U.S. (Imagine that!)
Warranty is for 2 years/24months to original purchaser.

The bad news:
Not expected to be available for 4 - 6 weeks. Production is waiting on parts.


So, unless an alternative is suggested by someone in the community, it looks like I'll be doing this little project sometime in August.
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Tom

"Following distance is proportional to IQ."

"It's okay to think."

"If you don't do it this year, you'll be one year older when you do." Warren Miller

'63 Beetle Sedan
'69 Beetle Sunroof
'70 Beetle Sedan
'73 Type 3 Fastback

[Cusser]

[virusdoc]

I added them to my Super based on Cusser's recommendation. They do the job.

One point to note: if you need to lift each side a slightly different amount, to achieve level ride, you will need to get a separate kit Gabriel sells that allows two Schrader valves to be installed, instead of both shocks sharing the same valve.

A second point: don't buy these from Amazon, which does sell them. The reason is that Gabriel will not warranty them if you buy them from Amazon--they will tell you Amazon honors the warranty (same 24 months) when they are purchased there. However, if you need to make a warranty claim (I did; one shock was leaking 30 psi a day--confirmed not the air lines), Amazon will claim that you must go to the manufacturer. I spent two weeks escalating calls to both Gabriel and Amazon before Gabriel finally called Amazon directly on my behalf to force them to honor the warranty. Note that none of this is mentioned on the Amazon listing.
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1976 Convertible Super Beetle, "June Bug".
Self-rebuilt 1904
1976 Campmobile 2.0L FI, "Kermit"

[OldSchoolVW's]

[Cusser]

For stuff where I can get lifetime warranty, I typically use O'Reilly or Autozone. Trying to get that done from online supplier is way more complicated.

In 2020 local Autozone replaced my 2 decades old master cylinder for my 1971 Super, easy return with lifetime warranty.
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1970 VW (owned since 1972) and 1971 VW Convertible (owned since 1976), second owner of each. The '71 now has the 1835 engine, swapped from the '70. Second owner of each. 1988 Mazda B2200 truck, 1998 Frontier, 2014 Yukon, 2004 Frontier King Cab. All manual transmission except for the Yukon. http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=335294 http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=335297

[Starbucket]

NAPA NS MA803 Air shocks fits VW rear and most NAPA brand parts carry a lifetime guarantee so you may want to look at them.

[OldSchoolVW's]

[Starbucket]

Have you looked into Gas adjustable and coil over adjustable shocks since you just want to level your ride not carry big loads, Rockauto carries both.

[H2OSB]

I must say, Rockauto is absolutely awesome to deal with regarding replacement or warranty on parts, even if fully your own fault.

I designed a set of coilovers for my son's '73 Super made from a set of Raceland coilovers meant for a VW Caddy pickup (watercooled VW pickup). I had to try 3 different brands of insert before I found the one that fit properly. Rockauto had no problem with this, what-so-ever. I never paid another penny for the replacement part, nor any additional shipping. One of the attempted brands was a close out deal, and when it didn't work, they didn't even want it back.

H2OSB
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(o\_i_/o) Funny thing about pigs, they're cleaner than you and me. Well....you.

[Igpoe]

Why not adjust the suspension properly and install new oil filled shocks. It will ride like an original Volkswagen instead of something engineered in the 19th century.
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'73 super.

[virusdoc]

[OldSchoolVW's]

[Cusser]