Specs. of tire, wheel, and suspension - Lowered Buses

[begood56vw]

Hello fellers,
It’s been a while since I last posted something on The Samba. I have a 59 mango bus with Wolfgang IRS in the rear. The front has a Wagenswest 4in narrow.
My question is why is it such a hassle to get it probably aligned??? Took it to a local shop and they just made it worse. Went to another shop and they didn’t even want to take a stab at it.

[cdennisg]

You know what they say, if you want something done right, do it yourself.

Alignment is not a mysterious process, just takes time and concentration. The bently manual has all the info, and it should still apply even with a lowered beam.
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nothing

[begood56vw]

Thanks for the reply ‘cdennisg’ and you’re right. I just wanted a “professional” to get it perfect. I know the front is just toe setting but what I’m have trouble is the rear irs adjustments. Seems the rear there’s toe and camber that can be set.

[cdennisg]

[begood56vw]

You’re absolutely right on the front shims adjustment. I followed the instructions showing the shims/offset from the top to bottom spindle arms. I feel confident I got that dialed.

I’m going to give it a try to adjust the rear!! The issue that I have is when I’m on the road, say going 60mph, it likes to wonder side to side. No bueno!

[cdennisg]

[begood56vw]

[cdennisg]

Not the steering wheel, the steering box. Bottom of the column is a cast iron box that connects to the Pittman arm. If it is sloppy, that can cause issues.
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nothing

[begood56vw]

That’s what I meant. The steering box, underneath the bus, is solid. All new suspension items.

[cdennisg]

[begood56vw]

[64 ragtop volks]

if you feel you have shims correct, take a tape measure and use the center groove of the front tires and pigeon tow the front tires about 1/8", having extra set of hands helps, measure frontside vs backside of tires, frontside should be about 1/8" less then backside. also check to make sure you have adjusters set the same, so same number of teeth are showing so both torsion leaf packs have same load on them

[begood56vw]

[Callook59]

62 Double Cab. I drive it 300-500 miles per week

CB beam narrowed to 4”
64-67 arms and spindles
Dubfab 4” welded spindles
Wagens West 944 vented / Wilwood 4 piston front discs
15x5’a 175/50R15

68 long axle/long spline trans
Vintage Vdubs adjustable offset spring plates
Wagens West 944 vented / Wilwood 4 piston rear discs
15x6’s 205/60R15
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-Shaggy

56 Oval Window 2175 turbo
56 Euro Karmann Ghia
62 Double Cab
70 Bug convertible (my first car)

[VolksNerd]

Thanks Mandraks! Yeah, diameter I was thinking wouldn't affect fitment too much. Only noted to give a reference. It's offset that really concerns me. I've been looking at wheels on here and have found some styley Porsche Graku mesh wheels as well. It's all the same though aesthetics wise. Does no one care about offset? Is it not a factor? No one has been mentioning it in their posts... You're right about 3 piece wheels. I guess if I'm really concerned about not getting screwed I can buy them then modify the barrels to make them fit correctly... Ive seen a couple buses with mesh wheels and they were bitchin!

[VolksNerd]

[Callook59]

I switched to a 205/50R15 and bumped the front up about 3/4”. Rear wheels are at -1* camber. Fewer steering box scrapes for my daily driver.

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-Shaggy

56 Oval Window 2175 turbo
56 Euro Karmann Ghia
62 Double Cab
70 Bug convertible (my first car)

[John Ghia]

Which tire size feels better with the gearing?
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BUS BOYZ

[Callook59]