Lowering a late bus- some tips

[adamgraves]

I looked forever for good tips when lowering my bus. Didn't find very many besides a lot of one guy telling every one to go to bus boys. My experience with them sucked. Their adjuster kit for the front is great, overpriced but good quality. Anyways, here's some tips I figured out while lowering my bus. Special thanks to Eric in Hauser Lake, Idaho for some of the tips.

1) If installing an adjuster kit from bus boys you don't need the $150 tool they rent to break free the center blocks in the front beam. It's much cheaper and works all the same to just beat them from one side to the other with a pipe. The whole point is to pop-out the dimples that hold them in place. If you are doing a straight slam with no adjusting you could just drill a new hole for the center bolt 3/4" up from the original hole and thread it to recieve the bolt(s). 3/4"= a 4" drop.

2) Unless you like bouncing around you'll need to cut off the rubber bumpers and the arms holding them from the beam. Otherwise you will be just riding those things. You could re-weld them higher up but your shocks will bottom out anyways, even if you do it right and get shorter shocks. Wolfgang International has the right shock combo for this and from what I found the best prices by far.

3) The sway bar hangs down 2-3" from the ground after lowering. I called around and no-one makes a bar for lowered buses. Everyone said pull it off. I thought about having it heated and bent but that might effect the stiffness. After some thought I figured out that I could take the sway bar off flip it over and put it in on top instead of on bottom of the arms and the damn thing fit! Those germans made the top and the bottom of the bottom arms the same! But, you have to have #2) above done or it won't fit.

3B) Eric, a local VW guy loaned me a jig he made that slips into a jack and holds the front beam when you take it out and put it back in. Freaking awesome. Wish I had it for the removal, only found Eric after I tore it out.

3C) when you take out the gear shifter mark how it was placed. It's hard to get it back in the right alignment again.

4) The rear- cake! take it apart-after getting the arm cover off file a mark from the spring plate to the torsion bar. notch the spring plate where it will hit, notch the frame where the axle and the brace will hit it. Don't cut into the heart of the frame just the 1/2" spline should be good. take off the rubber stoppers or you'll ride on them. spin the inner spline 1 notch, the outer (plate) one notch, get four thick washers with a big opening. put two on either side on the top two bolts holding the rear drum to the arm/plate.

5) If you buy short shocks like I did you'll soon find out you can't get your tires on and off in the back without letting the air out of them or unbolting the shock. If you unbolt the shock good luck pushing it back up to put the the bolt back in on the side of the road in a rain storm. You know that's when you'll get a flat. I went and bought a 12V air compressor for $15.

6) Total cost: $150-adjuster plates, $30-TIG weld for adjuster, 4 new shocks $130, 12V air compressor $15, 6-3 hour nights after work.

[Bryan67]

So, hows the ride? Are the ball joints bottoming out?

[GBUS]

yeah, how is the ride. are you constantly bottoming out?

[adamgraves]

No not really bottoming out per say but it's definately a stiffer ride. The short shocks are a lot firmer. The first day out driving it I went over a railroad crossing I had nerver been over and was going 50. Pretty sure I cought air. That was pretty scary.

After shaving the frame in the rear for the axle and brace I think I might be bottoming out on the rubber bumper plates, I took the bumpers totally out. Tracking that but so far it doesn't seem like its hitting.

All and all it handles way better on the freeway and cornering and not so great on bouncy roads. It's kinda opposite of how it was stock. Give and takes that are fine with me.

[breadloafdeluxe]

Thanks for the tip on the sway bar. I keep nailing road kill with the sway bar so low.Heres my tip,First I had Gas Ajust shocks all the way around I have the beam ajusted at the second to last notch (an albetross) I opted for GR2 Silvers for a softer ride up front, a guy I met at a show said if that was still to stiff stock beetle shocks will work too. I definatly can tell the difference.
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