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floggingmolly Samba Member
Joined: April 06, 2007 Posts: 1106 Location: San Diego, CA
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Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2012 7:15 pm Post subject: |
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My rubber pads were shot on the bottom of the rear springs. What I did was just cut the cutting board (ironic) using my top rubber pieces as a template (they were in great shape). I put the upper ones down below and used the cutting board replacements on the top because there is that steel apron up top. Seemed like the right thing to do. Anyway, I whittled a bit of a groove into each cutting board spacer for the spring to set in using a dremel. I think it worked. I'll have to check them in a week or so after driving to see if they have held up without a sturdy piece of rubber between the spring and the cutting board spacer. If not, I'll do round 2 with a rubber spacer in between the spring and spacer. _________________ '85 Wolfsburg Weekender |
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MootPoint Samba Member
Joined: September 16, 2006 Posts: 862 Location: ABQ, NM
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Posted: Tue Feb 21, 2012 9:58 am Post subject: |
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I asked this back in December (previous page) and didn't see a reply so I'll try again:
Question: I've measured my hub-to-arch height all the way around and not only is the L/R height substantially different in the rear, L/R is also slightly different in the front, and the front-to-back height is different as well on both sides; i.e. every measurement is slightly (or more than slightly) different.
Should everything be the same height all the way or just worry about the rear sag (the L/R difference in the front is minimal).
Thanks. _________________ 1984 Westy with tencentlife power! |
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j_dirge Samba Member
Joined: August 08, 2007 Posts: 4641 Location: Twain Harte, CA
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Posted: Tue Feb 21, 2012 10:12 am Post subject: |
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MootPoint wrote: |
Should everything be the same height all the way or just worry about the rear sag (the L/R difference in the front is minimal).
Thanks. |
My alignment guy says, (paraphrased)
"Load the van up as it is most commonly driven"
For me.. it helps to have baseline numbers.. So I measured mine empty as a starting point.
But real use has real wieght in it.. sooo...
i.e. 160-200lbs in the front driver's seats.., the appropriate weight of a passenger, if you commonly drive with one.
A 3/4 tank of gas... and if you are a Westy, a 3/4 tank of water, food in the fridge, etc.
And whatever you commonly carry in the rear. (I now have my spare back there and will be adding another 50-150lbs in the rear on a second swing away)
I did this and now, when empty, the rear sits about 3/8" higher than the front. And I am within 1/4" side to side..
1/4" is is surprisingly easy ot level out by simply packing for it.
Opinions will vary, however, I am sure. _________________ -89 GL Westy, SVX.. finally.
-57 pan f/g buggy with a 67 pancake Type 3 "S"
"Jimi Hendrix owned one. Richard Nixon did not"
-Grand Tour, Season 1, episodes 4 and 5
danfromsyr wrote: |
those are straight line runs with light weight race cars for only 1/4mile at a time..
not pushing a loaded brick up a mountain pass with a family of 4+ inside expecting to have an event free vacation..
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MootPoint Samba Member
Joined: September 16, 2006 Posts: 862 Location: ABQ, NM
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Posted: Tue Feb 21, 2012 10:21 am Post subject: |
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Excellent! Thanks! that helps a lot. Dealing with butt sag is one of my major goals for this spring (no pun intended). _________________ 1984 Westy with tencentlife power! |
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floggingmolly Samba Member
Joined: April 06, 2007 Posts: 1106 Location: San Diego, CA
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Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2012 1:49 pm Post subject: |
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So after a week or so with the new spacers, it seems the ride is actually much better. I had spring on metal in the rear at the bottom of the spring and was really feeling the bumps. I moved the upper rubber pads to the bottom and put my new spacers at the top. So now the van is "perfectly" level and the ride noise and bump noise has dampened noticably. I also have new Yokohama 580 tires on so that may have helped, but I think no more metal on metal is the big difference. Easy breezy job and $7.99 for the cutting board for 2 spacers. _________________ '85 Wolfsburg Weekender |
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Tmcd Samba Member
Joined: April 24, 2010 Posts: 16 Location: Shawnigan Lake, Vancouver Island, BC Canada
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Posted: Tue May 08, 2012 11:14 pm Post subject: |
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Stopped at the local Sally Ann on my way home from work to look for cutting boards and voila...a perfect 3/4 inch thick grey heavy duty board just big enough for 3 spacers.
Got home, jacked the driver's side up and got to it. Needed my big impact wrench to get the shock bolt out. Love that tool Spread the trailing arm further apart with a bottle jack to wriggle the spring out, cut the spacers at 6" (the center hole is about 1 3/4 diameter btw) and slipped a couple in there. Could NOT get the spring back on as I didn't have a spring compressor. So I had to go with one spacer for now just on the driver's side. Worked awesome!
Before: R/R=17" L/R=16 1/8" R/F=16" L/F=15 1/4"
After: R/R=17" L/R=17 1/8" R/F=16" L/F=16 1/8"
All measurements were taken with the van empty (daily driver and weekend/summer camping) with no passengers, 1/2 tank of gas and empty water tank. When I'm in the driver's seat the van is nice and level. I can't get over the ride now! It corners much better now. It feels like I'm leaning over towards the passenger seat though...gonna take a while to get the brain used to being level
I'm going to pick up a spring compressor and put in the 2nd spacer on the rear driver's side, then add one to the other side. For the front, I'm planning on getting a pair of chevy s10 springs and that should bring me up to 18 or just over all around hopefully. Then it's time to finally put on my 16" mercedes steelies once I paint them and get some nice A/T tires. Then I'll be laughing at any washboard or pothole that comes my way without having to slam on the brakes and take violent evasive action.
Any opinions of said plans out there? I'd like to hear 'em. Anyone have this (or similar) set up?
Thanks SO much guys for the time spent on these write-ups. Love this site |
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Timwhy Samba Member
Joined: January 01, 2009 Posts: 3997 Location: Maine
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MayorMcCheese Samba Member
Joined: October 07, 2009 Posts: 652 Location: Lancaster PA
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Posted: Mon Jun 04, 2012 4:12 pm Post subject: |
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Apparently it's possible to do it that way without a spring compressor on a syncro but not on a regular van. At least not in my experience. |
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Team WorldTour Samba Member
Joined: September 02, 2010 Posts: 2426 Location: Der Vaterland
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 12:15 am Post subject: |
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I didn't use a spring compressor on the back. I took off the shock and had a second person to push on the trailing arm with their foot. _________________ 1990 Feldjäger Syncro AAZ
Click to view image
H6 Subaru Engine Swap Thread
WV2ZZZ25ZFH094138(x)/ WV2YB0257LH057308(x)/ WV2ZZZ25ZLG113270/
"Where am I going? And what am I doing in this handbasket?" -Nicodemus Jordan
When All Else Fails: Lather, Rinse, Repeat! |
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j_dirge Samba Member
Joined: August 08, 2007 Posts: 4641 Location: Twain Harte, CA
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Posted: Mon Jun 11, 2012 6:25 am Post subject: |
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Domo wrote: |
I didn't use a spring compressor on the back. I took off the shock and had a second person to push on the trailing arm with their foot. |
Yep.
And if the second person's help fails, unbolt inner CV bolts. Make sure your brake lines are not hanging up.. And then the rear spring, pretty much, falls out. _________________ -89 GL Westy, SVX.. finally.
-57 pan f/g buggy with a 67 pancake Type 3 "S"
"Jimi Hendrix owned one. Richard Nixon did not"
-Grand Tour, Season 1, episodes 4 and 5
danfromsyr wrote: |
those are straight line runs with light weight race cars for only 1/4mile at a time..
not pushing a loaded brick up a mountain pass with a family of 4+ inside expecting to have an event free vacation..
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rubbachicken Samba Member
Joined: October 05, 2004 Posts: 3058 Location: socal
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Posted: Mon Jun 11, 2012 7:44 am Post subject: |
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j_dirge wrote: |
Domo wrote: |
I didn't use a spring compressor on the back. I took off the shock and had a second person to push on the trailing arm with their foot. |
Yep.
And if the second person's help fails, unbolt inner CV bolts. Make sure your brake lines are not hanging up.. And then the rear spring, pretty much, falls out. |
i had to undo the inner CV's _________________ lucy our westy
lucy's BIG adventure
meet 'burni'
markswagen {mobile mechanic} san diego area all early VW's cared for.
619 201 0310 or 617 935 4182 |
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Kejidog Samba Member
Joined: July 26, 2011 Posts: 92 Location: Nova Scotia
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Posted: Mon Jun 11, 2012 4:39 pm Post subject: |
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I just did my drivers side. I will complete the passenger side tomorrow. I had a hell of a time reinserting the spring. I used a scissor jack and a prybar to get the distance. 3/4" lift on the spacers looks good to me it gives me a nice look and raises the rear nicely. Hope I didn't do damage to my axle. It was pretty tight! I will post pics to show tomorrow. I think I will remove my shock completely tomorrow to get some room to work.
I am adding this bit as an edit. I Did the other side the next day in about 15 minutes. It is amazing how quickly something goes when all the tools are already bought and found and kept together I never had to remove the shock.
Just jack it up drop the shock bolt. Pull the spring out spread it apart and pop it all back together
The look is great but it is a little light when not loaded. It tends to hop over parking lot speed bumps. But man does it ride nice fully loaded!
This was the best 12 bucks I have ever spent on the van. _________________ 85 Westy Camper "Jeebus"
"new" rebuilt 2.1 with a ten cent stainless exhaust- lovin all the power!!!! |
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turbo2cv Samba Member
Joined: April 04, 2005 Posts: 33
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Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2012 2:05 pm Post subject: |
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My few cents on this:
Using a bottle/scissor jack to make room for the spring is wrong. The jack is fighting the CVs that is fully extended and pulls on the tranny and engine mounts. 2 ton jack versus 2mm circlips and the most precisely machined parts on the car (the CV) is not fair. Do it right and either drop one end of the CV or use a spring compressor tool. I dropped the CV and the control arm dropped enough to insert the spring without any force. There was one guy who reported CV issues in this thread.
It seems not safe to insert any more than about 3/4 inch of spacers on the top mount and 1/4 inch on the lower mount. Keeping the spring further away from the base plate increases the lateral force it puts on the guide tube and may result in breaking the guide tube. Someone also reported this. The amount of lift MrPolak pictures seems definitely unsafe to me.
So if you're looking for more than one inch lift get new springs. |
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WhiteH2O Samba Member
Joined: October 06, 2009 Posts: 129 Location: Gig Harbor, WA
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Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2012 5:51 pm Post subject: |
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I just did this. I couldn't believe that, even for me, it only took a little over an hour to do both sides!
I had troubles finding a cutting board; it seems that everyone is going to thin cutting boards now. Found one eventually, though.
I did want to add one thing (that I'm not sure if it has been covered or not). On the driver side, I had troubles getting the spring off because it was getting hung up on the bump stop. I ended up cutting it so it was more like a "C" shape so I could slide it in without taking the spring off. I didn't cut it so that it would easily slide in (and out) but cut it so that I had to tap it with a hammer to go in. This way, I can be a little more confident that it won't try to slide out. Worked like a charm, although I will probably have to get creative if I ever need to take them out. _________________ 1985 Wolfsburg Weekender- 2.5L Subie Power
2002 Subaru WRX Wagon
1998 Subaru Legacy EJ257 Swap, 410 AWHP (sold) |
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August978 Samba Member
Joined: July 08, 2012 Posts: 19 Location: South Denver
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Posted: Sun Sep 02, 2012 1:54 pm Post subject: Deformed springs while adding spacers |
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I added spacers to level out at 18" all around but when I was done the lift had an extra inch in it (19" in the rear) I am guessing I deformed the springs when I compressed them by jacking up the trailing arm and then restraining them with chain to keep it compressed. So now i dont need the spacers at all. |
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BillM Samba Member
Joined: June 18, 2004 Posts: 1381 Location: Stonington,CT
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Posted: Sun Sep 02, 2012 2:42 pm Post subject: |
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No way did you deform the springs. Have you taken the van
for a drive yet? It just needs to settle down. Plus 1" spacer
doesn't equal 1" lift. It will raise it more. Try a 1/2 spacer and see if it puts you
were you need to be. The smarter ones will tell you the math
behind this. I just know from experience. _________________ Bill M
87 Westy |
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kuleinc Samba Member
Joined: August 10, 2007 Posts: 1604 Location: East Bay Area, California
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madspaniard Samba Member
Joined: August 18, 2008 Posts: 3795 Location: Alameda, CA
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Posted: Tue May 14, 2013 8:57 pm Post subject: |
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One inch spacer will raise that corner approximately 1.5 inches _________________ 1991 Westy auto w/ Peloquin TBD
"The only difference between me and a madman is that I'm not mad” - Salvador Dali |
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Jake de Villiers Samba Member
Joined: October 24, 2007 Posts: 5911 Location: Tsawwassen, BC
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Posted: Tue May 14, 2013 9:26 pm Post subject: |
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kuleinc wrote: |
Can anyone say roughly how much a half or one inch spacer nets you in actual height gained? |
In the front the ratio is 2:1 and in the rear its 1.4:1 ie 1/2" in the front nets you a 1" lift, 1/2" in the rear gets you .7".
Rear ratio courtesy Volks Cafe. _________________ '84 Vanagon GL 1.9 WBX
'86 Westy Weekender Poptop/2.5 Subaru/5 Speed Posi/Audi Front Brakes/16 x 7 Mercedes Wheels - answers to 'Dixie'
@jakedevilliersmusic1
http://sites.google.com/site/subyjake/mydixiedarlin%27
www.crescentbeachguitar.com
www.thebassspa.com |
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ragnarhairybreeks Samba Member
Joined: October 26, 2009 Posts: 1888 Location: Sidney B.C. Canada
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Posted: Tue May 14, 2013 9:53 pm Post subject: |
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Jake,
that front ratio is interesting. On a syncro, the front ration is about 1.4:1.
alistair _________________ '86 7 passenger syncro, converted to westy pop top, project still in progress
'82 westy, diesel converted to gas in '94, now gone...
https://shufti.blog/
Old address still works...
http://shufti.wordpress.com |
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