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The_orange_beetle
Samba Member
Joined: September 15, 2020
Posts: 61
Location: London
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 Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2020 3:08 pm Post subject: poor turning circle issues |
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Hi all. My 72 bug has 16x7 front wheel and the urning circle of a barge. I am thinking of down sizing to either 5.5 or 4.5 inch width. would this improve the turning circle or am I missing something?
Thanks |
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Dan the workingstiff
Samba Member
Joined: July 03, 2006
Posts: 828
Location: Downriver, MI
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| Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2020 3:22 pm Post subject: Re: poor turning circle issues |
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I don't have an answer for you. But, I'm not impressed with my turning radius on my 69. I had a lil Bronco ll that would easily turn inside of the turning radius of the beetle.
The only time its really a problem, is when I'm out on a drive and I need to whip it around "cuz we can't go that way"
_________________
'69 Beetle
'66 FG buggy
My other air-cooled's
'76 IH 1200
'75 IH 1200 |
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joemama
Samba Member
Joined: February 09, 2006
Posts: 1664
Location: La Crescenta, California
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| Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2020 4:34 pm Post subject: Re: poor turning circle issues |
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| There are stops that the pitman arm hit, and they can be adjusted, there are 2 bolts that can be moved in and out. You say you have 16" rims, if that is correct, they night have rubbed on turns, and the stops might have been adjusted to limit how far the tires turn to stop the rubbing. |
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Cusser
Samba Member
Joined: October 02, 2006
Posts: 32990
Location: Hot Arizona
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| Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2020 4:35 pm Post subject: Re: poor turning circle issues |
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| The_orange_beetle wrote: |
Hi all. My 72 bug has 16x7 front wheel and the urning circle of a barge. I am thinking of down sizing to either 5.5 or 4.5 inch width. would this improve the turning circle or am I missing something?
Thanks |
I think going to stock size would help; along with that change the adjuster bolts for wheel travel could then be adjusted "inward".
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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 |
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EVfun 
Samba Member
Joined: April 01, 2012
Posts: 6118
Location: Seattle
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| Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2020 7:00 pm Post subject: Re: poor turning circle issues |
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| Dan the workingstiff wrote: |
I don't have an answer for you. But, I'm not impressed with my turning radius on my 69. I had a lil Bronco ll that would easily turn inside of the turning radius of the beetle.
The only time its really a problem, is when I'm out on a drive and I need to whip it around "cuz we can't go that way" |
Yes, while the Bronco II and the Bug have similar wheelbases, the Bronco II has a 32 foot turning circle and the '69 Beetle has a 36 foot turning circle. These are the stock numbers, both vehicles can be made worse with popular modifications.
Look at the Bug suspension, the trailing arm design is a compromise. The more you arc the arms out to increase the amount you can turn the wheels the more you need to beef up the arms to handle the twisting effect of having the tire cantilevered out past the support at the beam. Wider tires tend to increase the turning circle as they will hit the front of the trailing arms sooner.
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| Wildthings wrote: |
| As a general rule, cheap parts are the most expensive parts you can buy. |
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PDX_VW_Erik
Samba Member
Joined: November 15, 2015
Posts: 199
Location: Oregon
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| Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2020 9:02 pm Post subject: Re: poor turning circle issues |
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| I had 235 R 15's on all four tires. I went to stock in the front and all of the sudden my turning radius halved and it was like I had power steering. |
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