Date: Fri, 8 Sep 2000 10:55:41 -0400
Reply-To: The Bus Depot <ron@NETCARRIER.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: The Bus Depot <ron@NETCARRIER.COM>
Subject: Vanagon SPRINGS now in!
In-Reply-To: <200009081403.KAA17530@netmanager7.rtp.ericsson.se>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
> I am finally tired of my sagging springs -- where can you get new
> ones? My van is a 90 Carat 2wd. Therefore, my springs are the "shorter"
ones. (At
> least it is not a Syncro camper, which have springs made out of
> unobtanium!)
Got 'em!
I have imported genuine Boge high-performance Vanagon springs from Europe.
These springs are not available from Boge in North America. They are sold
by Boge as high-performance, lowered springs for Volkswagen Campers. They
fit all Vanagons (except Syncro, I'd guess???). The price is $379.95 for a
full set of 4, minus listmember discount. By comparison, a set from
Volkswagen would set you back a good $1000 or so.
I was waiting until I had tried them on my own van before posting any info
on the list. They went on my van last week so I can give you some feedback
on them now.
I replaced my original springs on my '89 Westy, which were definately
wearing out. Besides rocking like a boat every time I hit a dip in the road
(even with new shocks), the van canted toward the left when sitting on even
ground. This is a common problem with Westies as they age, probably because
all of the weight (kitchenette, propane tank, driver) is on the left side of
the van.
My first impression when looking at the Boge performance springs was the
fact that they are shorter than the stock ones, by several inches. In fact,
the fronts are shorter compared to the stock ones than the rears are, which
made me wonder if the van would sit higher in the back once they were
installed. (It does not.) The rears are a bit smaller circumferance than
the stock ones, and of a graduated design, meaning that the lower coils are
closer together than the upper ones. A call to Boge's engineering
department taught me that this design causes them to become stiffer under
higher load. The stock springs were not graduated like this. I should also
note that the fronts and rears are labeled backwards (fronts are labeled as
rears and visa-vera), although this will be obvious once you compare them to
your old springs.
Once installed, these springs definately lower the van (compared to the
stock springs on my '89 Westy; different versions of the Vanagon used
different spring sizes), but not tremendously; they don't make it look like
a "low rider." With the springs installed, I'd say that there is about 2-3"
between the top of the front tire and the bottom of the front wheel well
lip, and perhaps 4" in the rear. (This does not mean that the van cants
forward; the front wheel wells lips are a bit lower that the rear ones on
the van body.) This is with stock size Vanagon tires (185R14 or
205/70R/14). Personally, I like the look, as it fills in the wheel wells
quite nicely. I've always thought that the rear wheel wells were too tall
for the tires, from a aesthetic point of view.
Before the new springs went on, I was concerned about ground clearance with
them, in that I have the South African mudflaps which lower my ground
clearance already. With my stock (admittedly worn) springs, on a big dip
the left front mudflap occasionally scraped the ground. I was afraid that
by lowering the van a few inches, the problem would worsen. This was not
the case. With these high-performance springs, the rear mudflaps do reach
rather close to the ground, but after a week's driving on very bumpy rural
roads, they have not bottomed out even once. On the one dip in the road
where my front left mudflap used to bottom out every day on my way home from
work, now with the new springs it does not. I have heard it bottom out once
or twice with the new springs (we are in quite a rural area here with lots
of old, bumpy country roads), but not as frequently as with my old springs.
It seems that the added stiffness has more than compensated for the lower
profile, in terms of useable ground clearance.
In terms of ride, the "rocking boat" effect on big dips in the road is
definately reduced. The suspension has a tighter feel to it. On the other
hand, it is also a slightly rougher ride. You do feel bumps more. This is
the classic compromise between mushy comfort and performance handling. You
can't have a smooth, mushy ride and high performance suspension at the same
time (except perhaps on some of the new "high-tech" electronically adjusting
suspensions, which our Vanagons will never have). So with the stiffer
springs you lose a bit of the "mushiness" in exchange for a bit better
handling. Personally, I haven't decided which version of the Vanagon ride I
prefer. But given that the stock springs are about $1000 a set, it really
wasn't even a matter of choice. Whether you like the performance ride better
or not, you have to like a $350 price tag better than a $1000 one! One
thing I'll say is that the ride is much improved over my old, worn springs,
and I think the van looks really good with its slightly lower stance.
Part number on the springs is 9878. I have ten sets at the moment, and lead
time is quite long, so when they're gone it could be a while. They will be
on the website by tomorrow, or you can order toll-free by part number at
1-888-819-DEPOT.
- Ron Salmon
The Bus Depot, Inc.
http://www.busdepot.com
(215) 234-VWVW
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