Date: Tue, 6 Feb 2001 22:58:17 -0800
Reply-To: steve@SYNCRO.ORG
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Steven Schwenk <steve@SYNCRO.ORG>
Subject: Re: [Syncro] Syncro Springs and the correct way of lifting your
Syncro
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
David, you are free to say whatever you wish on your
web site. I tried to be accurate on mine. And you are
mistaken in your belief that your springs have the same
specs as the springs i sell. They are dissimilar in
rate, ride height, marterials and construction.
If you want me to remove the link to your site, i'd be
happy to do so.
steve
Fast Forward wrote:
>
> Volks,
> I'm going to start another long thread here... so there should be some good
> entertainment value in the days to come.
>
> I was looking over Steve's fine "non-profit" web site and I could not help
> to notice the write up on Syncro springs he had there. The "Schwenk"
> spring, the "Seikel" springs and the "Fast Forward" springs. Hmmm... biased
> don't you think Steve when my springs are basically the same as your springs
> for technical specs? If you are going to write a full commentary and offer
> your expert opinion shouldn't you at least TEST my springs first as opposed
> to putting untrue and second hand statements about them? You state "The
> goal with this kit is to lift the van ride height 2+"... Steve, I
> understand that you are an American and may not understand the metric system
> that the rest of the world uses, but my front springs lift 4 to 5 CM on the
> average van - that's the maximum of 2 inches with 1.5" being the most common
> amongst my customers. They have been installed on everything, Westfalias to
> Transporter vans with more or less the same results and some pretty
> satisfied customers. My springs are 7% stiffer than standard "transporter
> syncro" spring. There is also about 7 cm of suspension travel left in the
> front and rear - which is the same as your springs there Steve! Actually
> when you look at your springs and compare them to mine they almost look the
> same - strange eh! Yours are "less than 10%" stiffer and mine are 7% -
> yours lift 1 to 1.5" and mine are 1.5" to up to 2" on the lighter vehicles.
> Yours are wound by a company that has been in the business for a billion
> years are so are mine. The purpose of my springs is to lift the Syncro in
> order to get more ground clearance and more fender well clearance for larger
> tires. The only reason why they are stiffer is to counter the effects of a
> higher center of gravity on your van when cornering. If you are doing any
> serious off-roading you will **kill your shocks** if you lift your van in
> this manner due to the fact that the shocks are being "topped" out all the
> time. The Boge and OME shocks offer the *same* amount of suspension travel
> despite what OMEs advertising says - heck the front OMEs are really Monroe
> shocks made in Europe somewhere (Belgium?), painted yellow and a sticker put
> on them - basically the same shock they use in South Africa and in Europe -
> nothing really special IMHO. The fact is you can't just lift the Syncro
> without having at least the same amount of suspension travel as you did
> before (or more) or things will just break. Not trying to pick on you here
> Steve, just letting you know that your facts are incorrect. Before you get
> all hot and bothered and become over opinionated here Steve and start saying
> that I am killing your spring and shock orders I just want to let you know
> that you do not have to worry. I have stopped selling my springs due to the
> fact that after a lot of education on the subject from a lot of fine list
> members it is really the wrong way to lift the Syncro. Steve, you seem to
> be doing well with them so that fills that niche market quite well - just
> come out of the closet and state that you are making a serious profit on
> these springs and what you are doing is not non-profit.
>
> My next generation lift kit features springs with the SAME ride height as
> the stock Syncro on most vehicles and up to 2cm taller on Syncros that are
> on a diet - or you can use the stock springs and save a few bucks. They
> will be not as stiff for better articulation when crawling over rocks and
> other items where it is important to keep all wheels on the ground - for
> those of us who do not have differential locks on both ends this will help a
> lot! The shocks that I am using have a threaded body that will allow for an
> adjustable ride height from 0cm increase up to 6cm on my prototypes - I
> might be able to get 7cm on the production models, but this will start
> introduce alignment problems. The fact that you can adjust the height in
> front will also assist in making the vehicle more balanced as you can lift
> one corner more than the other for better weight distribution. The shocks
> that I am using also have 5.5cm more travel than the Boge / Monroe / OME
> shocks. The other added advantage is user adjustable valving from a little
> soupier than new Boges to ultra control for the racetrack if you want them
> that stiff. It all comes down to user adjustable to taste or lack there of.
> Mine is set to +5 cm and I have as much suspension decompression as I did
> when it was stock. The valving is set to 4/10 for off road to 7/10 for
> highway cruising - usually they get left at 4 or 5/10. I can compress
> everything as much as stock too! The rears are not quite as fancy, they
> feature adjustable valving but no adjustable ride height due to the fact
> that it is too complicated to make an adjustable spring perch for the rear
> springs - I just using some excess 4cm shims that I had here. These have
> been over 1 year in development and I must say that I am truly impression
> with how much better a real lifted suspension is!
>
> Just some food for thought here... comments and criticisms are welcome and
> very expected! :)
>
> David Marshall
>
> Fast Forward Autobahn Sport Tuning
> 4356 Quesnel Hixon Road
> Quesnel BC Canada V2J 6Z3
> mailto:info@fastforward.ca http://www.fastforward.ca
> Phone: (250) 992 7775 FAX: (250) 992 1160
>
> • Vanagon Accessories and Engine Conversions
> • Transporter, Unimog and Iltis Sales
> • European Lighting for most Audi and Volkswagen models
>
> If you would like to modify your subscription settings (including unsubscribing), visit:
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Syncro
> Please remember that rude or offensive language is not allowed on the Syncro list. Please try your best to resolve differences privately and keep them off the list.
| 
