Date: Thu, 1 Apr 2010 16:43:57 -0700
Reply-To: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Subject: Re: 84 Westy -- Shock Questions
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re
"Does this (different pressure side-to-side) introduce undesirable
> issues in handling? "
'By itself' ........no.
Adding air lift bags to the left side ( I think only the rear is an easy
option, since the shock goes through the coil spring in the front
suspension )
won't hurt a thing...........should even help.
Overall of course ...you need decent suspension parts in the front and rear,
, decent alignment, decent shocks front and rear, and a half-smart driver
behind the wheel - to ensure decent handling, directional stability, and
good cornering ...and good tires of course, of proper vanagon grade.
If all that stuff is basically right.....adding an air lift bag or air lift
bags to the rear and putting more pressure in one side won't hurt.
If your front is low ...
some good springs without a million miles on them would be good, or new ones
if you can find those.
I didn't start out writing this post to mention used front Vanagon springs I
have ..
but soon, I will be removing the 'too tall' front springs from my 85 Westy
GL.
Some owners of 84 Westy's that carry huge loads or go on really rough roads
want those ...the too-tall 85 Westy/Weekender front springs.
Last set I sold ........the guy was like 'are they the tall ones?' . And on
his hugely loaded 84 Westy ...that they drove even in Argentina and on
endless roads in the middle of nowhere ............he arrived with one
broken front spring, and the other sagging ....with the 85 front springs on
his van looked just fine, like level.
anyway, got those if you're interested. ..good used too-tall front 85 Westy
front springs, for sale. They make the front about an inch to 1 1/2 inches
higher than would be normal on an empty van. Seems to be an issue with
just that year and model only ....85 Westy and Weekender.
Scott
www.turbovans.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Geo" <ahwahneevw@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Thursday, April 01, 2010 4:18 PM
Subject: 84 Westy -- Shock Questions
> My Westy rides lower on the drivers side by 7/8". Not surprising as
> the kitchen, H2O tank, propane tank, closets and one heavy driver are
> over there.
>
> Part 1 -- Is it okay to use air-adjustable shocks to level the ride?
> They would, of course, be installed with individual air-lines, not a
> tee, allowing separate adjustment left-to-right.
>
> Does this (different pressure side-to-side) introduce undesirable
> issues in handling? I checked the archives but didn't find much on
> the adjustables.
>
> Part 2 -- Some sites seem to think different shocks are needed for 85
> and earlier vs 86 and later... others show the same part number
> throughout the range. Which is correct or is the answer 'it depends'?
>
> TIA for any help.
>
> Geo