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914World.com _ 914World Garage _ Springs or Springs

Posted by: bandjoey Mar 29 2009, 09:35 PM

Compared to the front, The rear end rides low . Havn't been able to find a name on the shocks but they're orange in color. Does orange designate a brand, or can they be any brand and orange? The push the rear of the car test seems to pass the shocks as ok. Is there anything beside springs that can be the cause? For a daily driver, what size springs should I get and where's a good place and price? I know this is a bad picture, and I'll get better one's tomorrow of springs and shocks. Initial opinions? Thanks. Bill

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Posted by: So.Cal.914 Mar 29 2009, 09:48 PM

Orange could be Koni's. I run 140 lb springs in the rear. It really doesn't look that low. Maybe you need to lower the front.

Posted by: bandjoey Mar 29 2009, 10:03 PM

I've kinda thought that was another possibility but I've read a lot of posts on rear springs giving out, and not much on front. Does the strut have to come out to make that adjustment?

I just looked at the owners manual and it shows top of car to ground and clearance under the pan measurements. I'm going to take a few tomorrow and see how they match the manual.
Thanks!

Posted by: Bruce Hinds Mar 29 2009, 11:02 PM

I'll agree the ride height of the rear doesn't look too low. The origional springs did have a tendency to sag and it usually showed by one side being lower than the other. That being said, most of the cars still running have probably had the springs replaced by now.

Front height can be adjusted from under the car with out even jacking it up. There's an adjustment at the aft end of the torson bar. I'd suggest doing it little by little. If you ususally drive alone, put your weight in the drivers seat and count the turns you make on the adjustment. It's been a long time since I did this, but as I recall, a 1/2 turn makes a difference. You may not see a 1/2 turn difference at first, you may have to push down on the fender, like your shock push test.

Or, start with one turn on each side and drive it. Make another adjustment and drive it, do that until you get what you like. If you have sway bars, the front can be slightly lower than the back. I think the non swaybar cars may have had the front slightly higher. If you don't have sway bars get them, it will make all the difference in the world.

Good luck,
B

Posted by: Cupomeat Mar 30 2009, 09:56 AM

Don't forget that after you lower your front end ride height, you will need to re-align to get the proper toe-in.

Posted by: alansd Mar 30 2009, 10:35 AM

My 73 sags more on one side in the rear...The 195 60 tires I put on rub on the right side rear fender, fit great on the left.
I have tried to come up with a solution, been told pull out the fender, tighten up the shock bolt, check the "ear", all that was ok but- it seems the sagging springs makes the most sense to cause this problem? Comments?

Posted by: SLITS Mar 30 2009, 10:57 AM

The freakin' springs sag over time. Buy new ones and restore ride height.

Posted by: bandjoey Mar 30 2009, 10:31 PM

I was amazed at what the PO did to make the VW Bug wheels look right. He jacked up the front end and hand pulled/bent the rear fender lips out, and at the same time jamed wads of old tire rubber into the upper rear springs to jack up the rear of the car! One 3lb hammer and a stanley crow bar later, the springs actually look about right.

Took off the VW Empi wheels that were the wrong offset and put on a set of Pedrini's with 195 60r 15 and they fit great...look awful. Thanks for the tip on the front height adjustment. I looked and it's an easy adjustment.

I looked at the rear shocks tonight and they're marked
Hencho En Mexico
Orange
E-14
735
10/08

Any idea what these shocks might be?