ShopTalk Forums | Aircooled VW Tech & Restoration Help

hey guys & gals i’m new to the site but hoping you folks are more active than what i’ve seen in the past
yep! i’m one of the crazy’s that own a kit dub.
she is a 1979 vw chassis with a stock 1971 1600cc.
mgtd and i’ve owned several beetles in the past.
my favorite of all times is a beetle convertible. nice not much maintenance unlike the mgtd. anyway i have posted one question so farr regarding my car.
stats:
1953 replica built 1985 with 1979 chassis, 1971 1600. that i am currently working on all the time. she’s a real beauty
i have recently done the following.
new disc brakes all around
shocks, wheel bearings front/rear
2” narrow beam & tension bands.
new spindles (stock height) new exhaust &
new wheels & tires, some new vdo gauges
and finally a new stereo. bright cherry red…

i am hoping that i can get some advice on my beam installation, i saw a post with the same situation. my car when sitting on the ground appears to be bottomed out, no spring on the front. seems like the control arms are not in the correct position. when i installed the tension bands in the new beam with all the divots in the right location something does not feel right. hard front end.

any suggestions would be greatly appreciated
jb

Get rid of the sway bar and gas charged shocks then see if your suspension moves. With such a light body a stock sway bar should be more than sufficient. Some cheap oil filled shocks will probably be a lot better

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hey thank you for the reply, i was wondering about the torsion bar? when i went to the 2” narrow beam cip1 recommended a 3/4” round stock. i did put in oil filled shock from a prior reccommendation. i did not necessarily want to lower my car, when i went to disc brakes my goal was to keep the wheels under the flare in the wheelswells.
i’ve been adjusting/lowering the front end. also my beam appears to be built with adjustment screws at different locations, centered on the beam but mounted to accommodate the loading of the top and bottom tubes.
i’ll will go back to the 1/2” torsion bar to see the effects
thank you
jb

hey thank you for the reply, i was wondering about the torsion bar? when i went to the 2” narrow beam cip1 recommended a 3/4” round stock. i did put in oil filled shock from a prior reccommendation. i did not necessarily want to lower my car, when i went to disc brakes my goal was to keep the wheels under the flare in the wheelswells.
i’ve been adjusting/lowering the front end. also my beam appears to be built with adjustment screws at different locations, centered on the beam but mounted to accommodate the loading of the top and bottom tubes.
i’ll will go back to the 1/2” torsion bar to see the effects
thank you
jb

Are you talking about the sway bar? (1/2, 3/4)

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Try adjusting the beam for max lift (which is typically still lower than stock on adjustable beams) and see if you have suspension movement. With the beam at max drop you have no ball joint travel left (unless using extended travel ball joints) and the shocks are possibly already fully compressed / hitting the bump stop. You can cut back the koni bump stop as it is unnecessarily chunky, to get a bit more travel.

As above the spring bar outsold the beam is the anti-roll bar (sway bar) so doesn’t resist equal travel of suspension on both sides.

Hey JB,sounds like a solid project!If your front end is stiff, recheck the placement of your torsion leaves in the beam, They might be misaligned or overtightened by the tension bands.I had a similar issue – control arms weren't in the right position.Also, make sure it's greased properly, Additionally, check if the bushings on the control arms are too tight, as that could restrict suspension movement, Small detail, but it can make a big difference.Good luck! https://projektowanie.art/pracownia-autorska/