Coil Overs

[Don Giovanoni]

Any one heard of REAL coil overs for all four corners of an IRS Type 1 chassis. I mean a complete conversion - through rods in the front torsion tubes and hiem end spring plates with no torsion bars in the rear. My Super Vees ran Bilstein coil overs at all four corners. Adjust the ride height and set corner weights by turning the collars. But the real advantage for a Manx would be the fantastic range of coil over springs. Ride too rough, pop in softer springs. Bottoming? Pop in stiffer springs. I see air bag suspensions but i am interested in coil over suspension (not coil over "Helper" springs. Any one have any ideas?

[manxdavid]

These are available in the UK but it should be easy enough the replicate them out of easily available components... http://www.red9design.com/type1.htm

[Don Giovanoni]

Thanks David, these kits are exactly what I was dreaming of... The prices aren't tooo bad if they were USD, but with today's exchange rate the kits become pretty exotic. The shocks are the key - the front torsion replacements and rear heim spring plates are readily available over here. Will begin research. Again, thanks for the reply, I believe this is the ultimate suspension for any street driven VW or buggy.

[manxdavid]

[QUOTE="Don Giovanoni;13103"]Thanks David, these kits are exactly what I was dreaming of... The prices aren't tooo bad if they were USD, but with today's exchange rate the kits become pretty exotic. The shocks are the key - the front torsion replacements and rear heim spring plates are readily available over here. Will begin research. Again, thanks for the reply, I believe this is the ultimate suspension for any street driven VW or buggy.[/QUOTE] Not too sure how long the stock front shock towers would last without re-inforcement as they're not designed to take the full sprung weight of the car.

[Don Giovanoni]

The ball joint front shock towers are not capable of supporting even Manx weight (IMHO). I expect that the parameter would have to be welded and a brace from the tower top to as far into the top of the torsion tube as possible would have to be fabricated. I am not sure about the rear but the shock casting looks pretty strong to me. Air bag setups just weld a tube between them, then attach the top of the airbags to the tube. I guess it works. Absolutely would be just for the street, this setup would not be Baja-ready. I still love the idea of setting the ride height and especially swapping coils to get the exact spring rates to get a good ride and handling.