Suspension lift - T32 Swamper.

Depron Donkey

Depron Donkey

140 DSG Kombi Red, 150 DSG Kombi Bamboo Green
VCDS User
T6 Pro
I want to raise my van by around 25mm-35mm. Its a T32 which I know is oversprung unless loaded causing the harsh ride. I would like to kill two birds with one stone by fitting a spring kit and maybe a set or uprated ARB's and getting a softer ride but have read that some spring kits are not only longer but thicker coils.
This I presume would still have the harder ride, if not even harder than standard?
I don't want to go the the expense of full coil over kit.
Any advice would be appreciated, suggestions for spring kits and are H&R the only suppliers of uprated ARB's?
 
Depron Donkey said:
I want to raise my van by around 25mm-35mm. Its a T32 which I know is oversprung unless loaded causing the harsh ride. I would like to kill two birds with one stone by fitting a spring kit and maybe a set or uprated ARB's and getting a softer ride but have read that some spring kits are not only longer but thicker coils.
This I presume would still have the harder ride, if not even harder than standard?
I don't want to go the the expense of full coil over kit.
Any advice would be appreciated, suggestions for spring kits and are H&R the only suppliers of uprated ARB's?
Click to expand...
Hi there . Lifting a van has many pitfalls so caution here ,
Firstly i dont change the springs when lifting but because the T 32 has such a hard rear spring i would suggest we change that to a more comfortable spring as a start .
The lift is gained by spacers NOT springs because we want to keep the shock / spring relationship as close to standard as possible . ( equal movement up or down )
Couple this to a KONI shock will give excellent results , comfort and handling
Putting a ARB kit on also will help because lifting the centre of gravity will make the van roll more .

there fore a kit would include 4 new performance shocks , a spacer kit 30 mm lift .. 2 rear springs ( softer ) and a set of Anti roll bars

This will be an amazing result , Let me know if you would like a quote ?
 
What is very interesting and really important is the comment about works with standard dampers , completely disagree with that a 30 mm lift will top out the rear shocks with out doubt

also after years of battling to convince these guys that KONI is more comfortable they admit that it is ha ha

I still maintain that spacers are a easy way to lift a van and with subtle lifts you can use standard length shocks . . These spring kits are expensive and depending on the use for the van over the top sometimes

steve
 
Check out our #bmvs thread, we've done a couple of swamper lifts lately with the bilstein/Eibach 35mm lift kits they work really well, and drive even better. These are becoming increasingly popular conversions of late. Im sure demand will these us doing many more int he future
 
I agree with Oli i am getting more and more calls regarding Swamper look vans , I do have my own thoughts on the best way to do it and a new kit is in development .
 
Looking at fitting Eibach 35mm Adjustable Lift Springs with T32 BIGH Struts & Dampers to my T6.1 SWB T32 4motion. My van goes on to farms and landfill sites etc for work but does a lot of motorway miles to get to site so would be keen to hear from anyone how on road handling is affected by these lift kits. Also fitting 225/65 R17 BFGs.
 
W00dy101 said:
Looking at fitting Eibach 35mm Adjustable Lift Springs with T32 BIGH Struts & Dampers to my T6.1 SWB T32 4motion. My van goes on to farms and landfill sites etc for work but does a lot of motorway miles to get to site so would be keen to hear from anyone how on road handling is affected by these lift kits. Also fitting 225/65 R17 BFGs.
Click to expand...
It doesnt sound like you need too much lift 20 mm is probably more than enough . If the lift is done in conjunction with proper performance shocks the van will be stable , comfortable and handle perfectly , We use the KONI adjustable shocks so i can tune the stiffness to help stop the body roll caused by the increase in Centre of Gravity
If you need more advice and prices please let me know

steve
 
@Loz I've seen a few of your posts and it sounds like you’ve got some experience with a swamper setup. What tyres do you run on yours and how do you get on with them? I’m going round in circles (pun intended) trying to find the best compromise for a good all terrain tyre. i love the look of the BFG or some of the Cooper AT3 but would have to go 5-10% bigger diameter and potentially compromise speed rating (technically) and braking performance. the smaller all terrains that Stay close to the original tyre diameter (690mm) are more like all weather tyres plus they just don’t look the part! If they don’t have a few knobbly bits on show and white lettering on the sides they just don’t look swamper enough! ;)
 
not wishing to jump in on this, but `i had exactly the same thought process.
I was torn between 225/65/17 - less than 5% larger in rolling circumference
Or 235/65/17 bigger than 5%
Having previously (many years ago on a T5) run a larger AT tyre, which I didn't like, I opted for the 225/65/17 Pirelli AT+, they drive very very well indeed; however, 225 does look a little thin in section width when viewed from behind.
 
At least they’re a Step wider than the 215 standard tyres @chriscroft ! Thanks for the input. Doing 30-40k a year on road but also having to go on some pretty lumpy stuff off road makes for a tough tyre choice.
 
Thanks for all the input above. Just heard back from my insurer and they have confirmed they are absolutely fine with 35mm suspension lift kit and 235/65/17 tyres and the slightly lower 'S' speed rating. Also no extra charge! I just have to tell them when the mods are installed and confirm exact specs and have them 'professionally fitted'. BFG don't do a 235/65/17 so top tyre choice is now Cooper A/T2 Sport 2. Not as aggressive as the AT3 4S or the BFGs but should be plenty aggressive enough and better on the road. Most importantly they look the part with the tread pattern, 235 width and white lettering on the sides! She should look very vaguely like this when she's done:7CE14E3E-AA9D-4817-A971-90EF49E3D870.jpeg
 
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