So today I spent a day at Transporter HQ to have some work done on my van. I'm lucky enough to know these guys personally and as i've worked on the owners Caravan a few times, i'm fortunate enough to be able to be trusted in the workshop when they are working on my T6, where as most customers will have to be sat in their waiting room out of harm's way. This for me is a total nerd out buzz, and i'm more than happy to lend a hand when needed. It goes without saying that HQ's work is exceptional, even more so since they took on Mikey, their in-house suspension guru with a huge knowledge, an eye for detail and some pretty exacting standards for the safe way of doing the insane things we want on our rides.
As some of you know, i've recently moved from my beloved 19" banded steels, to a gorgeous set of 20" Ispiri FFP1's because I fancied a total change around on my T6. My plan was bigger wheels, smaller tyres, and even lower suspension than my current B14's.
Solow's were always my natural choice on the basis that i'm a huge fan of the Bilstein shocks after 3 years of running these things on some pretty extreme driving, and they get some raving reviews. Sadly, because I am running 10" wheels all round, this option was removed from my hands because Solow need a narrower front wheel to work, and moving to an 8.5" front wasn't going to work for me because I love the concaved front and rears of my Ispiri's. So Andy said lets do a few tweaks with your B14's. It sits well as it is, we just need to get a little bit more out of these amazing and popular Bilstein's.
We opted for a rear adjuster delete, which consists of a nifty little gadget that replaces the adjusters completely, making the spring sit perfectly. This job meant an ABS cable re-location and some fettling to make sure everything was safe. Moving to the front, we dropped the coil-overs out and replaced the top mount with the slimmer 'machined top mount' buttoned it back together and dropped her back on the ground, to where the van was stuck on the ramp, which is a good signOnce we jacked it up to remove the ramp legs, the jack was dropped and boom, the van squatted much lower and sat at the exact height I wanted.
Job done... Not quite.
I figured that as I hadn't thrown Solow money at the van, that maybe another treat was needed, so sod it, a Revo re-map please Sir.
Now, my van is already a 204 DGS and is already pretty quick considering it's size and weight, but the 204 doesn't come without it's niggles. I find them an amazing lump from the factory, but the more you drive them, the more you notice little things like lag at certain revs, a tiny delay between peddle and power, gears changing where they didn't need to, tiny things, but annoying all the same.
Post mapping was like a different van. People often say how much better their vans feel after a map, but I often thought is it really?? Well yes, it sure is. The power is now instant, more linear, more consistent. Almost like a 204, but one without the above niggles and a whole lot more fun. I've no idea if it's better on fuel, simply because i'm still in the grin factor stage and fuel economy isn't something i've been trying to achieve. However, it has a bucket load more grunt and at lower throttle it just pulls like a train, slipping through the gears without the needle going much above tick over position.
Alongside the H&R ARB's and the VW door seal, the Revo map is right there as the best bang for your buck.
Conclusion: My T6 now sits much nicer in my eyes, drives much quicker and still, after going so Static Low, there is no rubbing or knocking or creaking.
A whole new love for the old girl.
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I thought I saw your van - I popped in today to collect some dodo mat
