My 71 type3 based kit is very low, and the steering at speed is VERY light and twitchy.

I've been told caster shims may help. Am I on the right track?

Thanks,

Mick.

Yep. Hows the beast going???

The usual Beetle caster shims won't fit... But yes, more caster (ie: +3 or more deg) is good for steering feel and stability

Do you need it 'low'? You might be amazed at what an inch or two in extra ride height can do

[ Edited on 28-9-2007 by VWCOOL ]

yes its a shame a lot of kit car bodies were designed for lowered chassis where it would have been far more sensible to produce a body with lowered wheelarches

One inch raised might be all that is needed to get some caster back without looking 'raised'

Beetle shims fit between teh lower front axle tube and chassis; Type 3s have a full-circle rertainer but you may be able to re-engineer this section of the chassis to tilt the beam...?

You know Type 3s have some camber/caster adjustment at the top arm...?

Could it be down to bump steer? Inverting the tie-rods at the spindles should restore the angle, but you may need to get bushes made up.

Quote:

Originally posted by VWCOOL yes its a shame a lot of kit car bodies were designed for lowered chassis where it would have been far more sensible to produce a body with lowered wheelarches One inch raised might be all that is needed to get some caster back without looking 'raised' Beetle shims fit between teh lower front axle tube and chassis; Type 3s have a full-circle rertainer but you may be able to re-engineer this section of the chassis to tilt the beam...? You know Type 3s have some camber/caster adjustment at the top arm...?

Simply turning one notch will change ride height by around four inches but VW provided different numbers of inner and outer notches (splines on the torsion bar) that allow fine ride height adjustments of around 8mm. Ie: turning the torsion bar back one spline on the inner and forward one on the spring plate will raise the car by 8mm. Easy in theory BUT can be very frstrating in practice... and it depends on the torsion bar diamter and weight of the car etc. You may need several attempts to get the ride height you desire. I got one wrong a week ago and it is now 2in higher than I planned! (But I have expected that as I was installing stiffer torsion bars)

PS: Dropped spindles allow you to lower a car and retain factory caster; they will not restore factory caster on a lowered front end, IYKWIM

Quote:

Originally posted by sinecure Quote: Originally posted by VWCOOL yes its a shame a lot of kit car bodies were designed for lowered chassis where it would have been far more sensible to produce a body with lowered wheelarches One inch raised might be all that is needed to get some caster back without looking 'raised' Beetle shims fit between teh lower front axle tube and chassis; Type 3s have a full-circle rertainer but you may be able to re-engineer this section of the chassis to tilt the beam...? You know Type 3s have some camber/caster adjustment at the top arm...? Yes, the design of the Purvis is easier, being based on the swing axle beetle chassis, with lowered floor pans to compensate for the roof height. Apparently, DRB used the type3 because their kits were so heavy (1300kg for mine, around 800kg for the Eureka). There is only about three inches between my bumpstop lugs (no bump stop rubbers were present when I got the car) and the landing surface for them. Factory bump stops only just fit at rest, so I'm making a new, lower set. Isn't one 'notch' on the suspension around two inches? If I could raise by only an inch, I would be very happy with that. As far as tilting the beam, would this actully help as the car is not raked at all? I've looked at the suspension adjustments in the manual and intended on having a fool around with them, I just wanted to make sure that there wasn't something relatively straightforward (like shims or dropped spindles) I could do to correct the geometry. Thanks, Mick.

PS: Dropped spindles allow you to lower a car and retain factory caster; they will not restore factory caster on a lowered front end, IYKWIM

Yep, my plan was to reset the car to factory front height, fit the drops, then measure and adjust both front and rear again.

I guess I'll spend a few days playing with the splines when I can get some time off, bringing it up 16-24mm.

Thanks for all the advice guys!

Cheers,

Mick.

I've no experience with type3s but certainly on a lowered beetle on standard spindles the increased tie rod angle causes wandering,
which is more noticable at speed as you travel further before correcting (AFAIK) this can be counteracted with caster shims to make the steering a little heavier,
On beetles you need to drill/ream the spindle to fit an inverted tapered bush to allow the rods to bolt underneath the arm.

This is based on experience but I could be talking shite, I'm sure somebody more technically minded can clear this up :P

Joval, all you need to do is rotate the steering box on the beam to bring the tierods back to a respectable angle.:thumb

Hmm, but if you change the angle of the steering box won't you have to fit a joint on the end of the column?

You need more castor on the front wheels

so the steering wheel returns to straight ahead

after going round a corner etc...

My beetle is lowered and I did have the shims but took them out because the tyres were rubbing on the guard edges...

and now the steering wheel doesn't return to straight ahead, but its not a problem....

Lee

http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=65772 

Would these fit a 71 type3? I've seen very similar advertised as OK for all rear (type3, beetle), but linkpin front only, and as bj front for type3/beetle. I'd like them for the front, but will buy them anyway for the rear to simplify minor adjustments there after the front end adjust.

What do I measure apart from compressed height, bush diameter and position?

BTW, bought these to replace the front bump stops altogether:

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Chrysler-Valiant-Upper-bump-stop-M-D-I-tech-S-to-CM_W0...

1.4 inch high by 1 inch wide with 0.9 inch of thread so perfect (I hope!).