Make your Vanagon handle like a performance car.
The stock Vanagon springs are not really the best for spirited driving, especially if you have a Westfalia or other camper, and in an emergency, it can be a matter of life or death. We have designed these springs for the 2 wheel drive Vanagons including the Westfalia and other campers. We have also designed into them more strength in the rear to work nicely with Subaru and other engines as well as added heaters, racks, trailers and other added loads. These are not lifting or lowering springs but typically raise the ride height on a Wolfsburg or Carat by 3/4" depending on the age of your original springs. Other models of Vanagon may see a slight lowering in the front.
Our customers say they haven't found the ride to be overly harsh and feel the much better steering response makes their Van safer and therefore more relaxing to drive.
"I wanted to let you know that the springs were a great addition to the van. After the weekend trip with just the new shocks, I thought perhaps I wouldn't need the springs. I am glad that I made the decision to go ahead and have you install the springs - what a difference! the road just got far smoother."
Produced by an OEM spring manufacturer to our specifications.
Small Car Spring Features
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Increased roadholding
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Less body lean on corners
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Less nose dive on hard stops
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Stronger rear spring rate for all engines and extra equipment
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Factory type progression in the rear, linear in the front
Ride height measured from the center of the axle to the top of the wheel arch. Note that the Westfalias will ride lower on the left because of camper equipment. Your ride height will vary depending on equipment, etc.
1991 Carat, lightly loaded, 2.5L Subaru engine.
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RF- 16 1/2"
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LF- 16 1/4"
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RR- 16 1/2"
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LR- 16 1/2"
1990 Vanagon 4 speed Bilstein shocks, lightly loaded, 3.3L SVX engine.
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RF- 16 1/4"
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LF- 16"
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RR- 16 1/2"
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LR- 16 1/2"
Are Progressive Springs what my Vanagon really needs?
- A progressive spring is simply one that does not have a linear rate. This means that it's compression rate changes depending on the amount of deflection. This can be accomplished by a few different designs:
- variable diameter (like a stock Vanagon rear spring) coil thickness
- irregular gaps between the individual coils. The original Vanagon front springs are not progressive, while the rears are.
- They can be wrong for a vehicle that was not designed for them. They are softer under small displacements and get stiffer as the spring compresses. This is supposed to make the ride more comfortable, but matching a damper to them is tricky, so the damper may only be properly matched during part of the suspension travel. Generally it will have to be soft, so it doesn't overdamp the lower displacement part of the spring, which makes it too soft for the high displacement rate of the spring. Basically, they're good for a smooth ride with properly designed light or variable damping.
- Some original equipment manufacturers use progressive designs to allow for some suppleness during initial spring deflection. This allows for a heavier rate to be used once the lighter rate coils go "dead" or bind making them ineffectual. These clever designs are carefully matched to the dampers, swaybars, bushes and chassis design to create a tuned solution.
- For those that sell progressive springs for a vehicle that didn't originally come with them, ask them if they have some matching progressive rate shocks to match. Also, ask the seller if the rate progression of the spring is designed to match the actual rate progression of the vehicles chassis? Most front suspension geometry has spring rate progression as part of its design, a travel progression that leads to a rate increase because the wheel moves in an arc. Adding progression to this type of suspension creates all sorts of problems so be wary of manufacturers claims.
