Lowering 80mm - Wish I never done it

[michael88]

At 80mm, will it ever truly drive straight and not pull? Or am I being naive thinking it'll drive normally at this ride height? Ignoring the various things than can cause pull like bushes, damage, tyres etc.

Had my Transporter a couple of years. Camper Converted. SoLow NSL dropped half way down with ride height within 5mm. Full front and rear adjustable powerflex bushes. New wheels and tyres.

I don't think I truly knew what I was getting into when lowering it ~80mm, I was aware I'd need rear bushes to sort the toe out, fronts to sort caster (mine had an annoying shake at 70mph before fitting them). Had multiple wheel alignments done (I think 5 in total as well as my own string alignments, with and without bushings with the rear bushes being done first, then the fronts later), final one done by Bognor which is the best I've had so far (I'd not take my van elsewhere now as they were great). But it still pulls to one side slightly, although steer ahead on a straight, flat road is bang on (but still has a pull, im guessing caster as the reading it now uneven oddly).

When this low, is trying to get caster, toe and camber into reasonable, even specs actually possible? Or do i need to raise the van up to 70mm, or replace the suspension entirely with something else that isnt as low.

I see the comments from those that have lowered this much 'drives great' etc but does it actually? maybe I am too used to a tack sharp GR86?

Anyone gone this low and then backed out to something higher?

 

[DXX]

I see the comments from those that have lowered this much 'drives great' etc but does it actually?

I don’t think many would admit it but it’s fairly obvious if the suspension is effectively negated and the carefully designed running gear geometry butchered.
Better to test drive someone else's first and then make the call.

 

[michael88]

I don’t think many would admit it

Yeah, and I think this has been my problem. I could have done with reading a few honest 'maybe this wasn't the bests idea' posts. Hence mine actually, happy to admit this has been a mistake.

 

[JumpShip]

I'm 90mm down and drives fine .
Been this way for probably 9 years now .

 

[Fivetones]

I was down 115mm and it drove perfectly. Get the alignment done to the right specs and it should be totally fine (there’s threads on here with details that I can’t remember off the top of my head)

Of course there are compromises to running low but what you describe aren’t those.

 

[WinFreak]

I've had my 130k mile T6 down maybe 70mm and now my 30k T6.1 on the same XTA coilovers down at -80 and they both drove so nice and smooth, both on 20s as well with 265/40 Goodyear Eagles on.

 

[Fivetones]

Good point re good tyres I suspect too. (I was on 255/35x 20 102 load Goodyear eagle, 9x20 et45).

 

[darkman884]

Castor is adjustable on vans ?????

 

[doncarlyon]

Didn't think 80mm was particulary low on a transporter.

What tyre size and brand are you using?

 

[michael88]

255/45/18 Uniroyal rainsports, about 1k miles on them tops.

 

[CRS Performance]

At 80mm, will it ever truly drive straight and not pull? Or am I being naive thinking it'll drive normally at this ride height? Ignoring the various things than can cause pull like bushes, damage, tyres etc.

Had my Transporter a couple of years. Camper Converted. SoLow NSL dropped half way down with ride height within 5mm. Full front and rear adjustable powerflex bushes. New wheels and tyres.

I don't think I truly knew what I was getting into when lowering it ~80mm, I was aware I'd need rear bushes to sort the toe out, fronts to sort caster (mine had an annoying shake at 70mph before fitting them). Had multiple wheel alignments done (I think 5 in total as well as my own string alignments, with and without bushings with the rear bushes being done first, then the fronts later), final one done by Bognor which is the best I've had so far (I'd not take my van elsewhere now as they were great). But it still pulls to one side slightly, although steer ahead on a straight, flat road is bang on (but still has a pull, im guessing caster as the reading it now uneven oddly).

When this low, is trying to get caster, toe and camber into reasonable, even specs actually possible? Or do i need to raise the van up to 70mm, or replace the suspension entirely with something else that isnt as low.

I see the comments from those that have lowered this much 'drives great' etc but does it actually? maybe I am too used to a tack sharp GR86?

Anyone gone this low and then backed out to something higher?

There are a lot of things you have done which have complicated this issue more than it needed to be!

A lot of tacky advice on social media , and a lot of so called self confessed experts giving poor advice doesnt help of course ?!

Feel free to call us and we can offer some advice , we can even take a look for you if you aren't too far away

 

[CRS Performance]

Didn't think 80mm was particulary low on a transporter.

What tyre size and brand are you using?

You will not find any kit that goes lower than 80 mm for a transporter with T U V approval for travel in Europe . Whilst UK doesn't recognise T U V, it is a brilliant guide line that we should take note of because its common sense with Safety as its objective !

 

[doncarlyon]

You will not find any kit that goes lower than 80 mm for a transporter with T U V approval for travel in Europe . Whilst UK doesn't recognise T U V, it is a brilliant guide line that we should take note of because its common sense with Safety as its objective !

 

[michael88]

There are a lot of things you have done which have complicated this issue more than it needed to be!

A lot of tacky advice on social media , and a lot of so called self confessed experts giving poor advice doesnt help of course ?!

Feel free to call us and we can offer some advice , we can even take a look for you if you aren't too far away

I dunno, I am sure I read some text somewhere from yourselves about lowering beyond 70mm and compromising the geometry beyond what its designed to do and that's what I'm feeling when driving it around. Its not a problem with the damper, it doesn't bottom out, its not crashy, I don't feel any bump steer and the damper movements are fluid (active as they say in the world out mountain biking), it just feels as though the geometry is totally wrong as the suspension compresses well into its travel over compressions.

That sounds a bit captain obvious, but have to say the people that write 'why on earth would you lower a van that much' are right in this instance. It doesn't drive well.

I've just driven it 2000 miles around Europe and it was 'okay' on European motorways. Any other roads were a bit pants.

I think if I didn't care about cars I might think yeah that'll do.

Will raise this up fully to 70mm and get another alignment done sometime and go from there, will likely put up with it before selling it.

Genuine regret at buying this setup, so anyone else considering So Low NSL might want to reconsider.

 

[CRS Performance]

There are many traders on this forum that support the products you have purchased , I find it quite disturbing that when someone makes the comments you have , No one comes to your aid from those traders and supports the product . . . I have in the past tried to help where we can , clearly we have limits as to what can be done except swapping to a superior set up which costs a lot of money .

 

[michael88]

There are many traders on this forum that support the products you have purchased , I find it quite disturbing that when someone makes the comments you have , No one comes to your aid from those traders and supports the product . . . I have in the past tried to help where we can , clearly we have limits as to what can be done except swapping to a superior set up which costs a lot of money .

I appreciate it probably does sorry, I've seen the likes of Bognor and yourselves posting all over the place and being really supportive, in fact its one of the reasons I went with this setup in the first place because I felt pretty sure I could get a setup as low as I have and have it work reasonably well even if I needed to travel a bit (in case a local garage couldn't manage to get it setup right), obviously you guys have seen this sort of setup many times as have Bognor and have a decent reputation which is my I'm wondering what's gone wrong. In no way a complaint at Bognor either

Maybe its ride height, pre-load or perhaps there's something much more severely wrong with it. Hence the OP questions about having a camper, weight distribution etc. I know they have soft bushings everywhere which probably doesnt help things.

Ill sit on this for a few months as its not a vehicle I use daily and then pay some attention to it, ask either yourselves or Bognor to refit the bushes and then align it, but I'm a bit fed up with the thing now.

 

[John A]

maybe I am too used to a tack sharp GR86?

Probably.
You can't compare something like a 2T van, with a roofline at about 1.8m with a short wheelbase car, with a roofline that sits below the window line of the Transporter.
It's just not going to drive the same at all - the steering input is different, the reaction to the ruts and the grooves in the road, potholes and god knows what else is going to be completely different.
I've got a T6 Kombi on Steve's Koni/H&R hybrid coilovers, down about 70mm, on 245/45 R20 tyres fitted to 20 x 9J ET45 wheels. It rides well, better than it did out of the box.
It still fights me along the stretch of the A45 that the trucks have turned into two separate tracks and wants to drive itself out of them.
It's totally different to my Octavia RS on 19s, which is totally different to when its got 18s on it. They're both totally different to my track-prepped Clio that wants to pull slightly to the left because of the camber of the road, but doesn't do it on a circuit.

You've said you had new wheels and tyres fitted, but you haven't mentioned anything about wheel dimensions, offset, tyre size, etc.

Do you know the history of your van? Are you the sole owner to date or do you know whether it might have had a whack which has affected the geometry in a permanent way - bent arm, for example?
I bought an Audi A6 which I came to the conclusion had probably been driven over a kerb or something bigger, with the left rear wheel which knocked out the alignment and no amount of checking and resetting the geometry would get it right.

Castor is adjustable on vans ?????

Yes with a set of the appropriate bushes, which I think from reading the first post, the OP has fitted.

 

[michael88]

Probably.
You can't compare something like a 2T van, with a roofline at about 1.8m with a short wheelbase car, with a roofline that sits below the window line of the Transporter.
It's just not going to drive the same at all - the steering input is different, the reaction to the ruts and the grooves in the road, potholes and god knows what else is going to be completely different.
I've got a T6 Kombi on Steve's Koni/H&R hybrid coilovers, down about 70mm, on 245/45 R20 tyres fitted to 20 x 9J ET45 wheels. It rides well, better than it did out of the box.
It still fights me along the stretch of the A45 that the trucks have turned into two separate tracks and wants to drive itself out of them.
It's totally different to my Octavia RS on 19s, which is totally different to when its got 18s on it. They're both totally different to my track-prepped Clio that wants to pull slightly to the left because of the camber of the road, but doesn't do it on a circuit.

You've said you had new wheels and tyres fitted, but you haven't mentioned anything about wheel dimensions, offset, tyre size, etc.

Do you know the history of your van? Are you the sole owner to date or do you know whether it might have had a whack which has affected the geometry in a permanent way - bent arm, for example?
I bought an Audi A6 which I came to the conclusion had probably been driven over a kerb or something bigger, with the left rear wheel which knocked out the alignment and no amount of checking and resetting the geometry would get it right.


Yes with a set of the appropriate bushes, which I think from reading the first post, the OP has fitted.

Wheels if interested

255/45/18 Uniroyal RainSport 5 (103Y) (XL) (Standard) (C A 73 B)
8.5x18 5x120 ET38 Wolfrace Eurosport Wolfsburg (Gloss Black)



Thanks, I think this is probably what I needed to read from someone like yourself. Hope it goes without saying I wasn't expecting it to drive like a sports car, but honestly didn't expect the behaviors I have, but I haven't lowered a van before.

And no idea on history, could have been in a shunt sure but I cant see any indication its had major repairs. This is my 2nd T6, the first got rejected as it looked like it had been in a severe accident with obvious, crap welding on its A pillars.

Next time I align it I might replace a few more suspension components, but the wife and I have already decided we want a Crafter so this van's days are numbered anyway.