Rock Hard Suspension - Desperate & Need Advice

[slingers]

Hi there, we purchased our T6 factory kombi T32 from VW main dealer 2 years ago. It was 6 months old with no miles on it. It's a 102 psi 5 speed. We naively had it delivered from VW 300 miles away without test driving! We now realise that the T32 has up rated suspension and larger brakes to suit its high pay load. VW had several of these at the time and they were about £5k below book price. We use the van for family outings and towing a light weight caravan, which it copes with okay. Whilst we appreciate it is a van we would really like to soften the ride which we find quite unbearable (it doesn't help with the amount of pot holes there are in Kent!). It jars the life out of you when you go over pot holes and seriously thinking about selling it if we can't improve on the ride. We've heard of coil over kits, namely Bilstein, which seem to focus mainly on a lower "slammed" look. We don't dislike this funky look but our priority is to improve the ride quality.

Are the T28 and T30 softer in their ride?

Has anyone experienced anything similar or used a kit/ made changes to improve the ride? Would appreciate any advice. We pretty much use the van to potter around in. We really like the van and would like to enjoy being it in. Thanks in advance.

John

 

[Deaky]

Bilsteins all day long. They don’t have to be wound right down

 

[PlanB]

T28 is a bit hard unloaded - Had a tonne in it last week & was a magic carpet ride.

 

[Wills]

You could try KONI active shocks.....worth reading up about.

 

[Keeff]

The cheapest option is put t30 or t28 rear springs on the back. I fitted t30 on my t32 and it is much better . The front are the same so don’t bother with them . What pressure do you use on the tyres and do you have the Goodyear all weather . I drop mine a lot and it is way better. I have 42 in the front and 38 in the rear . If you use it to tow just put a bit extra in the rears about 40 psi . Mine is three years old t32 Kombi . The problem is a t32 can take a lot of weight for the size of van so it’s hard to make it drive well unloaded. If you want to make it more car like you will need to go stiffer roll bars and lot weaker springs but you wouldn’t be able to carry much weight.

 

[And the problem is]

Chilijamvans are selling a Bilstein comfort damper, also eibach comfort springs go for the comfort 1 just ordered these for my kombi, same issue roads are shocking, good luck.

 

[slingers]

Thanks everyone. I've just nipped down and altered the tyre pressure - from 53 to 42 in the front and from 52 to 38 in the back, and I reckon there's a definite improvement. The van has only done 4k miles and the tyres from new on it are Continental 215/60/R17. Maybe 15% improvement...

I feel a bit of a plonker driving it for 2 years and not doing what you suggested already.

Thanks again for all the advice. Will see how driving it pans out. As a van I'm not expecting a magic carpet ride. It would be nice to not keep seeing an osteopath every time I drive it lol.

 

[slingers]

Chilijamvans are selling a Bilstein comfort damper, also eibach comfort springs go for the comfort 1 just ordered these for my kombi, same issue roads are shocking, good luck.

Hi there, how's the ride now? Have the coilovers softened it much?

 

[Skyliner33]

4k miles in 2 years?

 

[DXX]

Thanks everyone. I've just nipped down and altered the tyre pressure - from 53 to 42 in the front and from 52 to 38 in the back, and I reckon there's a definite improvement. The van has only done 4k miles and the tyres from new on it are Continental 215/60/R17. Maybe 15% improvement...

I feel a bit of a plonker driving it for 2 years and not doing what you suggested already.

Thanks again for all the advice. Will see how driving it pans out. As a van I'm not expecting a magic carpet ride. It would be nice to not keep seeing an osteopath every time I drive it lol.

While the ride might be better what are the consequences in the event of a serious accident if the Police check tyre pressures and find them to be outside the vehicle specification?
Insurance companies employ Loss Adjusters, some of which only earn money when they reduce or reject a claim.

 

[Murdoch]

Bilsteins all day long. They don’t have to be wound right down

Please excuse my ignorance but what would this achieve ?

 

[RedUn]

New springs and dampers, main thing being good quality dampers