Suspension upgrade on 2015 T6 FWD 140PS Camper

[SefSemillia]

I’ve been lurking around the forum for a while to get some more insights especially on suspension and suspension upgrades. But since I couldn’t find the answer to my exact ”issue” I made an account, to be able to post a thread and get some input from all the knowledgeable people around here.

We’ve bought a 2015 T6 multivan which has been converted to camper van, meaning we have a kitchen module in the back, small 20 liter water storage for a tap, rooftoptent, spare tire, bike rack, awning etc. which all adds additional weight. We removed the back seat bench but still have two seats in the back with a a table-module in between which suits us better and reduces a little bit the weight in the rear.

Nevertheless the ground clearance is compromised (scraping noice) when we go up some of the dirt roads/drive ways around the area.

Essentially we want to improve ground clearance and if possible improve the overall driving experience of the van. The intention is to take the van all around Australia. We are actually heading down to Tasmania at the minute and I’m curious to see how the van performance.

I’ve done some measurements from the middle of the tire to the top of the arch and the front shows 470 mm whereas the rear is 475 mm (if I measured correctly). My first question would be what is the standard ride hight of these vans?

The suspension also has already 150k km on its shoulders so it might warrant to have it changed all along - or could airbags be the solution to improve ground clearance in the back? How long do these suspensions usually last?

I’ve attached pictures of the front and rear suspension as well as information on the van itself. I believe no modifications have been made but I just wanted to get this confirmed (if possible). I’ve talked to some of the mechanics in the area but I didn’t really been satisfied with how they conducted themselves.

Any help/suggestions/input is highly appreciated.

 

[JOG]

Hi and welcome to the forum. There are a few members on here from NSW.

With a conversion and 150k km on the clock, it isn’t surprising that your suspension may be a bit “tired!”

@AussieMick has taken quite a few ventures around Australia and he may be able to give you some pointers of who could help you out

 

[AussieMick]

After my full campervan conversion my rear was down and at an angle due to the weight of cupboards,fridge,water tank etc

All of this is along the drivers side.
I installed heavier duty springs with matching shocks from Pedders who do a kit for VW T6 vans that carry heavier loads.

I've done over 50,000km on them on all types of roads around Australia and they have worked great as I have good ground clearance and the van feels solid on the road.
I can't say how they would perform with a lightly loaded van as they specify they are designed for heavier T6 vans. You could talk to Pedders for their advice.
I sometimes tow a small trailer and the rear hardly drops at all due to the support of the heavier springs.

 

[SefSemillia]

@AussieMick thanks for the advice. I’ll get into contact with them. On one of my google searches I came across fulcrum suspension Spezialist which have a fitting shop near by. Anybody any experience with them?

Based on their webpage they offer lift kits for VW T6 from Bilstein and Koni with King shocks. I understand that these lift kits could raise the hight of the van by a couple of centimeters but is this something that should be considered for the additional load or only when you want to get a little bit more off-roady?

The van has originally been converted by KombiLife and they offer similar kits from Seikel.

When talking to some local 4x4 shops they’ve suggested airbags to support the existing springs. But is this a lasting solution or only a intermittent “cure”.

As you can see each time I’m getting an answer I have more questions

 

[AussieMick]

I used Pedders as they are suspension specialists and the vw t6 heavy duty springs have matching shockers .
Talk to your local guys and see what they recommend.

 

[SefSemillia]

Just a quick update from my side. I’ve contacted Pedders and unfortunately they didn’t had any suspensions Silurian for our van. We went with fulcrum suspensions and got a Kona lift kit suspensions with Kings spring (HD in the rear) installed. Ride hight in front increased by 15 mm and rear by 60 mm. Just drove a couple of km as for now but drive feels much improved.