Jimbos offroad Tig

[jimbomort]

Well given I have a few plans to make my Tig more of the baby Toureag that at least some of us had hoped for and more deserving of category "VW offroaders", a thread on development of my Tig for those interested. This wont make it a true 4wd, it hasn't the wheel articulation or chassis for that, but it will make it capable of quite a lot and make the less testing stuff more relaxing to do.

In short my plans involve
- increasing ride height by about 40mm, 20mm from spacers (Jcubed's) and about 20mm from an increase in tyre diameter (yet to be fully explored but looks doable and my insurer seems Ok with (but will confirm with before I do). This will give the Tig quite usable clearance. Just the 20mm gives it 'the same' basic clearance as a Freelander 2.
- upgrading tyres to something that are a little more off road ready - perhaps some Pirelli Scorpion ATR's (if they come in size, Toureag owners appear impressed with). So more than just a diameter increase, boosting off road perfromance in wet and slippery stuff.
- adding a bashplate (Arctra's via Alex G on this forum)
- possibly upgrading headlight bulbs (I wont worry about spotties)
- upgrading to RNS510 for a navigation system and possible addition of reversing camera (be handy off road when reversing)
- checking out options for a new chin for the Tig (yet to research but think the vortex or my tiguan guys are looking at)
- adding a spare wheel carrier (own design)
- plus possibly other bits and pieces

Mods so far include APR stage 1 upgrade and Jcubeds spacers. I have been very impressed with the APR upgrade off road, heaps of low down grunt goes a lot of the way (but not all) in making up for a lack of low range. Pics of the first real change (my Tig with the spacers) below:


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A bit more detail showing the increase in height of body over the back wheel
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This is the large rock under the car in the first pick, there's a little bit of parralax error here with the angle of the photo, the rock was actually about 205mm high. I drove over it forwards and backwards and cleared it fine (keeping it roughly in centre of car). TIGUAN OWNERS DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!


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[jcubed]

TIGUAN OWNERS DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!

Very funny! But ditto.

Should actually read: STANDARD Tiguan owners, do not....etc.

[maca]

YES YES and YES!

I can't wait to see this baby when it's finished, I've had an image for an off-road capable Tiguan since it was released and I'm glad someone's doing it! Although, mine had big spotties on the roof and black steelies

[Pullstarter]

Not sure if you're aware that H&R make heightened springs for the Tig too, about 1.5" raise from memory.

[jcubed]

H&R Tiguan Raising Springs

H&R make heightened springs for the Tig too.

Hi Pullstarter,

Correct. Attached a report I sent to Orange Tuning - whom I imported a set from - originally posted on the mytiguan forum. As all posts prior to Jan 2010 has been removed from that forum, here it is again.


Frank,

After a week of driving with the new springs, I have the following to comment:

1. They are well made and beautifully finished.

2. Documentation good (even if printed a bit small – A6), especially the TUV certification inspires confidence.

3. The springs work in terms of providing additional ground clearance, BUT.....

The product advert on your (and other supplier's, e.g. GMP performance) websites claim 30/15mm lift front/rear. On the 2.0 Tdi I could only get 21mm in front and 3mm LR and 7mm RR. Why the left and right should differ I don't know (unless the springs are not the same length or have identical rates), but my L/R measurements with the standard springs prior to installation, were within 1 mm of each other. The car had no occupants or load during both the before and after measurements and the tyre pressures were also all identical – 2.4 bar. I had the installation done by a professional franchised wheel/tyre/suspension shop.

When you read the brochure that comes with the spring set, you will find on Page 2, II, Beschreibung des Teiles/des Anderungsumfanges, the following fine print: Lifting of the body up to about 30/15 mm depending on the vehicle version. This is not the same as stating:H & R VW Tiguan Raising Kit +30/+15mm, as on the internet advertisments and your invoice. If the springs were evaluated by H&R on the 1.4 Tsi, which probably has a lighter engine than the diesel, the 30mm is probably achievable, but the marginal gain at the rear (which is identical on all Tiguan model variants) is not excuseable and neither is it worth the expense. I find the advertisement misleading, as it should clearly state that it may be possible that you will NOT get the advertised clearance and for which models the stated values are valid.

4. The way the suspension raise was achieved (and this is just a comment, not a criticism), was by increasing the spring rates. E.g., the new rear springs are actually 20mm shorter than the original ones (I took them out to check why I did not get the advertised lift – Refer New/Old Image) but still lifts the car. In other words, the car now has a rally suspension. In hindsight I should have realised this, taking into account that H & R springs are actually manufactured for the performance/sport/racing market.

5. However, the very much stiffer front suspension does keep the sump guard off the track and you don’t hear any expensive “clunks”, so it is effective. It is just a question of whether your spine will be able to endure this in the long term.

6. The plan is now to devise my own modification with the original springs to see if I cannot come to a better (more pliant) solution, i.e. retain the existing spring rates and just increase the ground clearance by means of spacers. Perhaps other Tiguan drivers will also be interested in this type of (less radical and a lot cheaper) modification.

I would appreciate it if you could pass on my feedback to H & R for their comment.

Best Regards

JJ Jonker

PS Under no circumstances do I hold Orange Tuning responsible for my dissatisfaction with the end result, as I understand that you can only advertise on your website information which the various manufacturers supply you with. I am still pleased, impressed even, with your service (Frank for President!!).



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This communication was sent on 27-07-2008. I am still awaiting the H&R response.

[jimbomort]

thanks Jcubed

Pullstarter this is the reason I went with Jcubeds spacer design, which apart from achieving a more genuine lift all round, are cheaper and easier to install/remove.

A company in Germany also make a full lift kit, cant remember their name, but big bucks and more than half the lift is from larger tyres. Sure they provide the full engineering certification, but other than that I can achieve most of what they offer for a fraction of the price. I really like the look of the Pirelli Scorpio ATR's and looks like they have in sizes that will fit the Tig, albeit I may have to go to a larger rim to maintain the speed rating. The Pirellis have got great reviews, though a little mixed on tyre wear. A pic of these babies below



However these are probably 6-12 months away yet (oh well....), bashplate etc to do in the meantime.

[Arctra]

- upgrading tyres to something that are a little more off road ready - perhaps some Pirelli Scorpion ATR's (if they come in size, Toureag owners appear impressed with). So more than just a diameter increase, boosting off road perfromance in wet and slippery stuff.
...
- upgrading to RNS510 for a navigation system and possible addition of reversing camera (be handy off road when reversing)

Good on you for having the commitment to explore this more! I'm definitely interested to see what tyres you end up going with as I want to put larger tyres on when I have to change mine.

With the RNS addition, I would have thought you'd be better served by going with one of the Chinese Takeaway units lime my Waywell (or the ones on eBay) so you can run something like OziExplorer CE on the unit with topographic maps from somewhere like ShonkyMaps. I briefly looked into it before I simply got myself a Garmin with Topo maps. Just an idea - will make hooking up a reversing camera earier/cheaper too.

[jcubed]

Pullstarter this is the reason I went with Jcubeds spacer design, which apart from achieving a more genuine lift all round, are cheaper and easier to install/remove.

When I bought the springs, they were around Euro195, plus another Euro95 for the shipping.

I really like the look of the Pirelli Scorpio ATR's and looks like they have in sizes that will fit the Tig, albeit I may have to go to a larger rim to maintain the speed rating. The Pirellis have got great reviews, though a little mixed on tyre wear.

A friend of mine is gradually replacing the standard Freelander 2 OEM Wrangler HPs with these. He's got them on the rear, and so far he's happy.

[Arctra]

As a matter of interest, what size tyre are you planning to move to? Looking at the sizing available for those Scorpion ATR's, and given the stock Tig 16" wheels are 215/65 (6.5" wide rim with ET33) I would have thought the ideal tyre would be the Scorpion ATR P225/70R16 102T.

That would give you an extra 18mm though, so not sure that's enough for what you're hoping for? Going for the 235/70 you are more around the 25mm extra, but I'm not sure how well the 6.5" wide rim would handle the 235mm tyre. Also, that will put your speedo out quite a lot.

[jimbomort]

Arctra

as it still 6-12 months away, haven't looked into that closely yet. However from my initial investigations it was apparent that I may have to go to a larger rim size in order to get the size tyre I want and necessary speed rating, either 17's or 18's. That would look great, but also greater expense and less sidewall, so will look into much more closely when the tiem comes. However I am checking out some rim options as I go along..... Whats next is the bash plate with Alex - per yours. How dar away are you from needing to replace your tyres?

Jcubeds spacers are a good start for increased ride height. We are really liking the extra clearance and sitting higher in the saddle. When you first climb in and drive away the car feels different, possibly it's centre of gravity being higher, but basic handling and road holding seem unaffected. I was putting it thru some twisty stuff on the way back from installing and car still felt great. I am yet to explore the insurance implications, more on that in due course.

[jimbomort]

NSW Regulations relating to spacer install

NSW is in the process of adopting a Vehicle Safety and Compliance Certification Scheme (VSCCS). The VSCCS will be introduced in 2011 to replace the Engineering Certification Scheme (ECS). I am not sure if its fully introduced yet but as the process of certifying it doesn't change the rules per se.

According to the RTA website and our local ARB (now BTA) store increasing ride height up to 50mm is allowable without an engineering certificate, see http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/registrati...ifications.pdf. There have been proposals to change that in the past, see NSW Government To Make Extreme Suspension Modifications Illegal | Reviews | Prices | Australian specifications from July 09.

However under these rules there is some detail that casts doubt. On Exemptions:
- Except when using body lift kits, raising a vehicle by up to 50mm in accordance with the vehicle manufacturer’s or component manufacturer’s specifications.
- Notwithstanding the above, the exemptions do not apply to vehicles fitted with electronic stability control if the modification could affect the performance of the electronic stability control.

Could read the later as a porblem or even the first depending on how body lift kits are defined, but on balance I reckon I am prepared to go to my insurer and say I have increased my ride height by 20mm, well within the RTA's limit of 50mm.

The tyres will be more of a problem, as anythign over 15mm greater than standard diameter needs an engineering certificate. My insurer indicated increasing tyre diam was not an issue for them, but I'd like to be really clear on that with them before relying on it. So I guess my concern is mainly whats acceptable to my insurer. I am prepared to wear some risk of not being strictly within RTA limits (many dont bother with the engineering cert for tyres) but I am not prepared to risk being uninsured.

[jimbomort]

in the near future I will be adding an aluminium bashplate per Arctras - built by Alex G of this forum in Syd. Alex has it all finished now, just organising delivery and then home install.

in meantime here is 'our rig' for our camping adventures et al (this predates spacer install)


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at the weekend I added cross bars to the end posts on the trailer. So for just over $40 I now have aluminium cross bars, wide enough to mount both the kayak and a canadian canoe on the trailer side by side, with all our camping gear underneath.

Hmmmm why stop at the trailer........could I refashion the lower part of the tig front end out of aluminium to increase approach angle..... Dont laugh or maybe do, but I was seriously considering - I checked and front air dam hasn't got an obvious break point, so be some serious cutting involved etc. There's some serious commitment, plus add zero chance of convincing the Mrs and the risk of butchering the tig - yeah forget it.

[Transporter]

in the near future I will be adding an aluminium bashplate per Arctras - built by Alex G of this forum in Syd. Alex has it all finished now, just organising delivery and then home install.

in meantime here is 'our rig' for our camping adventures et al (this predates spacer install)


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Hmmmm why stop at the trailer........could I refashion the lower part of the tig front end out of aluminium to increase approach angle..... Dont laugh or maybe do, but I was seriously considering - I checked and front air dam hasn't got an obvious break point, so be some serious cutting involved etc. There's some serious commitment, plus add zero chance of convincing the Mrs and the risk of butchering the tig - yeah forget it.

Yep... saw and the fiberglass could fix that. There is nothing important in that low front except airbag sensors, so watch out for them, if you go that path. You can give it a rough shape and take it to the crash shop to finish it and for the paint.

[jimbomort]

something like this as a front air dam would be pretty cool, and I like the mesh effect in the grille too. This is an X3 though.

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[jcubed]

As the late Steve Irwin would say: What a bewty!!

Let me just clarify - I'm referring to the underbody protection, not the car wearing it.