Lift kit for T5 4 Motion - supplier?

[karra]

Hey Mad,

I just did a quick measure from centre of hub to wheel arch,

FR - 401MM

FL - 395MM

RR - 400MM

RL - 405MM

Seems very low compared to the OEM stats you posted earlier in the thread.

When I have time I will jack up and measure hanging distance before I change suspension for a comparison.

I'm still leaning towards king springs for ease and availability, you can get raised front KVFR-19 and raised HD rear springs (I have a homemade box and work tools in full time) KVHR-18HD if they will fit the Multivan.

Will be interesting to see your specs with the seikel kit. If you get spacers with your kit would you be able to take some photos so I might be able to get some fabricated if needed?

We will have to organise a meet - maybe there are some more Melbourne VW enthusiasts interested in a bit of a van show and tell event.

So if I get the raised king springs now I just need to find some shocks to suit. Back to the internet searches!

Karra






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[Syncrotek]

Hi karra

I tend to agree with MAD, the Kings springs should fit ok, Yours might be the "Sports" suspension, PR code 1BV, 40mm drop, (or it has sagged evenly an awful lot). The paint colour marks on the springs will indicate which ones are fitted.

Full droop on mine at front was 537mm. Full bump to full droop 147mm.

[karra]

Just an update, I went the easy option and dropped the van at Pedders today, 4 new Pedders trakryder shocks and they are making some custom springs so hopefully get it back this week. 30mm raised over standard height with hd springs in the rear. $1500 including fitting, alignment and 2 year/40,000k warranty.

Deciding on tyres/rims now which should complete the lift for my van.

I'll post some pics and specs when I get it back.

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[karra]

Bloody Pedders!!
Just went to pick up the van, 7 days after they told me 2-3 days, quoted $1500 for new custom springs and shock to achieve 30mm over standard. Total was $642 for resetting my rears 75mm higher than they were and 2 new fronts 35mm higher than they were. Oh, and they forgot to put in new shocks...

Got a quote at cost and no labour for new shocks at $656, but they need it back again for a day when I get time... So saved $200 but lose it for another day.

Happy with the overall lift at the moment, quite high in the rear but may settle a bit. Measurements from hub to wheel arch are as follows :
Before - After
FR 401 - 435
FL 395 - 440
RR 400 - 477
RL 405 - 480

Off to the tyre shop tomorrow to see what I can fit on my original 17" rims that I've had powder coated black.

I didn't get it back till 6pm tonight so ill try to take some pics tomorrow and put them up, and let everyone know what I can do with tyres.

Karra

[Syncrotek]

Front new parts all fitted in mine now,

LH was 417mm, now 464mm gained 47mm.
RH was 422mm, now 468mm gained 46mm.
they might settle a few mm.

Rides firm but not harsh, not tested on dirt yet.

Ultima struts, Kings springs.
All up cost $560, - I did some of the work.
Not wheel aligned yet, will wait for new tyres.

[MAD]

Front new parts all fitted in mine now,

LH was 417mm, now 464mm gained 47mm.
RH was 422mm, now 468mm gained 46mm.
they might settle a few mm.

Rides firm but not harsh, not tested on dirt yet.

Ultima struts, Kings springs.
All up cost $560, - I did some of the work.
Not wheel aligned yet, will wait for new tyres.

karra
Bloody Pedders!!
Just went to pick up the van, 7 days after they told me 2-3 days, quoted $1500 for new custom springs and shock to achieve 30mm over standard. Total was $642 for resetting my rears 75mm higher than they were and 2 new fronts 35mm higher than they were. Oh, and they forgot to put in new shocks...

Got a quote at cost and no labour for new shocks at $656, but they need it back again for a day when I get time... So saved $200 but lose it for another day.

Happy with the overall lift at the moment, quite high in the rear but may settle a bit. Measurements from hub to wheel arch are as follows :
Before - After
FR 401 - 435
FL 395 - 440
RR 400 - 477
RL 405 - 480

Off to the tyre shop tomorrow to see what I can fit on my original 17" rims that I've had powder coated black.

I didn't get it back till 6pm tonight so ill try to take some pics tomorrow and put them up, and let everyone know what I can do with tyres.

Karra




Hey Guys,

Intertesting Figures You guy's are putting up Are these LIFTED figures ????
The reason I'm asking is because they are still quite low about the same or lower than my standard height and factory standard specs (see previous posts)

Lifted front should be about 490-505
Lifted Rear about 495-515

Have received the Seikel kit just now will have to measure them when I get a chance , fitting not for a month or so though

Regards

Mad

[Syncrotek]

Lifted front should be about 490-505
Lifted Rear about 495-515

Hi again,

at 490-505mm would there not be drive-shaft angle issues ? Rear should be ok with diff spacers.

Has anyone here seen or measured the difference of a so-called extra height strut, e.g. Bilstein, etc, ? it seems that apart
from Seikel the only way to get higher than standard would be with one of those.

With mine I'm quite happy with gain it's got, with the rear it's self leveling by air, but can raise extra if needed to safely about 500mm, (had to edit this, made a typo)
I use 460mm as normal rear ride height.

[MAD]

Hi again,

at 490-505mm would there not be drive-shaft angle issues ? Rear should be ok with diff spacers.

Has anyone here seen or measured the difference of a so-called extra height strut, e.g. Bilstein, etc, ? it seems that apart
from Seikel the only way to get higher than standard would be with one of those.

With mine I'm quite happy with gain it's got, with the rear it's self leveling by air, but can raise extra if needed to safely about 500mm, (had to edit this, made a typo)
I use 460mm as normal rear ride height.

Hey Syncrotek

I don't think its an issue although Seikel do state that the expected life of the drive shafts will be shortened with there lift kit (to be expected) and If you have a look at BIG BUG 's post #36 in this thread he states that his Seikel lift is 495 front 500 rear (I asked him to confirm this and that was what he posted) so shouldn't be any problem,

As I stated just received my Seikel Monroe kit and will give the Real Full details of the Seikel VS Stock kit when I get time to measure mine and fit, this should clarify the entire thread from lots of speculation to some actual facts hopefully,

Keep the specs coming in guys the more info the better,
Your lucky having Air for the rear makes it very handy to keep it level loaded or unloaded, just couldn't justify the price myself,

I may also be able to make some extra lift items for the T5 and T6 in the future just to bump it that extra bit without the need for spring changes or strut changes , will let you know how it goes,

Regards

Mad

[Syncrotek]

Hi again,

Follow up report on new Kings springs, with new Ultima struts - went for a drive on dirt today, including corrugations,
car performed better than was expected, rode dirt well, corrugations better than expected, quite acceptable, didn't rattle
the car like the old suspension, but not as good as air suspension. The rear is still air springs.

General handling is good, with min body roll, sharp steering. As with most vehicles it doesn't like cross gutters / plumbers graves /
bridge joiners.

Conditions were fine, dirt was not too rocky, fairly well maintained, just a short distance of corrugations, some shallow,
some medium.

Another air suspension supplier option -
Terranger TA-T5-104 / 107 Air Spring Landing Gear page
Terranger - page might take a few seconds to fully load.

As a PS - member here Julian Edgar has written some informative pieces on suspension and ride quality for people interested -
AutoSpeed - Technology, Efficiency, Performance

[karra]

Ok so I haven't managed to get back to Pedders yet to get the new shocks fitted, but got some Toyo open country at+ fitted on my original rims that I powder coated black. 245/45/R17, they really fill the wheel arches. No rubbing on normal driving but at full lock on an angle I run a guard in my front left - the screw is missing so the guard is falling in towards the tyre slightly. Will fix it soon enough. Drives so much better than the low profile 20" rims!

I took it up to howqua last weekend and went on some of the trails there, nothing serious just dirt tracks. Dropped the pressure down to 30psi and was loving it until my check engine light came on.

Now I am replacing a corroded water pump and my dpf light just came on according to Boris at Volkscare. But that's another story.

With the lift, I can see that the rear is higher - will have to talk with Pedders again about the front as I requested 30 mm over standard and seems to be about standard height in the front now according to previous posts. I am happy with the lift in the rear, approx 480mm hopefully will not have any issues with cvs as I don't have spacers, but would like to get the front up to match - currently sitting at around 440mm.

Here is a before and after photo.

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[karra]

Forgot the before photo!
I also measured the hub to wheel arch while hanging off a jack - I think that will give full travel measurements?

Here they are

FR 435 - 542

FL 440 - 540

RR 477 - 533

RL 480 - 535

Cheers,
Karra

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[Markee]

An update on my heights as per MAD’s request for measurements from arch to centre of hub.
Driver front 475
Driver rear 500
Passenger front 465
Passenger rear 510

Using King Springs front and rear and Toyo Open Country AT2 245/65/17 on 17x7.5 ET55 rims

[karra]

Thanks for those Markee, I will use that info when I go speak to Pedders. I would be happy to get those heights in the front and leave my rears as they are. That should level the van out a bit

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[SvenOz]

Suspension on my Van

It's hard to judge with shocks unless you change them with not many miles on them.
I haven't done it on my T5 yet but I'm over 300k now so I guess it won't be long.
They feel OK now but the slow wear out makes it hard to compare.
With my T4, I just got a set from Just Kampers (whatever brand they are).
They seemed great but I suppose anything would @ 400k!

To reply to an earlier quote, surprisingly, the last owner of my van had the sense to put in a Seikel suspension set. So, it had the Seikel softer version of springs (Desert, not Desert Maxi) (made by Einbach back then, but labeled with both that and Seikel), and the Bilstein shocks. However, one of the front shocks had clearly been damaged, and someone replaced that with an OEM, and painted the Bilstein black so nobody would notice. Not sure who did that, but did mean I got to compare like for like one against the other, and have them both tested to see what the differences are. The Bilsteins are MASSIVELY stronger, and much better dampening. The traveling shaft on the Bilsteins is about twice the diameter of the OEM! The casings are also much thicker on the Bilsteins, as is everything about them.

Anyway, new Bilstein B6's on the front (too hard to get the Seikel spec ones quickly). On the back, had them tested, and they are different (better) in damping profile (ie, full computer testing the rebound) than the Bilstein B6's. The Seikel ones are better for offload and almost as good for on road as the B6's, but the B6's are a bit better for road use (not surprising, given the Dakar Rally background to the Seikel kit) so kept the Seikel Bilsteins on the rear, and fitted Polyairbags.

Off tarmac? I'd read the Seikel setup is great (brilliant), and on corrugations, just put the foot down. TRUE. The extra height is great, and doing 80 or 90 on corrugations almost smooth as bitumen for the ride. Both my wife, daughter, and even my dog were fine doing that and could not believe how smooth it raced along, big smiles. Actually, the dog slept through it all. I was in a rush one way heading to a town well inland of Byron after terrible traffic from Bondi and had to take the inland route (meaning, turn inland, head for shocking dirt roads (unknown to Google), ignore all the protesting from Google maps, and then head north, still ignoring Google maps, and go like the clappers as the sun starts setting) and make up some time after hours stuck on the highway with no way off (even taking to the bush, and through construction sites could not find a way out)! Around inland Byron Hinterland, and near Fraser, kept getting these precious 4x4's holding me up because their standard spec suspension was obviously a little hard hitting on the bumps and they wanted to creep along at 30 even though these were simply poor condition dirt roads full of potholes and corrugations, we're not talking fire trails or bush.

Back then (when kit made), Seikel must not have had the diff spacers, so I've had some copies installed, and put PolyAirbags in the back as well. Runs like a dream. Have 225/70/16 Cooper AT3s on it (the car version, not commercial, as they have softer sides) which also help give this a really nice comfy rider, but its a SQUEEZE getting the spare in, but runs really well off road. Did get bogged in the sand up near Frasers when changing gears (manual) in deep sand and had not let the tyres down. Anyway, got out without too much saga, let the tyres down to 16 PSI, more careful about when to change gears, and never got stuck again. Now got some let down valves and compressor to make the whole process easier.

Camper fitout is done, though want to remake some parts with some slight changes.
-Reimo roof fitted, with bed in roof so sleeps 4 (5 if you count our dog)
-eArch 180 solar panel, best on the market and super durable, 6mm thin flexi ones, and just attached to the roof with the same 3M High bond tape they fix aluminium siding to high rise buildings (not on at the stage of these photos, but now on), and have routed so there is no penetrations to the van other than through a plastic part of the rear light surround. Cable runs through holes in Reimo roof (on outside part) of the /reimo, down the roof track, down the side concealed by tailgate, in through the housing for the tail light, and into the van, then up to the CTEK in the front.
-CTEK (Dual charge + smartness) system, so charges @ 100A (the newer ones now do 120A) by solar, or on the highway (unlike many other dual battery systems that charge much slower, 15 or 25A, like Redarc I removed), as well as have a battery charge in the vehicle and a Anderson plug in for it, + 130AH Battery
-lots of 12v sockets plus 2.1A usb outlets, LED lighting through it, + anderson socket front and back for the air compressor.
-Had to change to a 5 seater rather than 6 that I wanted due to weight formulas (remove the bench from front to put in bucket, which is much better anyway, and install a 3 seater bench in the back). Anyway, this 5 seater arrangement means its still a 'goods carrying vehicle', so I get the benefit of not having to undertake a whole lot of upgrades for compliance, and can park in loading zones for 1/2 hour which is brilliant.
-Built my own CNCed fit out drawer style in the back from Maxiply Birch plywood. Have huge drawers almost 1.2m long, 440mm wide and 250mm deep (two on left, one deep one 460mm I think, on right one which fits in the fridge (gone for a 45l chest fridge), and drawers sliders so tough two people can literally sit in a draw no issues (well, at least if they have 225kg weight max combined), and all with locking sliders.
-Pull out bench combined in it as well above the fridge, and lids on the drawers as well as movable dividers. Great for pulling up nowhere and making a quick meal before packing up and moving on, all in the shade of the tailgate with the curtain drawn in the window.
- 50 litre water tank in that unit with electric pump all self contained in the rear unit (no holes in the van, and comes out in one piece with the rest of the unit). Great for post surf shower and wash off the boards if you hook a hose up to the tap.
- The bed base, well, lets say the whole unit is 18mm plywood for the structural parts, 5 vertical uprights (4 front to back, plus one across) that hold the upper base, and same on floor including bolted to floor lashing points, so it can probably carry more load than the van can, so no issues using it as a commercial and load hauling. Designed it so the whole lot comes out simply by undoing two heavy duty tie down straps, removing 2 bolts that go into the factor fitted anchor points in the rear, and unplugging one Anderson plug. The straps connect to the middle factory anchor points, so held in by 4 of the factory anchor points which can take significant strain. Whole thing then comes out, water tank and pump included, with not a single hole drilled in the van!
- Whole camper unit is friction fitted with tabs to put together, and that alone is strong enough to take huge loads, + then bolted as secondary, so its built tough.
-CNC makes it all so easy to put together when everything is cut to within a fraction of a mm. This thing is going nowhere unless you want, then the whole thing comes out, and if you want, you can always easily swap it into a new van (any SWB or LWB T5 or t6), or take it apart and store it flat.
-Oh, and put in hookups so can store 3 surfboards inside, under the roof bed when on the move, or anything else for that matter, such as when I had some Birch ply cut for some shelves I was making at home, just slide the into them straps, tighten, Bob's your uncle and can still seat 5 with ply pieces 2.4m long inside the van (well can go much longer than that.
-Without surfboards in it (my big one being 8'2"), can simply flip base for bed up into upright position, and acts as a cargo barrier, so quick pack up. Just flip up the bed base, and as long as your happy not seeing out the rear window, turn the key and head off with everything thrown in the back, and still seating 5! Otherwise, flip it right over, and you've got clear vision through, bed packed away, and seat 5. Have though about remaking that in Perspex so can see through it even when up, but also looking at installing a rear view camera at the back.
- Surfboards inside are a bit of a pain, so currently converting a jetski trailer to take 3 boards and 3 bikes so make that a bit easier for me, wife, daughter, dog and a friend to travel, maybe even another water tank and pump in the trailer, and want to convert it so runs the same wheels as the van so have extra spares.

Have had more thoughts of the diff lock, and think I have a solution, and will try to post a quick shot of my van later.

Also looking at making a tyre carrier for tailgate much like the VW bike rack as modified by Terranger, but making this one much stronger. Currently drawing up brackets in Rhino and have access to a CNC Mill. Looking at min 10mm thickness 6061 for the weakest part of the brackets, so this thing will carry as much as the tailgate can cope with (with uprated struts. If anyone knows of struts you can add air/gas to to change the NM rating as needed, love to hear from you). At this stage not sure if the whole thing will be 6061 billet, or do some in steel. Coincidentally, wife just gave me some MIG welding lessons as a present, so chuffed about that as it will come in handy for steel and alloy.

Anyway, as you can see, this is a work in progress. When I eventually upgrade to a T6 down the track, the next version will have many changes and improvements!

I've already had people literally approach me in the carpark asking if I want to sell the van as they've seen nothing like it and being impressed with the huge amounts of storage, sleeping 4, seating 5, the surfboard raking, etc. Always cops a good look in the camp sites, as well as often when passing other 4Motions.

[SvenOz]

Obviously some issues uploading, but you get the idea.