Suspention upgrade and bigger wheels... HOW?

[Torchd]

Hey guys!!

I have an MKII 1.6 TD with stock suspention and 205/60/R14 wheels.

I wana go for bigger wheels and Im not sure whether I shud go for 15's or 16's. I do not want the ride to become reallly hard. Can I put 16's with the stock suspention? Would they touch the body?


I also wana lower it a little and get rid of the body roll at turns. But dont really wana compromise on comfort. What shuld I do? How is it done? Do I have to get some other springs? Or will I have to change the shock absorbers as well? What kind of kits are available in the market and from where?

Really appreciate the help; you guys are the best!

[8v-of-fury]

I think when your dealing with a smaller vehicle, such as most vw's. You cant really go for a big rim without sacrificing ride comfort. If you want a big rim, you dont have room for an appropriate size tire. And if you lower it, you barely have room for a small tire and rim combo. However if you are really awesome with fabrication skillz, im sure you could tub all four wheel wells, and flare the fenders a little

Then you could probably run some 225/75/16's :lol:

I dont really like the look of bigger rims on vw's especially a diesel, IMO... get yourself a set of 13" steels.

[Torchd]

Thanks for your input!!

I do not wana do anything to the arches.

I know I will have to compromise on the comfort but I think bigger wheels and tuned susp will outweigh that.

I do like bigger wheels on MKII's and my car is not gona be an ordinary diesel.... It will have between 120-150WHP.

Cheers!

[Torchd]

Any ne else can help tooo?!!

[Smokey Eddy]

mine's pretty beefed too. I lowered the rear and put larger tires on 15's in the rear. You can't load the trunk very much without the rubber hitting the wells but for normal driving it's fine and it is a much stiffer bumpier ride.

Like Jeremy said, you can't really lower without sacrificing ride and you definately can't get lower profile tires without sacrificing ride.

My thread called "anticipated 1.6 td build aaz head" (or something) in the IDI section shows pics of my bigger tires in the rear.

I haven't done the front yet but im SURE my turning radius will be limited. I had to do some modding to the front fenders just from the increase in tire side never mind lowering it.

I think the tire dimensions are in the post somewhere too.
I think they're 195/65/15 or something close to that.

Edit: by load i mean 4 guys + about 50 beers. didn't like that very much...

[spencebm]

I am running 15's dropped to the ground in the front with 195/50/15 tires.  Chopped springs makes it rough but you need good suspension, good tires, and the right offset wheels.  www.vwvortex.com is the place to discuss wheels to fit on mk2's, they know everything about them.

[Torchd]

I was thinking of getting the complete sports suspention back. Coilovers and everything. Would I be able to put 16 rims? with those?

[zukgod1]

I have lowered mine about 1.5" and i'm running 16" wheels.

[Torchd]

Wicked ride zukgod!

So how have you done it? how stiff is ur ride and do the wheels touch anywhere?

[erdmankw]

im planning on lowering my 85 quite a bit and running 14's on it.

my 98 gti has a 60/40 cup kit and i dont think i could fit much more than 15's without sacrificing the ride of the car.

my cup kit turned out to settle way lower than 60/40 its more like 70/50
[/img]

[zozep]

I have a set of FK 60/40s on my car, right now with winter tires (I think they're 15's, but i'd have to check... but if i drive carefully, I seldom rub, unless hitting a pothole or something (it happens). I find that most of the rub I get comes from the flares coming into a parking lot, the weight of the car and the fact that the wheel is turned out usually means rubage, unless you take it *really* slowly.

 I'd have to agree, very difficult to not sacrifice ride comfort when stiffening up suspension.
It has pros and cons for sure, a dented oil pan and the occasional rub is never fun times, but no body roll is... Depends on your needs I guess.

http://www.concept1.ca/SUSPENSIONS/FK%20SUSP/H%20FK%20Hi-Tec%20Kits.htm

[zukgod1]

Wicked ride zukgod!

So how have you done it? how stiff is ur ride and do the wheels touch anywhere?

Thanks man!

I used KYB GR2 struts and Neuspeed SoftSport springs with one coil cut off.
It rides firm but nice, handles great as well.

[erdmankw]

Im on my third oil pan and second oil pump..... not bad for being as low as i am with a big heavy vr6 under the hood. the vr pan hangs way lower than any I-4 VW has every made. you shouldn't really have any problems with a diesel pan rubbing unless you drop the car more than a 60/40. to counter my cars appetite for pans I welded a steel plate (1/4) on the bottom of this pan so it takes a little longer to ware through(already scraped it once).


first off you need to decide how much you want to lower it. anything more than 2 inches of drop I would recommend running struts that will hold up to the beating. ie... a cup kit (take your pick theirs a ton of brands out there) . if your looking to stay inexpensive I would strongly recommend taking a look at super sport they are inexpensive and I have had good luck with them. love my supersports. they can be picked up in the low $300 range if I remember right for struts and springs... great deal if you ask me and its designed to work together.

also ...
you may want to consider putting new strut bushings, bearings, and any other worn out components your rolling on now while your in there.

[Smokey Eddy]

do you guys have to change the camber at all when lowering?

[jtanguay]

do you guys have to change the camber at all when lowering?

it probably should be done, but i'm sure not everyone does it.