by Jeff Unwin.

As a carry on from the last story, I do not know very many people who want to go racing up hills to get their jollies. However, these days a fair few want a half decent handling Dub that is streetable and won't put you in traction with a slipped disc every time you hit a pothole. Nearly all of us have a favourite corner or section of road that we really enjoy driving through in an exuberant manner. Obviously it will depend on how much of a priority it is for you as to how much you are prepared to spend in time, energy, and money (TEM) to reach your handling goal.

Basically there is a ratio of TEM spent to percent of G-Force attained. I have set out a sort of chart with as much info as I can give within the confines of these few pages. These are my thoughts and feelings regarding handling gained over 20 years of being a "G-freak." My favourite G-spot is the Royal National Park or the Great Ocean Road, back in the old days when radar detectors were legal and you had a sporting chance.

I have divided the modifications up into two basic street categories:

El Cheapo Street

You want it to handle better only with the use of a few add on goodies that you can fit and forget.

Extreme Street

You are prepared to spend a whole lotta' TEM to unleash the mystical handling qualities of your German sports car. I hope this puts some light on a few of the modifications that can be done to your various rides.

Without going too deeply into the dynamics of the various VW style suspension systems there are a few basic terms that should be defined so that the chart can be read or understood.

Ride Height

Ride height can affect your camber, castor and toe in of your vehicle so it is very important to set your ride height first before doing any geometry changes when wheel aligning. e.g. lower the front to the weeds and you will have effectively changed your castor towards the negative direction, and your toe. If you lower the rear of a swing-axle type VW, it will result in more negative camber etc.

Wheel and Tyre Combinations

The lower the tyre profile for a given width tyre, the lower the ride height, the faster the speedo will read, the lower the gearing will be, the quicker the steering will "turn in." Fitting a small width tyre on too wide a rim will give a stiffer wall, and subsequently a harsher ride with better turn in. Too wide a tyre will make the wall baggier with a softer ride, but a vaguer feel.

Tyre Pressures

The higher the tyre pressure, the less wall flex, the slicker the turn in, with the expense of excessive wear on the centre tread area, and a harsh ride.

The preceding six combinations can be easily changed in the set up of your car—however, it is pretty important to get them right for your own style of driving, as well as the driving conditions that the car will be used under.

Suspension stiffness, choice of shock absorbers and sway bars are a different story as you can't really do any changes to them without major outlay of TEM.

So, it is very important before doing any changes to the latter to have a really good talk with yourself and work out the consequences of any such modifications. In this day and age, we can compromise with the use of adjustable shock absorbers, adjustable sway bars, and adjustable spring plates etc etc.

General Notes:

1. Repairs as required—king and link pins, tie rod ends, steering box and damper, ball joints, drag link, idler pin, wheel bearings, etc etc etc

2. KYB shocks—budget priced with middle of the range performance compared to OEM and the likes of Koni shocks. KYB shocks tend to raise the ride height so if upgrading at a later date to Konis be prepared for a ride height drop. i.e. check guard to tyre clearance, muffler and sump clearance.

3. Whiteline Automotive have a new range of VW swaybars that have been Dynotested for stiffness but give a better quality ride than the old replacement bars. The new adjustables give you 16 variations of front/rear bias but you only have to buy 2 bars.

4. Steel wheels work fine with a lower price but can easily be colour matched to the vehicle instead of the usual el-yucko silver. Alloy wheels look better but cost more.

5.When attempting to get a front and rear wheel alignment it is very important that the person doing the job understands the humble Volksie. To this end East Coast Suspensions at Kirrawee and Accurate Suspensions in Brisbane would be my pick. If in doubt give me a call and I can give you the specs and method of alignment.

6. Euroshocks. Konis are oil damped I and adjustable and rebuildable and work really fine. Bilstein and De ' Carbon are gas shocks, De Carbon giving a slightly harder ride than the I Billys. These are also rebuildable. Mark Hammond Automotive supplied the two set-ups for the Golf and would be glad to help with any enquires.

These suggestions are not definitive—you can mix and match as you feel necessary. If you are going to get your rig to handle it is very important to make sure that the parts you don't have to change are in good condition. Just because you have a pink slip or roadworthy certificate doesn't mean you can throw your Dub into an off camber hairpin at twice warp speed and expect everything to hang together.

I hope all of this info helps you handle it all a little easier,
Geoff

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