Help lifting rear Mk1 suspension

[merlyn]

I need to lift the rear suspension of a Mk1 90 Camper.
I have checked the springs and they are fine, it is just that this van had a 2' extension fitted which makes it sit a bit low on the rear axle and makes the steering a bit light.
Firstly can anyone tell me if I can safely increase the length of the rear shackles and if so by how much
Also does anyone know what is entailed in converting to twin wheels to get a wider footprint, can I get away with just changing the rear hubs
Thanking you all

[FredTransit]

2' extention? Do you mean to the existing body, or the chassis before it was fitted? The reason I ask is that there is an equation that you can safely/legally have on an overhang, versus your wheelbase as dictated in the construction and use regs from the MinOfTrans. If it's over, it's unlikely you will get any trouble, but there's always that one traffic cop who thinks he knows everything, or an unfriendly MOTer, who will pull you up on it. Just thought I would mention it.

[Luke]

Mate what about spring assistor between the chassis rail and the axle?

also waht about a mk4/5 axle there 5 stud but about 2" wider each side to get the wider footprint without changing to 6 stud!

[anglebox]

dont extend the hangers,probably better fitting heavy duty springs,or slightly heavier duty,might bring it back to original height,and help with weight,---extending hangers will let the body dictate where back ends going to be on corners,and you wont like it,first time it happens

[merlyn]

Firstly thanks for the replies

Fred this had a coachbuilt extension by autohomes in 1976 the owners have kept the reciepts for this so I assume this is within the legal requirements.

Luke I like the idea of spring assisters, any idea where I can find some information on the web . An axle change may be the best way in the end but I am trying to get a result without major surgery first

Anglebox thanks for the tip basicly what i'm trying to do is shift some weight forward, not a lot, but at the moment the steering is to light and is particulaly noticable when excelerating the back starts to waft and feels unstable.

Thanks again people any more comment appreciated

Any chance of a spell check on this forum

[Luke]

When i had my mk1 camper there was quite a bit off body roll and the back end sat abit too low so i was considering welding a platform mounting on the the axle with a clamp to hold the spring in position, and a mounting at the top to the chassis for it to rest onto- then just trying some springs i had some from a vauxhall nova to try - just to assist the oe springs- if they were no good i would have had to get some made there quite cheep £20 for both -but i never got it done but bob who has it now has fitted new springs (i think from a p100) and says it doesnt need them anymore

Any chance of a spell check on this forum

No chance mate!! -join the club ive never seen a forum with such bad spellers (myself included) i think it must just be a transit thing!!

[FredTransit]

if you want to go the bigger springs route, you can either make some up yourself by adding a leaf or two to the existing ones (you will need longer U bolts), or get some made up, not sure where you would go your end of the country, but Paddington Springs in Wembley is the place in London.

Oh, and if you are worried about spelling, try running your post (copy and paste) through spellcheck in outlook, just open an new email and hit spellcheck there!

[merlyn]

Thanks Luke and Fred.
I'll have a go at sourcing sum springs first I'll try P100 or maybe some heavy duty. think I will get around the local yards and see what they've got.
My first choice was to extend the shackles but nobody seems to think thats a good idea so i've dropped it.

No worries Frod I'm nit warried aboot mi spoiling

[madmark]

this is a tricky one!

[bortaf]

If they are the origional 1976 springs i'd say they where well past their best and would probably be better with new ones (check MMM or MCM for leaf spring manufacturers) (camper van mags in case you hadn't heard of them)
Never assume the camper is within legal limits there was no regulations pertaining to camper van conversions for years and up till a few years back you could still buy a 5 berth camper with only enough weight capacaty for 2 persons and half a tank of fuel
if you are really worried visit a local scrap merchant and get the van weighed (they will only charge a fiver for this).
The trouble is the leverage put on the rear spings by the extended overhang on coach built campers

[FredTransit]

bortaf, very good point mate about no rules when the camper was built, that's what I am talking about. I am not sure though if classic non commercial vehicles can be pulled into new regs though. I was more concerned about later additions to the body, that's all.

As to the body roll, try sticking 2,000 hanging garments in the roof of a Luton and see how you get on!! I'm used to it!

[Gunslinger]

as far as i know things like this dont have to comply to the latest rules, just the ones in place at the time of construction, this is not a sweeping statement as there will always be the odd exception.

as for the suggestions above, i would get new springs, bushes, and hangers, you might be ok with the hangers but as their approaching 30 years old i would consider changing them.

Be careful with additions to the setup, as it will simply apply pressure to areas that werent expecting it because the springs are wornout

Raising the suspension by lengthing the hangers is a particularily bad idea, this will simply increase the side loading on the mountings and hangers. if you wanted to go this way, i would lower the mounting point by the addition of some extra chasis sections .... but compared to replacement springs, it would hardly be worth it

Back axle ... dont know, i'll bow to others knowledge on this one

[sirrichardpumpaloaf]

try fitting new shox,if your leaf springs are tired it'll firm them up and certainly stop rear body roll. IM A CELLRAT

[baconsdozen]

At a car boot some time ago I found a pair of coil over shockers (Haven't a clue what they came off) By maching new ends on them I managed to fit them to the rear of my camper in place of the existing rear shockers.It beefed the end up a bit but you can't really go too silly with monster springs and you have to make sure the new units don't go beyond the limit of their travel and strain the mounts.You could at one time buy rubber sphers (I think made be a firm called AEON) that fitted between axle and chassis and I've seen coil springs fitted in the same way.Extending shackles is a bad idea it upsets the geometry of the rear end and the sideways location of the axle is compromised.