Mk1 and 2 independant front suspension conversion!

[MrTransit]

Thats some serious work your doing, i'm very very interested!

Did you have to weld spacer sections between the original chassis on the van and the IFS subframe?
I want to fit ifs from a '96 to a '91 but noticed the chassis on the 91 has an arched section over the beam axle, whereas the 96 chassis sections are deeper in this area and the bottom surface runs level from the subframe mounting holes at the front, all the way back.

Top work..keep the camera busy aswell though!

[Luke]

at the moment in the pic with the grey mk1.2 the ifs subframe is resting on the chassis but i may have to cut away a bit of it as it is angled i have removed the bump stops tho. but before i cut anything i'll move it back some and see how it sits.
i will have to make up some sort of mounting for the rear hole the 1st one i did i fishplated it and drilled through the chassis horizontally, but this one i want to look neater so at the moment im thinking of a mounting bracket similar to the gearbox x/member one

[Luke]

Update - ground the shocker mounting points off today and ive aslo redrilled the front hangers and the wheels are now central again

also im not going to cut into any of the chassis rails where it lays is pritty much perfect - and to go an extra couple of mm isnt worth the hassle and weakness it would give. so im going to make some hangers for the back bolts with captive nuts and then it should be ok

at the moment i drilled a hole using a hole saw in the inner wing and ive got the shocks tops sticking through so i can see where they will end up, looking at the new shocker mounting points i might not use the mk4 inner wings any more i think it might be easier to make my own

this is a sketch of what im thinking

the dotted line is where the origanal inner wing should line up then i would cut the mounting braket flush with it all this would be covered by the carpet/cover

just ideas at the moment

[Luke]

well im making progress - ended up cutting off all the mk4 inner wings, bar the mounting plate, bending a 3mm plate to fill the gap,and it doesnt look a million miles from the drawing above, ive got it tacked in at the moment but im gonna break it free to remove it and fully weld it off the van, then refit it it's a little more tricky than i have hoped for but shouldnt look too bad once its done, i'll see if i can get a few pics.

i had to get it to a point where i can see the finish or i'd have been on a downer all week and yesterday when i went up it was looking a complete mess and i was almost regretting starting it but at the moment im pritty chuffed with it

ive also rasied the mounting points by 40mm each side as im going to lower the front - probly by more than 40mm but it will help to keep the angle nearer factory

[Luke]

some pics - this is the o/s trial fit the top part will be cut off once its all welded in



and here is the hanger for the front subframe rear mount its not welded in yet. I was going to weld the nut to the bracket but thinking about it, i'll not be removing it every day and if i ever to it wont be too much hassle to put a spanner on it and if it was welded and the threads stripped it would be a major pain to sort

[Luke]

heres the mounts complete - you can just see a line on the one on the left, above that will be cut off

[Sundowner]

good work bloke!

im very keen to see the finished product

[gemini]

nice work luke, would you have been able to make it flush with the arch using a bit longer shocks, like to see some pics from a bit further away

[Luke]

would you have been able to make it flush with the arch using a bit longer shocks, like to see some pics from a bit further away

i know what you mean but not really! shorter shocks would have helped make it look neater but ive increased the length by 40mm insted, to help with the suspention geometry, it would also help if it was wider, but im having enough trouble keeping it under the arches as it is i think doing it this way it will be very strong too. if you see the pic with my hand thats where your right leg would be

im very keen to see the finished product

mate your van will need it with that new engine - you cant be doing decent speeds with the old steering box go on you know you want too

[Sundowner]

im very keen to see the finished product

mate your van will need it with that new engine - you cant be doing decent speeds with the old steering box go on you know you want too

yeah i kinda do
if i stunble across a knackered mk3 i may just do it

[Luke]

if i was doing it again i think i'd go mk3 rather than mk4 as more of the bits interchange ie. hubs handy if you've allready redrilled em

[UK_ANDY]

Cant wait to see it fineshed Ive got a soft spot when it comes to MK1/ MK2 's if I had the work space and the time I would start another project like yesterday

[Luke]

yes im still doing this :roll: got one side fully welded in and the rear mounts tacked in place

im also thinking about welding some locating lugs to the crossmember but i dont know if i should do it once ive done - that way i can measure the camber then centralise it, im not sure how accurate it has to be - i fitted an old top bush to see how far out it was and it was about 2mm out i was a bit dissapointed then i measured the bush to find that was 2mm out that got me thinking how far out does it have to be before it causes a problem ie tyre wear i think im gonna have to invest in a set of camber measuring gauges

[Luke]

cut the old steering box hanger off today, well i drilled out the spot welds so i can keep it in one piece - might come in usefull for a rhd conversion when i go to germany and bring back a ex-furwharerr

im gonna plate the hole so it looks neat - i was gonna leave the hanger in place but i think it looks better gone, plus its a rot trap

[transitgeoff]

the early ones have a steering box mount on both sides