For Full Westys and Other Heavy Syncros - Increased Ride Height & Suspension Travel - Modestly Stiffer than Stock Springs -  - Designed for Dual Purpose On/Off-Road Use

General Description

The Syncro Westy D/P coil springs are for Dual-Purpose use on Syncro Westfalias and other heavier Syncros. The springs are accurate to the Syncro's heritage and provide real off-road performance and capability while still providing excellent on-road performance.

The springs provide increased ride-height and suspension travel, are modestly stiffer than the stock springs. The springs are designed to maximize the potential and performance of the stock Syncro suspension.

Goals & Objectives

These springs were designed with the goals of:

(1) increasing ride height and suspension travel while remaining within VW specs.

(2) increasing stiffness modestly in order to improve handling and stability.

(3) providing a high-quality spring that performs well on and off the road.

VW only made one spring for all US Syncros, whether for light passenger vans or heavy Syncro Westfalia camper vans. The Syncro Westy D/P Spring is designed for dual-purpose use primarily on the heavier Syncros. By narrowing this spring's focus to a smaller range of vehicle weights and characteristics, we can provide a spring that performs better on those vehicles than stock springs or any spring sold by our competitors.

Ride Height

With thin shims for fine-tuning, these springs allow a range of possible ride heights from roughly 19" to 19.5" on an empty Syncro Westfalia. This range of possible ride heights permits optimal suspension performance. The vehicle has enough "sag" under static weight to move up and down over terrain utilizing the maximum range of travel the suspension provides. The increased height also provides additional suspension travel.

We do not advise a ride height above 19.5" for several reasons. Heights above 19.5":

(1) result in a loss of range of suspension travel and performance;

(2) result in more significant stress to CV joints and higher rates of failure;

(3) do not permit the vehicle to be aligned to VW spec., and

(4) result in more "lean" and increased risk of a roll-over on paved roads at freeway speeds (as is true with any taller spring on any vehicle).

Without shims, these springs will provide an empty Syncro Westy with a ride height of roughly 19," measuring from the center of the wheel/axle to the lower lip of the fender. A 1/8" shim upfront, and a 3/16" shim in the rear will provide ride-height of roughly 19.25" on an empty Syncro Westfalia. For ride height of roughly 19.5," a 1/4" shim upfront and a 3/8" shim in the rear are utilized.

This ideal range of ride height - from 19.0" to 19.5" - allows for adaptability to a wide range of syncros, tires, height and handling preferences, and uses, all within stock specs.

We advise Syncronauts who drive almost entirely on pavement and who do not have extra-large tires, to use the springs without shims (except to level a westy, as needed - see below.) This setting and ride-height will provide the best and safest on-pavement performance while maintaining outstanding off-road performance with a decent increase in ride height.

Those with larger tires or who desire maximum height can obtain the desired ride height easily and simply through the use of fine-tuning shims, as discussed above, without any complications or loss of performance.

Spring Rate

The spring rate for the Syncro Westy D/P springs is the result of over a year of testing five different sets of springs with different rates, including three different sets of prototypes we had made, on a variety of syncros under a variety of conditions. We worked closely with a veteran spring engineer to translate our testing into a design that would achieve our ultimate goals.

The result is a spring rate that strikes an ideal balance between on and off-road performance and a rate that works very well within the damping specs of off-the-shelf shocks for the Syncro.

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