Suspension advice

Im collecting my '79 Mk1 next week and after advice on how much to drop the suspension by and what set up to use. 
It's going to have the family in for meets and weekend use only, so needs to have a relatively comfortable ride but only just losing the tyre under the arch.

Also will anything need doing with the arches? It's my first mk1 so any advice appreciated 👍🏻

Bc racing on my 76. Very comfortable when set to fully soft. 
Arches depend on wheel offset and tyre choice. 

Nice looking mk1 👍🏻 That's pretty much the stance I'm after 

Just don't go for cheap coilovers on a mk1. 

Anything other than bc, gaz, h&r or kw are pretty useless unless you want a damaged spine. 

Bc aren't cheap, but very much worth their money.

If you want to keep with springs and shocks and not spend a fortune then this kit is very good.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233057944785?hash=item36435604d1:g:xowAAOSwVjBhqAsQ&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAAwLAmgbI3KlVIWT4UKFjm5VlV5YM%2F2w31me8e3u7IyRK9DF0kK5el7Kh379oZwEAZD%2BWDimUN%2FOjOhQ9JfTpL%2Bt5sVI0tUMyr5lR1aiC2lTB4TKkvMWhy8En%2FSaN7q%2F7xCsvOZzomfEETFr6QWBnjSQLW3oYTdxy7HiTzWpjZKwkIq4J5jpLKFLVr4TVdi6bDcVYqHuX530Qq%2FF8L8fUtaMBZgCI6CORsshKCFB5R%2BCj9Ix5p8pZZK60SvkVvyua0nA%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR7L9paLzYA


Got the set up on both my cars and very happy with the ride, it can get a little bumpy on rough roads but with any type of lowering suspension it needs to be a bit stiffer than stock to stop you hitting the floor.

Very nice ride Capoach.  Love the colour!

I'm very pleased with my recently fitted GAZ Coilover kit which I got a decent discount on via Larkspeed's Ebay store.  These are made on order and it takes about 6 - 7 weeks for delivery.  You can also order them directly from GAZ.

I also fitted new suspension rubbers and mounts that I sourced from Heritage parts.

Being coil overs, you can set the ride heigh of course, but I've gone for -10mm from factory.

Roach said

Bc racing on my 76. Very comfortable when set to fully soft. 
Arches depend on wheel offset and tyre choice. 

I've seen you mention these numerous times on various threads so im sold on how good they must be. Could you please just confirm if you bought the normal or extra low version to get your ride height?

Thanks

I ended up going for SSP coilovers from Herirtage Parts. Suspension is a little harder than id like but manageable. Worth it for the look 😜

ESEN said

Roach said

Bc racing on my 76. Very comfortable when set to fully soft. 
Arches depend on wheel offset and tyre choice. 

I've seen you mention these numerous times on various threads so im sold on how good they must be. Could you please just confirm if you bought the normal or extra low version to get your ride height?

Thanks

Either will achieve that height I believe. Mine are the extra low ones tho, wishbone on the floor low… pretty silly. 

Roach said

ESEN said

Roach said

Bc racing on my 76. Very comfortable when set to fully soft. 
Arches depend on wheel offset and tyre choice. 

I've seen you mention these numerous times on various threads so im sold on how good they must be. Could you please just confirm if you bought the normal or extra low version to get your ride height?

Thanks

Either will achieve that height I believe. Mine are the extra low ones tho, wishbone on the floor low… pretty silly. 

Cheers. Looks like your wheels are nicely tucked under with a big offset to keep them away from the arches.

Always a skinny wheel with a high offset on a mk1 for me. It's currently on 16" steels 6.5 wide with et49. 

I had no idea you could go that high on the offset without hitting the suspension on the inside. Is it close or did you have to modify anything? Assume having coilovers gives a bit more space?

I recently bought the set of 15x6.5 BBS RM that Jake posted for sale on here. They're et33 which I thought was right for the mk1 but they do stick out more than I would like. They have 195 50 15 tyres on which I'm looking to change, maybe for 175 50 or 185 45. Not many tyre brand options in those sizes though.

Much prefer the tucked in look. Also helps with keeping the arches safe from the tyres!

That's about as high as you can go. People that run coilovers with helper springs may run into trouble but the bc doesn't have any. 

See I'm a tuck man, 33 in my world is on the edge of about right… I like 38 and higher. A tyre change to a 165/45 on a 6.5 would help it massively tho. Also with the bc, they come with camber adjustable top plates, so you can pull the front wheels in slightly to clear the arch. 

Cheers for the info. Might need to reconsider my wheel choice!

One final question on the coilovers - you mentioned they ride better than stock when fully soft. How feasible is it to run them soft without arch meeting tyre? In reality do you have to run them firm when you drop a reasonable amount?

ESEN said

Cheers for the info. Might need to reconsider my wheel choice!

One final question on the coilovers - you mentioned they ride better than stock when fully soft. How feasible is it to run them soft without arch meeting tyre? In reality do you have to run them firm when you drop a reasonable amount?

Well yeah if you deck it you'll have to firm them up a bit, but they're still very comfy. 

Your spring rate choice will play a large part in that. 

Yeah, not going to deck it, but a reasonable drop.

Would go for the softer spring rate. 5/3 I think it is

ESEN said

Yeah, not going to deck it, but a reasonable drop.

Would go for the softer spring rate. 5/3 I think it is

I wouldn't if yours is a gti. Mines on them but is only a little 1.1 small block. I'd probs go 6/5 or somewhere around there. Your choice tho of course.  

Everywhere I've looked says 5/3 is standard and stiffer is if you have a cabriolet  or an engine swap for a heavier lump, but I'll make sure I check again. Cheers

ESEN said

Everywhere I've looked says 5/3 is standard and stiffer is if you have a cabriolet  or an engine swap for a heavier lump, but I'll make sure I check again. Cheers

Ah fair do's. Maybe the weight difference isn't as different as I'd first thought. 

I'm finally about to get the bc racing coilovers, but just wanted to check a couple of things…

They come with camber adjustable top mounts but what happens to the camber adjustment that already exists on the hub/strut?

Is that no longer used? Does the eccentric bolt need to be replaced with a standard bolt? Should that be set to zero camber and then use the top mount to adjust camber?

Whilst I'm asking questions.. 2 more on this…

Do you need to use normal top mounts with them as well as what's supplied?

Can you use coltech top mount raisers with them and would that be worth it?

Cheers all!