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alternative option is to find a VW hotrod shop...944 rear suspension is 99% identical to a super-beetle rear end.
Truth. Or regular Beetle, for that matter. ('Twas the front strut suspension that separated the Super Beetle from the Standard Beetle)
Pretty remarkable when you think about it: the rear suspension of "one of the best-handling sports cars of all time" is based on a ~77 year old design.
not quite...the first few decades of beetle had torsion bar FRONT and rear swing axle...Super's had the IFS and the torsion beam in the back which was then borrowed for the 924+...
it is advantageous to have the toe tool to make any adjustments.
post your location and maybe someone will point you in the right direction to a knowledgeable alignment guy. it isn't that complicated once you understand how camber and toe are intertwined.
not quite...the first few decades of beetle had torsion bar FRONT and rear swing axle...Super's had the IFS and the torsion beam in the back which was then borrowed for the 924+...
The original comment was regarding the rear suspension only, I thought.
All Beetles from 1969 had torsion bar and trailing arm IRS with double-CV half axles, not just Supers (which didn't appear til '71). From 1968 with Auto-Stick Beetles.
For that matter, all Beetles including early swingaxle cars were torsion-bar based rears with spring-plate trailing arms. This originates from the 1939 KdF-Wagens and even earlier prototypes. The key difference between SA & IRS was the axles, not the suspension arrangement. From an alignment standpoint, a shop is going to lump them in the same category.
I should have clarified my comment was in reference to "Super vs. Standard of the same vintage, i.e., 1971-up:". Here is the US, we had Standard and Super Beetles sold alongside each other up to '77.
My point was really only that the rear suspension was not unique to Supers.
it is advantageous to have the toe tool to make any adjustments.
post your location and maybe someone will point you in the right direction to a knowledgeable alignment guy. it isn't that complicated once you understand how camber and toe are intertwined.
I have the toe tool, and brought it.
I have another shop that can do it, they used my car to learn how to do it a few years ago. But it took 9 hours the first time, and I had to bring it back. I would expect the same experience if I went there again, since I'm sure the last 944 they did was mine. At least they charged me their flat fee for a standard alignment.
No point in posting location, Stable will be the recommended shop since they're practically walking distance and have a tremendous reputation for building Spec cars and are a PCA tech inspection spot. Like I said, I thought they'd just be way out of my budget. Obviously a corner balance is 5x what the standard alignment would be, but 5x is not the 10x I was thinking.
I finally got around to changing out the transmission fluid for Swepco 201, and I'm shocked the difference it makes. I had no complaints about my shifter, but the new fluid reduced the effort it takes to change gears almost to half what it was before, and the gearbox now seems happier with faster changes. The noise level was also reduced more than I expected. The fluid I took out didn't look bad, and I'm inclined to believe someone had changed it before, but the change was more overdue than I realized.
It's nice to take on a job that improves performance for once, rather than simply performing preventative maintenance.
I removed the gauge cluster and refreshed it. The original bulbs still worked but were extremely dirty, so I simply cleaned them. The first pic shows before/after cleaning the bulbs. You're looking at 29 years of dust on that bulb.
I also noticed the triangular shaped light tunnels had lost most of the reflective material, so I re-coated them.
It only took a few hours and restored the dash illumination for almost no cost.
I removed the gauge cluster and refreshed it. The original bulbs still worked but were extremely dirty, so I simply cleaned them. The first pic shows before/after cleaning the bulbs. You're looking at 29 years of dust on that bulb.
I also noticed the triangular shaped light tunnels had lost most of the reflective material, so I re-coated them.
It only took a few hours and restored the dash illumination for almost no cost.
I think this is what I need to do as well.
My cluster lights are so dim I can't see the cluster unless I'm in complete darkness. Holding a birthday cake candle in front of it would do a better job.
Work in Progress
I've Painted the New Wilwood Dynalite Rear Calipers, which are exactly the same dimms but have the smaller sized pistons than the ones currently fitted, this will hopefully totally erradicate the current issue with the rear axle locking slightly before the fronts......
The car is going back to one of the Race Shops tomorrow to have these fitted and also a New Reduction Gear Starter Motor from Uk company WOSP
Ready for next Friday's Track day at the 2.69 Mile Oulton Park Circuit
with the Porsche Club GB
10-22-2016, 12:23 AM
I think this is what I need to do as well.
