Lowered Rubber bumpers and bump stops...

[Nunyas]

I have a question for those of you that have lowered your rubber bumper Bs. I put 550# springs in my 76 not too long ago. Recently rechecked the bits and pieces for secureness, and all checked out ok. I noticed that the since the suspension is settled in now car rides a lot closer to the bump stops. The front sits maybe a 1/2" from the bump stops. What's the best way to go about increasing this distance? Cutting the rubber stops down a bit? Replacing them with bits designed for the lowered suspension geometry?


I'm hoping to give the suspension a little more travel with hopes of losing some of the abruptness of some of the lumps, bumps, and dips in the roads I drive. I'm not trying to "cush" the ride at all, but I'd feel a bit more comfortable if there was a little more suspension travel before bouncing off the stops. I weigh 180 so the travel before hitting the stops is even less with me in the car. It feels like I have terrain following radar set to 4 inches of altitude.... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif

 

[CraigFL]

I've lowered mine with the shorter springs in the front an blocks in the rear. When I bought my parts, I noticed that VB sells the shorter stops but most people were saying they cut theirs off some. So far I haven't done anything to mine. I do know you can get heavier(performance) damper oil that would alleviate some of that.

 

[Bret]

Victoria British has a the bump stops you need for lowered Bs. They ain’t cheap but should give you the travel you need. Other than that about the only other option is to cut the ones you already have.

 

[Stewart]

Anyone possible have a part number handy for VB? I've got most of my stuff ordered to redo the suspension and the modified bumpstops would make sence to do at the same time?

 

[Nunyas]

makes sense to me... If i were thinking ahead, I would have done my bump stops when I did the suspension on my car. I don't have that part number though. :\

 

[Guinn]

VB PHONE IS 1800 255 0088 FOR CAT ORDERS...
Guinn

 

[Bret]

Victoria British front bump stops:

PN# 5-9960 Rebound Buffer Set-Short $79.95 each (2 required)

It's a little confusing but the discription uses the word "set" but says that it reqires 2 per vehicle. I guess you could order two and return one set if you don't really need two. But like I said thay ain't cheap!

 

[Stewart]

Thanks Brent got them ordered. After talking to the lady at VB you do have to order 2 of them.

 

[Bret]

Let me know how they work out for you and if you think they're worth the price or not? If they work out well for you, I just may have to pick myself up a set as well.

Bret (That's one "T" no "N") /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cheers.gif

 

[Phantomracer]

FWIW I cut the bump stops off my 2" lowered B ... Heck of a lot cheaper than the VB kit...

If you want...remove the aluminum spacer..take the stock stop..cut out the metal where the spacer was and re-attach...that should work too...and a lot cheaper.. I cant see spending that kind of $ on bump stops..

Cutting mine works more than fine

Here is a pic of one....I shaved them a bit more since this pic was taken

Paul

 

[tony barnhill]

What about cutting the 2 little ones on top for your shock?

 

[DrEntropy]

Is full droop a problem?!?!

Didn't think they'd get airborne for very long

 

[Nunyas]

If anything the top stops should be bigger, but the only time my upper stops even touch the suspension is when it's parked and the car is jacked up.

Full droop might be a problem if you like "Dukes of Hazarding" your B... with the 550# springs full droop darn near fully uncompresses the spring. Not sure if that's a particular problem, but possibly someing to think about.

 

[Tom Rynne]

I followed the directions included with the Brit-Tek kit and reversed the aluminum spacer. You have to cut it in half and then bolt it under the topside of the buffer assembly. This is the front axle which is going onto my V6 car.

 

[Tom Rynne]

pic here

 

[Nunyas]

aaaahhhh! I thought I remember seeing something about moving that spacer to the top, but seeing the size difference made me question my memory. Thanks for the pointer! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[tony barnhill]

Tom Rynne - GREAT IDEA! I know exactly which of my cars needs that!

 

[Nunyas]

I relocated my front bump stops this weekend by moving the space block to the top (ala Tome Rynne's post above). I gotta say the extra small amout of extra clearance that gave my suspension made a world of difference in the ride.

lesson of the day: Suspension travel ... good /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[DrEntropy]

Them must be some ~ferocious~ speed bumps you got "out west" Nunyas! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Nunyas]

well... they just removed the old ones from my normal route and put in some "new and improved" bumps... all 4 wheels are on the bump as I pass. Plus they made them nice and abrupt at the start and end (1" verticle lip?) of the bump. So hitting them at the posted speed ("Speed bump 15 MPH") had this nice jarring effect on ya before I moved the stops. These bumps are a bit of a nuisance at night as they ALWAYS cause headlights to hit the rear view... and people with squishy rides get me on their rebound too. It's kind of fun to watch people go over them "for the first time" and get air born... they ALWAYS slow down to a crawl when they get to the next bump... heh

Plus they're doing crazy work to the roads around my office ... like digging up the asphault to lay more pipes and stuff for the new Disney "Campus" their building... but they still haven't completely filled in the trenches they've dug yet. So there's nice 1" drop in roll 18" and 1" lip on the other side. Those were brutal to go through before I move the bump stops...

If you've ever riden in a light weight car that rode on its bump stops... you'll have an idea what the ride use to be in my B... heh