205 Novice Help

[cfraser16 0 1 Cars]

Hi all,

 

I bought my 1990 1.9 Gti back in September with the aim of putting it back to standard and restoring it a bit.

I have spent quite a bit of time working on the interior and feel I need to get stuck in with the things that will make the big differences!

 

I am looking for a bit of advice with regards to the suspension - the car sits very low and is pretty unforgiving over anything more than a small dimple in the road.

 

From all that I have read I would imagine the rear beam needs redone and I want to return the springs and shocks on the front to standard.

 

So the help I am looking for is this:

- which parts will I require to return the suspension to standard set up? (I know front springs, full set of shocks...)

- where should I get replacement parts?

- how much should I expect to pay?

- should I attempt to refurbish the rear beam myself?

- any advice on where I might send the beam for a refurb if I don't do it myself?

- what specialist tools will I need?

I bought this as a first car and while I have a mechanical engineering back ground I haven't really had much hands on experience before so any help would be much appreciated and apologies if my questions seem a bit daft!

Thanks!

[mrfirepro 127 1 Cars]

Hi,

 

I was in a similar position to you six months ago and have done all the work myself, give it a go and if you get stuck there are some really helpful members on here.

 

I'm a novice, compared to most but here are my answers

 

Standard set up - as you suggest for the front, when you rebuild the rear beam you can set it to whatever height you want.

 

Replacement parts - the best advice I was given was to use OEM where available, there are plenty of threads on here which details the parts needed for the rear beam. The only parts I used that were not OEM were the rear beam shafts (got them from ebay, neat autos)

 

Prices - iirc the total costs of rear beam parts was about £350 (assuming you replace everything, including shafts)

 

DIY - yes, yes and yes, give it a go, be methodical and if you run into trouble (as I did) there are plenty here who will help.

 

Buy refurbished beam - There is a member on here who sells refurbished beam, I forget his name but others will remind you.

 

Tools - Look up Tom Fenton on here he makes a torsion bar puller tool that makes the job Sooooooo much easier. http://205gti-nfp.co.uk/?page_id=60

 

Most of all read the refurbish guide here

 

http://www.205gtidrivers.com/articles.html/_/articles-guides/brakes-suspension-steering/rear-beam-refurbishment-guide-r66

 

Good luck

 

[ANDYGON 6]

Hi,

 

 

Buy refurbished beam - There is a member on here who sells refurbished beam, I forget his name but others will remind you.

 

Tools - Look up Tom Fenton on here he makes a torsion bar puller tool that makes the job Sooooooo much easier. http://205gti-nfp.co.uk/?page_id=60

 

Most of all read the refurbish guide here

 

http://www.205gtidrivers.com/articles.html/_/articles-guides/brakes-suspension-steering/rear-beam-refurbishment-guide-r66

 

Good luck

 

 

I think I noticed Alastairh is rebuilding beams and does them on eBay. I'm certainly interested!

 

Best of luck