Im on a mission to finish up my wagon this summer but could use some input on a couple of things.

Im building a hybrid of sorts, going for the offroad look but wanting scarry fast on the street for a 22 year old wagon. EJ20G with wrx drivetrain, vlsd, waic etc along with xt6 f&r swaybars and 27" tires.

I bought a "boss" lift, its all 4" everywhere except the rear struts wiich are 6". Im thinking I could have the front strut tops cut and sleeved to 6" and replace the x member,rear diff, rear sub frame etc with 5" stuff and figure out what I need for the xt6 trans x member blocks once its all installed.

At what lift in inches do I need to extend the length of my rods 1" ? Ive read about this but dont have a grip on what im trying to achieve. I know what I want, a good handling wagon at speed on the freeways( 70 to 90 mph ), I have an ej22 conversion set up for off road when I locate a nice ea82 wagon but this one I want to handle well at speed.

Edited June 7, 201213 yr by T'subaru

I don't see why you can't just extend the strut blocks to 6"..seems like it would work to me. One thing I would do for what your doing though is change the angle of the strut blocks to 18*, maybe even 19*. The normal angle is 17*, but I wanted a little more negative camber(18*) to help with handling and to help counter act the wear of a FWD vehicle. My 6" lifted wagon, with no swaybar, and 30" Maxxis Bighorns handles better than it did at stock height on stock 185/70/13 Toyo Spectrums.

 

Extending the radius rods isn't required for any size lift, but I have my radius rods extended 1.25" and I did it for two reasons:

 

1. It increases the clearance between the tire and the back of the fender(near the door) allowing you to run 30-31" tires without cutting or bashing the back of the fender.

 

2. Moving the knuckle forward increases castor angle which helps the vehicle self-center, but makes turning slightly more firm. It makes for a more stable and solid ride...I can let the wheel go while moving and it just goes straight, freeway speeds(Fastest I've gone on 30's is about 85mph) are comfortable and the rig feels secure and planted to the road. Secure and planted like how a truck feels, not a WRX.

 

I extended mine by cutting them and sleaving them with 3/4" grade B pipe . The pipe butts up to bushing flange at the rear mount and goes as far forward as possible on the control arm end, both ends are welded up. Its stronger than the old one and the only part that bends is the stock part that comes out on the control arm end..I know.

 

Josh

Thanks Josh,

I dont think ill be going any larger than 27" but while im replacing most of the lift blocks anyway....something to definatly consider.

you definitely want to do this when you have the lift blocks off the car. I tried to do mine by simply pulling the old rods out and putting new ones in 4 hours later I had 1 in.

6" lift, with that much power you will want to cross brace the rear lift.

 

Lean a 6" lifted rig into a corner, and stab the gas, and the back end wants to tuck under the car. Or more like the body wants to roll off the subframe.

 

EA82's are a little better than EA81s, since the rear mounts of the "K" bar are traingular, and outboard of the front joints.

 

But still, a crossbrace to prevent the "paralellogram" action would be a good idea. (although I don't see hardly anybody do it)

6" lift, with that much power you will want to cross brace the rear lift.

 

Lean a 6" lifted rig into a corner, and stab the gas, and the back end wants to tuck under the car. Or more like the body wants to roll off the subframe.

 

EA82's are a little better than EA81s, since the rear mounts of the "K" bar are traingular, and outboard of the front joints.

 

But still, a crossbrace to prevent the "paralellogram" action would be a good idea. (although I don't see hardly anybody do it)

 

Thats an interesting idea.

Im currently considering modding the f & r strut tops to 5" and running with the rest of the 4" lift components. Heres a pic of my kift kit...Boss Bill definatly builds quality stuff, all 1/4" steel and the rear K member components

im definatly impressed with.

 

Edited June 12, 201213 yr by T'subaru

whoa volksy van !

whoa volksy van !

 

haha, yep. Im working on it currently and its driving me nutz!

whoa volksy van !

 

 

I wonder how many others have a Vanagon and an old Subaru.

 

Mine:

'88 GL-10 Wagon (EJ20G)

'86 Vanagon Westy (EJ22)

I wonder how many others have a Vanagon and an old Subaru.

 

 

don't got a vanagon but an old bug

I wonder how many others have a Vanagon and an old Subaru.

 

Mine:

'88 GL-10 Wagon (EJ20G)

'86 Vanagon Westy (EJ22)

 

haha, Ive got too many old school subi's, 7 subi's atm and im hoping to thin that heard down this year.

My Westy Vanagon is an aircooled and I had the engine rebuilt about 3 years ago...and got it running today!

I have an ej22 conversion sitting here, I may convert this one once I use up the aircooled or bide my time for a worn out water cooled at a cheap price:)

don't got a vanagon but an old bug

 

Funny how we feel a need to punish ourselves;)

Best volkswagon part ever 2.2 subaru enginge !!!

Ha, yep, I've got a 2.2 L in my '84 Vanagon, now I'm back to my primary love of tinkering with the 80's soobs. I'm sure your wives are as happy as mine with their grease-stained and parts-ridden driveways!