What is the stock ride height for these cars?

If you ask Mango Man he'll tell you to "bag n slam"

Getting the best look doesn't translate to best ride. Your driving style and optional equipment (exhaust system, added oil sump, etc.) will dictate ride height. the VW has adequate suspension at stock height but that is worlds away from what looks good on a speedster. Therefore, the suspension is compromised when lowered to what looks decent.

Henry and the Intermeccanica crew have modified the rear wheel well lines on several builds to give the impression that the car sits lower yet retains adequate height and suspension.

Originally, the top of my wheel well opening was right at the top of my 15" rim. After installing a deep sump and breaking that sump I raised the height 1" and went to a thinline sump from CB.

Now, about to replace that sump because of bottoming out, I'm in a quandary; to raise the ride height would give me the "stink bug" look and to run without a sump would create a high-temp problem. I'm going to be working on my shock selection - possibly coil-overs...

I'm an aggressive driver and country roads are my playground so I'm probably a little tougher on the car than most of the guys here. depending on road conditions and a right-seater, "bottoming out" can happen with certain regularity.

If you're a cruiser an optimum look would be 1/2-1" of tire showing under the wheel well opening. the front end should be level or slightly higher than the rear.

Well, Mr. Nuckels.... you could always dry-sump it...

Stan,

Thought about it...no.

.... good plan, Terry.

bag and slam it... oh wait...

what i did was find a bunch of old photos of 356's that i liked and figured out what stance they had and why they looked so good.  that was my plan.

then i bagged and slammed it.

Terry:

Have you thought about using a taller tire, like a 50 or 60 series instead of a 40 or 45?  Tire height difference alone might gain you an inch+ without changing the "look".

I typing from memory so i think mine was 24 ..1/4 on front from floor to center of wheelwell.. back end was 21.. 1/2..

Gordon,

I'm running 185/65 shoes. 

Any taller than that and I might as well run wagon wheels.

I'm pretty sure I can go a stiffer shock.

Right now I just want to get the frucking thing back on the road.

Thought about tire size.  I am running a 901 gear box.  I am assuming unless the tire size is the same as a similar 911 the speedometer will be off.

Mango you are the guy that can take a picture off the net and figure out distances right?

On most speedsters, the speedometer is driven off of the left front wheel and is not affected by the rear tire size.

Terry, I feel your pain.  I also like to go canyon carving, and as I mentioned in another thread, I've whacked my sump (and merged header) a few times.

I guess we only have a few options:

1.  slow down  (doesn't help-I whacked my sump going over a big speed bump)

2.  raise the suspension height (not a good idea-looks goofy and hurts handling)

3.  go dry sump (a great way to go, but too complicated for me)

4.  larger diameter tires (185/65-15 has a 24.5" diameter-205/65 has a 25.5" diameter, so a ground clearance gain of 0.5")

5.  larger wheel size (a 205/65-16 has a diameter of 26.5".  That's a ride height

gain of 1".  Might look weird, though.  205/60-16 would look better and at 25.7" give you a 0.6" gain in ride height.  Also, 16" wheels would be heavier, which is a real negative for our light cars)

6.  go without a sump (on a big engine like I have it probably isn't a good idea)

I have Koni shocks and I think my back shocks are set at 3/4 stiffness.  I may take the rears off and change the setting to full hard-see if that helps.

Ron

Boy, I hope Dr. DeManto isn't reading this. 

Shocks don't need batteries.

Speaking of adjusting rear ride height in IM cars - I'm crawling down my driveway and still crashing my sump so I'd like to start bumping up the suspension.

My car has Henry's long bolt with locknut, one for each side and in a location that isn't great in terms of access. I'd like to know ahead of time whether turning those bolts inward, clockwise, toward the front of the car, or outward is the right way to raise the car?

I know I can trial and error but all the jacking and getting up and down  screws my knees, back, and diabetic feet all up so would anyone help me with a little bit of information?  I'd sure appreciate it.

need advice, what is the easiest way to lower one of these? riding too high

The easiest way?

Take it to a mechanic.

Absolutely the easiest way - take it to someone who knows how.

BUT..........if you really want to tackle this yourself, try doing a search on here or, better yet, look in the knowledge section for a full explanation of how it's done, complete with pictures.

If you're on a VW chassis, Youtube it.

How to lower a VW bug or Lowering a Type 1 (something like that).

TONS of step by step how to videos