[Rainer]

which is the best way to go to get a little extra lift on a steel sprung touareg.
spacers or tyres, I have 17" rims only want about an 1" or so lift to compensate letting air out of the tyre's for beach driving on Fraser Island for example. And what are the pros and cons of either and where to get spacers if that is the way to go:-k

 

[noobytoogy]

I'd say that's a no-brainer - just fit bigger tyres!

VWVortex.com - Firestone Destination M/T Mud Tires

 

[seafarer28]

I'd say that's a no-brainer - just fit bigger tyres!

VWVortex.com - Firestone Destination M/T Mud Tires

Agree, the cheapest option.

if you go to the 265-65R17 size you will gain 19mm in sidewall height, which will compensate somewhat for the drop when airing down for the sand.

TonyB

 

[Coight57]

I'd say that's a no-brainer - just fit bigger tyres!

Agreed. Rainer, plus you will additionally benefit on the sand with a larger diameter tyre providing a longer footprint.

 

[hedditch]

Be careful

I'd say that's a no-brainer - just fit bigger tyres!

VWVortex.com - Firestone Destination M/T Mud Tires

The vehicle shown in the VWVortex link is a NON-TDI without intercoolers. You will find that you have about 10-15 mm less clearance at the front edge of the tyre with your V6 TDI. This may or may not pose a rubbing issue. You can make some small modifications to gain a little extra clearance but keep it in mind when you are looking for larger diameter wheels.

Stuart..

 

[offroadAmarok]

I recently fitted Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac 265/65 R 17 tyres to our 2008 Touareg V6 TDI and found they added about an inch of extra height which is a bonus for water crossings. Probably the best tyre size as the speedo is dead accurate with this tyre size.

 

[Yeti]

I run a 245/70/17 on my TDI with light rubbing at low speed turns. Nothing serious as it is just rubbing the front vent opening of the intercoolers. My speedo is dead on with this size also.

 

[Odessa]

A lift is going to be cheaper than a whole new set of tyres !!!!

 

[noobytoogy]

But it compromises the car's handling back on tarmac.

 

[seafarer28]

A lift is going to be cheaper than a whole new set of tyres !!!!

If you put on a lift kit sooner or later you will still need new tyres so forget about the lift kit and just go with slightly bigger tyres , eventually you will be the cost of a lift kit in front, not so?

 

[seafarer28]

I run a 245/70/17 on my TDI with light rubbing at low speed turns. Nothing serious as it is just rubbing the front vent opening of the intercoolers. My speedo is dead on with this size also.

I run the same size on my '08 with no rubbing at all, must be that your particular tyre has a larger OD than mine, different maker/different size.

My speedo is about 2kph over as well as you would expect with a smaller OD to yours.

TonyB

 

[Rainer]

Thanks for all the feed back, by the looks of it i will be going with larger tyres. I don't want muddies but At's should be fine for me, hopefully 70 R17's will fit, now which brand? this will be interesting, to me all the big brands are much of a muchness except for maybe coopers.It is a pity that seikel suspension are so expensive, has anyone put spacers on there Touaregs from what I gathered so far it compromises handling and wheel travel I am confused on that subject all I want is a little more ground clearance with no affect on suspension travel from OE.

 

[seafarer28]

It is a pity that seikel suspension are so expensive, has anyone put spacers on there Touaregs from what I gathered so far it compromises handling and wheel travel I am confused on that subject all I want is a little more ground clearance with no affect on suspension travel from OE.

Have a look at my experiences here
http://www.clubtouareg.com/forums/f66/suspension-upgrade-steel-t2-tdi-166345.html

TonyB

 

[offroadAmarok]

Whilst probably a bit late, if you really need significant increased ride height (and probably cheaper than at least the Siebel option given the age) one of the best options is to buy a Touareg with the air suspension. Looking at Carsales the V10's with air suspension seem to start at about $15K for a not bad condition second hand model.

 

[Odessa]

No.

Sorry beg to differ. I understand you have tried all sorts of set ups and played with more than one could seem reasonable.

But..

Lift kit first. Get your arse off the ground by the same amount if not more than tyres. Once the tyres wear out then maybe update them also. Win ... Win !!!

But that then depends on how much articulation you want balanced in consideration of the the lift kit and the decision of a variation of tyres involved for different reason.

Not everyone wants to tow and not everyone wants to crawl. It all comes down to the most sensible balance of what one wants to do ...... No ????

If you put on a lift kit sooner or later you will still need new tyres so forget about the lift kit and just go with slightly bigger tyres , eventually you will be the cost of a lift kit in front, not so?

 

[Odessa]

Yup .... playing with a vehicle beyond any value will .... and it is weighted against what you intend to use it for

But it compromises the car's handling back on tarmac.

 

[Rainer]

ok, if I go a lift kit will it adversely affect the drivetrain, and will it still have the original wheel travel. also Ive read somewhere that spacers compress the springs and other adverse affects so Im not sure which way to go. sorry for going on about this subject, I don't want to do anything hard core. Just want to be high enough to drive the inland tracks of fraser and alike without ripping out everything underneath the vehicle, I have read that the wheel tracks made by other vehicles get quite deep. ( if spacers are the way to go where does one get them)?

 

[FSJ Guy]

Touaregs have horrible wheel travel to begin with! As do most independent suspension vehicles.

:- /

I think that is why VW said "forget articulation". Let's add mechanical locking diffs for tougher off-road situations and "electronic" locking diffs via software for slippage on the road due to snow and ice.

The spacers do just what they say. They add space between the spring mount and the wheel assembly. They don't necessarily compress the spring any more than it already was. So, if you have a soft riding spring, adding a spacer will not affect the spring rate (softness).

In "max height" off-road mode, the air suspended vehicles raise up almost 140mm (5.5 inches) above the load level minimum height, so I don't think you'll have issues with CV joint wear or anything like that.

And remember, usually the point of a lift kit in the 4 wheeling world is to make room for bigger tires. The larger tires is what really gives you more clearance with a solid axle vehicle.

With the Touareg's independent suspension, larger tires will still help you out by smoothing out small bumps and increasing overall clearance on top of the lift you got from the spacers.

Hope that helps.

 

[noobytoogy]

Regardless of taller tyres or a lift, the one thing I'd say you most definitely need if you are tackling serious off-road territory is a sump guard.

 

[Amanzie82]

Thanks for all the feed back, by the looks of it i will be going with larger tyres. I don't want muddies but At's should be fine for me, hopefully 70 R17's will fit, now which brand? this will be interesting, to me all the big brands are much of a muchness except for maybe coopers.It is a pity that seikel suspension are so expensive, has anyone put spacers on there Touaregs from what I gathered so far it compromises handling and wheel travel I am confused on that subject all I want is a little more ground clearance with no affect on suspension travel from OE.

Hi guys, currently they (seikel Germany) are charging 1700€ (excl. tax.) for the lift kit. Touareg forum members receive a 20% discount on the pre-mounted Spring set. That is 340€ (excl. tax) which, imho, is a fair price.
Sadly, bigger tyres are out of the question in Germany- which sucks big time.
Mounting a couple of 235/70 16" MTR's now.
The spacers are OK, but what about.:
- wheel alignment and tyre wear
- cv joints
In Germany you can find something on www.spaccer.com
I heard from a couple of people that the German TÜV does not accept the spacer system in Germany, other counties should not be a problem....