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I purchased a 3/4 " bar for the front of my VS from JC Whitney. Huge improvement. My (68 Tranny) VS came with no bars. The front bar is a must.

I also installed a camber compensator from the same source. I am not sure the camber compensator does what I want. It is there only to keep a swing axle outside wheel from folding under on a bounce. The Camber Compensator does nothing on compression of suspension, only on lift.

My 62 Beetle has a 68 tranny and anti-sway bars on front and rear. I believe the rear bar keeps my car much flatter in the corners. This summer I may try swapping the camber compensator and Anti-sway bar to see which is better. I also may try using both.

Now I need wider tires. The 165 Kelly tires that came with the car suck. I hope 195 tires will fit the rear. My measurements leave no room for error. If not, 185s on the rear will do.
I've got a camber compensator bar in the rear and that seemed to do alot. I do still feel the car has alot of oversteer I thought that a front bar, a small one, would help. I'm wondering if there is any difficulties installing one of these on a VS. I've heard someone a while back having to cut the bumper brackets to make room for them.

J-p
I'm currently running 25 psi in the rear and about 15 or a little more in the front. What size bar are you guys running, I've only been able to find 3/4 and 7/8th. Are these too big? Is ride effected? Also there are a couple different types out there, what is the one in the photo? Is that bar for a lowered 66+ bug? Where did you get that bar Eric?
Jean-Paul, 15 psi in your front tires with 25 in the rear is unbalanced; try to keep fronts about 5 or 6 psi lower than the rear and 28 psi for the rear tires is a good number. A 3/4" anti-sway bar is for all practical purposes 19mm, which is what the original font sway bars were on 356's; 7/8" bar (slightly over 22mm) would probably be too stiff for a street car.
J.P., The bar in the photo is for standard height cars, the one for lowered cars has a bend in the short side struts to lift the center section.I'm running the 3/4" bar as are most people along with a chamber comp., and with the right tire pressures the handling is pretty neutral.
Is there any problems with how low the bar sits (standard bar) with a Speedster? Looks as though that bar in the photo is the lowest point on the car. Why didn't you go with a bar for lowered cars? Do these fit? Bassically I've got the option to use either standard or for lowered models type of sway bar. Which one should I get?

Also it's good to know that the original 356 had this bar in standard form. 19mm bar sounds like a good size without sacraficing ride.

J-P
Thanks Eddie!

Eric, does your bar have problems with ground clearance at all? Is your bar the lowest thing on the car? I'm just a little concerned with ground clearance. Sounds like the lowered bar type could cause problems with the bumper brackets on our Speedsters as informed by Eddie. I konow this is alot of questions I'd just like to know others experiances to make an informed purchase. These cars are a little tricky as they are so custom.

Thanks,

J-P
I didn't know that a bar was created for lowered cars. My VS is only lowered slightly using a single adjuster on top tube. I have the same bar on my beetle, which has two inch dropped spindles. I really have no problem with the ground clearance. The bar is pretty much between the wheels. I did notice a potential clearance issue with the bolt that attaches the front body to the Torsion beams. I didn't have to cut anything but I could see if the bar was bent to give higher ground clearance, you would probably have to trim the bolt down.
I think your on the right track. Because the bar is connected to the torsion arm, the angle of your torsion arm when the car is sitting on the ground,( which is determined by how much you've lowered your car ) will determine which bar is best for you. The only clearance problems that arise are when the suspension is in full droop. That is when the bar rises up, along with the angle of the torsion bar. This can occur either on a hilly road or during jack-up.
I installed the 3/4" standard sway bar on today and yes it does help with the oversteer problem. I choose the standard type because it seemed like the bar for lowered cars was going to interfere with the brackets that support the front of the body. One thing I did notice while putting the bar on was the sway bar didn't clear thase body brackets anyway. There needs to be some clearancing done. It's never simple!

J-p
Just writing to say thanks for all the input on the roll bar thing. The advice worked out great. One thing I've gotta say though is why didn't Vintage install one of those things right from the start? The car is sooo much safer now than it was, also more fun. That was the best $50 dollars that I've spent for the car so far. With a full tank of gas and that bar I can really handle those corners, can't wait for the mountains to thaw and rip around on Angeles Crest Highway.

J-P
I got that camber compensator bar within the first week of having the car. Without that bar the car was down right scary to drive. I just don't understand why VS doesn't install those things or even recomend those parts when you buy the car, seems like a safety issue not to have those.

J-P
I have a VS manufactured in spring of 2002. I was also surprised to find no sway bar installed on this car. The chassis is from a '68 beetle. The 68 Beetle came stock with a thin front anti-sway bar and a built in rear camber compensator. I wonder the thought in leaving the front stock bar off. That is something that the car should not be shipped without. The stock 68 camber compensator was integral with the 67 and 68 body work and would be hard to retro.
I use the stock VW sway bar on my V.S. with a camber comp and the car handles fine. JPS cars come with the stock sway bar. You just have to install the bar opposite of the stock way so that it doesn't hit the bumper brackets under the car. So in other words turn the bar upside down then install it.
Jerry
J P by inverting the bar it does give you less ground clearance but there is still plenty. I got the bar from John Steele at JPS. All of his cars unless you want something different come this way. You can lift the car and the bar comes no where near hitting the bumper brackets. If its good enough for John Steel than it works for me. I am satisfied with the ride and the handling of the car.
Jerry
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