Big Sky Euro

Also posted on the Vortex:

I installed my after market struts and springs and noticed that the front sits just a bit higher than the rear (1/2 maybe?). After searching and reading I may have left the spacer in, but I am not sure (if I had one in there) because it's been a few months since I installed them. Will I mess up my alignment if I remove the strut nut, compress the spring and look/remove the spacer?

Also, if the spacer is not in the strut assembly, why would my car sit higher in the front? the car rides perfectly, and after I installed I had an alignment done and everything was fine, or at least the tech who did the alignment didn't note anything.

Any help here guys? Not much help in the vortex suspension forum... :roll:

Vortex Link:

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zeropost?cmd ... id=2990490

What "spacer" do you speak of? Are you talking about a bump-stop(foamy thing that rides on the shock ram)cause you may want to leave that in there, or if it touches the top of the shock when the spring is not being compressed (i.e. sitting still) you may need to trim an inch or so off it, but I would not remove it if you don't have to.

I think you will have a hard time removing the spacer without having to have it aligned. If you mark EVERYTHING before you disassemble it, you may get close to having it back within spec, but I usually have a front end alignment done anytime i work on suspention. I am pretty sure you will have to un bolt the shock body from the spindle, and there goes your alignment! The up side is you on ly need a front end alignment.

NOw, another thing to consider is that the front fender opening is higher on the front fenders than it is in the back. That is so you can turn the wheel and compress the suspention without fouling out on the fender. My jetta tucks the rear tire, but the front does not, just due to the height difference in the fenders, but the car rides level, if not with some front rake to it.

Anyway, that is my .02.

In some diagrams and other who have replaced suspension on the vortex they have an aluminum spacer:

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=2873144

for a pic of what I am talking about.

I can't remember if I had that or not, but if I wanted to look I would have to remove the top of the strut. I'll take a pic of my setup and maybe you can see what the rake is and tell me if it normal?

Camera phone pic...I can do better later if needed. Thanks!

from that angle, it looks okay to me, but it's your car, so you would know better than me. What suspension are you running,a nd do you have any problems with your driveshaft fouling on your swaybars? That may have somehting to do with the spacer, but I am having a hard time seeing MK4 suspension in my head right now, so that spacer may not affect the geometry at all. Nice pic for a cell phone!

Here's some reference




It's #7 in the Bentley but this is the R32/TT diagram - same for Jetta/GTI just
with a smaller spacer in the pic above. Supposedly this can be removed with no consequence. I am just wondering if I can remove the top of the strut and pull it out if I have in installed - without getting an alignment again.

Yeah - it's hard to tell from this pic, but it's just a little bit of reverse rake - I want to have a little bit lower stance in the front. LG Chocloate camera pic...

Rennwagen1 wrote:from that angle, it looks okay to me, but it's your car, so you would know better than me. What suspension are you running,a nd do you have any problems with your driveshaft fouling on your swaybars? That may have somehting to do with the spacer, but I am having a hard time seeing MK4 suspension in my head right now, so that spacer may not affect the geometry at all. Nice pic for a cell phone!

No driveshaft/swaybar issues, summer wheels are 18" Mille's - just want the front to sit a bit lower in stance and saw the spacer issue.

I am not an expert on the Mk4 suspension, but I would say from my suspension experience on everything else that there is no way that you are going to get that spacer out of the suspension without a spring compressor and taking the sturt assembly completely off the car......necesatiating a front end alignment. Like I said, I could be wrong, though....