vince vette 2

Given the ongoing delay with VBP these days, I'm looking at the Van Steel alternative. I'll pose a couple questions.

Has anyone had any bad experiences with them?

Has anyone used both VBP and Vans and, if so, is there any real difference?

Speaking with the Van tech, he seemed a little hesitant when I said I'm leaning toward the 360# spring rather than the 330#. I'm replacing a gymkhana and I never minded that ride, so I thought the higher spring rate wouldn't be an issue. I do have adjustable Koni shocks so I could adapt on the rebound at least. Thoughts?

Crimson Thunder

I have never heard a single bad thing about VanSteel.

Pop Chevy

I just bought the spring for my race car (410) , had it in 3 days ! Little pricey but fast service.

jb78L-82

I replaced my gymkhana 7 leaf steel spring in 1986 with a 360 VBP composite and the ride was SO MUCH better than the OEM steel spring. I have Bilstein Sports in the rear with the VBP 360 even today and the ride to me could be a little stiffer to my liking. If I ever need to replace it, I am going to go with a 420lb composite. GO 360!

vince vette 2

Thanks all. I'll put the order in this weekend. Honestly, I won't likely be ready to install the spring for a month. But something is clearly in flux with VBP. I'm concerned that even if they would get it to me by then it may not be up to their past quality until they sort out whatever is going on there.

JoeMinnesota

I just cancelled my VBP order yesterday and ordered a Van Steel 330-350 Mono-spring. When we discussed my combo he told me if I go much stiffer I may have an issue with sufficient weight transfer/squat and sacrifice some traction at launch. I'm moving from the 9-leaf on a 1970 SB coupe so am sure it will be worlds better.

vince vette 2

Interesting to think about. The 80 has more glass back there, but less fiberglass without the flat deck. It has a bigger gas tank which if full would add about 40 lbs, but that's about what the drop in weight is going from the Eaton to the Dana rear end. Then there's the aluminum cross member. Maybe I could just keep a 50 lb bag of sand in the back,

theandies

I have the 330# spring and it's great. Just be sure to get the correct shock for a composite spring.

Van Steel is great to work with especially Dan. I bought one from them and about 6 months after I installed it I noticed the front corner started to splinter. I got a hold of Van Steel (Dan) and they sent me a new one no questions asked. I did send the defective one back to them at their request. They sent me a reason for failure a few months later stating that there had been a manufacturing error. The "new" spring has been on for over 10 years now.

JoeMinnesota

I'm running new Bilstein HD's on all 4 corners and he said that would match up fine.

I agree - very helpful people to deal with.

vince vette 2

I was torn between the Bilstein HD's which I've heard plenty good about and the rebound adjustable Koni 8040-1020's (rear) and 1019's (front). They were on sale with 23% off and a $50 rebate for buying 4. That priced them equal to the Bilsteins. And I figured the adjustability might come in handy depending on just how everything else going into the suspension would work. Eric and Van's felt they would work well. And they would surely be better then the Gabriels installed sometime in the '90s

vince vette 2

Did the spring come with new bushings? Also does it mount using the original mounting plate? I ask because the sales guy told me it comes with the bushings and uses the original plate. But when you go to order it, there's a listing for "other parts you may need" and that shows a bushing, bolt, and mount plate kit. I'd hate to get the spring and then have to pay another shipping charge for the kit.

OldCarBum

I purchased a complete new front and rear coil over suspension from Van Steel. They helped me through every part selection and were patient with my 1000 questions. I'm sure there will be a few additional items I will need when I start the resto mod but I'll be calling them for answers and anything else I need to purchase.

Street Rat

I called Van Steel and ordered a custom width 330 spring for my application. I experienced superior customer service during the ordering process until the delivery of the item.

vince vette 2

Hello Street Rat - did the spring come with everything to mount it? per my earlier note, the sales guy said it would come with standard bolts and new bushings. But it doesn't show that on the website.

Street Rat

The only thing that came with the spring was rubber to mount the spring to the rear end. I bought some NOS bolts on eBay to mount the spring.

Primoz

I also am waiting for VBP for 4 months now. I ordered the grand touring kit for my weekend driver.

7t9l82

VBP and Van Steele are both quality operations. All my stuff is VBP but I wouldn't hesitate to use Van Steele.

redvetracr

I had single adjustable Koni`s on my vintage racer, adjusting them made no difference I could feel, I had a new set of re valved Bilsteins so I tried them...the Koni`s went in the junk pile.

7t9l82

QA-1 made a set for my car that weren't adjustable without going back to the factory, thus far I have no complaint. Totally happy.

JoeMinnesota

If you order the basic spring from Van Steel, at least the low arch monoleaf, you can use your original spring plate and he said I would need 8" bolts to adjust ride height.

If you have VBP parts on order, sounds like you'll be waiting a long time. I was a month into my order and told at least 30+ more days before they could build the parts, but they weren't even sure about that. No time to wait.