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09-21-2017, 10:21 PM
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#81
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Vacaville, just east of the San Francisco Bay Area
Posts: 1,062
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Update from today's conversation regarding the passengers side tank with Jake at Aero. I forgot to ask him the dry weight of the tank, but it should be easy enough to come up with a number within a couple of pounds.
1. Agile will complete installation of a couple of the tanks in the next couple weeks, Agile will provide feedback to Aero.
2. The tank is made of 16 gauge aluminized steel.
3. The skid plate is made of 14 gauge aluminized steel welded directly to the bottom of the tank.
4. The tank extends no lower than the OEM fuel tank.
5. The tank has two internal welded baffles.
6. The tank is vented at the top.
7. The two carriage bolts run through pipe sleeves that are welded to and extend through the tank, these bolts pull the tank up flush to the underside of the van.
8. For orientation, the front carriage bolt comes through the floor approximately 15” behind the base of the front passenger’s seat, the rear bolt is another 36” back from the front bolt.
9. There are no plans to make this tank any larger, 14 gallons is the capacity.
10. There is no issue with adding threaded taps for future use.
11. The standard fuel gauge is shown on the website, wiring is run up through the firewall and the gauge is typically installed at the bottom of the dash.
12. 4-5 hours for Aero to install.
13. Allow 10-14 days for fabrication.
14. Pricing is not set yet, but it is anticipated to be the same as the 20 gallon driver’s side tank that is advertised on the website.
__________________
“Flint” - 2016 SMB Sprinter 4x4 144" RB 150S w/ PH
KN6BJX
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09-22-2017, 02:01 PM
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#83
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 752
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Backcountryguy
Also leaning towards making the 4 hour drive to San Bernardino for the install at their factory. I'd much prefer the work be done by the manufacturer if possible.
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I believe Aero cuts a hole in the side of the van for the fill port and the pipe goes into the van, turns 90 degrees, then goes through the floor, all directly behind the driver. Agile, OTOH, puts in a fill pipe whose port is in the top of the rear wheel well and snakes down to the tank, never entering the van at all.
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09-22-2017, 02:38 PM
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#84
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 242
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Correct. I believe Aero wasn't selling many of them due to the fact that most people had builds in place that didn't allow for the side port. Agile came up with the wheel well fill. There is nothing tricky about the install, and I'd have no problem trusting Agile to do it.
They encourage you to find your own gauge compared to the one that comes with the kit, FWIW.
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09-23-2017, 10:59 AM
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#85
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: Bellingham, WA
Posts: 325
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Good information, I would prefer fewer holes cut into the van as you would. I also like Agiles WARN winch install.
What are your thoughts on the suspension upgrade? I believe I'm still leaning towards the VC suspension kit.
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09-23-2017, 02:06 PM
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#86
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Member
Join Date: Aug 2016
Posts: 84
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Backcountryguy
What are your thoughts on the suspension upgrade? I believe I'm still leaning towards the VC suspension kit.
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Best to start a new thread...otherwise they'll get too far off topic.
Front:
I'm not a fan of Agile's approach with a coilover spring on the front strut... The top of that strut is rubber bushing and I don't believe it was designed to handle the loading of a spring.
VC installs some pretty beefy brackets and a Fox secondary shock. You have to provide the weight of the van + usage profile. VC will tune (valve) the Fox shocks...
If front end compression is an issue, VC uses a progressive spring from SumoSprings...it provides additional support AND acts like a much gentler bumpstop. I have these on Jeep (acting like a bump stop, not an add'l spring) ... and I have slammed them pretty hard - the difference between OEM and these was tremendous - and resulted in a much gentler 'slam'....
Rear:
VC will add springs. (less money)
Agile will add a whole new pack. (More money)
Reports on both are good. VC will tune/valve the shocks to meet your requirements.
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09-23-2017, 02:38 PM
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#87
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Vacaville, just east of the San Francisco Bay Area
Posts: 1,062
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VtSoundman,
Great summary. I have the VC package and I am a fan of it.
__________________
“Flint” - 2016 SMB Sprinter 4x4 144" RB 150S w/ PH
KN6BJX
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09-23-2017, 04:49 PM
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#88
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 242
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Quote:
Originally Posted by VtSoundman
Best to start a new thread...otherwise they'll get too far off topic.
Front:
I'm not a fan of Agile's approach with a coilover spring on the front strut... The top of that strut is rubber bushing and I don't believe it was designed to handle the loading of a spring.
VC installs some pretty beefy brackets and a Fox secondary shock. You have to provide the weight of the van + usage profile. VC will tune (valve) the Fox shocks...
If front end compression is an issue, VC uses a progressive spring from SumoSprings...it provides additional support AND acts like a much gentler bumpstop. I have these on Jeep (acting like a bump stop, not an add'l spring) ... and I have slammed them pretty hard - the difference between OEM and these was tremendous - and resulted in a much gentler 'slam'....
Rear:
VC will add springs. (less money)
Agile will add a whole new pack. (More money)
Reports on both are good. VC will tune/valve the shocks to meet your requirements.
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I'm in the opposite camp. I don't have anything bad to say about VC's setup, or any of their other stuff. It's all high-quality.
Agile's been in the offroad suspension world for 20 years or more. I trust they know what they're doing at this point.
The big differences besides cost are the fact that Agile's setup adds 2 inches or more in lift. I don't believe the VC unit does since it's just a damper (when talking about the front).
They're both custom tuned for your weight, they're both extremely well built, and they're both going to result in a much better ride.
The only thing I don't like about VC's setup is that you now have 4 damper assemblies up front. If the factory damper starts to fail, you're going to have to replace it with another factory damper. And any tuning is going to be at the mercy of the factory damper. I'm picky about suspension tuning, so this may not be an issue for most people.
You can't go wrong with either setup, IMO. Both are top notch companies. I'll be going with Agile's setup for the lift and because I don't want the overall tune to be at the mercy of the factory damper. Plus, it's what our builder installs, so I have local support to go with it. If they installed VC setups, I may consider going that route. My preference for Agile's design isn't a strong once since they're both great kits.
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09-23-2017, 05:08 PM
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#89
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 752
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The VC system does add a minimum of 2" in rear lift and can go more depending upon the number of leaf springs added. (I will have to do more checking re the front, but I believe that damper does lift the front.) I have seen their vehicles in person. Fitz had their package installed. If you look at his build thread, you can see some pictures of his Sprinter facing theirs before his was lifted. Theirs is noticeably higher. You can also read his detailed reports of how well the ride has improved on his vehicle. I would recommend reading through his tremendously informatively thread.
Agile offered RIPs for other vehicles for a long time. One of the original members of this forum, Ramsey, worked at Agile and was developing a RIP for Sprinters. When Ramsey passed away, Agile basically abandoned the Sprinter RIP for a long time. I emailed them several times about it and their responses seemed to indicate that they had little interest in completing the work Ramsey had started. I will likely get Agile to install a front winch in the OEM bumper and have them install the 20 gal Aero aux fuel tank, but due to the way the VC personnel spent so much time showing me their system and my impressions of their high quality work, I will be getting as much done there as possible, including their suspension package and lift.
Fitz, can you comment on lift in the front?
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09-23-2017, 05:24 PM
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#90
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 242
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TomH
The VC system does add a minimum of 2" in lift and can go more depending upon the number of leaf springs added. I have seen their vehicles in person. Fitz had their package installed. If you look at his build thread, you can see some pictures of his Sprinter facing theirs before his was lifted. Theirs is noticeably higher. You can also read his detailed reports of how well the ride has improved on his vehicle. I would recommend reading through his tremendously informatively thread.
Agile offered RIPs for other vehicles for a long time. One of the original members of this forum, Ramsey, worked at Agile and was developing a RIP for Sprinters. When Ramsey passed away, Agile basically abandoned the Sprinter RIP for a long time. I emailed them several times about it and their responses seemed to indicate that they had little interest in completing the work Ramsey had started. I will likely get Agile to install a front winch in the OEM bumper and have them install the 20 gal Aero aux fuel tank, but due to the way the VC personnel spent so much time showing me their system and my impressions of their high quality work, I will be getting as much done there as possible, including their suspension package and lift.
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VC's lift is in the rear. I specifically mentioned the front. I'm sure some of the VC tuned vans have a lifted front end, but there is no lift with their standard suspension kit.
Again - I don't have anything bad to say about VC or their setup. The cost, lift, and frontend damper design are the differentiators that would push someone from one camp into another. Local support is also a major player for me as I'm not driving to Cali to have suspension installed.
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