TheSamba.com :: View topic - Where does mid travel end and long travel start?

Wed May 02, 2007 10:22 am

A question here, Where does mid travel end and long travel start? I know that a stock suspension is about 8 inches. I also see that long travel has as much as 24 inches of travel.
So if it's stock at 8 and long at 24 where are the breaks and why.
After the Baja project for the boy is compleat, I have been toying with building a Berrien 2100 rail or mid travel Manx. I just need to understand how much of a step up in equipment comes at each step. We have a upgraded but stock travel suspension on our (street driver) Baja, so I understand that part, I am just looking for and Ideal on upgrading the next toy.

Ya'll have a good one. :D

Wed May 02, 2007 1:00 pm

This should be interesting...

From my understanding, a stock suspension does not have 8" of travel, but a "leaned on" stock suspension can get up to 9" (cut & turn, torsion re-index, etc.). I think stock was more like 5 or 6 inches. My car is at 13" of measured travel, but to me that is long compared to stock. Other people say that is mid travel. So you have a very good question... where is the dividing point?

"Yeah, but THIS one goes to eleven...." Spinal Tap

Wed May 02, 2007 1:21 pm

it seems like ony a couple years ago 13" was considered long travel.

Wed May 02, 2007 1:43 pm

ya good question dude
well in the truck world of off roading 12'' and up is pretty much concidered long travel total chaos fab has kits labled long travel and their pulling 11.5'' of travel so I would say that stock is stock and modifyed stock suspension with shocks and such like skid was saying would be ''mid travel''.

hey skid your getting 13'' of travel, what are you running 6'' over beam with 2 or 4'' over arms in the how to buggie book or (the bible) it shows a car with a 6'' beam and 4'' arms pullin 14, is your car straped at 13? has anyone ever head of a beam car pullin 16'' up front? without the shocks mounted on the upper aem?

Wed May 02, 2007 1:51 pm

In my personal opinion I would say mid starts at 10" and goes to 16" anything above that is long travel. But it really depends on what vehicle it's on. having 14" of travel on a trophy kart seams like a long travel car to me but if you built a class 1 unlimited car with 14" you would get laughed at.

Wed May 02, 2007 2:13 pm

good point DR. the car does matter as well but mid starting at 10'' I don't agree with that. a truck lets say toyota chaos kit 11.5 is concidered long travel not super long but long travel none the less, and a vw is smaller than a truck so I would think anything over 12'' would be long travel for a baja. and were talkin about a vw with a pan ect. a car like streamlines baja is just a trophy truck with a bug body stuff like that shouldn't count as baja long travel cause theres no limitations its totally custom, most people don't have the tools money and know how to build something like that.

a lot of people think you need a lot of travel so smash thru woops and launch off lips.... you dont , the truck I had before my baja had 13'' of travel and I easly got it off the ground 9' (launched it going about 75mph and little did I know there was a down hill on the other side of the lip, the hill went down 65ft (we measured it) and I landed about 10 or more ft after the down hill stoped, landed good not pellow soft but drove away fine and was ready for more:) damn I miss that truck

Wed May 02, 2007 2:44 pm

I thought "mid" travel is the most you can get out of stock parts...(cut + turned, indexed etc. and "long" travel was anything over that... (longer than stock?)

Wed May 02, 2007 8:34 pm

Okay, for this disscusion I was looking to define the parameters of stock/mid/long suspension for VW based Bajas, buggies and rails.
As a former racer (can't afford it anymore) I understand that compairing a "hobby" offroad vehicle and a pure offroad race vehicle is somewhat "apples to oranges". Racers are built with few compromises to the limits of class specs while a personel vehicle has the handicap of (some) streetability, the builders budget and his fabracation ability.
Sooo... If I was to sit down ready to start a VW based buggy or rail, some catalogs and a pot of $$, how might I expect to split the stock/mid/long travel question?

Interesting question, I expected that a pat answer existed and I would hear it quickly...

Ya'll have a good one.