What many people don't know is that Volkswagen never delivered separate shock absorbers for the 1302 and 1303, the shock strut was simultaneously the shock housing. When the shock absorber was replaced, the entire strut was replaced, preventing, for example, severe rust damage to the strut. The aftermarket reacted intelligently to this situation at the time by developing shock absorbers that could be mounted in the existing shock absorber housing. This was a much less expensive solution than replacing a complete strut that was only available from the dealer. Now (years later) we discover the big disadvantage, the strut is designed to last as long as the shock absorber and not the life of a car. A rusty shock absorber plate is therefore a common problem, which has led to a lively trade in used struts, which are offered at a higher price every day. Until recently, we had to settle for separate shocks mounted in existing struts, Volkswagen stopped producing complete struts years ago and no reproductions were available.
They are of a very high quality which is similar to what was assembled by the VW dealer in the 1970s and 1980s.
The shock absorbers are filled with oil as the original, but if you prefer to mount gas shock absorbers, you can do so by removing the existing shock absorber and installing a replacement gas shock absorber as an insert (see the alternatives tab).
04318 : 1302 and 1303 to 7.1973
04319 : 1303 of 8.1973 and later
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