Ok so today i was working on my brakes and had the wheels off in the rear. I noticed my springs and had a question. I have the sprint springs.


my question is this ...looking at the springs i think they are what is called a progressive spring. The coils are wound about and 1" to and 1.5 " apart and then the coils that are closest to the body a re wound tighter together. The car is jacked up with stands under the axle which would simulate the car being on the ground so the coils are compressed they way they would be with the load on them. my question is i noticed the tighter wound coils only about 2-3 mm apart from each other leaving pretty much no room for movement. Is this the way they are supposed to be. Looked odd as it would effectively reduce the work of the full coil already being almost fully compressed.... Anyone see this on there aftermarket springs? Also i looked and noticed this is the case with the fronts too.

 

No. Your springs are defective and should be replaced today.

Seriously though, do you believe your vehicled has suffered some damage to the springs? I doubt there is anything wrong with the springs, unless your vehicle sits lower than it should on Sprint springs. They are probably still as designed by the manufacturer.

I would have to guess that the previous owner installed the springs since you seem less than 100% sure of the manufacturer.

My suggestion
Assuming you've correctly identified the manufacturer of your springs, I would look up the drop measurements for that spring. I believe the measurements are taken at the high point of the exterior fender well. Your numbers should compare directly to measurements of other Max's on Sprint springs.

If you vehicle sits lower, one of two things may be the reason.

1. You may have misidentified the spring manuafacturer.
2. The previous owner may have (unlikely) heated up the installed springs to increase the drop. This is a very poor technique old hot rodders used in the 50's. You would probably be able to notice this as the finish would be damaged and the coils would no longer have a uniform wind.

 

No there doesnt seem to be evidence of any tampering with the springs. I bought the springs second hand and they came in the sprint packaging plus they are the color blue they should be. ALso the drop is as advertised at around 2 inches. I lookedeup progressive springs and it does seem the top springs are supposed to come in contact with each other t oincrease the spring rate. But sitting still it looks like they are to close together. Maybe thats the way they were designed but im not sure. i like them and they handle nice but some bumps and imperfections really jolt you.