I just installed maxspeeds and I have a horribly uneven drop. The rear sits about an Inch if not more higher than the front. Im VERY happy with the drop in the front but I honestly can't even tell the rear has been dropped at this point. Since in installed springs which had already been used for a couple months I know it won't settle anymore so my only options at this point is to either completely replace the rear or cut them. I can put my entire fist into the rear gap and only about 3 in the front.

I've heard cutting 1 spring will give me about a 1/2 inch extra drop but I honestly need at least an inch to even the car. Should I cut a second off as well? Also do I cut from the top or bottom. Top has the tightly wound progressive coils and I figure since they end up resting on top of each other they're effectively dead but I'm no expert here so I may be completely wrong as well. Will cutting a coil from the bottom give me more of a drop? As in about an inch for 1 coil?

Also I assume that cutting a 'coil' means you cut it directly below (if you're cutting a top spring) where the original coil ended so you have a full 360 degrees of coil cut off. Am I wrong?


I hate doing this because I've heard so many people say not to do it (then again I've heard a lot of people say "do it") but I don't see any other options at this point. If the unevenness was only minute I wouldnt care but it's very very noticable.

Help!

 

Before you jump to conclusions, wait till the front springs settle in 2weeks to 4weeks.

Dixit

 

Uhh..My problem lies with the rear springs and the springs I got were already used for 2 months so they've settled completely.

 

lol..

springs don't settle because they are used.. springs settle because you remove the suspension during install and it needs to re adjust and come back down

 

and by what you've said, it seems you're thinking of doing this yourself? DON'T!

If it comes to cutting them, before you ruin a set of rear springs then have to buy them again (and potentially be unhappy with them all over again), have someone who's done this before do it for you. It'll be cheaper in the long run to pay someone than mess up and have to start again.

 

Wish I knew someone who's done it but I may be out of luck there. The idea behind it seems fairly easy..hacksaw and cut away but again, I don't exactly know where to cut it. Was hoping to find out from someone on the org.

As to settling. I always though 'spring settling' just meant that as they carried to load of the car for a prolonged amount of time they settle more (because of the weight) to their 'optimal' tension, etc. So even though my springs have been used for multiple months I should expect normal settling of up to even half-inch, etc over the next couple weeks?

Thanks ahead of time and any and all help is much appreciated.

 

you are getting help right now... when more than one person says you're about to make a mistake listen, because you're about to make a mistake.

let them settle for a few weeks like suggested, and use that time to call a few local shops and see if they'll cut the springs and install them if you end up wanting it done.

good luck.

 

I've had my Maxspeeds on for about four months now, and it took a 1000 mile round trip to Ohio, three weeks ago, with two backseat passengers and a trunk full of luggage for my rear springs to settle properly. After the trip, I couldn't believe how much the rear of the car had dropped. It has stayed that way ever since. So, long story short... my advice is to load the trunk down pretty heavily, and drive around like that for a couple of weeks (or for about 1000 miles), and see if you're happy with the drop then. It would be a shame to lose the mellow ride (compared to other lowering springs) that the Maxspeeds offer. If you cut them, they are gonna be harsh.

 

Ok, ghetto as this may sound I just loaded some olympic weights in my trunk. 3 45's, 2 35's, and a 25. Ill wait a week with the weight in there and see if there's anything signficantly different.

Should there be no change though could anyone possibly tell me where to cut the springs exactly. You can use the picture below and just place a marker at the spot, etc.



Thanks for the answers.

 

I dont have that promblem with my MAxspeeds even when they were first installed. Maybe you got a bad pair or a bad install. I'm using KYB AGX with mine if that makes adifference

 

You'd want to cut a coil off the top, right under where the last part ends. But like everyone else has said, id wait awhile.

 

So you guys are saying that everytime springs are removed and reinstalled they will resettle. That is odd because my used Eibachs did not resettle at all, not a bit. I measured.

 

everytime you remove your suspension.. the car will need to resettle ... also you will need an alignment

 

Ditto to what Dixit said. Maxspeeds take a long time to settle for some reason (longer than the sprints I had previously).

RL

 

Are you sure you did not mix front with rear springs, as they have different spring rates ... Front have alot higher (stiffer) rate than rear ones ...

 

impossible

 

 

I have had Maxspeed close to a year now, but over the new year's eve, I took 5 people (about 1000 lbs, 3 in the back, 2 in the front), plus luggage for a 1 week trip from Milwaukee to New York (luggage is about 200 pounds or so total).

The rear got low....and it actually a bit lower than the front ones (during the trip). It has got back up since then (January), but now the rear is definitely lower than before the trip. I could stuck my 3 finger gaps all around, with a very slight "rake" look.

I was dissapointed the way the Maxspeed dropped in the beginning, but now I know why the rear is like that. I do road trips regularly, so my Maxspeed setup is perfect, otherwise, I have a sagging rear with even drop (without load).

Armand

 

Ok, isn't it strange though how with others they install new maxspeeds and instantly the drop is even all around (Im guessing 90% of people who install have it like this) and then theres the few who have a problem of the high back?

I loaded a few hundred pounds of weight into the trunk but its nothing compared to full lugage + 4 passengers. Unfortunately my car doesn't get a lot of passengers in it other than my 100 pound girlfriend who'd throw a fit if I made her sit in the back so I don't know how I'll be able to get the necessary weight in it to lower it (if it works). Now I'm afraid to cut the springs because if it were to eventually lower itself like it did for you two then it's gonna be sagging in the back.

I will however take the wrap that's on there currently and redo it. The spring wrap used goes around every one of the progressive (top) springs and is quite thick in diameter. Since those springs rest atop each other when the car is on the ground I have added height from the tickness of the wrap (basically its coil, spacer, spacer, coil, spacer, spacer, coil). I'd say 1/4 inch if not more without the wrap.

Can anyone tell me exactly how to wrap the rear coils? Is it only needed on the very top coil like it is on the strut setup or..?


Thanks

Note to self: Fat girls make great spring compressors. Need to find one.

 

only if you bounce them in the back seat!

 

The drop is not even with Maxspeed. You should get around 3 finger gap all around, but "the correct" height should be 3 finger up front, and about 2 and 1/3 finger in the rear for the fronts and rears to sit even (no "rake").

You could redo your suspension, but I doubt it will make much of a difference. I wrap mine with plastic wraps for the upper coils (the ones that are so close to each other).

I weigh about 200 lbs, and I notice that the driver's front is about 1/4 inch higher than the passenger side (without me). But once I am in, the driver's side will sit lower (due to my weight), and it worked out to be almost even (for the fronts). With me seating, the driver's side rear will drop about 1/8 of an inch, leaving the passenger's rear fix. Once I am putting my friend (that weighs 200 lbs too), the rears are level, and the driver's front sits about 1/8 inch higher than the passenger's side.