OriginalMadMax

I'm currently running 8" 375 lb. Carrera springs all around on my coilovers. These feel substantially stiffer than the 7" 375 lb. springs I originally got from Cattman (which lost about 1" of height from use; Carrera springs are guaranteed for life not to do that). My problem is the poor road conditions here in the SF Bay Area. While I love the accurate steering of the stiff setup, it's hard on my back, to say nothing of the car. I'm wondering if a different front spring might help, or maybe find one with fewer windings so there is less chance of spring coil binding on hard bumps (that tends to damage the springs and shorten their life expectancy). These have 8 coils, 1 per inch, and they are significantly more compressed in front than in the rear from the weight of the vehicle.

I'm running Konis all the way around, 3/4 setting in back (which is fine) and soft on the street for daily driving.

Gotrice4

I had this conversation once with Y2KevSE and Jane97SE and really i haven't had the chance yet to test out their theories. What gen max do you have? and what coilovers are you using? I would think that with the longer springs like the 8" you have and the lower spring rate(375 lb/inch) that it should be comfortable. Going to an even lower spring rate you could have a problem of bottoming out, which you prolly know. So about spring rates, i guess i can't help you that much...sorry

OriginalMadMax

I have a '97 SE with Cattman coilovers. Though the upgrade is supposed to prevent the struts from bottoming, the springs bind (coils collapse together) - you can feel the coils where they hit each other. That is still uncomfortable. If you look at the stock springs, the fronts are much bigger, with bigger gaps, than the rears. I think there should be coilovers with fewer windings and a steeper angle. That would make a difference. Right now I bind the fronts, but a stiffer spring would increase front end bounce, not great for handling. I'm hoping some other guys with coilovers can look at theirs and see how many coils they have on each spring.

NightRider

iTrader: (6)

Good Info you have. Try this. Try going to a 400lb. spring in the front. This can be achieved by getting an 8" spring with 1 less coil per inch. Then reduce the rear spring rate to a 250lb-275lb spring. The reason I say this is that to stop the binding, you'll need a higher pring rate along with extra spacing for increased suspension travel. By reducing the rear spring rate, you'll get the car to its more ideal weight balance which is 60/40. You need the higher spring rate up front to offset the weight of the engine. The 4th gen is very light in the rear. Also, try going to a 7" spring in the rear. Sometimes lowering the rear a little more than the front can help balance it out. You may also want to purchase some polyurethane bumpstops from Koni to help with the bottoming. Hope this helps!!

OriginalMadMax

I switched to the Ground Control 380 lb Eibach springs in front. These actually go to about 400 lbs at full compression, and have 1 fewer coils than the Carreras. This has indeed fixed my problem with coil binding. My rears were fine, just the fronts giving me trouble. Thanks! The other thing I've done is put tiny o-rings on my struts under the Cattman monoball. This takes out that obnoxious rattle in the upgraded parts.

DanNY

iTrader: (14)

how much were the springs? where did u get them? website address?
thanks!

OriginalMadMax

I got these directly from Ground Control. Like most coilover springs, they were $55 each. I don't know the contact info offhand, but I got their phone number from Sport Compact Car. I'm sure a websearch would turn them up too.

DanNY

iTrader: (14)

thanks, i'll go lookie!