[VIC] ATTENTION! (Chopped Springs)

[D-Man]

As funny as it is unfortunately he could have killed someone (or himself). And he did not learn his lesson, cable ties!?!? cable ties would have solved his problem?

<sarcasm>definately, cable ties and duct tape fixes all things! oo also wd 40 but i think it's useless in this case.
</sarcasm>

 

[red_vb]

.... so if he had of bought "super duper hektik extra low" springs for 300 bux that are the same free length as the ones he cut - it wouldn't have happened?

cut springs are likely to make your car handle and feel like crap - but they don't just jump out because they are cut.

They jump out because someone hasn't bothered to run a shortened shock absorber to suit the reduced travel requirement of any spring that's free-height is shorter than a standard spring.

Conclusion: This sort of thing can happen to anyone that's running lowered springs WITHOUT having changed the shocks. - whether they forked out a few hundred bucks of hard earnt plastic printed, clear windowed goodness - or got crafty with an angle grinder.

Even king spring 'lows' will jump out - on a bad day with standard shocks and some serious train crossing action

I dunno how springs would jump out from the front of a commodore? unless they become massively dislodged and break the strut rod or something?

^^^^this is exactly what i thought....if you lower your car you also need the shocks done.....otherwise whenever you jack POP.....(am i wrong?) I'm not condoning the wanker in the top post but calling someone to brag about your f**k up=FAIL.

 

[Not_An_Abba_Fan]

.... so if he had of bought "super duper hektik extra low" springs for 300 bux that are the same free length as the ones he cut - it wouldn't have happened?

cut springs are likely to make your car handle and feel like crap - but they don't just jump out because they are cut.

They jump out because someone hasn't bothered to run a shortened shock absorber to suit the reduced travel requirement of any spring that's free-height is shorter than a standard spring.

Conclusion: This sort of thing can happen to anyone that's running lowered springs WITHOUT having changed the shocks. - whether they forked out a few hundred bucks of hard earnt plastic printed, clear windowed goodness - or got crafty with an angle grinder.

Even king spring 'lows' will jump out - on a bad day with standard shocks and some serious train crossing action

I dunno how springs would jump out from the front of a commodore? unless they become massively dislodged and break the strut rod or something?

Ummmm...no....not entirely true.

A cut spring will have a higher chance of jumping out than a lowered spring because of the length of the spring. The low spring is sometimes shorter than a standard spring, but it is more to do with spring rates. The low spring will have the same number of coils as a standard spring but they are compressed, or in a variable rate spring, part of the spring is compressed and part is not.

When you cut a spring, you are shortening it beyond the length of a low spring by removing coils, so the overall length is a lot shorter than a low spring. Fitting shortened shocks will not trap a cut spring as the extended length of the shock is designed to go with a low spring, not a cut one, the cut one is shorter than the shock.

 

[sycvs]

im young dont know much bout springs but know not to cut them get it done properly your car will be happy and safe and cops will be fine and very low chance of a accident

 

[minux]

As far as i can tell, most people here know what a dangerous mod is, and rip into people if they say they are doing something stupid. I doubt any member here would sit by and not post ina thread for a guy who wants 1000hp with drum brakes all round..... (exaggerated hypothetical)

guess i shouldnt mention an rx2 i once owned which ran lively mid to high 10's with drum rears and stock front brakes

 

[VRStato64]

thats just carma for running cut springs....

 

[BXHD]

Correction: Typical VN P plate MALE driver :thumbsup:

reminds me, in Yea, this p plater MALE, in a vn was doing skids on the dirt roads near cliff like drops, lost it, slammed on the brakes and slid off the edge. ive got pics on my phone, i should upload them LOL. its back end was sticking up like, 5 ft in the air on the edge of the road. ive got a video of my dads mate pulling it out. funny thing it it started up, had NO damage at all on the front and no oil leaks, etc etc . and he drove home!!!

 

[Troy711]

Anyone who cuts springs can go and read vlv8vics avatar...

 

[BXHD]

just had to put it in here.

 

[VN_Luke]

Ummmm...no....not entirely true.

A cut spring will have a higher chance of jumping out than a lowered spring because of the length of the spring. The low spring is sometimes shorter than a standard spring, but it is more to do with spring rates. The low spring will have the same number of coils as a standard spring but they are compressed, or in a variable rate spring, part of the spring is compressed and part is not.

When you cut a spring, you are shortening it beyond the length of a low spring by removing coils, so the overall length is a lot shorter than a low spring. Fitting shortened shocks will not trap a cut spring as the extended length of the shock is designed to go with a low spring, not a cut one, the cut one is shorter than the shock.

what's not entierly true? I think we're both saying the same thing really...

the shorter the spring, the higher the likelihood that it will jump out. Anything shorter than a standard spring (INCLUDING fe2, or a 'king spring low' equivalent) has a chance of jumping out/dislodging if you don't change shocks to suit. Sure the likelihood might be smaller with a spring that's 1" short of being captured by both top and bottom seats under full extension of the suspension is less likely to fall out - but the chance is still there.

if you look at the king spring catalogue, they recommend using shortened shocks for any the super/ultra low springs for the commodore.

Also, the FE2 rear live axle shock for a vn or equivalent commodore is a different and shorter item than the stock height suspension.

My car came with 'K-mac' lowered rear springs and standard shocks - sure enough, they used to dislodge when you would jack up the rear of the car.

Re: coils and compression etc; You'll find that a spring with the same amount of coils, but more 'compressed' is a shorter spring.

think about how soft a spring that is the same length at full extension would have to be, in order to allow a car to sit 3" lower when compressed!

generally (with a few exceptions) springs that are lower when compressed, are shorter at their 'free height'.

Spring rate can be increased by winding thicker wire in order to increase the amount of force required to compress the string. This means that the car sits lower initially, and overall suspension travel is less.

this is where cut springs fall short of quality components. Springs are wound with a wire thickness and amount of coils and height etc to suit a particular load, and allow a particular amount of travel without binding up. - when you cut 4 coils off a spring - you not only reduce the overall height of the spring (which makes it likely to jump out - ... just as likely as any other spring that was of equivalent height without changing the shocks) .. but you still have the same amount of weight/force pressing down on a spring designed to have a few more coils on it, and no harder spring rate to compensate for the lack of allowable movement.

At the end of the day - my opinion is that whether you buy king ultra lows, or cut 2 coils off your stock springs, without changing shocks - in a live axle rear end commodore... it's possible for the springs to dislodge/jump out.