Spacers?

[I-S]

Forgive me if this is a stupid question...

Can you put spacers in with springs?

The reason I ask is because all of the PR springs out there lower the car to some degree. Given my propensity for load-lugging, and having already grounded the car on more than one occasion I'm not keen on lowering it any, but would like the benefits (particularly to ride) of PR springs.

So, if I was to get a -30mm PR spring, and put a 30mm spacer in line with it, would that give me the benefits of the PR spring without lowering the car?

[Big Ian]

:inquisiti
i know you can get "spring assisters" for putting through coil spring's for towing (and sagging spring's) so as to keep some height in the car when towing/moving heavy item's
not sure if this is what you mean?

[I-S]

No...

A lowering spring lowers the car because it is shorter than the stock spring... Am I right?

So, if a piece of alu (say) was machined such that the spring could sit on it and the combined length of the alu + spring was the same as the original spring, the car would not be lowered. It would, however, get the ride benefit of the PR spring, and some of the handling benefit (but not all because the COG is not lowered).

Or am I misunderstanding things completely?

[Big Ian]

to be honest,i'd think doing what you are saying would be a waste of cash?
if your car is hitting with standard spring's (under weight),then i would think about spending money on quality shock's + new spring's (oil filled shock's are cheapest,harder ride than gas one's)
you may also run a risk of the spring becoming "un-seated" if you try and add a type of alu-wedge?
or take a look at some adjustable ride height set up's? (think they may only lower the height though?)

[Big Ian]

also,V6 shock's will fit with your GLS spring's,but only the front's would be slightly harder as they both use the same rear's.
or try find out if you can get "self leveling" rear shock's as some estates have them,but i'm not sure if they are available for saloon model's?

[I-S]

My estate has self-levelling. I've grounded the chassis just behind the front wheels in the past (speedbumps... grrr... even at 0.5mph on a badly designed one).

The improvement I'm looking for is in the ride quality really.

[pezza]

When I had my V6 I was looking for the same esp as I had problems with ground clearance. I could not find any manufatcurers who produced full height springs that were uprated...

As Ian says the risk of unseating maybe there if the spring sat on an object/block.

When I uprated my shocks that made the best improvement to the ride quality than the springs I think. What state are your current shocks in? Self level shocks were ditched on my estate! There are uprated springs which will work with self level shocks but they will drop a max of 15mm (which is ideal) from what I remember. BUt they are few and far between... I seem to remember Eibach / H&R do springs for self level Galant estates? I think, also that koni made some shocks for estates too....

Cheers

Derek

[I-S]

Thing is, I don't want to ditch the self-levelling because when lugging heavy stuff it is noticeable how much better the car copes than a car without (for example my parents' Shogun).

[pezza]

Thing is, I don't want to ditch the self-levelling because when lugging heavy stuff it is noticeable how much better the car copes than a car without (for example my parents' Shogun).

Thats fair enough, H&R do manufacture springs for cars with self level but they cause a 15mm drop tho , Spex and ventura too but those are 20mm:-/

[psbarham]

when i had my diseaseal rover i fitted a set of towing shocks which helped considerably by stiffening the back end up they didnt even drop when i put a 16' ifor williams trailer on the back , and they didn't mess up the ride qaulity that much either

[Kenneth]

Adding spacers / blocks or whatever between the spring and the spring seat WILL give you extra ride height

how? because you will notice when you jack your car up, the wheels dont immediatly come off the ground. when you lower the car back down, it sinks on the suspension, the amount it sinks is called sag.

By adding a spacer, you woul essentially add pressure to your springs, increasing preload and reducing sag.

so, while your total max suspension height has not changed, the ride height has.

this is how a lot of coilover suspension kits work, including mine. My suspension has so little sag that going up some drive ways, the car will teeter on 3 wheels.

[Kieran]

Issac,

What about some of these?

http://www.hexcentric.com/cpdcatalogue/so_muscle_kit.cfm

[Big Ian]

Issac,

What about some of these?

http://www.hexcentric.com/cpdcatalogue/so_muscle_kit.cfm

that's the item's i was trying to describe :rolleyes4

[valmes]

"Can you put spacers in with springs?"

I use spacers for my rear Ralliart shocks/springs combo.

They are 25mm(spacers) and sit on top of the spring/shock (upper pillow?). Bolts(pins?) had to be changed: +25mm longer.

Setup doesnt look too fancy, but works ok.