Strut question for 74 super

[Eatoniashoprat]

Originally Posted by Humble

Sorry for the delay, my comp at home ate it's hard drive a couple weeks ago :P

I run the 200# springs up front because I had tried the 300# setup which was far too stiff. Wally runs 300# up front and seems to like it just fine. My street bug is 2280 w/ full tank and driver (and stereo ), and running anything less than 200# put the front on the bump stops in hard corners or more often if I took a passenger. It was so bad that even with 120# (a good bit stiffer than the normal maxx springs) I murdered the bump stops on both sides and blew the struts on both sides in the front. This was at the maximum ride height the maxx struts offered.

I haven't started adjusting the rear spring rates yet but I have a pile of springs to sort through. For coilovers I was looking at 500#-600# on the street bug, but I need to get a cup brace in the car before I can make the switch. TB wise I started with 23.5mm bars then 25.5mm bars but with the heavy alu case and sub box in the back I think I need a bit more. I've got single adjustable qa1's waiting to go on and that will make finding spring rates a bit easier.

I tend to go by feel and work my way back to find the hard numbers. I also push my bug harder daily than most, so I tune it to that level. What I consider soft, others might find jarring or vise versa. Admittedly, the feel I'm going for is the E46 M3 because I found it to be one of the best compromises between track and street.

Thanks Humble, that's good to know. I'm trying to figure it out close as I can since I don't have other springs or torsion bars to play with. Very few Porches around here to steal TB's from!

I just know right now the 71.5# max springs are waay too soft, loaded up with gear for a weekend, with no one in the car I can easily move the front bumper down an inch and hit the bump stops

Do you think its necessary to run the helper springs up front with the 200# springs? Also, have you test fitted the QA1 coil overs with the 2.5" springs in the rear to see if the springs physically fit in the trailing arm?