Anyone lower there car buy chopping the springs? I know its sounds like a bad idea but ive seen people do it on race cars all the time. Just seeing if anyone has and if they ran into any binding issues on a cavilier. Dose anybody know the spring rates for the stock springs in a 01 cavalier? are all four the same?
DO NOT CUT THEM. THEY WILL NOT HANDLE THE LOAD AND ARE DANGEROUS.
When the springs are cut and the car is on scales it does not change cross weight so I assume it dose not affect spring rate. Im not going to cut them but I just wanted to throw it out there and see if anyone else has.
John Bob wrote:When the springs are cut and the car is on scales it does not change cross weight so I assume it dose not affect spring rate. Im not going to cut them but I just wanted to throw it out there and see if anyone else has.
People have, its a fact, but it doesnt mean it is safe. A set of lowering springs and struts dont cost alot and are ALOT safer.
John Bob wrote:When the springs are cut and the car is on scales it does not change cross weight so I assume it dose not affect spring rate. Im not going to cut them but I just wanted to throw it out there and see if anyone else has.
Cross weight has nothing to do with the spring weight. Changing the ride height at one corner would change the cross weight. Spring rate increases as the length of the wound coil is decreased. It's a simple calculation...
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Cross weight has nothing to do with the spring weight. Changing the ride height at one corner would change the cross weight. Spring rate increases as the length of the wound coil is decreased. It's a simple calculation...
Spring rate (not weight) dose change cross. and I dont know why anyone would just cut down one corner in a street car. "Spring rate increases as the length of the wound coil is decreased" are you sure?
sportlines are what, less than $300?
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Quiklilcav wrote:Spring rate increases as the number of coils decrease. Cutting springs increases the rate.
The reason you can not cut our springs is that the coils are not a constant diameter. They are tapered at the ends.
Some springs can be cut if they are linear rates and non-tapered, but to do it correctly, and allow the spring to properly seat, you have to flatten out the last coil, and in some cases, taper it flat.
Over and above the rest of this discussion, you need struts made to be lowered on our cars. So why cut your springs (even if you could do it properly), to save yourself the money on springs, and then still have to buy a good set of struts?
The bottom line is buy the right parts, or don't f&#k with your car's suspension.
That is a biggie right there. You'll find some struts have a spring perch with a lip around them that would keep a cut spring from slipping off, but most have no lip or edge around the perch. Usually a cut spring will have about half or a little more making contact with the perch when loaded, but unload it and less spring is on the perch and the spring can slip right off the perch. I've heard peoply say J-body springs are progressive. I don't know, but from memory it looked like the same spacing between the coils leading me to believe it's linear, and thus cutting them would only increase the spring rate. NO guarantee it wouldn't slip off the spring perch though, and springs are only $200 give or take and personally not a viable solution anymore.
Now nearly two decades ago (yeah, I'm 36) it was the ONLY option. There were no springs being made for cars for the most part. I've had a Celica GT, Escort GT, and Storm GSI with cut coils ( round and a half ) and never crashed into a ball of fire or went into orbit from bouncing. It's blown out of proportion about how unsafe cutting springs are. No more dangerous than putting some stiff azz goldlines on stock struts. Now this doesn't mean I'm a proponent to cutting springs, and it's 2009 and companies make the right parts to do the job right. If you can't afford $600ish and up to put a decent suspension under your car then maybe modding isn't for you anyway.
Ive cut stock rears with no trouble and cut goldline fronts with no issues.
I cut the top of the goldlines as they had spacing that allowed a full loop to contact upper mount even after I cut them.
When I cut the rear I would only cut the top as they had no place to go even if they did slip off and they never did anyway.
has anybody cut tein stech rear springs before? sits high. i wuna cut them from the top...at least one full loop.i hav stock shocks by the way. i know ride feel going to be lil more rough but just wunt to know if it might kill me
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shoulda bought the right springs to begin with (sportlines).
but.. instead of cutting the rears, why not just buy the oem solid rear mounts? they lower the car to...
I must confess... I feel like a monster!
My rear springs have been cut for 2 years or so now. The prokit rears were much too bouncy on agx's for my liking so i figured wtf and this gave me a better ride. I would never do this to the front springs as they are tapered but my rear springs are seated properly still and stay seated when the car is lifted lift. I would not recomend this to the newb at all. I read and read and read before making my decision. In retrospect I should have gotten Konis and sportlines or a nice set of coilovers.
The same questions asked 10 year later. I have not been back in a while and the same questions keep getting asked.
I will tell you right now there were some older member who but spring and one almost got in a deadly accident back in the day. One reason not to do it. Two our springs are progressive which mean there is no uniform spring rate. The reason come cars before it with no issues is because there were linear spring meaing the same spring rate for the entire spring. Very very bad idea on progressive springs. The ride actually sucks more that lowering springs on OEM struts.
2004 Grand Prix GTP (Competition Group)
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