[Doug]

I was thinking of lowering my 05 a little. Is there an easy way to do it?
TIA

[subzero05]

YES..eibach pro kit or steeda spring kit

[Doug]

What about cutting down the stock springs? I guess that would make for a little stiffer ride but the aftermarket ones claim to be stiffer.

[John]

I don't know how cutting them down would make the ride stiffer... It'd just make it lower. I wouldn't cut stock springs, though, if I were you.

[Doug]

Shorter springs of the same diameter are stiffer. An example would be the leaf springs on a truck. The longer ones activate first, the more load that is applied then the short ones start to work. Or which is harder to bend a 1' bar or a 10' bar. The same applies to a coil.

Why not cut the stock ones?

[nmto0777]

my 2ct....

Do not cut your springs, you will regret that mistake and finish by buying a new pair from the factory or after market anyway. the compression rate of it will be affected, you will get 'clancking type noise" as the spring will be too short and you will have problem with the adjustment of your front camber and alignment.... Your stability at braking and cornering will be affected.
if you feel enought brave to access the original springs just get a set of professional ones and replace them. at least if you don't like it you can reinstall the original one's and you will save the labor time. a full set of eibach pro (front and back) will run you about $250 and if you know what you doing , about 1/2 hours to 45 minutes per wheel to R&R. these are fairly good springs and i like them better than the steeda'ones (personal preferences).
After changing them and riding for a couple hundred miles you will be lower (in my case on my GT) about 1.25 in the front and 1.45 in the rear. The feeling is way better and cornering more stronger . the braking appear to be less effective but in reality it is about the same it is just that the car do not plunge it's nose like with the stock one's so it appears not braking as well but testing revealed that it was just an feeling not a reality.
on and off, been there and done that on several car.... i would discourage you of cutting the original spring....
Nicolas

[Doug]

Okay, thanks for the input.

[MSUslacker]

Originally Posted by Doug

Shorter springs of the same diameter are stiffer. An example would be the leaf springs on a truck. The longer ones activate first, the more load that is applied then the short ones start to work. Or which is harder to bend a 1' bar or a 10' bar. The same applies to a coil.

Why not cut the stock ones?

Shorter springs of the same diameter are not stiffer. They will have the same spring constant, k. Coils spring don't work the same way leaf springs or cantilever beams do. In reality a coil springs stifness will increase as it is depressed, but compared to the other two types this is minimal and it can be assumed constant or unchanging. F=k*x. Force=springconstant*displacement. Cutting part of the spring off will limit the displacement possible, give your suspension less travel, lower maximum force thereby making it more likely to bottom out. Also to be considered is changing the springs geometry on the end clipped, most I've seen have a final loop to give the spring a flat surface. Just my ten cents, didn't mean to give a lecture.

[Doug]

Actually they do get stiffer if they are shorter, that's why race teams use spring rubbers, to eliminate a round of coil without changing ride height. Good point on the coil landing area though.

[MSUslacker]

Pick up a physics book and read about coil springs. I'm not going to argue the point.

[wsd42]

Ditto on all of the above! You will also have to consider what the lowering will do to all the other geometries of the car front and back. I wrote a previous post on what I have researched and know from past experiences, and others knowledge/experiences. See some of the post by me and others on wheels and lowering a car.
http://www.allfordmustangs.com/forum...ad.php?t=37399

It's not as easy as it sounds. Enjoy the ride!

Bill

[Doug]

You might want to read this infoGo to www.stockcarproducts.com
look under technical info, then go to spring rate info

Find the three things that effect spring rate.

Hope this clears things up.

[MSUslacker]

Informative page. Their analysis of spring rate was not entirely incorrect. But frankly I don't have the desire or the time to inform/explain.

[Doug]

Yeah you probably know more about it than they do.

[xxp]

I race offroad electric radio controlled cars. These are not radio shack toys, they are very competitive racers. See my website http://losibk2.com We do raise and lower the top of the spring for the purpose of ride height, and there is no impact on spring rate. If I were to cut a coil off the spring, I would anticipate the same spring rate/suspension action with a lower ride height and less suspension travel. Some racers use springs from different manufacturers who have spring rates in-between the rates offered by the OEM, and they frequently have to cut a coil off to get it to fit between the collar and capture. The OEM may offer a 2.6 and 2.8, but they'll buy a 2.7 from another vendor to get that perfect setup. I reckon if cutting a coil off changed the rate, they'd just get an OEM 2.xx and take a coil off.

I don't claim to understand the physics of all of this, but after three years of racing, I can normally tune my suspension so that it works.

What I'd like to know is:
1)How the Eibach springs impact the comfort of the ride vs. the stock springs?
2)Is an alignment is required? re: I don't know what the stock camber is, but it seems this could introduce some negative camber.
3)Is bump steer is affected enough to require an adjustment?
4)Since the rear drop is greater (1.45) that would shift the longitudinal roll center and CG aft, which sounds like it will add understeer, or at least add on-power understeer? Is it noticeable?