I was just showing him the G body with the UMI 2" drop springs so he can decide if that is the ride height he is looking for instead of going to all the work to cut the old springs to see how the car looks on the springs he is planning to get. ...
cutting springs to lower
- Thread starter marcar1993
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I was just showing him the G body with the UMI 2" drop springs so he can decide if that is the ride height he is looking for instead of going to all the work to cut the old springs to see how the car looks on the springs he is planning to get. ...
Cut one coil off, that will get you really close, possibly a tad too low. If you're replacing them anyways there is only ONE way to find out. We can all sit here and guess but your specific vehicle, used springs, and desired height will dictate how much to cut off. I have a sincere feeling it will be no more than 1 coil though. I cut 3/4 off mine, which were
year old lower springs, and it was too much. Looked amazing, tires hit the inner fender over every bump though. That's why I now have coilovers. Simple ten minute job and I can change the ride height without even getting dirty. This was after I cut the springs and before I realized the tires hit the inner fenders.
You asked for some examples. I mentioned earlier that I cut springs on a bunch of cars. Here are some of mine.
My old 77 Grand Prix had one coil taken out of the fronts. This car was helped by a rubber rake. The front wheels are 14s and the rears are 15s.
My sister's Monte has a coil taken out of each corner and same sized tires all around.
My wife's Delta Vert also has a coil cut out of each corner. My Dad calls this the "gentleman's drop." I present a before and after. The skirts help with the effect too.
My Delta 88 has replacement stock springs in the rear and one full coil taken out of the fronts. The fronts were brand new when I cut them. It also makes it easier to put them in. Less to compress. LOL
Last, my 68 Cougar benefits from a HUGE rubber rake. 17s on the front and 18s on the rear, both with 45 series sidewalls. The front springs were shortened aftermarket that I took 2/3rds a coil out of.
My old 77 Grand Prix had one coil taken out of the fronts. This car was helped by a rubber rake. The front wheels are 14s and the rears are 15s.
My sister's Monte has a coil taken out of each corner and same sized tires all around.
My wife's Delta Vert also has a coil cut out of each corner. My Dad calls this the "gentleman's drop." I present a before and after. The skirts help with the effect too.
My Delta 88 has replacement stock springs in the rear and one full coil taken out of the fronts. The fronts were brand new when I cut them. It also makes it easier to put them in. Less to compress. LOL
Last, my 68 Cougar benefits from a HUGE rubber rake. 17s on the front and 18s on the rear, both with 45 series sidewalls. The front springs were shortened aftermarket that I took 2/3rds a coil out of.
Duuuuuuuuuuuuude! Nice rides. I like the Cougar pic- tricky.
Nice rides!!! As stated above- all cars and all springs are different. There is no formula for "cut this and get that". If all you want is to test and see where you want it then you can try the idiotic Hot Rod Magazine method. You set blocks under the car to where you want it to sit. Then you go around to all the springs with an acetylene torch. You heat each spring until the weight of the car forces them down. Let cool and there you are. Ruined springs! My way is as others have advised- cut 1/4 coil at a time- no more. It is a lot of work but a mistake can not be corrected without starting over with new springs. Also, the height you get from old springs will not be the same with new springs so you might as well start with new ones and all new front end components. 2nd gen F body springs fit and are available in many sizes. I had an '81 Malibu wagon with a Pontiac 400 motor. On our cars the spring pocket is about 1" shorter than an F body so already you are too tall. I started with TA 400 springs and the nose was pointing up at the sky. I used half of the coil spring tool through the shock hole to lift the spring up into the frame and then cut 1/4 coil off with a cut-off wheel so as not to over heat it. All it took was 3/4 coils to drop the front dramatically. The more you cut off the stiffer the ride will be. On my current 301 Bonnewagon I used '79 Firebird Formula 301 springs as is and because of the 1" difference I got the height I wanted with no cutting. V-6 springs under a V-8 should get you a nice drop.
Thank you! Yeah, that pic's been wrongly scrutinized as a photoshop. Yes, the street and sidewalk we're at a pretty severe decline. The photographer tilted the camera to straighten the car which make the background look like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The shot made the cut for a feature in a magazine about 8-9 years ago.
If you want to cut springs you might want to watch this video.
The F body springs are 110 lb/in if I remember correctly, similar to G body- 120-ish? For comparison i think the UMI's are 130 lb/in. I cut 1.2 coils off 97 F body rears (w/F body insulator) for 1 1/2" drop from stock height G spring. Side note- the F body springs are smaller Outside diameter for more exhaust clearance. Moog 5660's raised my front by 1/2" from original spring, I cut 1/2 coil to end up 1/2" lower than original(-1/2 coil = - 1"). Used a cutoff wheel in a 4" grinder for cuts. If your good at math, figure out spring rate, have some friends of a specific weight (heavy) compress the front until you get to desired height then math it out from there ??
I'm not buying the short term solution part but it's your car. Springs are manufactured to perform a certain way. The different coil spacings perform different functions. Why pull the springs, cut them, put them back in only to take them out and put other springs back in? My car is set up for the 1/8. When I put my car together, I contacted spring manufacturers and talked to other people that had a similar set up to what I was looking for. No "temporary" solutions. I put it together with the right parts the first time after I was comfortable that I did enough research. If its a cash flow issue, wait til you have the cash saved up. Cutting coils and using springs will "work" but you'll be light years behind suspension components that were designed and manufactured to do what you're looking to do. When someone that did it the right way pulls next to you, you'll see the difference and so will everyone else. Not trying to sound like an A$$hole, just trying to keep you from throwing $$$ away trying to take shortcuts.
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