Cutting springs?

[s0nny80y]

Lol, please don't flame me but i'm just a highschool kid starting to learn how to drift. My question is if it would be alot cheaper to cut the springs shorter and compress them close enough and install them yourself? (got this idea from some kid whos done the same for his truck) Thanks.

[ACDSupra7]

Just save up for some new springs dude. They're like $100-200 for a set.

[Ghost of Duluth]

For the trouble of taking the springs out, cutting them and re-installing them, just save up for new ones.

[clutch]

Tanabe can help with your problem dont clip

[pita bread]

Do NOT clip your springs.

Also, when you get springs you should upgrade your shocks to match the new springs.

NOTE: If you upgrade BOTH your springs and shocks do it ALL at once so you don't have to do almost the same labor twice.

Last, do not install the springs yourself unless you have a tool that will compress the spring while it is being removed.
Some guys just let the spring shoot out across the floor, but
don't do this.

[CrazyHawaiian]

If you do it correctly its no problem. The #1 mistake people make is not controlling the ammount of heat applied. If you heat the spring up, the spring rate will go to crap. This is why people who cut springs the wrong way have a verry very bouncy ride. The key is to cut the spring without ruining the spring rate. I recommend you go in very small increments (1/4 coil at a time) and see how it feels.

[driftxtreem]

Just some info on spring rates. They are determined by the diamiter of the wire, how many coils or turns per X amount of lenght. Also most cars like some nissans have a taper coil. You cut it and it wont lay right on its perches. Dont be a scab and cut your coils this is dangerous, totaly ghetto, and you wont gain nothing but a lowerd peice of crap. The handling and everything will be gone.

One other point to make is to keep your shock in its center stroke position when changing coils. Those Rice coilover tubes put your shocks down to far in the tubes and they will heat up and fade as well as blow the seals.

[Driftin180sx]

Yeah 4 coil how about NO if it is stock springs then cut off a coil jack the car up and do it. I am goin to cut my EIBACHs and go for it flame all you want i want my car lowered another inch so it will be about 3 inches alltogether. My friends have cut the springs on there 240s it will be somewhat bouncy it seems that every car is diffrent so just try it out with a coil. We dont all have money to throw into our cars and it make a diffrence so yeah why not do it.

[CrazyHawaiian]

I think you should base your cutting off the spring rate you want, not the ride height you want. If you want a certain height, you should probably get a spring designed for that height. If you just want a stiffer spring rate, then cutting is the budget way to go. Yeah it will drop a little, but nothing like a drop spring. Just keep doing it a little at a time. Big changes are not good.

[raging panda]

Yea my friend had cut springs on his s13, its not a good idea, it makes drifting harder than it needs to be because your shocks won't work because theyre blown, and the springs don't help because they are cut so much the shock is whats holding the car up. Don't cut the springs, save up if you don't have the money.

[Ghost of Duluth]

Hawaiian is right. Cutting springs ups the spring rate but only if you cut it correctly. Using a bandsaw would be the best. But taking them out, cutting them 1.4 of a turn at a time then re-installing them to check it out and if you don't like it, doing it over and over again would get to be a pain in the rectum. Get yourself some springs and shocks and go that way. Or get coilovers. Check around, there might be some for sale.

[BL1TZ_W1NG]

i herd that its illeagle to cuts spring in the US (and pritty much the world over)

[Chas]

Just buy some tanabes for 170 bucks.

[Ghost of Duluth]

It's illegal to run Nitrous in some states, illegal to have dark tint, isn't going to matter if it's illegal. If a cop ever impounded my car to check for illegal spring cutting, I would laugh all the way to the bank.

Get you some springs and shocks and do it normally.

[ACDSupra7]

Originally posted by Chas
Just buy some tanabes for 170 bucks.

cutting spings is right up there with paper mache body kits and leaf blower turbos

[Ghost of Duluth]

Um actually you are wrong. Cutting springs has been done in the past by many racing teams to get what they wanted when it wasn't made. I wouldn't suggest it because it's real hard to get everything just right and it's very time consuming. But it can be done right. Believe that.

I completely agree, but for the most part the only people I know who cut their springs are cheap ricers, like you said "in the past by many racing teams to get what they wanted when it wasn't made" but now it's been made so just go buy them.