Coil springs

[The Dutch Dino]

It seems my coil springs are getting sloppy. With the car on a lift they curve sideways and outward until they just hit the tire, which is a fail for the annual mandatory test...

I have lowered springs and may want to return to stock height. More practical as I now have a 7cm ride height...
At Superformance they have the front springs, but not the rear. Dinoparts seems to have them as a complete set with shocks. But before I fork out on that:

Does anybody know how to get hold of a new set of springs?
Are they standard or specific to the dino?
Does anybody else notice weekening of the springs over the years?

Any experience is welcome.

[Tobi]

It seems my coil springs are getting sloppy. With the car on a lift they curve sideways and outward until they just hit the tire, which is a fail for the annual mandatory test...

This is normal. Don't worry.

[croker]

MIne are curving out too..and one was rubbing the tyre when I jacked it up...then I noticed the bottom ball joint is knackered and there is so much play that I can make the tyre touch the spring.

[Dino John]

Hey Dutch Dino ,

I would look at the shocks first, if their original have them serviced and powder coated rather than replacing with after market one's , you may find a more comfortable ride and won't have to replace the springs…
Should also gain some ride height.

Cheers
John

[The Dutch Dino]

I think I found my problem: bushes are bad... The rubber is old. I will replace these. This should explain also why it got progressively worse. Also on balljoint rubber is leaking, so indeed that adds to the effect...
Thanks!

[doublegarage]

Those front springs are a *&%$ to get out - and worse to put back. Maybe you have the perfect tool, in which case I would love to hear what you have. But if you need some advice on which tool to use then I can let you know what worked for me.

Oh, and I was going to say - the springs vurve out when the car is jacked up - i.e. no weight on the wheels. On my car when you jack the front up, the wheels won't turn because the springs rub on the inside of the tyres. annoying.... back on the ground the springs straighten up

-Richard

[ThomasK]

Hi, its normal, that the coil rubs at the wheel when jacked up.
You need to work with an inner spanner, that uses two "dishes" to span the spring. Its normally used for Mercedes cars and with that, it works very well, although also need sometimes towo or three attempts to get the "dishes" into the right position - you need to position them as far from each other as possible, to get them out easily.
KR, Thomas

[doublegarage]

Hi Thomas,

yes that sounds like the version that worked for me (after 3 different tool attempts) - Mercedes type with a round 'plate" (yes, a dish, exactly) that contacts the spring over a large area.

The typical "one either side" spring compressors just don't work. The body gets in the way in too many places.

Then remove the pieces through the cover plate under the bonnet.

-Richard

[Dinoswede]

Re the discussion why the front coil springs hit the front tyres, when car is jacked up; My experience from a 2.4 Coupe, which I owned in the
eighties´ (why did I sell it?) and a 2.0 Spider is, that this is a question of tyre dimensions.
On the 2.4 Coupe - with original 205/70/14 tyre - the springs just hit the tyre when car was jacked up - after I had got new shock absorbers.
But on my 2.0 Spider - with the original 185/14 tyre - the wheels are spinning freely!! (When Fiat upgraded the Dinos to the 2.4 specifications,
it is fairly safe to assume somebody had noticed this little problem with the tyres/springs)
One thing making the coil springs bulging out towards the tyre inner side more or less is the suspension travel - which is restricted by the shock
absorbers maximum travel. That means if you use a shock absorber with longer travel than original, this problem will increase!

Dinoswede

[Dino1239]

Hi Leo,

I rebuilt a 2.4 coupe 4178 in the late eighties/early nineties, mid nineties, late nineties...... and remember the same thing, curving front springs rubbing the inside of the front tyres, I spoke to Mike at Superformance and was told that they came with quarter inch wheel spacers which tended to get lost over time. The wheel bolts being long enough to take a spacer I fitted them and it worked, I was concerned that on fast cornering that the car would lift enough on the inside for the springs to touch, not just when it was jacked up.

Cheers

Nigel