spring rates!!!

[Helsinki145]

Hey, was wondering what spring rates i should run on a set of coilovers? with a boat anchor of a s38 in the front

[JGood]

Completely depends on what you're using the car for, how low you want the car to be, how stiff/soft you want it to be, etc...

[Helsinki145]

yer would like it stiff but the aus roads are horrible, was thinkin of runing 440lbs and 650lbs same as a mate who has a turbo m42 but unsure if the front will be stiff enough

[Ant_e30]

Springs are easy enough to change later down the track, though you need to make sure you stay within the damping rage of the dampers.

What is the weight of the S38 engine? i suppose one way to approach it would be to find out the relative weight and scale up your spring rate up front to suit.

When you say roads are bad here, they are and they arent, looking at some threads people post from o/s :P provided your springs and shocks are well matched it should ride well. It may be very hard, but if well set up it will ride firm without being bouncy or crashy. High rates don't necessarily equal a very harsh ride if well matched.

It will also have a lot to do with your wheel and tyre selection, and if you run poly bushes as both will transfer NVH.

Maybe see if you can go in your mate's car with damping turned full hard and full soft and see what sort of range you have there if you're going similar. That way you will know if you can soften out the damping on harder springs or harden it up on softer ones if you need to.

i'm thinking 9k/11k springs for mine when i get around to it. (had 18k/12k on my old Lexus which obviously weighed more, like 1500kg, but they were bearable and to be honest necessary at the height i drove)

[Helsinki145]

yer the s38 is in the 151kg range while a m42 is around the 100 kg mark

[Helsinki145]

the shop rekons 8 and 8kg, just doesnt sound right :/

[einstein57]

Like jgood pointed out it depends on what the car will be used for and your driving style. There are quite a few people with turbo'd and s/c'd s52s that run 450f 650r which will be about the same weight as an s38 when you take in to consideration all the extra FI bolt on parts.

[Helsinki145]

yer setin it up for grip and more mountain runs style of driving