customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

I got around to installing and mocking up spoon's rear coil over kit. I have the single adjustable QA1's and a a 150lb 12" spring. I lowered the spring until the adjuster nut was 1" from the bottom so I could jack the rear up to theoretical ride height to figure out my exhaust and such.

So at that height I have about 3" of fender gap from the rear wheel to the fender. Which seems excessive… and I know it would drop more as I don't even have weight on the rear (car is on stands).

So my questions are….

1.) At the height it is currently I have about 2" of shock travel before it bottoms out… this doest seem like enough.

2.) The shocks/springs have a backward angle at this ride height. the shocks are closer to the doors at the bottom and angle backward (top closer to the rear. Is this normal? The wheels are centered (front to back and side/side).

3.) If I decided to not use the coil over springs, but use the shock by itself with a conventional spring in the stock location… will that work? Im not a fan of how the shock is angled and all that… seems that removing the spring makes it a more expensive threaded coil over shock but with no coil over.

What do you guys think? I can try to get some photos if need be tmrw.

TEDSgrad

iTrader: (4)

Here is Detroit Speed's offering. The circled brackets would are stock attach height, so one would need to lengthen these to achieve the 1 1/2" drop.

TEDSgrad

iTrader: (4)

Lowering the shock attach point by 1 1/2" should make it approximately the same level as the LCARB's

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

so lowering the mount will create more shock travel (but also limit my adjustment range up)… but as you see the shock lower mount is the same level as the Lcarbs. I actually have very little clearance from the lower shock mount and body of the Lcarb. My Lcarbs are lower than stock already.

But this doesn't solve the Angle issue. Im gona see if i can get an angle finder on it and post it here. Not loving the angle tho.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

Just checked the angle looks like it's 10* Angled toward the rear (top of Shock). I also checked the angle of the rear Lcarbs brackets and that as at about 5-6* on its own. Car is not 0* level tho... so not totally sure of the angle of the coilover... but it's Def not straight up.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

TEDsGrad, Sorry man I didn't realize you responded in the quoted text… hard to tell on my phone.

Got your responses and good to hear. I'm interested if anyone has fabricated a coil over lowering mount? Any pics of anything? Besides the QA1 piece?

Some background on the car for you. Its a 1987 formula 350, its got a 8pt roll bar, no rear seats, 5pt summit racing front seats, getting a full TA GFX kit, its got a 521BBF under the hood (mostly aluminum besides block so about 600lbs total), 2004R transmission, ford 8.8 rear. Most of everything from engine bay is removed, just motor and hydroboost. The brakes are baer 13" fronts, ford 11.5" rear disks, custom brake lines with adjustable prop valve for rears (Fronts are Tee'd). Suspension is ALL aftermarket! UMI double rod end rear LCAs, custom Lcarbs, UMI adjustable double rod end pan hard bar, Founders tubular pan hard bar bracket, custom shorty tubular rod end tq arm. Front suspension is UMI tubular Aarms, Racecraft Moly Kmember, KYB AGX adjustable struts, hot part caster/camber plates (with 1/2" spacers for added strut travel) and an integrated 3pt STB. The fronts I fabbed up my own front weight jacks using a 850lb 9.5" spring in stock location. So the rears are my last hurtle! Car prob weighs close to stock TA weight as best guess.

While I figure tabbing a bracket would be easy enough… it does have to support a great deal of load and would worry me. Not that Im worried about my fab skills but more of the design and how low the coil over mount would be…. At about $130-150 I could fab up my own rear weight jack system with a 10.5" spring and just run the coil over shock as a straight shock. Then I wouldn't have to worry about welding the plate in the upper shock mount either.

I remember seeing pics of a fabbed mount in the past and I was sure to save them… here are the pics that I found. Would something like this work?

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

Oh I forgot to respond to your comment about spring rates. I had 200lb rear springs in my custom weight jacks and thought they were too stiff with a cut moog 5664 front spring. So I sold them and starting over with a softer rate. I don't auto X the car, just a fun street car that see's less than 250 miles a year, drives mostly to shows, for fun and to the drag strip occasionally.

Im looking for a 150 rear and 850 front which I think is stiffer than stock but not overly stiff. Also UMI, QA1 and Spohn rate there springs roughly the same and 150lb is for a stiffer than stock better ride handling. 110lb is for drag (about same as stock rate) and 175-200lb are stiff/rough handling for street/autoX.

I got the car in pieces at the moment and need to get her back together by July for a house reno. I thought the rears were covered with these coil overs… ugh.

TEDSgrad

iTrader: (4)

Yes, that bracket will work. I've thought of tying the LCARB's into it like that, but I'm unsure. Matt went with Viking and PA Racing (I believe) and here's his pic. I like the idea of tying the bracket to more metal surface and welding (but that's me), and using a transverse mount to get rid of Spohn's bezel (or whatever one calls it). UMI has the bracket listed on their site, I wonder if you could convince them to make one with 1 1/2" drop (or PA Racing); or we can always DIY - for $40 - $50 it might make sense to just buy.
I like Spohn's upper plate - the beefiest of all the offerings and it's factory weak in that area.
If you have the 24 bar in back, the #150 can work.
I don't think 10 degree angle is a big deal. Force is being applied from lower shock mount to upper plate along that one plane.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

Hmm I see. I wonder what I will do. If Im not going to use the strut as a coil over then I don't need to weld the upper plate in. So if I ever want to go back to stock getting that plate out is going to suck big *****.

If I lower the mount on the bottom of the shock I can gain some bottoming out clearance and not super worried about the strength as it won't have the spring weight on it. Making my own brackets will only take a few hours and I have plenty of 3/16" steel to fab one up. Plus I could leave the spohn plate up in the pocket as added reinforcement for the shock and spring but not weld it in, the shock and springs will keep it up in place no issues.

I see what your saying about the spohn lower mount… it just swivels and its not a double shear design. If I weld up brackets I will weld spohns mount to it to create a double shear design.

TEDSgrad

iTrader: (4)

Correct, except I'd use 3/8" steel.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

You don't think thats excessive? lol the OEM stuff is only like 1/8" formed steel… maybe 3/16" but its most likely in metric size.

If I had an OEM rear I could fab up these brackets and sell them… seems like there would be a market for them.

TEDSgrad

iTrader: (4)

Of course, this guy Slick is running double shocks and more weight, but 1/4" is failing.
Internet advice is free and worth the same.

It's your steel, use it the way you want.

Earlier today, I was talking with a well-known @ SEMA car builder, and he suggested the 3/8. But they don't want problems coming back to them. You could always start with the UMI piece (http://umiperformance.com/catalog/in...roducts_id=808) and then lengthen and re-shape the 'tongue' to achieve your desired extension length.

1BADRZ28

iTrader: (2)

I'd buy Afco double adjustable shocks with a stud mount on top. Then all you need to do is modify a clevis bracket to mount the lower portion of the shock in the factory location. Spohn's deal with a clevis mount on top takes up too much room, which makes you lower the shock mount. If you buy the stud mount, it's a direct bolt in. Viking also has a stud option as well. You just need to call. If your shock area is already reinforced, it's a pretty reasonable conversion and a lot cheaper then Spohn's or Detroit Speed.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

Not really interested in getting new shocks at this point. Just trying to work with what u got.

What are the part numbers for the AFCO shocks? Hope they aren't that expensive.