New Rear Springs

[coolchrisp]

I know this might sound stupid to some of the good ol GT fans out there but i gotta ask it. im lookin to give my 73 GT a slight "RAKE" if you'd say. i dont have the money for the fancy front lowering kit from OGTS and i want to know if any one knows of a spring that is stiffer and would even out if not put the rear of the car in the air a little more, that is the right size.

any help is please


thanks
chris

[coolchrisp]

I forgot to mention that the front is higher then the back and to me it looks ""uncool".

[baz]

have a look and see if the rear springs are ok , it sounds like they might be broken/soft or have been cut down or the spring seats have gone

[BQS4]

Get a set of Manta/Ascona rear springs, that will at least level it up

[Killer Texas GT]

Or try rear springs from an 86-87 Isuzu Impulse.
rk

[jeff denton]

I found that Taurus front springs can be cut down and used in the rear. They rated a bit stronger than Sportwagon springs, I use the cut down Sportwagon spring on the right and the Taurus on the left, but don't do this on a street car... Bonus here is the rubber pad on the Taurus spring/strut fits real nice in the bottom of the GT spring bucket. The top coil of the Taurus spring can be heated and bent down a bit to fit nicely in the GT's (frame) spring pad. Junkyards are full of Taurus junk, I got the whole strut and spring assembly for nothing...
Remember that a coil spring gets stiffer the more you cut it. I cut one coil at a time off until it's right.
I find the GT springs rate about 150, the Sportwagon spring (cut down) at 190 and the Taurus (cut down) at 220.

[coolchrisp]

I GOTTA OPEN THIS BACK UP I jsut took out the rear springs on my GT cause they are SHOT! i need to know if there are ANY!! replacements i can get taht are teh same dementions as teh GT. killer texas said an impulse rear springs i went to advance auto and they said teh dementions are diffrent.

ARE THERE ANY OTHERS THAT WILL FIT A GT!! it can be stiffer i dont care i need stiffer any way my tires are hitting teh fenders on big bumps

THANKS!!

[opeldean]

I have a set of cut down springs from a sportwagon.

it will be stiff and a little higher than stock ride height. i like the softness of stock springs better on a bumpy or uneven road.

If you want to try them,you can try them for shipping costs.

[coolchrisp]

sounds perfect, do you havea price on shipping or know a site i can figure it out?

[jeff denton]

Jump on 'em, Chris, this is the best answer. For a prediction on the stiffness, look back a few posts at my #6. I've done a lot of playing around in the springing of a GT, in my sport it has to be perfect or it won't go around a corner at full throttle.

[coolchrisp]

sounds like a plan!! consider them SOLD opeldean!

thanks for teh advice Jeff

[opeldean]

your backend will be up about 1 inch or so over stock when you put these in

i drove around a year or so with them. it kept my mufffler out of the way.

i got your pm,so i am saving them for you.

when you cut the springs the top is not flat. use at your own risk.

if anyone thinks this is not safe to do, please speak up now please.

i dont know if there is a risk. the part is free ,just pay for shipping.

i have posts on this and what it looks like. do a search if you need more description

[coolchrisp]

PLEASE, speak up!!

[jeff denton]

Take a torch and warm up the top coil about 4" from the cut and bend it down a tad so it will seat a little better on the upper spring perch. It won't go anywhere.

[opelnut10]

Make sure you do what Jeff just posted in his last post. Make sure you use the spring pads top and bottom, If you want a little more height, shim the bottom spring pad (between the bottom of the bucket and the pad with automatic transmission clutch spacers. Any transmission shop has tons of them laying around that they take out of transmissions.

[jeff denton]

Hey, that's an awesome idea! I'm always scrounging that perfect "little bit more" wedge (the old-time stock car racers' term for spring spacer). I have a bunch of aluminum ones that go on top but only want to use one per or none. So I end up hunting for something to fit in the bottom.... and always in a hurry, gotta get back on the track to see if it helped!

[opelnut10]

Us "good old boys" down south grew up figuring wedge and forward bite on circle track car It will work on dirt, I suppose it will also work on paved tracks.

[jeff denton]

Oh, yes! Absolutely critical to have the chassis set up with proper left side bias, front to rear, and crossweight. Throw in some tire stagger and track temp and you have a puzzle to work out, get it wrong and you push or lose it in the corners. I run my car over the wheel scales at least once per race day to check it against the worksheet, run it to see how it feels, and make adjustments accordingly. Once the race starts ya gotta run what ya got, there are no pit stops and quick adjustments...

[coolchrisp]

sounds good. thanks guys

[opelnut10]

I know something about front to rear bias, brakes and weight, left side weight and cross bite. Stagger can be ajusted with air pressure but if the front end geo. is not right then the front end will not stay hooked and the back end will want to steer the car. It is more critical on dirt than on pavement because the racing surface is rougher. Cross is also critical,not enough and the car will be loose, too much and the car will push. But the most vital requirment on a circle is the nut behind the wheel . If you can't drive no amount of money or equipment will put you up front.

[jeff denton]

Yeah but, boy, does that nut learn fast out there! It's do or die, I was nervous as a you know what in church before my first race, I just stood on it and followed the car in front of me until all the fast cars came around from behind. Then it was my turn. Got around the car in front of me, and the next, and the next, and the next, and then the race was over. Ended up fifth place in a field of fifteen. What a rush!!

[opelnut10]

nothing to it, go to the corner and turn left look ahead if there is a car in front of you pass it. Sounds easy don't it, only thing is there is a bounch of other drivers and cars with the same idea and all wanting to occupy the same place on the track One thing has changed over the years, at one time the winner wasn't declared until the fight was over in the pits

[akitamojo]

This is not related to the springs however, it is related to the rear suspension assembly.

We are rebuilding a 1970 Opel GT that someone started to restore/rebuild. I do not want to start over if possible however, I do not think the rear shock has been installed correctly. When pushing lightly on the rear of the car the shock that is connected to the body moves up and down. This simply does not seem right. I tried to tighten the upper shock nut that is located on the inside of the car but, the top shock housing moves.

I can post pictures of the areas I am talking about if this does not make since.

How do I fix this problem?

Thank You! MOJO

[namba209]

Mojo, if I read your post correctly, the upper housing moves up and down when you push down on the car. Then that is normal, the outer (upper) housing slides down over the inner housing where the piston is located. The upper housing is welded to the piston rod that is bolted to the body. HTH.

[akitamojo]

Yes and No......the upper housing does move up and down over the inner housing. The issue is the upper housing is not secured to the body. The shock assembly moves up and down where it attaches to the body of the opel. I attempted to tighten the nut on top of the upper housing however the housing rotates as I tighten the nut therefore I can not secure the shock to the body. I see about a 1 inch play or movement between the body and the nut when applying press to the rear of the car. Hope this gives a better picture of the issue.

Thanks