RE: 115 suspension unspringing question

["Brian Shorey" <bshorey@xxxxxxxxx>]

>
> Hi All,
> I've got first-time shakes about pulling apart my front
> suspension in an '89
> spider for a rebuild, and someone (?) recently posted a method of popping
> the spring using 4 2foot long threaded rods and 3 nuts on each
> rod to lower
> the bottom spring support.  This idea appeals to me more than "spring
> compressors" (sounds safer, with 4 rods instead of 2), but I'm unclear on
> the procedure--if they are 2' rods, won't the car have to be 3' in the air
> to get the rods into the holes?  The threaded rod length is
> mostly below the
> suspension arm, sticking straight down, right?  How much will the spring
> uncompress before becoming loose? 6 inches or more?  Any other advice or
> potential pitfalls I should know before doing this procedure?

the factory front spring compressor is hard to beat when it comes to
safeness and speed - it takes all of 5-10 minutes per side, and when you
look at the tool there's really no way it can come loose.

as for the 2' rod length, sounds about right to me.  the a-arm is about 6"
above the bottom of the wheel, so you need to jack things up probably 18" or
so.  don't forget that the top of the rods will protrude above the a-arm.
in my experience the factory springs require 6" - 8" of compression, stiff
aftermarket springs require only a couple of inches of compression.  you
could probably get away with 12" - 18" rods, but that may not leave a lot of
room for error, and you'd have to toss them out if they turned out not to be
long enough.

good luck,

bs

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