I have a problem with my car bottoming out. I figured it was the strut insert so in an attempt to grab a quick pic of the insert to determine if it's an inny or outty I noticed this...
Does this look like the coil is collapsed or has been intentionally relaxed. A guy here at work was looking at it with me and we were thinking it shouldn't be that stacked up on the bottom. Any info is greatly appreciated as I'm going to try to get and order together today.
Thanks, Rob.
Here's a shot of the upper. The top looks noticeably different...
Might be a sagging coil or it could be a progressive rate coil and that is the softest turn and it has been compressed fully. Progressive coils have closely spaced turns on one end, gradually opening up to wider spacing at the other end. The closer turns are the softer ones and the wider spaced turns are stiffer, thus the spring rate increases and the spring compresses farther. Only way to tell if that is normal or not is to compare with a new spring or another vehicle with similar springs.
You can look for signs that someone heated up the coil to take the tension out of it, essentially lowering the car. Does the car sit really low? To me, that looks like someone took the tension out of a couple turns to lower the car, leading to the bottoming out you're having.
Everybody else lists their cars here - but not me.
That's not normal.
I put a spring compressor on my front strut springs when doing struts,... that's not what it looks like on the bottom few coils.
I can usually get the hooks in a couple coils up.
'91 Golf gasser converted to a 12mm pump, M-TDI.
'84 1.6TD Rabbit with a VNT-15 turbo, still setup to run on vegetable oil.
'84 GTI with 1.7TD pistons and intercooled.
2003 TDI wagon
2000 TDI Jetta.
Ya I'll have to look. I may have a picture of the car sitting level too. The PO said he was looking into putting a jetta tdi motor in it but liked the way his jetta was running so decided against the project. The interior had been stripped, back seat removed, and shock tower braces installed. If it wasn't for my truck breaking down this past weekend I would order coils and inserts. I'll have to wait another couple weeks I guess.
This one's from a cell phone. I'll grab a better one tonight.
Well figured out what the issue was. When I got the struts removed I could see the part number. A PO installed an H&R 54740 Rabbit lower kit. The new springs popped me up almost 2 inches. I still have to do the rears but I can't wait to drive the car now. I have been avoiding certain roads for months because of bottoming etc. I guess I'll have to ebay the H&Rs or cut them up for chisels. Rob.
Ya, coil spring is good stuff for pounding out chisels. You can torch off a piece, throw it in the forge, bang it into a chisel/punch/drift and then normalize it followed by heat treating. Normally people go to junk yards and grab different size ones from trucks etc. Old leaf springs are good too.
piglet_74 wrote:Ya, coil spring is good stuff for pounding out chisels. You can torch off a piece, throw it in the forge, bang it into a chisel/punch/drift and then normalize it followed by heat treating. Normally people go to junk yards and grab different size ones from trucks etc. Old leaf springs are good too.
Well I've heard it all now. Trouble with leaf spring chizels is all that bloomin' Denzo tape
"I'm not here to help... I'm here to Pro-Volke"
Be like meeee...Drive a Quantum TD
...The best work-horse after the cart...
Quantae grow on you...but Rabbits are like roses...
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That is why if you listen, you will learn:
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If your going to all that work I would go for some 400 series stainless. It magnetic and holds a temper and an edge. Its found in planer blades and other things. These planer blades get tossed all the time. It makes wonderful knives as well.
)