[Kami]

I recently lowered my cougar 2 inches front and back and it looks awsome, much better turns now.
I don't have much money, so what I did is just cut the spring and it works just fine.
I would like to know if this is a good idea or will it damage the car

Many Thanks ^.^

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Current Mod: 2001 Cougar --> Gutted Precats --> Injen Intake --> Custom Single Exhaust --> Dual Mass Crank Damper --> SVT LIM ---> Pro-Flow 75mm MAF

 

[ND4SPD]

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that was a very bad idea... it might work fine for now, but you might be sitting on a 'ticking timebomb' that could go off at any minute... do you know the 'behind the scenes' effects that cutting springs causes? i'm not an expert, but i know its bad. However, i also don't know your mechanical skills... so you might have done it 'better than the average person' i dunno...

One of the Suspension guru's will probably have a heart attack when he/she sees this :tongue:

I would put a real set of lowering springs very high on your "things to buy" list...

 

[ignernt]

i definitely wouldn't recommend doing this. While the Roush springs just look like shorter stock springs, they are at a different spring rate. i hope you cut the bump stops in half as well.

 

[St8LyRaVn]

Cutting the springs is a method guys with lowriders have been using for ever. It doesnt harm the suspension any worse than putting a set of lowering springs on. as long as you dont go more than a 2inch drop. It is indeed the poor mans method. The ride wont be as good as going with an actual set of lowering springs because lowering springs have the same amount if not more coils than a stock set. I have done it before with my lowered s10 that i hadand I know several of my friends with loweriders have used for years. Its all good The ride will be more bouncer but other than that you dont have anything to worry bout.

 

[SamuraiCougar]

How did you cut the springs? Did you just take a hacksaw to them are something? How exactly did you make sure that you cut all the springs the same so that the drop was even? I might wanna try this cause I might get a guinea pig set of springs for the low...

 

[Instigator]

OMG do not do this!!!!!!!!!! cutting them ruins the structural integrity, the ride is bouncier because the cutting decreases the strength of the spring which in turn will make it handle WORSE than stock. Im afraid that if you try to take a turn to fast that the spring could crack or even snap under the transfer of the weight.

this is a bad idea, i would save the money for springs that are MADE smaller and tighter......does roush still sell their springs for $120?




:thumbsdn:

 

[SamuraiCougar]

Insitgator, I was under the impression that cutting your springs increased the spring rate making them tougher to compress, thus making for the firmer ride. The bouciness comes from weaked or blown struts, that don't do their job anymore. So when you go over a bump the energy isn't absorbed into the strut, it goes through the next closest, the spring. So the spring oscillates until all the energy of the wheel assembly hitting the bump is dissapated. Thus giving the bouciness. I think that if you cut a stock spring properly(using a cutting wheel) and try to get all of them as close as possible you'd be alright. I mean if you put a lowering spring on a stock strut over a long enough time frame the strut will fail. Just as if you were to put a chopped spring on a stock strut its going to fail sooner than normal. Hell, if you put enough miles on your car your struts will fail anyways! I think the cause of people frowning upon cutting your stock springs is because you can't control how much you're actually cutting. The springs might all look perfectly cut to the naked eye and your drop may be even all around, but the minor imperfections that our eyes can't see may cause subtle differences in the springs rates of the springs. Leading to handling problems down the road. I think that cutting springs is a cost effective way to lower your ride, while kind of risky. I myself am looking into buying a set of stock springs just to experiment with(I if mess something up I can always go back to stock). Just as long as you don't try to go offroading or racing crazy you'll be just as fine as the next lowered guy. Oh, and what causes people's spring to break is when people heat the springs before cutting or cut them with a blowtorch. This makes them eaiser to cut but it weakens the temper of the metal in the spring, and the weakened spring if put under too much stress will break.

 

[PuckPuck]

A spring's rate is directly proportional to the # of coils vs their size.

Example:

A spring is 10" tall and if you count the coils you will get 10 coils (1 per inch). The rate of the spring is 100lbs/in. You put 100lbs of pressure on that spring, and the top 2 coils will touch. Add another 100lbs and the top 3 will be touching and so forth. Progressive rate springs are progressive because they are more tithgly wound at one end than the other.

STOCK our springs are progressive, that's why they aren't a perfect cylinder.

You cut a spring, leaving it's spring rate the same, but it will bottom out far sooner, therefore causing your struts to destroy themselves in much less time than someone with grounds controls at full slam. The reaons is lowering springs have higher spring rates, although they are lowered, it takes more force to make all the coils touch and bottom out the struts... your stock springs will bottom out with just a few hundred pounds of force.

Conclusion: You paid a little now, so you can pay alot later

 

[PuckPuck]

Btw: the november issue of Sport Compact Car has a good techy article on springs rates on page 16... it talks more about air bags and such but has a whole section on the definition of spring rates.....

 

[SamuraiCougar]

I wanna see how bad this chopping of the stockers first hand. I just bought a set of springs for $10 so I don't think I'll feel bad about chopping them. I'm gonna get a GC/Koni setup anyways so I could give a rat's fart about the stock struts if you know what I'm saying. I'm just doing this as some sort of an experiment.

 

[PuckPuck]

it's not just your struts... it's also your CV joints, control arms, ball joints, tie rods and more that will fail prematurely....

you are essentially lowering your car WITHOUT increasing the spring rate...

 

[SamuraiCougar]

If its THAT bad then I guess I won't do it. But I'll try and make a comparsion when I get my GC's. GC's verus chopped stockers versus real lowering springs. So I can take hella pictures and make a web page and stuff.

 

[99CouGSweetRide]

all these "poor man's" methods are getting out of hand. If you don't have the money for something don't find a cheap way around it. You'll pay in the end.

Mike

 

[Ariadne]

She also has a Custom 2.25 exhaust.

thread

Ghetto rigging is like Sending your Cougar to hell in a cardboard box... believe me i know. Spend the money, and do things right, or don't do them at all.

 

[ZetecNinja]

if you cut your springs in half...I'd have to say that you're an idiot and to get new springs now...either way you'll be bouncing around town just like the Hondas. Just wait til ur struts go out...

Cutting off one coil will not give you many, if any problems at all...anymore than that is not a smart idea at all.

I wish I could link you to a thread on CEG about cutting springs which is about 6 pages long but its down...I personally still wouldn't do it.