Struts or Springs
05-08-2012, 09:20 AM
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Struts or Springs
When building a proper suspension set up for the street, which is more important to not skimp on quality...the struts or springs? I know you want both to be the best they can be, but if you had to choose which is more a vital part of the suspension....which would it be?
05-08-2012, 09:53 AM
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Definitely struts, by a long way. The only way you can really mess up a set of springs is by having loose tolerances on the spring rate, but struts... damn. Plus crappy struts just aren't as skilled at dealing with both low and high speed bumps.
It's the reason most coilovers feel terrible. The spring rates are reasonable, but the dampers are the cheapest adjustables the manufacturer can find. Sometimes the force vs velocity curves are more than linear: ie the damping force INCREASES for high speed bumps. Yuck.
It's the reason most coilovers feel terrible. The spring rates are reasonable, but the dampers are the cheapest adjustables the manufacturer can find. Sometimes the force vs velocity curves are more than linear: ie the damping force INCREASES for high speed bumps. Yuck.