S13 cut springs

[poorS13owner]

i know is not good to cut springs.... some people told me that even if i cut the springs is still not ganna lower that much of the gap.... i would have to go the full set up way to get the car to sit right.... any one have cut springs on their cars??? what do u think? ride feel? do it or not do it?

[Nerfdude]

don't be a dumbass. don't cut your springs.

[Fresh 240SX]

Yea cutting springs is a terrible idea.... Springs are made to have a certian spring rate and when you cut them its gonna mess them up and your gonna screw up your ride.... if lowering your car for the sake of removing wheel gap is you main concern and if you cannot afford a set of springs that will lower your car.... Do yourself a favor and atleast save up for a cheap pair, like whitelines or something. Its okay to be thrifty in some aspects but I would not skimp on suspension, you'll regret doing it.... why ruin your only set of springs? theres plenty of Cheaper model lowering springs for sale... there not the best but they would be better than cutting your stocks....

[SRKperformance]

go buy a honda

[Nerfdude]

it seems like you're going for style, am i right? if you're going for style, you're going to need money. and if you don't have money to buy lowering springs, then you're not going to have enough money to mod your car, especially a 240. if you want a car that you can modify inexpensively, you seriously should look into buying a honda. parts are far more abundant, and it'd put another 240 in the market for someone who might actually use it properly.

[Fresh 240SX]

Originally posted by Nerfdude
it seems like you're going for style, am i right? if you're going for style, you're going to need money. and if you don't have money to buy lowering springs, then you're not going to have enough money to mod your car, especially a 240. if you want a car that you can modify inexpensively, you seriously should look into buying a honda. parts are far more abundant, and it'd put another 240 in the market for someone who might actually use it properly.

VEry Well said

[transient]

A bit harsh, but i'll have to agree with you. Honestly, lowering springs cost like 200 dollars. If you can't afford that, then you shouldn't even bother thinking about trying to modify your car because you'll just end up screwing it up. I'm not trying to be an asshole or anything, and I realize that not everyone has thousands of dollars to work on their car, but if you don't have the money, you just shouldn't modify it. It's as simple as that.

[misnomer]

Transient had it best, you guys don't need to be so harsh. There is nothing wrong with the factory stance and handling of a 240sx. There IS something wrong with changing that stance and handling improperly (IE: cut springs).

As far as style goes, I find an absence of wheel gap to be offensively ugly. This is one of those "function over form" peeves with me - tires are supposed to move up and down, can't do it if there's no room to move ;-)

Don't cut them, wait and save up. Do it right the first time. I don't hink you will find anybody here with cut springs (who will at admit to it, at least). The 240sx is a beautifully handling car, cutting the springs will go a good way towards ruining that handling.

Hell, I don't even recommend running lower or stiffer springs without upgrading your shocks to compensate for them. It will adversely effect your ride, wear them out quicker, and just look silly to bounce down the road. Modifications, for performance or style, cost money. If you can't afford it yet, don't ruin it, save up a bit. Few of us can afford the toys we want :-)

[TegGSR96]

Originally posted by SRKperformance
go buy a honda
go get a clue.
Alex

[Nerfdude]

i agree with misnomer- i'm getting tein Stechs, but not until i've got the money for the springs, KYB AGX's, front and rear STB's, and camber plates. that way i only take the shocks out once and can do the whole mess in an afternoon. of course, first i've got to find a new passenger door, mirror, and fender, and i'm probably going to go ahead and sand down, bondo, and repaint the whole car. you've got to get your priorities straight. for instance: how's the paint on that 240? any dents/rust? it'll never be a show car if it looks like ass and you go and cut the springs, thus making the car bouncy and more susceptable to bottoming out. how's the engine running? and honestly, do you really want to drop it and then ride around on stock wheels? these are all big ticket items. so you've got two options- save up your nickels and do things the right way, or cut your springs now and look like a total moron.

i saw a brand new RSX friday, and it was dropped- but the spring rates were totally off. it was bouncing all over... not to mention the camber of the back wheels. they looked like they were at about a 60 degree angle. wonder how long his tires will last....

[mrdirty]

The problem is this:

Chances are that if u can't afford springs, I mean honestly can't afford them, then you might be in for some trouble when you have to repair the car (which happens often w/ an older car).

Trust me, as a student often I've been faced w/ the decision of whether to park the car and bus it because of the high cost of repair. Just last week I had to have $1000 CDN done to the car.

[91CRXsiR]

you could always get a pair of cheap cheap cheap $100.00 coilovers and just slam it and raise it back when you get tired of the crappy handling.

besides if you were worried about handling you wouldn't even be thinking about cutting your springs..

if just want the lowered look get a set of cheap springs/coilovers

besides cutting your springs won't be FREE... you still have to pay for labor [ if you are going to do it urself n/m ]

[piratepete420]

Go ahead and cut 'em. What can you lose? You can always buy lowering springs later. As for blowing your shocks by doing this, they're probably not in the best shape as the car is old and you're gonna blow them anyway if you get good springs. You can always get a set of used stock springs and shocks for dirt cheap too.

[tnord]

yeah..........because a USED set of springs/shocks puts him in such a better position than he's in now. :rolleyes:

if you cut your springs expect:
1) to be made fun of
2) crappy ride quality
3) to be associated with other sTuNnAs
4) to blow your shocks
5) tires to rub on harsh road irregularities
6) to spend $ when you blow your shocks/want new springs

*sigh............when will it end :confused:

[240 2NR]

For the simple matter of the time and effort you'll be spending removing, compressing, cutting, recompressing, and installing your springs, only to blow your shocks and have to repeat the process in a few weeks, I'd say do it right (get real lowering springs and some proper shocks) or just don't do it now.

There's a big difference between inexpenisve mods and going cheap. The former generally requires some knowledge of what you're doing and an understanding of how to do it well even if it doesn't cost much money. The latter tends to cost you more in the end since cheap and long term generally don't go together.

I'll admit, the wheel gap on S13's is pretty lame, but the ride quality and performance with cut springs will be much worse.

Sidebar_Cut springs always puzzled me as they do require many tools, much time and effort, as well as some suspension knowledge and mechanical skill. Yet somehow it gets done. Who's actually cutting the springs, who's got the knowhow to do all the work without the understanding of the outcome? Any of my friends who I would have gone to to help with a suspenion mod as difficult as that would have laughed in my face. At the same time, how do "ricers" who can't change their oil or install a CAI manage to do a technically involved mod like cut springs? I'm baffled:confused:

[piratepete420]

Come on, anyone who knows how to use a wrench can change springs. By the way, Herb Adams, the author of Chassis Engineering seems to think that cutting springs is a good idea: "Before you invest in springs to lower your car, you should be aware that your chances of success are much better if you simply cut your existing springs" (page 33). Next time I'm at home i'll cut my stock springs and find out exactly how 'terrible' the performance will be. I have a NEON DOME LIGHT and clear bumper lenses though, so my opinions are worthless.

[misnomer]

240NR: they're probably successful by guess and check :P

Pete: Changing springs really isn't a terrifically difficult operation, but it is time consuming. Plus, you'll need a spring compressor of sorts to get them unmounted and remounted on the struts successfully. There are a couple of reasons why most of us recommend against cut springs. First, you have a lower ride on springs that aren't any stiffer, making bumps get that much closer to your bump stops. Second are the spring rates. Make the spring shorter, and it will rebound quicker- quicker than your shocks are really designed to compensate for. THis is what wears out your shocks and will adversely effect your ride quality the most.

Why are we still discussing this topic? The original poster hasn't been here for a long time :P

[AKADriver]

You're also reducing the free length of your springs, which can be unsafe... the spring can actually come out of the seat at full droop.

Cut springs in and of themselves aren't the devil (see the Herb Abrams quote), but it's all too easy to do it wrong. For most people's needs, cut springs aren't the answer. Well-designed aftermarket springs are inexpensive and readily available for the 240SX. Don't cheap out!

[kandyflip445]

Don't cut the springs. Or I'll call you a ricer.....:rolleyes:

[drift240_2009]

What if you cut like only 1 to 1 and 1/4 inches off the stock springs? I hear some mustang guys do it?

[nathanong87]

bro, cut them springs. i did it for my car. it works really well at the track and on the street. i've tried moton , dg5, and kw coilovers. why waste big bucks on coilovers. i'm pretty sure those companies just rebrand their own cut springs and anodize them anyways.

u get a thumbs up from me

[future]

I don't care what annybody says, id run cut springs again. Just make sure you have good struts. I had cut rsr springs and kyb struts. Two coils cut in the rear, one in the front. Slammed. I loved it, and it rode great. Best combo I've had. Now I'm on my 6th set of coils, still missing the smoothness of the rsrs

[NissanEnthus]

Drift240 2009 your a F*k*n douche.......Your lame thread with the same topic was just locked and you resurrect a thread from 2003?? Seriously?....GTFO of this forum

[srstan]

Drift240 2009 your a F*k*n douche.......Your lame thread with the same topic was just locked and you resurrect a thread from 2003?? Seriously?....GTFO of this forum

+1 ignorance is bliss lmao

[Phlip]

Most pointless bump ever.
It is apparent that the person who bumped the thread was searching, but given recent post history, I will not believe that he bumped this one with any good intentions.
Therefore...
:lockd: