coil overs to replace struts

[seriousdiesel]

If saw some pics that replaced the front struts with coil overs. Anyone did this? Ive already busted a strut and im thinking the coil overs would be a much tougher option. I can easily make the brackets and things but i dont know much about the coilover shocks themselves. anyone have an ida on where to start for spring rates and such?

[dishmans2]

I have a good used strut assembly for $100 plus shipping.

Let me know.
Thanks
Bryce
210-827-4430
http://www.southtexasminitrucks.com

[Mighty Milt]

call brett at king shocks. he may not know exactly what spring pressure you will need but is very knowledgeable when it comes to suspension. king is the leader in offroad suspension now. i was using their shocks and other components when they were a startup.

make sure you have a strut on hand and measurements for him. also i would suggest getting a shop to give you the spring rate, and, if possible, give him the weight the front axle bears.

cheers

[greg0187]

I've also done my fair share of research on this so I thought I'd share my findings.

#1. Not the greatest method. Making the braket for the spindle mount will be the hardest. I've only seen one mount for a coilover that was made by EM but In my opionion it didn't look like would work very well and stress the end of the coilover badly. CASE STUDY: Extreme machines standard coilover mount. Refer to FIGURE 1. I would not recommend trying to build one that is similar as it is not a good design. It uses a standard eyelet type coilover and the very end of the shock body is used to brace the lateral forces produced by the weight of the truck at the upper part of the spindle (This is what an upper control arm should be supporting). Personnally if I were to take this route I would just hack the end off the old strut, drill a hole across the bottom of the can, slide the coilover inside the can and run a bolt through the drilled hole into the eyelet of the coilover and out the other side. The finished product would look similar to figure 2.

#2. Best Bet. Your best off trying to find a coilover that has the same mount as the strut for the spindle end. They do make these but the hard part is knowing what veihicle has a similar mount with such a short stroke (Similar to trying to find a crossover for a strut at the parts store). You will find these are made mostly for the FWD tuner cars. I have found correct bolt patterns on lower mounts of struts in the parts stores, so it is possible. See figure 2. The shock in the figure actually looks like it would work perfectly. Its for a 2000-2005 Mitsu eclipse.

#3 The easy way out. I'm sure King or anyother shock manufacturer for that matter will be willing to make you a one off shock for the right amount of money.

Figure 1.
http://www.minitrucktalk.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=2189&stc=1&d=1251393420

Figure 2.
http://www.minitrucktalk.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=2190&stc=1&d=1251393787

[Badgerland]

#1. Not the greatest method. Making the braket for the spindle mount will be the hardest. I've only seen one mount for a coilover that was made by EM but In my opionion it didn't look like would work very well and stress the end of the coilover badly. CASE STUDY: Extreme machines standard coilover mount. Refer to FIGURE 1. I would not recommend trying to build one that is similar as it is not a good design. It uses a standard eyelet type coilover and the very end of the shock body is used to brace the lateral forces produced by the weight of the truck at the upper part of the spindle (This is what an upper control arm should be supporting).

Greg, as usual, you're spot-on with this information and I totally agree with your opinion on this. There were really numerous areas that needed significant improvement to make this a stable lift platform.

Let's not forget what happened to this owner of the POORLY-designed Extreme Machines lift. This was partially attributed to a failure of a lift block, but leads me to believe there was more to the story as the lift failed on the side of a hill causing this roll-over... :eek:

http://www.badgerlandminitrucks.com/images/Truck%20Pics/08-28-08_1840.jpg

http://www.badgerlandminitrucks.com/images/Truck%20Pics/08-28-08_1841.jpg

http://www.badgerlandminitrucks.com/images/Truck%20Pics/08-28-08_1845.jpg

Have to feel sorry for the guy that thought he was spending a premium dollar for good engineering... then this happens. I've seen the EM lift and was NOT impressed with components used, although it provided a $1000+ template for building a better lift system.

[JiJiTurbo]

I fitted coilovers to my Bravo to lower it. There's not much room to fit something large under there (if lowering the car is your goal). I used shortish base adjustable pillow ball coilovers with adjustable camber tops from a 180sx. You've got to use a strut thick enough to hold the car's weight and something base adjustable. From there, there's a bit of fiddling around with short springs (mine are too firm at the moment), drilling new holes and cutting a few bits here and there from the strut but it's worth doing if you want a nice low ride height.

[Coast Steve]

I thought I would just jump in here quickly, (And I don't mean to hijack the post)

Mine is stock mind you, but very soft in the front, I guess the only thing would be to replace the springs with something stiffer?


BTW Greg, those are some very nice anodized aluminum struts!


Steve

[seriousdiesel]

Great ideas. I really like the second strut, Is there a place to get those? i have busted my struts from speeding throught the woods and i just want a better alternative to replacing them with stock and busting them again. I would like a softer ride and something that will take a beating. Im not interested in lifting any higher than the 2.5 inches that i get with a spacer, however id like to use a longer strut/ coil over instead of a block, that way i have more travel for the suspension.

[mitsu911]

How do you know you have a busted strut? I suspect that I busted mine when I hit a stump really hard. Now I have a loud thumping noise occasionally when I hit the brakes. I have been considering some kind of suspension mod anyway?

[mitsu911]

has anyone made any mods, working on a front bumper with a winch that will be adding weight to the front of my 1999.