Adjustable rear coil overs for hauling loads?

[Safety Guy]

Ohiostiva is coming up and I want to get in an order at Summit Racing so I can pick it up and save on shipping. I'm thinking about finally doing some rear coil overs for AquaMutt for hauling loads. With 175/70-13s or any tire that tall, I would like to keep the back end from rubbing on bumps, especially when a load is in the back (either stuff in back or pulling a trailer).

Right now I have Monroe Aspire spec rear struts and old Aspire rear springs cut one coil. This is not tall or strong enough for what I want to do. I could try my "heavy duty" Festiva rear springs I got from FMS, or I could go "coil over."

Here is what I'm thinking about from Summit:

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CEE-2565/

This pair of springs is rated 150 lbs, but the described rear vehicle weight seems high to me. Wrong choice?

Coil over kit:

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/HAL-CK5005/

Is 7" travel struts about right? I have no idea.

Here is the page of other choices:

http://www.summitracing.com/search/Part-Type/Coil-Over-Kits/Universal/Yes/Brand/QA1-Precision-Products/?keyword=coil+overs&Ns=Price|Asc

I don't see any strut diameter info.

I know I want aluminum top hats and I think I can cut the lower perch off okay by myself without too much trouble. I'm just not sure I can gather all the parts together properly!

Adjustable rears will allow me to run Aqua relatively low when not hauling loads, and raise her rear end up for hauling when necessary.

Any help is appreciated!

Karl

[Movin]

I went with 80 lb rear at 14 inch, you low riders would probably do fine with
10 inch springs. I glued the coil overs in place as they spin when you adjust them.
Keep you spring short enough so that when adjusting the spanner, it is above
your tire tread...you do not have to remove the tire that way and it gives good room
for tire-wheel variations. I am looking for bright red coiled hydraulic hose gaurd
right now to protect the threads of the coil overs while in the desert.

Here is where I got mine, i looked up the heavier lb you were looking for but I haul
heavy loads in mine and have had excellent results with the 80lb.

http://www.speedwaymotors.com/Garage-Sale-AFCO-Yellow-12-Inch-Coilover-Springs-150-Rate,52725.html

Found where you found killer deal!! 170 lbs drops rear one inch. Adjust up one inch to level

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CEE-2550/

[Safety Guy]

Movin, you're right; the 85 lb-in springs are rated for vehicles with rear weight under 1050 pounds, so they should be the right choice.

Now I have to figure out if that coil over kit is for the length of stroke of my rear struts.

Karl

[Advancedynamix]

If you use coil over sleeve kits for a 1 7/8" I.d. spring ( common on Sprint/ midget cars) then you will have a lot more adjustment and tire clearance. It allows for wider tires in the rear without rubbing. They are a bit more expensive, but well worth it and they fit snugly on the small diameter festiva rear shocks.
Also, I have found 120 lb springs to ride just slightly stiffer than stock but they were still comfortable, even with the interior weight removed from the car.

[AlaskaFestivaGuy]

Would something like described above be enough to allow me to handle the hitch weight of a Festy-trailer made by chopping it at the firewall, leaving the windshield and everything aft of the firewall in place for streamlining? I'd like the full rig to fit in a standard non-compact parking space.

Or, would I be better with an Asipre rear end swap on the towing vehicle?

Or both mods on the towing vehicle?

[Advancedynamix]

You'll probably want the aspire beam and 1 7/8 ( for added tire clearance) coilover shock mod. For towing you'll want the swaybar in the aspire beam to compensate for the trailer.
One thing you may want to consider with this trailer is that your going to have a lot of tongue weight with the axle so far back on the trailer. It's going to be a handful to tow with a lightweight FWD vehicle.

[AlaskaFestivaGuy]

Advancedynamix,

Tongue weight is indeed my concern. I wouldn't be towing long distances, just within 50 miles or so of a remote location where I now keep a Festy in a 10'x25' self storage unit. I'd try to keep the load (mostly boxes of paper business records) as far aft as possible in the trailer, and put the light stuff in the towing vehicle, which would not be carrying any passengers -- just me -- when moving stuff. I need volume more than weight.

What do you mean by "swaybar in the aspire beam?" The only thing I know about swaybars is what's on the front of the Festy. Does the Aspire have one on the rear also? Would it come with whatever I pull off a junk Aspire, which, as I understand it, bolts directly in place of the Festy rear? What about brakes and handbrake compatibility?

[Christ]

You can use the stick festiva brake hoses and lines on the Aspire rear beam, which had an internal torsion bar.

The ebrake cable looks possibly longer, but still works fine.

It's a bolt in affair.

If you have the means, use a load balancing hitch assembly with weight distribution bars, it will greatly improve your hauling capability and comfort zone.

Something I may consider in the future is modifying some air shocks for the rears, running without coils at all. In an air-assist sick, there is a mini-bag that acts as a spring for the shock assembly, which can act to stiffen your suspension or increase load capacity with just an air pump.

[Movin]

I love the long travel 80lb 14" coil over kits on my rear VW mkII struts.
The trailer tows like you do not know its back there. The coil overs are
4" adjustable and the trailer axle is also adjustable.

I leave all adjustments where they are and have NO problems towing.
The one thing to watch, no matter the weight of the trailer and load, is
to keep the tongue weight constant. My set up likes a 50 to 75 lb tongue
weight.

The front coil overs are 125lb 14" chrome coils. They also deliver a great
ride.I probably could have used the 100lb for the front. I set it all up with
enough lift for relaxing off road travel.

I will be a trailer towing fiend here shortly, and no adjustments will be made.
The tongue weight will be watched, nothing more for any of the trailers.

Use long tongue trailers as the festy can turn itself into a bind!!

your fuel economy will drop to low to mid thirties.

[Advancedynamix]

^ better answers than I could have provided.
Air shocks have been on my mind a lot lately too. I plan on using my festiva to tow another festiva to the race track and be able to compete ( in different classes) with both cars. Air sprung shock absorbers in the rear would make setting the tow vehicle/ time attack car easier.

[Movin]

If you have the conviction air struts can be put on and are small diameter
That was my original idea but the cost was kind of like my rubber paint, way
more than the car was worth. So far the concept has proven out awesome
for me, I love it. Air ride someday...

[Advancedynamix]

As long as whatever you do to your car is never more expensive than what the car is worth to you. That's all that matters. These cars are priceless to some of us.

[Safety Guy]

Charlie wrote:

"As long as whatever you do to your car is never more expensive than what the car is worth to you. That's all that matters. These cars are priceless to some of us."

Yep. If I were worried about the resale value of my Festivas, I'd only be repairing them to spec and doing the minimum, and only when I could buy one that was a great deal. Otherwise, you're losing money on your labor, not counting the cost of special parts.

I think I spent roughly $3000 or more on my first engine swap car, Luxstiva, because it was my first time doing that (second time on a suspension swap), so I made mistakes and spent more on newer parts.

AquaMutt, my second engine swap (and third suspension swap) car, has cost me around $1500 total so far. That's with a lot more rebuilding, too. I got cheaper stuff, cut corners intelligently, and didn't worry about the "pieced together" look.

Example: First B6 swap engine cost $300 already pulled; second engine I swapped cost $75 as I pulled it myself with my Dad's help.

Karl