Ultimate Street suspension guide

[Grey Vw]

The chassis is pretty dialed in at 1" overall drop. To make it happy any lower, you'd need to get a little more creative than Capri knuckles.

They do look cool all slammed down though, and I'm guilty as charged for running all "stanced out" for daily life. On the track though, I run it where the chassis is happy. These things handle so well, that they are quick even when set up for show.

Thats good to know. I was trying to mimic the ride height of Pedro on the street.

[Advancedynamix]

Dragonhealer is the only guy I know who could answer that, as he has access to a Mini Cooper race car, and the Mk2 VW coikovers.

[fudge]

so my friend has a 2010 mini cooper base and I offered him my extra front springs and rear coilovers before thinking if they would actually work on his car? I couldnt find the info on the web so I decided to ask the experts

[Advancedynamix]

But you run aspire knuckles...

Yes, and I can't lower the car much for track driving. The rear beam angle is a problem at the same time as the sway bar angle. The chassis is pretty dialed in at 1" overall drop. To make it happy any lower, you'd need to get a little more creative than Capri knuckles.

They do look cool all slammed down though, and I'm guilty as charged for running all "stanced out" for daily life. On the track though, I run it where the chassis is happy. These things handle so well, that they are quick even when set up for show.

[Advancedynamix]

I chose 150lb with the stock engine and tranny in preparation for the the eventual swap. I thought preload was just set by having the suspension fully unloaded and then just tightening it to keep the spring set compressed. If anyone better information I would appreciate it

Preload is important on these springs. When you have your BP/G in the car, you should have those springs preloaded about 3-4", for a total installed height of 8-9". You don't want the car to be slammed for track work. The Festiva handles it's best about 1-1.5" lower than stock. Any lower and it handles poorly.

[Advancedynamix]

There is no right or wrong way to put the bump stops on. It's okay to force them down over the register bushing on the shaft (the black KYB ones will go over that welded on bushing, if you push hard enough (I've done it about 40 times now)
If your shocks are making squeaky or grinding noises then you may have the top nuts too tight. The top rubber bushings only need to be squished a little bit (how much really depends on how old and hard your bushings are). If those top nuts are too tight, the shock can't articulate enough, and it will bend and flex the shock shaft. Those shocks go back and forth a lot when the car is being driven. That top mount NEEDS to flex easily.

[shorestiva]

I wouldn't put the black down first. It's stuck inside the coilover sleeve on my setup and makes noise at low speeds. I've been lazy and haven't bothered to fix it yet lol.

[william]

I put the black down first then the whit on top .
I don't think it really matters.
I also cut off the biggest bump but you can grind it down like stated above this will put you on the bump stops earlier and if you want a low ride height you maybe on the stops all the time.
Here's a shot of mine.


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[wwwdotgov]

So I feel really dumb but im putting this together and I'm trying to figure out how to install the bump stops. It doesnt seem like they easily fit into the spring or easily go over the little nut at the top of the shock absorber easily. Do I just force the bump stop that came with the shock over that little nut thing and then the vw bump stop? also does the vw bump stop go bigger side up or down? sorry for the obvious questions lol.

I cut off the largest bulb on the end of the bump stops. Helped it fit in the spring. I forced mine on the shaft but I imagine you could drill out the center of the bump stop a bit if you wanted to.

That's what I did too. I cut the largest lobe off of the vw bumpstop with a hacksaw. Then I pressed real hard and it will slip past that little nub. Then I added the new kyb black one on top of that. The top of the black bumpstop stopped flush at the top the nub, so it didn't have to slip past it like the white vw one did.
It's also mentioned on page 14 post#132 of this thread.

[bravekozak]

I ground mine down with a bench grinder. I inserted a drill bit and applied just enough pressure to allow it to spin a little for a perfectly circular grind. It fits in the recess of the threads as well as within the spring. I will take a pic, since it's hard to explain.

[TWFodor]

So I feel really dumb but im putting this together and I'm trying to figure out how to install the bump stops. It doesnt seem like they easily fit into the spring or easily go over the little nut at the top of the shock absorber easily. Do I just force the bump stop that came with the shock over that little nut thing and then the vw bump stop? also does the vw bump stop go bigger side up or down? sorry for the obvious questions lol.

I cut off the largest bulb on the end of the bump stops. Helped it fit in the spring. I forced mine on the shaft but I imagine you could drill out the center of the bump stop a bit if you wanted to.

[fudge]

So I feel really dumb but im putting this together and I'm trying to figure out how to install the bump stops. It doesnt seem like they easily fit into the spring or easily go over the little nut at the top of the shock absorber easily. Do I just force the bump stop that came with the shock over that little nut thing and then the vw bump stop? also does the vw bump stop go bigger side up or down? sorry for the obvious questions lol.

[Grey Vw]

Have you tried running the shock tube all the way through the lower mount and putting the lock nut on the bottom?

Thank you Dragonhealer! That's all it took to get the ride height I wanted. Saved me $100.

[Dragonhealer]

I chose 150lb with the stock engine and tranny in preparation for the the eventual swap. I thought preload was just set by having the suspension fully unloaded and then just tightening it to keep the spring set compressed. If anyone better information I would appreciate it

Have you tried running the shock tube all the way through the lower mount and putting the lock nut on the bottom?

[FestYboy]

The Capri knuckles do this without the blocks.

But you run aspire knuckles...