Parabolic Springs

[mick88]

Are they worth the money for a series vehicle..all the write ups suggest they are good, anyone have any first hand experience please.

Mick.

[incisor]

they make my shorty ride like a longy, and with a diesel motor in the back it is like riding in a range rover style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tongue.gif

bloody marvellous IMHO esp in the rough stuff.

[crossy]

dont forget that the stock springs are setup for heavy payloads. My S3 has a 1600kg payload limit. imho redoing the stock springs for around 500kg will make a huge difference in ride quality but still wont be as good as parabolics. articulation with leaf springs properly set up should be better than parabolics. (from what i understand).

how much $$ for para's ??

[incisor]

Originally posted by crossy
articulation with leaf springs properly set up should be better than parabolics. (from what i understand).

i would beg to differ ....

my shockies were upgraded to have at least 2 1/2 inches more travel than was needed on normal leafs. I cannot see how a 7 leaf pack could ever offer the same movement as a 2 or 3 leaf parabolic pack.

you often hear stories of how useless para's are with a decent load on them, in my experience with mine i consider those statements rubbish as well.

mine currently has a landy diesel motor in the back of it and it is plainly visible that the unit is sitting just as nicely as it did with its orignal pack of springs and still rides smoother and handles better than it would with the orig springs on it.

[crossy]

the way i understand it - the more leafs you have the more articulation possible (all else been equal) due to the fact that the multi leafs can open up and allow twist. Totally agree that paras will give a better ride while retaining good load capacity. Leaf springs (set up properly) will give better articulation IMHO. style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif

[DaveS3]

Normal semi epilectic (sp?) will be capable of more travel than the parabolics - but you will need less leafs than a normal spring pack as to lower the spring rate.

The more leafs - the stiffer and less flex.

Parabolics have 2 or 3 main leafs that run the whole lenght of the pack which resists more movement than a normal pack with less leaves.

Standard cars arn't limited by the leaves, but by the normal shocks.

The best simple upgrade is to replace the standard ones with Military items ( about 2 inches longer).

If that is not enough, you then need to be thinking about custom shock mounts or longer leaves, especially in the front.

If you get to that stage - coils is probably easier style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif

Dave.

[crossy]

re - rear shock mounts, fit front spring clamp plates to the rear, allows for around 2" longer shocks.

good info below

http://homepage.powerup.com.au/~mangey/landydata.htm

http://www.outerlimits4x4.com/PHP_Modules/...ghlight=springs (http://www.outerlimits4x4.com/PHP_Modules/phpBB2/viewtopic.php't=37883&highlight=springs)

[Michael2]

I've got parabolics on my 109 SIII 2.25 Petrol H/Top. I like them, they make the ride softer and increase body roll. My 109 never dipped at the front when I braked until I put parabolics on it 8O , it was a bit of a novelty for the first couple of days.

They are excellent at taking the harshness out of bumps. I have four leaf rears (British Springs - green ones) and usually travel unladen with high tyre pressures and they still airbrush the sharp edges away from jolts.

When I first got the springs, I had a 2nd hand front tail shaft which I thought was from a 4cyl. After I installed the parabolics, when ever I went over a rail crossing or speed bump there was an almight bang from under the vehicle 8O :!: As it turned out the tailshaft was a couple of inches too long (probably modified to suit a conversion in a previous life) and kept bottoming out. Such articulation was never felt with standard leaves. It took me a few days to figure out where the noise was coming from.

If you want drastic improvements in articulation though, go for coils.