[Steering & Suspension] Springs

[Johna1]

Hi all brought my van for mot today failed on couple of minor things my question is after replacing springs and shocks my van was sitting very high on front.Guy doing not reckoned springs were wrong they are Monroe sp0071 which were hard to compress and stood nearly 2 inches higher beside old spring.Does anyone have measurements of a new spring or thoughts on this .
Thanks in advance
John

[bikergraham]

Hi John.I have recently replaced my front shocks / springs / and bearings. I have noted that because the new shocks are gas they are a LOT "harsher" than the old oil filled ones. They also make the front slightly higher,i guess about 1/2 inch as i have no trouble getting my small jack under the cross member now,whereas before i had to lift the car a small amount to get it under.This would also impact the tracking and before i fit new front tyres i shall have that checked.The old springs i found out when removing them were different makes and one was approx 1/2 inch shorter than the other ,but it was also much thicker so i assume that the spring compressing rate was the same.The old springs i threw only a couple of days ago so am unable to measure them,but i suspect that the 2 inch difference seems a little excessive to me but it also depends on the extended length of your shock,after all the shocks will only extend to its " stop " and if the spring is too long it can effectively make the suspension very stiff and noisy as itll run on its extended length bump stops.Are you sure you have fitted the correct shocks ? it may be ,one ,the other,or a combination of both the incorrect parts.Was it an ebay purchase,there are so many different ones,is your car a Mk 1 or a MK2.? It seems they all use different springs.Have a look at the Monroe website and perhaps give them a ring,it maybe the only way to find out.

[Johna1]

Hi bikergraham
Thanks for your reply when putting in springs I noticed van was a good bit higher measured old and new shocks they were the same, as I say good difference between old and new spring. The van is a mk 2 and that spring was ordered on the car reg but looking on the net there seems to be 5 different Monroe springs. 

[Johna1]

Well today got onto the online motor factors explained my problem and there reply was it will take a while for springs to settle down.They never asked what part number was or year of van or order number I just kept getting fobbed off . Hung up because I seemed to be dealing with an imbecile who just seemed to be repeating a mantra he had been given.

[bikergraham]

Well today got onto the online motor factors explained my problem and there reply was it will take a while for springs to settle down.They never asked what part number was or year of van or order number I just kept getting fobbed off . Hung up because I seemed to be dealing with an imbecile who just seemed to be repeating a mantra he had been given.

What absolute crap,ive never heard such rubbish in my life.Was it europarts by any chance,sounds familiar to the stories that my mate comes out with as he deals with several different companies but tells me europarts is by far the worst.They're not mechanics just telephonists /office boys dont be fobbed off ,are you able to call to this place and ask for someone who knows which way is up  and not the monkeys that just answer the phones who really dont give a damn anyway. ! .If its not europarts do go to their website and put in your registration number ,see what it comes up with.I do feel that you have incorrect parts,tell them that you intend to bill them for the failed MOT ,and quote the sale of goods and services act 1988. You need a double check on the part numbers ,you could even try a different company and make out that you are going to buy from them.
   At the end of the day if you feel so inclined would you feel comfortable cutting the spring,its easy to do but i would suggest if you go down this road to cut it at least 1/2 inch longer than the old one,and make sure the end is painted to stop it rusting,put the cut end at the top so the MOT er cant see it.Thats the last resort but it does give you a way forward at least.Good luck.Please note that the shocks are offset so you would need to cut exactly e.g. 1 x coil otherwise the spring wont sit correctly on the strut and may create problems / noise.

[Johna1]

Thanks again bikergraham for your suggestions it was not europarts I won't name them yet as tomorrow I will try and get in contact with someone who knows what I'm talking about. Just went with them on a friends recommendation but looking on online forums there is a good few complaints of them sending wrong parts.

[Johna1]

If anyone would have the dimensions of a new spring I would appreciate it.

[bikergraham]

Try here, http://www.monroe.com/en-uk/ They have a customer service phone number for Ireland, go to the dogs body for some proper advice.

[Tree]

Silly question, you've not been supplied springs for a different model, say a petrol for example?

They do an extra ground clearance version with sump guard etc on the new model which sits higher. The idea is so it goes on building sites etc easier. Could there be a chance that the springs supplied have been for a model like that?


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[SilverLingo]

I would give it a few hundred miles before worrying too much

Your old suspension would have been sitting lower than OE and it could be that the new ones have merely put it back to how it was when new.

When I put new shocks all round on a Renault 21 yrs ago it sat ever so slightly higher all round.

Never thought much about it though that car had done 180k and was four years old when they were fitted.