[WPTA] Front Springs and Shocks

[Gary Fredo]

 Hey Kevin.  First of all, for the most part, shocks won't increase or lower the ride height of the car.  The purpose of shocks is to dampen the ride.  So stiffer shocks make the ride harder but can also improve the handling of the car.  One exception to this are air shocks and there may be a few others that I'm not thinking of.  Are the Gaz shocks, performance shocks?  That will add to the stiffness of the ride.  
What is going on in photo #3?  The spring is completely compressed.  That is definitely incorrect.  You should have approximately 2 inches from the bottom of the shock tube to the bottom of the lower perch that the spring rides on.  It looks like the distance on your shocks are longer based on photo #2 which could be causing the issue.  
I'm guessing that there is a difference between Moss "shorter springs" and the factory springs as used on the earlier 1500 Spitfires when the ride height was lower.  The Moss "shorter springs" may be performance springs that are intended to lower the car and make it much stiffer.  I'm pretty sure Moss has a tech line that you can call and ask them if those springs were correct for what you are trying to do.  I'm guessing that the Moss "shorter springs" are adding to the stiffness of your ride.
You may need to do more research but you may find out that both the springs and shocks will need to be replaced to accomplish the ride height and stiffness that you are trying to get to.  I'm using stock springs out of a 73 Spitfire and Spax adjustable shocks on my 76 Spitfire but I prefer a harsher ride and better handling.
Feel free to call me 724-378-9610 if you want to talk about it in more detail.
Gary 


    On Wednesday, October 2, 2024 at 01:48:20 PM EDT, Kevin Dadey via Wpta <wpta at autox.team.net> wrote:  
 
 Hello again,
Thanks all for help on my previous issue with the leaky differential. 
Now I need your expert advice about the front suspension for my 1976 Spitfire. I was advised soon after purchasing this car in 2018, that shorter front springs would help lower the nose of my car. It bothered me considerably until last year when I started to address the issue. First I purchased the shorter springs and a new set of stock shocks from Moss. I did not feel confident doing this job myself, nor did my friend, Jeff, "The Triumph Whisperer", who regularly assists me with my Spitfire projects. So, our local and very trustworthy mechanic said he'd do the work. The initial result was that the car sat far too low. He advised me to get a set of adjustable shocks. He installed them also but again I was bottoming out on our lovely Pittsburgh area roads. I took it back for adjustment. The result is shown in the photos - Springs 1a and Springs 1b. Now the ride was very hard and the car would regularly make a bang sound when driving over a small ridge or hole in the pavement. 
Next, I posted these 2 photos on Facebook. Maybe some of you saw them. Of course there was unanimous criticism of my mechanic's work. Some even said that these new, shorter springs are shot. Probably junk in the first place. The advice what to do next is a bit varied. Some said just adjust the shocks creating more space between the coils. The other photo shows this setup using Gaz shocks also. I've been advised by one of those Facebook commenters also to purchase stock springs since the shorter ones were for earlier and lighter cars. I'd like to know what you think. I'm certainly prepared to purchase the correct set of springs but I'm hoping that these new Gaz shocks can still be used.
Thank you again.
Kevin 

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