Hopefully someone can explain this?

[BARRACUDA1968]

My car sat 1 inch lower on the passenger side than the driver in the rear so I ordered new springs from Kirbans.

I got the old springs out tonight and the passenger spring has this white spacer on the top and the drivers side had the rubber mount. I have no idea why?

Is there a reason for the white spacer? It is just a round puck. No groove for the spring to set in.

One other question, with these new progressive springs do I need the air bags?

Thanks Brett

 

[charlief1]

Take a pic of the "puck". The top of the springs had a rubber isolater on them to cut down on noise.

The only reason for the airbags that I can think of is to help pre-load the chassis so it launches straighter.

 

[BARRACUDA1968]

I'll have to take a picture of the puck tomorrow. I'm at home now.

I'll probably just put the bags back in just in case I need them later.

 

[KEVINS]

Let me get this straight:
The Passenger side sat lower than "normal".
There was a spacer found on top of the Passenger spring that would raise that side of the car up.

Now you want to know why it was there?

I think you can figure that out..
KS

 

[BARRACUDA1968]

I get that!

Just thought this white puck was a common part the GN guy's used. My guess would be it was to preload the passengers spring a little more than the drivers side to help the car launch better along with the help of the air bag settings. Kind of like the super stock A body leaf springs we ran the the cuda's

Nobody who's spent the kind of money and time that's been spent on this car would stuff a white puck to overcome a weak spring when a new set cost $89 to replace.

I'll post a pic tomorrow and see if anyone else has ever seen one of these before.

 

[KEVINS]

Nobody who's spent the kind of money and time that's been spent on this car would stuff a white puck to overcome a weak spring when a new set cost $89 to replace.

lol.. I bet that's exactly what they did, tho.
The white puck wasn't standard and I've never even seen a white spring spacer so if I was to guess it's probably a piece of nylon or delrin that they used for a spacer..and we can only speculate why.
Just leave it out... You can put the airbags in they won't hurt anything by being in there even if you don't run any air in them.

ks

 

[Radio]

Why would that side of the car sit lower with a spacer in the spring, I would think it would set higher

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[charlief1]

The rear springs have a habit of going bad on the right side of the car for some reason.

 

[BARRACUDA1968]

Why would that side of the car sit lower with a spacer in the spring, I would think it would set higher

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That's exactly what I thought too??

Here's the "Puck" I'm not sure exactly how the puck stayed in there. No grooves, just a flat surface?

 

[KEVINS]

Looks like a piece of nylon from something. I see machined edges on it so it must have had a specific purpose in a different life. Paint it pink and give it to your girlfriend..

ks

 

[Pronto]

Here you go from HR PartsNstuff: Air Bag Spacer Kit These are special spacers (Part #0350) for use with Air Bags for tuning the rear suspension. They are 1" thick with a hole in the center for the fill line to go through. The material is a special high density, wear and abrasion resistant plastic, that holds up to high temperatures also. They are designed to be installed under your current air bags and thin spacer/discs, against the rearend housing. There are 2 pieces to a kit, one for each side of the car. The spacers allow less air pressure to be used in the air bags, and still give the same amount of down-force. This reduces/eliminates that initial all familiar bounce from the rear which unloads the chassis. This bounce is the main cause of why a car launches initially with good traction, but spins just after it starts moving, and then hooks up again (hopefully). It is amazing how a little thing like these spacers can dramatically improve traction and lower the 60 ft times on many cars. These are recommended for anyone running more than approx. 15 psi in any bag. The spacers allow the same or more down-force, without turning the air bags into basketballs. These were proven to lower the 1/4 mile time of one car at the 2001 Buick Nat's by over 2 tenths. This will obviously vary from car to car, but they do work great on every car so far. They were installed on my car when I had a best 60 ft. time of 1.40, which helped plant the tires and keep them hooked up. These are extremely helpful in the 1.4 to 1.7 60 ft. range, and will be a good addition to cars in other ranges as well. Air bag pressure tuning suggestions and recommendations are also included with each kit.

 

[BARRACUDA1968]

Ok, I guess I didn't pay that close attention when I dropped the spring out. This just fell on the floor. I guess I never noticed it under the bag and assumed it was on top of the spring. I only have one so I will put it back in when the car goes back together. Every tenth counts!

The passenger side spring did not have a rubber bushing on top of the spring like the drivers side. Is there a reason for that?

 

[KEVINS]

The mystery has been solved! =)

ks

 

[BARRACUDA1968]

The mystery has been solved! =)

ks

I told you it wasn't cobbled! LOL

 

[KEVINS]

 

[Radio]

Yet again, I learn something new on here!

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[BARRACUDA1968]

Boy do I feel stupid.

I started this whole project because the car didn't sit level from side to side. So I ordered new springs. I pulled the old springs out and discovered the "Puck". They must of had the "puck" on the top of the airbag inside the spring. Maybe it works just the same there instead of the bottom. Anyway I took a picture of the old spring and new just for reference. The driver spring had a rubber mount on the top of it and the passenger spring didn't. I guess I didn't think much of it and kind of figured they wanted the passenger spring to hit harder on launch so that's why they left the rubber mount out. Can anyone see where this is going yet?

Soooo with out thinking I installed the new springs the same way but I put the white "puck" on the bottom side of the airbag which won't effect ride height. Finished the job, dropped the car on the ground and drove it a bit and then measured again. Guess what? The car is still uneven. What did I do wrong? Any guesses? I felt so stupid when I figured it out.

You can see where the "puck" was riding on the top side of the bag, that's why I didn't see it before I pulled the old springs.