My car has the standard 383 issue leafs in the back. They are original equipment so I know they are getting tired. I watch video of the car at the drags and you can see how tired they are. A previous owner had them rearched with an extra inch of camber and I like the way the car sits when it's unloaded.
My question is, does re-arching springs detract from their spring rate at all? I am getting a set of Hemi leafs for the car from Detroit Spring but how much arch will they have? I don't like the look of the 1st gens when they sit too low in the back. I don't want a funny car rake just an aggressive stance. Is this hurting the cars drag strip performance?
re arcing the spring only changes theheight , the load ability stays the same , it is definatly hurting traction at the drag strip , when the fron t section of the spring is soft it can deflect which hurts traction , the stiffer the front section the better the traction
:iagree: The xhd hemi/440 springs will work fine in that application. The SS springs are very stiff and will raise the ride height significantly.
Ron
So the change in arch softens the front portion?
Quote from: Ghoste on August 28, 2005, 08:43:42 AM
So the change in arch softens the front portion?
See Neils comments above. The spring rate is unaffected by arch....just the rideheight. ;)
Ron
That part I understand. I guess what I'm not getting is maybe when Neil you are talking about the soft front section hurting me, you are talking about the 383 leafs in general and not as a condition of my springs getting re-arched. Am I getting it now?
Quote from: Ghoste on August 28, 2005, 04:13:31 PM
Am I getting it now?
Yep, it gets confusing at times because springs and rideheight can "look" good but then you load up the chassis, the tires will break free and wheel hop will ensue. The xhd/hemi springs have addition leafs to combat this problem. There is also an extra leaf on the passenger side to help the car launch straighter. The xhd's will have 6 leafs on the DS and 7 on the PS....the standard 8cyl leafs have 5 per side.
Ron
Okay, so do the XHD springs have any more arch to them than a 383 one?
They shouldn't....ride height from the factory was the same for a 383 Charger and a 440/426 hemi Charger R/T.
Ron
So in theory, the rear of the car should settle one inch with the new springs since the current ones were re-arched.
OTOH, if the oem ones are tired enough to do the wave at the dragstrip on street tires and have the stock snubber bang the floor during shifts with 200lbs. in the trunk, then maybe they don't have much camber left to them anyway, re-arched or not.