Welcome to the Corvette Forums at the Corvette Action Center!

leafspring identification help

  • Thread starter Thread starter dfw81shark
  • Start date Start date
D

dfw81shark

Guest
Hello,
First of all, I was wondering if anyone knew which rear spring I have. It doesn't appear stock, as it has warning installation instructions on the spring. It also looks fairly new. I bought the car just over a year ago and it was already on there. I have attached pictures of the spring and its condition. I see it is peeling on the bottom, I think I need to replace it. Am I correct? I saw Scott's 81 on c3sharktank and saw he switched over to a 7-leaf. I'd think the fiberglass should be lighter, but I'd take strength and not messing with it over weight savings, if strength is what a 7-leaf would get me. I have at least 40 extra lbs of speakers in the car, and I'm at least 40 lbs overweight myself, so what's another 40 lbs? :-) Any recommendations? I like how this one performs, so if someone could identify it, I'd like to replace it with a same strength spring. I looked on vb&p, since the strut rods are definitely from there, and the part numbers were nowhere near what vb&p had. I have no clue where this could have come from.

I've also pulled the rear-end out of it, and with some PMs to '81 vette', and some help from one of my car buddies, we got it out. Didn't break anything either, except that we stripped 2 u-joint strap bolts. They were 12 point and very hard to get off, but I've already got new 6 points ready to go back in. Now the diff is in the shop and should come back in a couple of weeks as 3.55 (yay!). Many thanks to '81 vette', the tie-rod spindle support for not busting, and no thanks to Hayne's manuals as they are too generic and would have cause much more heartache had I followed its recommendations (i.e. "remove the eight carrier-to-cover bolts and let the oil drain from the carrier....) It came out in one piece.

I'll post what this venture cost. I'm hoping nowhere near 2k as I've seen other people pay. Actually I hope to not exceed $500.

Also, props to Scott's 81 underside - if I can get mine to look half as good as your car underneath, I'd be ecstatic. :-)

Michael
 
Where are the pics of scott81 corvette underside. I would like to see them.

Mike
 
celeryman22 said:
Where are the pics of scott81 corvette underside. I would like to see them.

Mike
Here ya go Mike
The SharkTank

Bud
 
Why do you want to replace it? Looks in good condition to me. These type of springs are considered to be an 'upgrade' from a steel spring, no advantage that I can think of to go backwards.
 
Replies! I was losing hope. I did figure out it was a TRW spring, but I did not want to reply to myself. :-) The problem I had with it is that there appears to be 2 surface cracks going through most of the length of the bottom side. I was not the original purchaser so I don't have any warranty paperwork to try to replace this. The steel springs are half the cost and I guess I am not too happy with the way this "performance" spring lasted. Of course, I have no idea how old it is or how many miles it has traveled. Look at it again closely. The cracks are very apparent in real life when you can get the light to hit it right.

On a side note, I haven't received the quote for the rearend work. I was told by tomorrow, but I am not going to rush him just yet. I'll keep ya'll posted. He was swamped anyway, and one of his main guys just had a heart attack. I understand..

Thanks guys for the replies.

Michael
 
I see the cracks now and agree you should replace it. You might try to 'borrow' a steel spring to see if you like the ride before you take the plungs and buy. There is a remarkable difference between the two.

I've had a TRW spring on my car for about 12-13 years and have had no problems.
 
mmmmm 3.55

looks like you have your answers. you should easily get off for 500 assuming the yokes and carrier are good. You did most of the expensive work yourself by removing it and not breaking anything.

i'd spend the extra couple of bucks and get the fiberglass spring. You are already 80lbs heavy, and while the gearing will make a big difference, it still takes power to move 40 extra pounds.
 
dfw81shark said:
Replies! I was losing hope. I did figure out it was a TRW spring, but I did not want to reply to myself. :-) The problem I had with it is that there appears to be 2 surface cracks going through most of the length of the bottom side. I was not the original purchaser so I don't have any warranty paperwork to try to replace this. The steel springs are half the cost and I guess I am not too happy with the way this "performance" spring lasted. Of course, I have no idea how old it is or how many miles it has traveled. Look at it again closely. The cracks are very apparent in real life when you can get the light to hit it right.

On a side note, I haven't received the quote for the rearend work. I was told by tomorrow, but I am not going to rush him just yet. I'll keep ya'll posted. He was swamped anyway, and one of his main guys just had a heart attack. I understand..

Thanks guys for the replies.

Michael

It looks like this side was too close to the exhaust. There appears to be some heat damage to the spring. That's why it cracked. If you go with a like for like replacement, I'd have the exhaust redone paying close attention to clearances.
 

Corvette Forums

Not a member of the Corvette Action Center?  Join now!  It's free!

Help support the Corvette Action Center!

Supporting Vendors

Dealers:

MacMulkin Chevrolet - The Second Largest Corvette Dealer in the Country!

Advertise with the Corvette Action Center!

Double Your Chances!

Our Partners

Back
Top Bottom