Hi all,

Can anybody tell me the dimensions of the front springs for a 1974 142? The car was lowered and I wanted to get it back to height, so I ordered new springs (F&R) from a respected local supplier of aftermarket springs. It now looks like a praying mantis: I reckon it's sitting nearly 2" too high.

Regards

JohnH
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JohnH, Sydney, Australia

Oxy in the right hands gets the job done ok, in the wrong hands it will sit like a lame duck.The only down side is uneven heat and cooling can crystalise a coil and lead to failure down the track. K-Mac heated mine evenly at compressed height and pressure then slowly cooled to temper them. Used them in the early sports sedan days (in another life).

Give K-Mac at Rockdale a call. They will reset your new springs or make their own. I bought some heavy duty std height springs privately and had them lowered 1.5". Car sat perfectly, they do know what they are doing.

Thanks, I'd forgotten all about them. I used them several years ago to do some springs for a car we rally and they did a fine job. In the meantime my mechanic warmed them with a little oxy and they sit well now. Not ideal, but fine for the moment.

Regards

JohnH
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JohnH, Sydney, Australia

I can't help with a 1974's dimensions--but I can for a '73. The total length from flat edge to flat edge is 11.75 inches. Wire diameter is 15.4 mm (sorry for the mixed measurements). There are 7 full coils, plus at each end, a tighter half coil at full diameter and half ground flat for a total of 9 coils.
I think for the US market the springs might have lifted the car a little to meet bumper or headlight standards for 1974--not sure about that though. -- Dave

that sounds about right, ive always thought stock was 5'x12' at 300 lbs/in