How safe is it to cut the springs on a mk2

GroovyCarrot · Post by **GroovyCarrot** » Thu Feb 17, 2005 12:07 pm

Ah, bugger. Shame, I was thinking of getting a set at some point...

Tahrey1043 · Post by **Tahrey1043** » Thu Feb 17, 2005 10:47 pm

spring chopping = no

if only because you crash every last rut in the road if you have passengers - speaks a few volumes about what it may do to the handling in real terms. it'll probably still wallow as badly, just hit the maximum travel a lot earlier. stiffer ones are what you want, as well as shorter.

change your driving style instead, it's never going to be a super fast car (unless yours is a GT/G40/NZ-coupe-S) so get some playtime out of the jelly suspension instead whilst you're inching towards your destination. its great when you finally get close to the limits but dont take it any further

GroovyCarrot · Post by **GroovyCarrot** » Thu Feb 17, 2005 11:21 pm

Yeah, there is something to be said of the fun factor of the standard handling of the old polo

Although, I can't get tyre squeal out of the new tyres like I could on the skinny old ones, and it has more of a tendancy to snap when it lets go.. Still, I'd rather keep an element of wallow in my suspension simply because it feels like you're going so much faster than you really are

I think stiffened suspension would just bring home how slow it actually is - and the ride would be even less refined. Think I won't be bothering lowering mine. I was considering it with the lower profile tyres and all, but I think really it'd just be more hassle than it's worth.

Tahrey1043 · Post by **Tahrey1043** » Thu Feb 17, 2005 11:27 pm

Drop the rear seats and chuck in 4-500kg of payload to experience the standard-spring loweredness. It's a whole new world of wallow. Even straight lines feel wierd. (Try to ignore that 0-30mph now takes 10 seconds

)

GroovyCarrot · Post by **GroovyCarrot** » Thu Feb 17, 2005 11:39 pm

Hah, yes, I know that one

I do quite a lot of tech work for the school's plays etc, lugging around PA systems and lights and all that jazz - I can fit the entire PA system in the polo, seats down, a bass bin on the front seat and the footwell crammed full of cables, bit of single handed driving around corners to avoid being crushed by said bass bin - leads to some seriously interesting handling characteristics

Not to mention the accelleration.. I wouldn't be at all suprised if I was out accellerated by a bus with that lot in the car.. but it does a -very- nice job of lowering it

Tahrey1043 · Post by **Tahrey1043** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 2:45 am

hey... that's why the rev counter goes round to 6000 after all

GroovyCarrot · Post by **GroovyCarrot** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 8:21 pm

Pfft, only 6,000? I had mine over 7,000 the other day

Purely by accident.. fiddling with carb, opened up the throttle and a vacuum tube shifted and lodged under the pulley and locked it fully open

Scared the pants off me that did.. although luckily it reached a point where it didn't seem to want to rev any higher, even though I'm pretty sure it doesn't have a limiter.

Tahrey1043 · Post by **Tahrey1043** » Sun Feb 20, 2005 1:47 pm

na... too asthmatic. 6500 is a stretch sometimes

i would take it higher, but there's just no benefit. except in 1st.

k4lps · Post by **k4lps** » Fri Mar 04, 2005 3:53 pm

whats the use of cuttin springs not only are they dangorus and handle worse then before the amount of time and effort you put into cuttin the springs you could of got lowering springs for less then 50squid fit them and have a few hrs to spare

polo-vixen · Post by **polo-vixen** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 12:14 am

errr, the coupe s mk2 can be made to go quite quickif u have the time and money, and the knowledage on the subject aswel!

k4lps · Post by **k4lps** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 2:40 pm

Polo-vixen wrote:errr, the coupe s mk2 can be made to go quite quickif u have the time and money, and the knowledage on the subject aswel!

its the same engine as most other 1.3 they just have sports seats, rev counter and a red ring round the clock surround

polo-vixen · Post by **polo-vixen** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 2:56 pm

I do kinda know that, but i want a fast car as i dont like the 55bhp power that it gives, or the 4 speed box!