anyone know who sells springs for kw V3 ? Tried my goto shop (way!) but they don't. I need a LOT more spring.

I'm thinking 9kg/mm front and 10kg/mm rear for my dedicated track car, so I need springs and tophat/retainers for the kw so I can run the regular straight springs

heard great things about swift springs

 

Texas Speed works and Swift sell linear springs for them

mQubed Motorsport, Manic Tuning Dealer

 

texas speed work shut down and way bought them out didn't they?

 

I wasn't aware of that. I have purchased Swift custom springs with great luck

mQubed Motorsport, Manic Tuning Dealer

 

they have the parts to adapt the bees nest spring retainers to 60mm too?

I think I need 6" springs with helper springs up front not really sure its hard to find info

 

Make sure you get the shocks re-valved for the new spring rates. A rate change of more than 20% will likely require it.

 

you cant re-valve kW v3 but I've heard from multiple sources the valving is the same as club sport

 

Search my posts about fitting other brands of springs to KW's!! Spring seat modifications may be necessary.

Yes, they have the parts but it's difficult to get the info out of them. For a start talk to Tom Edge at KW but you may have to come up with the part numbers you need based on the replacement part numbers from other products. ST's and some early KW's come/came without the Stainless bodies and will take different spring seats than their Stainless bodied products.

KW doesn't make a 6 inch spring but at the rates you are talking about if you decide to stay with KW the 140 mm springs will work and unless you are limiting shock travel some how you will need helper springs. I like Swift's helper springs, for a number of reasons, one of which is their reduced stack height but once again read my spring related posts.

Absolutely

My info is V1's 2's and 3's can't be re-valved but I could be wrong, ask Tom Edge. Club Sports and their competition shocks can.

Not the same valving but possibly the same type of valving.

If you want to convert stainless V3's to linear springs without re-valving i suggest you confine your rate choices to something very close to the original rates. My early production V1's came with linear 50 N/mm fronts and 40 N/mm rears. Apx 285 lb/in Fronts and 228 lb/in rear.

Way (WMW) sells a re-branded KW V3 as their TSW V3's, this is an excellent product at a good price but probably can't be re-valved down the road when it wears out or you need radically different rates but it comes with 70 N/mm linear springs, apx 400 lb/in, and helper springs front and rear. I have them on my R53 now and have tweaked the rates to my taste. I would not hesitate to go up or down one spring rate with these.

Best choice, in KW's, if you are serious about your track car, get the Competition 2 Ways I have a set of those also. They are full customizable when ordering. You tell them exactly what you want for spring rates and lengths. They will offer advice if needed. A cheaper and possibly as good a choice, is their Club Sports but they come with 80 N/mm spring rates (apx 456 lb/in) I believe but Like the Way product, I wouldn't hesitate to tweak the rates a little but that would be a added expense.

KW springs are expensive. Apx twice as much as other and possibly better springs can be had for. In 60mm id springs I like Eibach's and Hyperco's best overall with Swifts coming in a close third. Read my spring info.

 

Probably will go to the club sports later

what length springs do you run, I was thinking 7" both ends with helper springs would do it, I do not want a lot of drop with the 225/45/15 tires I'm already really low

 

Things are getting a little crazy, with two threads going. So you have multiple problems.

1.You want rebuilt, KW V3's but can only get KW to do that with their stock valving but want to run springs that are twice as stiff, as the KW's came with.

2. You want to run the car high enough that you don't drag on most anything you might encounter, which implies to me it's being driven on the street as well? Have you considered driving to events on OEM diameter tires and then switching to your 15 in race tires?

3. You need tire to spring perch clearance for wide tires on wide wheels?

I was on KW's 70/170 or 60/170 mm springs, in front when autocrossing, with no tender springs. and the spring seats only a couple of mm from the top of my KW Comp 2 Ways. This was very low When I started driving it on the street more but still autocrossing it a lot, I ran the 60/170's with KW's 10/60/80 tenders to raise the ride ht a little but had to use some 3 mm wheel spacers, I had, to use with the stock wheels, when I was driving it on the street, so the tire wouldn't rub against the spring perch. The 15's could sit under the perch with no spacer.

So, if I'm reading all your issues correctly and you can't switch from street tires to autocross tires for an event and are running 512 lb (9 Kg) springs in front, I'd say you want a 6 inch spring plus a tender spring. same in the rear. You could get 140 mm springs and run the perch's all the way to the top and a couple of pairs of tender springs of different block (stack) heights, to fine tune all the clearance issues. With perch's, KW's 10/60/80's, have a 25 mm stack ht and their 20/60/80's have a 35 mm stack ht. Of course there are other and cheaper sources for different tender springs, that have different specs, both shorter and taller. As I've told you before, I'm partial to some of the others, Swift in particular but both H&R and Eibach have wide selections of tender springs. H&R's specs are F*** up in my opinion, so make sure of a return policy on them before getting any of those.

 

1: I do not want rebuilt or revalved I have no interest in that, I will switch to high dollar clubsports or similar later.

2:I drive on the street to events with a trailer for the race tires but I live on a gravel road I drag all over, all of my wheels are 15" setups, I will drag with the street tires

3: have perches on order, no clearance issues even with my OEM perches and these big KW honeycomb springs.

I'm going with swift springs, they come in 6, 7, 8 inch sizes all I have left to do is order springs and helpers but I have found lots of conflicting info, 6" + helper or 6+helper and 8" front etc etc

 

I just measured what I have now, this is on the lift set at the ride hight I want

front is right at 8" spring length, rear is right at 7" spring length, this is a littel bit of preload, I end up with the adjusters near the top limits on the front, and not quite the top on the rear.

 

Do not get springs longer than 6 in at the rates you are talking about!!! You will never need the extra travel they provide and it will just be extra weight to drag around even if are so lucky that you won't need the extra tire clearance the shorter springs will provide. You can not compare the stiff linear springs to the soft progressive beehive springs that the KW V3's come with.

 

Here is an idea, if you are getting KW tenders anyway. Get 6 in springs for the front and rear but get one pair of KW's 10/60/80's and one pair of their 20/60/80's. I'd start with the 10's on front and then check your ride ht. If you are still to low at their highest then put the 20's on the front and that will increase the front ht another 10 mm. In the rear, the tenders don't do much more than act as a spacer for short springs.

 

I don't think 6" will be enough up front I'll measure tonight at full load to see what it sits at

 

What is your desired ride height? Wheel center to fender lip, in front. I'm at 12 5/8 inch.

 

I'll measure tonight, I am as high as I can adjust them currently, and I would like it a touch higher but sagging springs I suspect

 

I went with 6" front & back with helpers on both ends, use swift helpers so you can get a set of thrust washers in there without having to lathe down any of the kw parts.

swift springs fit onto the upper perches but only on one end, I guess due to how they are wound, no binding as the tight end is against the swift helper spring setup, and the swift helpers fit over the kw lower perches.


All thats left is ride hight, rear worked out perfect, front too high gonna lower it a bit tomorrow. Not sure what I should run wheel center to wheel arch on the car, I have not played with it much yet.

9kg up front and 8kg in the rear, next track day is first weekend of november