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spring rate and weight

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spring rate and weight #1
jfrankr Jan Frank Rische Grayslake, IL, USA Sign in to contact 1966 MG MGB	Topic Creator (OP) Apr 24, 2014 09:23 PM Joined 23 years ago 1,712 Posts

How about spring rates being adjusted to match some of our larger size than the 160lb guys these cars were designed for?

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Re: spring rate and weight #2
MGB567 Barrie Braxton Ninderry, KabiKabi country, Queensland, Australia Sign in to contact 1966 MG MGB MkI "Money Guzzler" 1979 MG MGB GT V8 Conversion "Darkside"	Apr 24, 2014 09:37 PM Top Contributor Joined 13 years ago 32,646 Posts

how heavy are you - see here

Mk1: CKD 11/66 first registered 8/5/67; owned since 3/77. 18GB +40 balanced. Peter Burgess BVFR head. Piper 285. 123. FidanzaFW. 4synch c/r box. Lots more as I did a nut and bolt rebuild; finished 2015. Tartan Red.

GT: December '78. VW Golf guards, flush fit front and rear valances. Torana XU1 vents, frenched indicators & Mk1 rear lights. 'Worked' Rover V8 with Monsoon ECU for EFI. GM4L60E, Lokar tiptronic & Quick4 controller. Vintage Air A/C. FC IFS. CCE 4 link rear. Salisbury with Quaife. Jaguar Storm.

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Re: spring rate and weight #3
jfrankr Jan Frank Rische Grayslake, IL, USA Sign in to contact 1966 MG MGB	Topic Creator (OP) Apr 24, 2014 10:46 PM Joined 23 years ago 1,712 Posts

not that heavy, 200lbs. that is enough to make a difference in these cars and considering Bs have always been a little "soft" I think stronger springs, front and back would make a difference. Way back in the old days, when I was a kid (and maybe165) I broke a rear spring on my '64 and my MG/ Jaguar mechanic buddy had a set laying around from an MGA. He installed them and maybe it rode a little stiffer but handled a lot better it seemed. Maybe `a new set for my 66 to replace what are probably the originals. Feels like I sit in the B and it sags, that's not good.

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Re: spring rate and weight #4
Donthuis Don van Riet Rijswijk, ZH, Netherlands Sign in to contact 1972 MG MGB MkIII	Apr 25, 2014 12:09 PM Top Contributor Joined 10 years ago 13,327 Posts

In reply to # 2670947 by jfrankr not that heavy, 200lbs. that is enough to make a difference in these cars and considering Bs have always been a little "soft" I think stronger springs, front and back would make a difference. Way back in the old days, when I was a kid (and maybe165) I broke a rear spring on my '64 and my MG/ Jaguar mechanic buddy had a set laying around from an MGA. He installed them and maybe it rode a little stiffer but handled a lot better it seemed. Maybe `a new set for my 66 to replace what are probably the originals. Feels like I sit in the B and it sags, that's not good.

Always mount the B GT springs with their extra leaf at the back on a Tourer, independent of the model Mark I to IV! Up front I just used the standard coil springs for the B, but I know stiffer ones can be ordered. But my CB-car did not agree with the longer BHH1225 RB coils, so I went back to the nomal CB-ones in the AHH series.

Expect leaf springs and even coil springs to sag over the years: over 36 years (PO adaptions unknown so over the full 42 years lifetime it is a ?) I'm now on my fourth set of leaf springs and AT LEAST the third set of coil springs. But good Amstrongs front and back are also important (the internal friction of 7 leave springs helps the damping at the back)

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Re: spring rate and weight #5
Benny Ben E San Diego, CA, USA Sign in to contact 1964 Ford Cortina 1964 Land Rover Series IIA 1965 Ford Cortina 1965 MG MGB & more	Apr 25, 2014 12:57 PM Top Contributor Joined 18 years ago 7,504 Posts

Let's assume MGBs were designed around a 160 lb driver AND passenger (don't forget them). Now let's assume you are going out for a drive with a 200 lb buddy....the total ladened weight of the car with you BOTH in the car is only about 3% higher than the original total designed weight, and those 80 extra lbs are located smack-dab in the middle of the car, where you'd want them to be....and that's neglecting that the car would have originally been designed to carry 50 lbs of luggage out back.

There are plenty of places you can spend money to make your MGB handle better, but it's not about people getting bigger over time. They were always designed to be a relatively soft car as a compromise between comfort and performance.

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