I've been on discussion forums long enough to hear people sometimes say springs do sag. People read it on the internet, and it get's passed around. In theory, springs do sag. Compression will wear them out over time where they don't bounce back the way it once did.

But I have never actually seen an owner's thread that said "OMG, WTF, my springs have sagged." As from the OP.

It always seem like it's a comment or opinion.

 

old original domestics with their 5k lb barge cars

 

With lowering springs on Hondas, what most people perceive as springs "sagging" or "settling" after installing the springs is actually the rubber bushings tearing to relieve the preload tension on them, because the installer failed to properly clock the bushings by loosening all bushing bolts and torquing them with the suspension loaded and the car at final ride height.

However I've been wondering for awhile if my original GS-R front springs have sagged a bit over time. I have them on Koni shocks on the lowest perch setting, which is 1" lower than the stock perch setting, which theoretically should give about a 1.5" drop at the wheel. However my fender arch is almost to the top of my my tire and I have more than -2° camber according to the alignment rack. I like the way it sits and the way it looks, but I think it's lower than what it should be or would be with OEM springs in newer condition.

 

I don't have Koni shocks (yet) so maybe that's why I'm not understanding this. If the perch is 1" lower, how does that translate to 1.5" overall?

 

spring compressing.

 

Motion ratios, since the shock is mounted inboard of the wheel hub on the LCA. On a Civic or Integra, the ratio is about 3:2, meaning the distance from inner LCA bolt to shock bolt is about 2/3 the distance of inner LCA bolt to lower ball joint.

Think of a pair of pliers, and the distance the handles move from each other near the hinge, vs. out at the ends of the handles. If you compressed a spring between those pliers handles, the spring is going to move less than the ends of the handles will.

This is only on a double wishbone suspension setup. On a Mac strut setup where the spring/shock is connected directly to the wheel hub, the movement of the spring perch translates directly to the change in ride height.

 

Yes, the wishbone. Forgotten about that. Thanks.

 

My '94 Civic sedan has sagging springs, looks like a 4x4 in the front, lowered in the back. I attribute it to 370,000kms of rough roads combined with speeding and being overloaded. I will be replacing both the shocks and springs with new ones this year, suspension is currently all original so I think it's held up well.

 

Good quality springs made of proper metal should not sage during their life. I do see it possible to have some sagging from more wear on the rubber components of your suspension if you still have them, as someone already mentioned.

Zack