How bad of a situation is that of me installing the back left eibach spring upside down accidentally?

I just got done installing the KYB GR-2 shocks and eibach pro-kit spring after taking around 5 or 6 hours, and after a lot of trouble getting the back spring/shock assembly in, due to the ONLY bolt that you have to take off and put back on being such a pain in the butt to get back through...
and i noticed it after returning the spring compressor to Advance AutoParts and putting back all of our tools....
So im thinking I need to go rent the spring compressor again and take the shock/spring off and reinstall...good idea? or should i not worry about it ?

by the way, i hear a slight "clanking" sound in the back when driving over holes or cracks/bumps in the road, and im assuming that is the back left spring? but besides that noise the handling and comfort i get from this shock/spring combo has been awesome so far!!

advice or w.e would be nice
THANKS

 

Do it right the first time... Fix it man

 

OY! I took my car to the local tire shop and when they dropped it back down the spring on the coil over didn't seat right up into the hat but instead got stuck on the lip, I drove 10 miles and every time i hit a bump I heard horrible noises, got to a flat spot and lifted the car with my scissor jack and had to fix it in the rain! At least you caught it man, they're meant to go a certain way because of them being progressive springs, I am guessing they are progressive springs seeing as how most kits are, so make sure it goes in correct the first time!

 

yeah it's a big deal.. your suspension will feel awkward since the progressive spring is made to be softer at a certain compression...

go back to AZ and re-rent the tools... and damn.. 5-6 hours just for suspension? talk about takin your sweet time!

 

Yea i figured it was a big deal...and the back springs are different...for example, the coils are closer together at the top, and more spaced out at the bottom...Is that what progressive springs means ? and yea


but just for the record this setup has been nothing but amazing compared to stock so far, its a softer ride, and handling is improved drastically...even with my little ordeal!

Well....I guess I know what I'll be doing sometime this week..thanks!

 

and yea i did take my sweet time...it was a breeze! I did it by myself and im only 16...
except for the back ones...I had to get a buddy of mine help me fit that darn bolt on the back shocks through!

 

When i take the nut off the Rod or piston( w/e you call it) on the top of the shock is it going to strip the thread on that screw ? because that would suck... ???

 

I doubt the spring being upside down is a big deal in itself, only if the spring seats and thus the ends of the springs are differently shaped, which I think is likely. In this case the spring won't sit correctly in either seat, and it should be rectified by turning the spring over.

Now for my regular technical rave (don't read if you're not interested):
The progressive nature of the spring won't be any different regardless of the way it's fitted. The soft coils will still compress more at lighter loadings, the harder coils at higher loadings. Neither the car nor thesuspension can 'see' which way up the coil is in this respect.

Having said that, there is another reason to fit the spring with the closer spacedwinding toward the top, i.e. the spring will be heavier at the end with more coils (i.e. there will be more mass at this end), and if you fit the spring with the heavier end toward the bottom this will increase the unsprung mass of the suspension as a whole. In this regard it does matter if the heavier spring end is closer to the suspension than to the chassis, even thoughall the spring weight is still resting on the upright / hub assembly regardless of which way up the spring may be.

It matters because as the suspension moves the end of the spring that is closer to the suspension moves more than that part closer to the chassis, and it's the kinetic energy in the moving part of the spring mass that affects the suspension with regard to unsprung mass, i.e. the more unsprung mass in motion there is theworse the sprung / unsprung mass ratio will be, and more of the spring will be in greater motion nearer the bottom of the spring than at the top. This means we want the lightest part of the spring to move the most with suspension deflection, being the end of the spring with fewest coils.

This is a theoretical consideration considering the weight differences involved (not large), of more real importance to racing or rally cars, less so for a road car, but minimising unsprung mass is always beneficial in some degree.

 

That's the point.. but he didn't ask for the scientific reasoning... I agree that the spring itself will not be affected, but in laymen terms you will feel a difference... My buddy did that once on one of his wheels and you could totally feel a difference once we fixed it.

ohsmustangs09, if you read the instructions it says that the word "Eibach" must be right side up when mounted.. just make sure you have that on all 4 wheels and you're good..

This 2nd go around should be much faster now you know what you're doing eh?

 

John ..... that description almost brought a tear to my eye ...... you should start a thread for extreme technical discussions and link these general threads to your posts there ..... in a month or so we'll have the auto physics encyclopedia!!! And how the heck do you pull these descriptions from the top of your head?!? I mean, I also know the material that you talk about, but to put it all in writing would take me some time. Remember the optics discussion? That was a 5 hour response!!!!