[tazandjan]

Ever thought about tightening up the handling of your F430? Stiffer springs are one way to do it. Here are the specs on the F430 and Scuderia spring rates from the factory. Note there are three groups of spring rates per car model, each classified by a color This did not come from attempting to make soft, stiff, and intermediate springs, but are just tolerances from manufacturing. After manufacture, the springs are measured for stiffness. Those outside tolerances are tossed in the scrap heap. The others are grouped by pairs matched as closely as possible and assigned a color code.

Note it is possible to have quite a wide variation in stiffness on the same model car. The factory used same color spec springs front and rear to prevent excess under- or over-steer. It was possible to have two F430s with Assembly Numbers consecutive on the assembly line and one would have had more roll and pitch stability than the other, and a slightly degraded ride.

Curious? The tags or paint should still be on the springs and you can look for yourself.

If you are curious why the Scud springs are actually lower in pure weight rating, it is because they are shorter. The real measure of stiffness is the weight required to depress the spring an equal amount, and that is the Kg/mm column.

Chart compliments of my friend Stef from Germany. We collaborated on the methodology.

Taz
Terry Phillips