shocks andrear steal spring or fiberglas mono

i am about to replace my steel spring.

i have the idea of replacing my shocks with koni's (www.koni.com -street special-Corvette all 63-83 8040-1019 8040-1020 )and now i am also thinking about installing fiberglass mono spring instead of the steel one.
but does the koni's go together with a fiberglass mono spring?

or should i better go for bilstein gas shocks or ACDelco performer..or..

btw..is it a big ride improvement a monospring compared to the steel spring??

TIA
Art-Corvette

|UPDATED|5/25/2004 6:12:15 AM (AZT)|/UPDATED|

My 78 came with a fiberglass spring and Bilstien shocks ,I don't like the ride ,gonna change to Delcos when I get the chance .

I have the fiberglass spring and definitely prefer it over the steel. The ride seems much more "active" and more comfortable. I replaced the spring in 1986 and it's not sagged one bit and rides as well as the first day it was put in. I highly recommend.

My '78 has the fiberglass spring and Delco shocks...ride and handling are excellent.

There have been several threads about the switch from steel to fiberglass springs. Common amoung them is making sure you get shocks that match the spring rate of the fiberglass spring rating.

When I replaced the steel spring on "The Toy" a couple of years ago I stayed with steel. It's a personal choice and it's all yours to make.

thankz...atleast it made my choice easier ..2 option will choose between

if getting a mono spring i will get ACDelco shocks ( the money i save for the shocks is almost enough to compensate the price difference between the mono and steel leaf :)

if getting a steel leaf i will buy the koni's

Norsky said: There have been several threads about the switch from steel to fiberglass springs. Common amoung them is making sure you get shocks that match the spring rate of the fiberglass spring rating. When I replaced the steel spring on "The Toy" a couple of years ago I stayed with steel. It's a personal choice and it's all yours to make.

What do you mean by shocks that match the spring rate?

I'm thinking about getting a fiberglass mono because its lighter and my steel is basically flat, but my shocks are still good, money limits me to fixing only what is broken or soon to break. Thoughts?

Scot

Shocks dampen at different rates. Springs bounce at different rates. It's a matter of harmonics. A thick guitar string vibrates slower than a thin one. They both create a different vibration rate.

Same thing with springs. They have different vibration rates. The fiberglass spring responds faster. In order to control that vibration, you need to match the dampening of the shocks with the vibration rate of the spring. Kind of like putting the correct weight on a tire to stop vibration. The wrong weight and the tire can actually be worse instead of better.

Okay strange analogies, but I hope they make the point.

The fiberglass spring will respond quicker due to it's properties, and the fact there is less weight the suspension can respond quicker. This makes for a more responsive handling set up. It also rides smoother.

But the steel spring has it's own features that can be good as well. On some surfaces it will keep the tires in contact better due to the vibration rate. They are not as likely to bounce quickly enough to follow some imperfections. This effects keeps the car feeling more solid in some situations. And it feels more like the car did when it was built. Soft is not always better. How do you want your car to feel?

No matter what, match the shocks or the effects can acutally be worse either way, instead of better.

If I replace my steel spring (flat but no noticeable ride issues) and not my shocks...is that going to cause problems?

Scot

my vote is fiberglass and delco