Progressive VS Linear Rate Springs, ed ju cate me.... Options

[Aaron Cox]

i have opinions of both.....

i run linear 140's..... a friend of mine has progressive 165's.

what are the pros and cons of each.

[groot]

I believe many racers use linear rates springs because they are cheaper and it's easier to buy several sets of them (me included). I use my jounce bumpers to add some progressiveness to the setup. Also, a compliant ride (a primary benefit of the progressive spring) is not critical to a race car. Everything's a compromise.

You want the rate to go up towards the end of your travel to prevent bottoming out. If a vehicle bottoms out, the loads are simply astounding. Using jounce bumpers means you can run a reasonable rate spring that allows some suspension travel and then count on your jounce bumpers to dissipate the energy, in case you excede the energy your spring can sbsorb.

There's a reason many (maybe all) production cars use progressive springs. It's much easier to get a compliant ride and attempt to control the energy with the limited travel available in today's vehicles with a progressive spring. OEMs also spend a lot of time and energy developing/tuning jounce bumpers because they cannot get enough energy dissipation from the spring alone.