[Jack21]

Petek,

Think I was on my 3rd or 4th pair of front springs into the dumpster before switching to coil-overs, but anyway...

The car has to be fully assembled when you install the springs, and the rear set where you want it. Otherwise the ride height will change when you add something else, or change the rear setting.

Remember, on the front, the load on the spring is NOT the load on the wheel. Rather it's about 1.5X the load on the wheel. You're applying a load (moment) through a lever (lower control arm). Distance from lower control arm inner mount to wheel mounting face is ~ 13". This is the up moment. Distance from lower control arm inner mount to spring centerline is ~ 8". This is the down moment. At equilibrium, the load on the spring is ~ 900#, where the load on the wheel is ~ 625#.

Anyway, if the book says cut 1 1/2 coils, then make your first cut at 3/4 of a coil. Then measure ride height. Cut another 1/4 coil and test again. Leave the ride height about an inch higher than where you would ideally like it because it will drop as you accumulate some miles. After about 6,000 miles, if it's still too high, make final cut. Chances are you'll have the coilovers in before then.