Exmo Suspension

[Guest stevenmjcooper]

Hi,

 

Ive just bought myself my first kit car and opted for a Robin Hood exmo,

 

On Closer inspection the rear shocks are leaking and I think the springs have been cut to the wrong length,

 

Can you get after market springs to fit the exmo?

 

Im also going to fit cycle wings, does anyone know where to get clamps that fit to the shocks to connect a bracket off of.

 

Thanks

 

Ill keep you posted

[IanS]

Exmo as standard used the donor (sierra saloon) rear springs and shocks.

As the suspension could lower enough (when airborn) to unmount the springs the kit included 2 lengths of rope to be used as straps limiting the suspension movement.

 

Exmo also had optional rear coilovers and then did not need the rope.

 

So i would guess that sierra rear springs are still available but doubt very much that yours were ever cut down you just need to fit the straps.

 

Ian

[Guest scottie686]

Hi,

 

Ive just bought myself my first kit car and opted for a Robin Hood exmo,

 

On Closer inspection the rear shocks are leaking and I think the springs have been cut to the wrong length,

 

Can you get after market springs to fit the exmo?

 

Im also going to fit cycle wings, does anyone know where to get clamps that fit to the shocks to connect a bracket off of.

 

Thanks

 

Ill keep you posted

 

I'm not entirely sure if you can get cycle wing brackets for the exmo, but do not hold me to that!! I changed my clam wings on my old exmo to carbon cycle wings and had to have brackets made by a friend of mine, but, more so, the suspension struts at the front needed cutting back to allow the cycle wing to fit and turn without fouling the suspension strut. This in hind sight probably wasn't the safest thing to do!!

 

 

Scott

[Guest stevenmjcooper]

I'm not entirely sure if you can get cycle wing brackets for the exmo, but do not hold me to that!! I changed my clam wings on my old exmo to carbon cycle wings and had to have brackets made by a friend of mine, but, more so, the suspension struts at the front needed cutting back to allow the cycle wing to fit and turn without fouling the suspension strut. This in hind sight probably wasn't the safest thing to do!!

 

 

Scott

 

Scott, Cracking Looking car very similiar to mine but I have a lighter silver with black arches,

Could you take a couple more photos of your bracket assembly? will prove very handy next weekend when I start making up the brackets,

 

Thanks Ian, so I should look for after-market sierra springs?

 

Steve

[Longboarder]

Thanks Ian, so I should look for after-market sierra springs?

The sierra springs are to high a poundage per inch which is why they have the wire or rope retainer. Aftermarket sierra springs are likely to be shorter and stiffer. But you should be looking for longer softer springs! If you can do the right sums I'm sure you could find some but it's a bit hit and miss and I haven't a clue what car they would come from. Better to look at mounting coil-over shockers so that you can choose your 'best informed guess' spring rates and change them with experience. Attend your local meets and look at the rears of cars and talk to the owners. If you mount coil-overs out of the centre of the springpan then you could start at 300lb/in as I currently have on mine. Does require you fabricating top and bottom mounts to get the shock near vertical.

 

Nigel

[IanS]

I understand that longboarder has more day to day contact with the aftermarket side of things so I would go with his take that they might be a bit short.

I was just passing on the standard build info.

I have coil overs on the back of my exmo.

They come from the trailing arm shock mount to a bracket vertically above bolted to the side of the boot / wheel arch.

 

Ian

[Longboarder]

Mostly too hard. They came from the back of a sierra after all where they had to be easily capable of supporting three people and the holiday luggage. The back end of an Exmo weighs about 350kg so even two up barely compresses the springs more than about an inch. With shocks to control this movement the springs stay in contact with their seats 99% of the time (except when the car is jacked up, hence the ropes/wires) and the whole thing works better than you might imagine. No getting away from it though. A softer more compliant ride makes it a much nicer car to drive for any distance and improves handling and grip. And the easiest way to do that is coil overs. That gives you the chance to have good shocks and experiment with spring rates. If you mount like Ian, off the original shock mounts at the back of the swing arms then you use a longer softer spring than if you mount like mine of the springpans to get the same effect.

 

Nigel

[Guest scottie686]

Scott, Cracking Looking car very similiar to mine but I have a lighter silver with black arches,

Could you take a couple more photos of your bracket assembly? will prove very handy next weekend when I start making up the brackets,

 

Thanks Ian, so I should look for after-market sierra springs?

 

Steve

 

Steve,

 

Sorry mate, i sold the car about three years ago and haven't got any pictures of the brackets. If i remember correctly, the front bracket used the bolt that clamps the shock in place. The rear clamped around the bottom of the shock itself. I know this doesn't really help much but may give you a starting point!!!!

 

Scott.

[Guest yellow peril]

I've got an exmo, and did similar - cut back a bit of the front arms - and clamped my own bracket onto the front shock in two places - 3 yrs later they are still on no probs -

[Guest stevenmjcooper]

Ended up getting 4No D-Clamps for holding exhausts, welded two to approx 3ft of 30 x 4mm Bar, few bends and about a day later all sorted. Then just cut the struts back and clamped it all up to the shock absorber

 

Thanks for the advise

 

Steve