Longevity of original coil springs?

[71Chevyguy]

Looking for suggestions on re-using coil springs on a strut replacement on my 97 Buick Regal GS.

Now don't get me wrong, I prefer to have new springs on the car for safety since they are obviously old. But I don't want to lose the ride characteristics of the car since new springs will be somewhat universal and not tuned to the specs of the suspension in this case (FE3). For a more mainstream car, I wouldn't think twice and just get quick struts. But the ride and handling of this car are kind of the point of having it, aside from the Supercharged engine ;-) . I am taking off the original struts at 172,xxx miles, they still do fine aside from larger bumps. I imagine they are worn at this point in some areas but not leaking or blown out just yet. Honestly the only reason I hesitate to do anything is because I don't want to lose the ride this car offers. It rides just like my 2000 Camaro Z28 when I had a new one back in the day. No motion while cruising and nothing but one impact over bumps and back to being motionless down the road, no bobbing or swaying like you would expect from a Buick lol.

So the question is, am I stupid for thinking of re-using the old springs with new struts and all related parts? My concern is I have seen more than one post over the years of cars like the Grand Prix snapping a spring. I just wonder if that is an isolated incident or these are just known to snap springs at higher mileage? I imagine if the car had been driven on blown out struts for a long time the spring would really get a workout. My struts are surprisingly still good after all those miles. The springs are not horribly rusted or anything, that would be a no brainer and they would go right in the scrap pile.

Thanks in advance for any and all replies!

 

[Kestas]

There are two issues with coil springs.... sag and fracture.

Make sure they maintain the ride height. If sagging the coils need to be replaced or the car will handle squirrelly.

Any corrosion is an opportunity for high cycle fatigue to initiate. If you have a grit blaster, remove the corrosion and repaint. Grit blasting imparts a bit of shot peening on the surface -- a condition that is originally on the spring surface.

 

[Wolf359]

Can you still get factory springs? Then you'd know you're getting the correct spring rate instead of whatever the quick strut might be. I just did springs and struts on both Mercedes and used factory springs on both but used Bilstein instead of the factory Sachs.

I think it might depend on the roads there, around here, springs/shocks are typically gone by the 80-120k mark if you're lucky. I've done replacement quickstruts after 60k, but they weren't really gone but still worn, had a lifetime warranty so just had to pay labor which wasn't that bad.

 

[atikovi]

Reused the springs on a 292,000 mile Sonata. Would do the the same on any other car unless they were obviously broken.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Rock Auto has Lesjofors springs for your Regal; they could be the OE supplier. So even if you don't like quick struts, still get new OE springs, since they seem to still be available

What kind of shape is the rest of the car in? How much rust is there?

Strut mounts also go bad. The good news is that you can still get the OE mounts.

Get the OE struts, OE mounts, and Lesjofors springs, and you will be good as new

 

[mightymousetech]

No issue at all reusing them. Springs don’t get softer, they may “sag” a bit, but that is highly exaggerated. I bet if they are matched with new shocks/struts ride height will be the same as factory. Replaced the shocks/struts on my 10 year old, 200k E90 and ride height was within 2mm of factory height with original springs. Just make sure to replace all the rubber isolators and mounts.

 

[Graham Piccinini]

Just replace it while you're in there, so you won't have to worry about it in case the old springs decide to snap or start sagging in a year or two... Maybe even go for quality lowering springs, so that you have a mildly sporty stance (like an inch drop all around) and still have all the comfort you are used to. I heard good things about "ZZPerformance" lowering springs, and they're only $150 online, if you shop around.

 

[Snagglefoot]

I had a spring break on a strut with about 100,000 miles on a Ford Taurus.. Could have gotten killed if it happened in the highway. No sir, I use quick struts anyway.

 

[2EHA]

99 out of 100 vehicles on american roads with broken springs are taurus/sables

 

[GSCJR]

Just replace it while you're in there, so you won't have to worry about it in case the old springs decide to snap or start sagging in a year or two.

+1

 

[Wolf359]

99 out of 100 vehicles on american roads with broken springs are taurus/sables

While I had the springs break on me when I had a Taurus, they also happen on other cars. Happens on Mercedes too. Maybe in a mild no salt climate and smooth roads you can try and reuse the springs. But with lots of potholes I find that springs tend to sag with age. With respect to the Taurus, the quick strut springs were thicker than the factory ones which might not mean it was a good thing because it probably had a different spring rate than factory but I didn't have an issue with the ride afterwards. If you grab all the parts, then you don't even have to compress the old spring and worry about the spring breaking on you while you have it compressed.

 

[GMBoy]

I've got 2 Buick Regals, a 2000 GS supercharged (2-tone silver/gray) and an 87 Regal Grand National (black of course). Love those pressurized V6's. I am thinking of doing shocks/struts on the GS as well but I am thinking of using replacement springs. I agree with you in that a quick strut will NOT match the ride and handling tune of the OEM struts on out cars - they are a universal tune.

 

[supton]

Probably depends on model and climate. As noticed, some cars like to break springs. Some like to sag. Others, maybe really can go the distance.

Unfortunately one isn’t going to know for sure that they can be reused until they are off the car. So do you pull them, inspect them, then decide what parts to order?

 

[zzyzzx]

If I lived in WV I would go ahead and replace the springs/ use a quick strut. Springs break often enough here (doesn't take much salt to do it) and you get more of that where you live.

 

[Trav]

Rock Auto has Lesjofors springs for your Regal; they could be the OE supplier. So even if you don't like quick struts, still get new OE springs, since they seem to still be available

What kind of shape is the rest of the car in? How much rust is there?

Strut mounts also go bad. The good news is that you can still get the OE mounts.

Get the OE struts, OE mounts, and Lesjofors springs, and you will be good as new

+1 You read my thoughts exactly. FWD GM cars with heavier engines like the 3800 tend to sag at this age more than breaking. Some Fords, Honda, VW, Subaru and a few others on the other hand break without warning. Lesjofors makes a great spring, OE for Saab and Volvo and some other Euro cars they do not jack the car up like some crummy quick struts, they maintain the original height.