Can anyone tell me where to go to get some new leaf springs for this 71 mav? Would like to make it a little stiffer. Thanks Willy
Try http://www.espo.com/ They have 3 leaf and 4 leaf setups. JC Whitney also has leafs for Mavs and Comets. -Corbin
ooh, ooh..... Hey Willy, I checked into all the optons myself, and all I wanted was to raise the rear end up a bit. The absolute cheapest way (save wooden blocks) is to got to your local parts house (O'reilly's had'em) and buy the 29.99 set of "full-time spring helpers". They bolt up in about 10 minutes and are adjustable. Probably not the most technically advanced parts in the world, but they work..............Robert
I ordered the espo four leaf springs with a two inch lift from springsnthings.com and they are great!! I am very happy with them. I definatly recommend them. -Todd
Got my 4-leaf springs from J.C. Whitney. They were shipped directly to me from the manufactuer. JCW said it would be 3-4 weeks but I received them in just 5 days. I've been puting this off for years and am finally gonna get rid of those stupid air-shocks. The price of the springs was $120 for the pair (plus shipping), and the urethane bushings were $75 including new U-bolts and front eye-bolts. I am reusing my original rear shackles, as I will sand-blast them at work, paint them and install the new urethane pushings. I got all the poly-urethane bushings for them from Espo (Springs-n-Things). The new springs from JCW come with stock rubber bushings in the front, already pressed-in. I pressed them out and installed the urethane ones. NOW....I just need to install the dang things... I figure the hardest part will be removing the original bolts, which have been on there for over 30 years and are probably rusted. I have no idea yet how much they will raise the rear of the car...I hope it isn't too much. I plan to be doing the swap in the next week or two (hopfully). I'd like to hear from anyone who has done it on their Maverick/Comet, as it would be nice to know how well (or not so well) the procedure went for them.
Mine came apart with no problem. Unfortunately the 4 leaf raised the back of my car almost 3". I used 1 " lowering blocks but am not happy with the stance. Problem is I dont feel like taking it all apart to get them rearched.
Just as a side note, Landrum and Afco probably make the best "steel" leaf springs for performance applications.
Yes, I never assumed that the JCW springs were the "best". In fact I am sure that there are better ones out there, but I didn't want to spend too much $$ and I figure that these springs are at least better than the original stock 3-leaf units...
I want the stiffness of the 4 leafers, but I absolutely do not want an increase in ride height, and I don't want any blocks in there. Must I go custom?
I originally replaced my stock springs with a set of 4 leaf springs from Maverick Connection (way overpriced!!) and the car set way high in the rear and it would ride like a wagon!! I removed two leafs to get the desired ride height and it made the ride alot better. To get the absolute desired ride height and get a good riding spring that is based around the weight and use of the vehicle, a custom set is the only way to fly. I think you can get a custom set from Landrum or Afco for like $50 - $75 each, but i'm not absolutely sure what a custom set would cost.
ride high I put 4-leaf, leaf sprongs in my car and if jacked the back way up compared to the old 3-leaf. The ride is very harsh also by comparison. I don't think it would be a bad idea to at least find a local spring shop and inquire about the opions they may have. I ordered my springs through JC Whitney. this is the way it sat
I did the J.C. 4 leaf conversion about two years ago, I agree that at first the ride is very rough, but after about a hundred or so miles it smoothed out a bit, but still somewhat rough. I also noticed that over about a month the back settled a bit, now I am about a inch higher in the back than the front. I bet if you put some sissy shock absorbers on it would be a bit softer. My final two cents, if the car is just for you then do it. If you have little ones that ride in the back seat then go with three. Here is a pic of the car after one year.
