s2000Junky

Wow, hilarious!

nmckeever

First post here. I just purchased a new to me AP1 and came across this thread. I just got the car up on a lift once I got it home and found these spring spacers on mine as well (on all four corners). I think mine might take the cake as the car is a 2002 with 164k miles. I can't believe multiple shops and owners who had the car before me never noticed it. I guess if there's one good thing they might have served to preserved the oem suspension all of these years

s2000Junky

Wow yeah haha. Bet it feels like a plush Cadillac now! Blows me away hearing these stories.

Car Analogy

I bet some people did notice them, and ignorantly assumed they were supposed to be there.

After all, how many other cars get sent from factory with such things?

Back in the day, they actually sold stuff like that (primarily in JC Whitney catalogs) to increase the stiffness of your suspension! Some were rubber spacers like the ones we have, some were bolt in metal things. Its amazing how unsophisticated suspension was back in the day. But then we didn't have the tire grip to need decent suspension. Its even more amazing how much better tires are today.

So its possible someone saw them, and thought it was a crude old school suspension stiffening gadget.

jts09

Reading this thread made me wonder. When I first started looking for an S, I test drove an '06 at a local dealership. It was very loud, so I thought that it had some exhaust mods and it felt very stiff. I assumed that the suspension had been modified, maybe not... I wanted a stock S, so I passed. Found my '06 a month or so later.

Bing187

I’d never heard of these spacers.... Happened to have the S on the lift this afternoon, was looking around underneath, and saw these on both sides in the rear. Assumed they were supposed to work there.

Imagine my surprise when I logged in tonight for the first time in I don’t know how long, and started scrolling thru the “common problems “ thread!

I’ve owned this car for 16 years. Had 20,800 miles on it when I bought it in April of 05. It now has 143,000 plus on it. Countless rear tire swaps. Several alignments...... one brake job. I’m amazed.

Doing a radiator currently, and was going to put the car away for the winter as soon as I finished...... Now I’ll have to take the car for it’s first spacer free ride in its 20 year life. Does it really affect the handling that noticeably?

I think I have the dubious honor of “most miles before discovering the spacers” winner. Do I get a trophy or something?!

Mike

Car Analogy

Essentially you're rear spring rate was much higher than its supposed to be. That would cause strong tendency to oversteer (loose rear that wants to swing around) on a car that was already one of the most oversteer cars in existence. Assuming it doesn't also have front spacers, it eould have always had a very twicy feeling compared to now.

Sure you don't have spacers in front too?

Their purpose was to raise ride height for transport. Loading and unloading from ships, trucks, etc. So removing them will eventually change ride height. I say eventually as they've been pushed into this unnatural position so long it'll probably take them a while to settle.

You're going to need an alignment now. But I'd wait till spring, so it can settle.

However it handles right now with spacers removed still won't be how it'll handle once ride height settles AND you subsequently get an alignment.

So you won't find out until spring.

cosmomiller

I can see how having the spacers in for such a long time might affect the shocks. I still have a hard time understanding how spring steel, properly formed into springs, springs that have never been beyond the deform limit, not even close, could "settle" into some other position and somehow naturally move back to the manufactured shape next spring. When you remove the spacers, the springs are still springs and will assume the same position they would be as if the spacers were removed years ago. (Assuming all loads and shocks are uniform)

An alignment is a different matter I suppose and I would get one too.

Just saying.

zeroptzero

They use them in Nascar if that makes you feel better I am very surprised that these things are still being found.

So much for that dealer prep fee that was paid on the original sale of the car, the dealer didn't give the car a very good check it seems.

Chuck S

I believe the spacers were there to allow the car to be secured for shipping without having to strap down all the suspension travel/rebound.

@Bing187 : I'd commemorate this and mount the spacers in a framed box like a painting for my office wall.

-- Chuck