adjustable spax shocks or adjustable QA-1 shocks on a C2

[Harry L.]

would either of these shocks be easily adjustable while they are in the front springs of my 66? Would love to use a complete set of either style shock. I do not know anyone who has them on their C2, who could give me some advice. Dutch

[Duke W.]

Re: adjustable spax shocks or adjustable QA-1 shocks on a C2

I'm not sure about the QA-1, but the Spax adjustment screw is at the base of the shock, radially oriented and is fairly easy to get to. I have Spax on my Cosworth Vega. I can't get a straight shot on the front adjustment screw due to a coil being in the way, but I can access it if I jack the front up a few inches - not all the way off the ground.

IIRC the Spax have 11 rebound settings (jounce is fixed), and after some experimentation I got them dialed in perfectly, and they have remained at those final settings ever since. There is a road a couple of miles from my house that has water drainage channels running across - sort of like inverted speed bumps. Most cars slow to 15-20 MPH to cross these - much faster and the suspensions rebound to the stops. I recall I'm about half way on the front rebound adjustment and close to the maximum on the rear.

At those settings I can stomp across the water channels at the 35 MPH speed limit with no excess rebound although the jolt is pretty severe. My '88 Mercedes 190E 2.6 can do the same thing, but you barely feel it because the Merc has much lower ride rates than the Cosworth Vega. Mercedes really knows how to set up a suspension - soft springs, lots of wheel travel, and superbly chosen damping rates.

The Spax replaced a set of Bilstein Sport shocks that had too much rebound damping in the front, but not enough in the rear. Back then I was still embarassing a lot of name brand sports cars at track events at Riverside and Willow Springs. The OE springs yield much higher ride rates than the base C2 suspension, and it has 1/16" larger than OE anti-roll bars front and rear. I once thought that the Merc would be a decent track car, but it's overall just too soft and wallows around; however, it's absolutely superb on twisty, bumpy, uneven back country roads. At the same speeds on such roads the Cosworth Vega would beat you to death.

Adjustable shocks and sticky, high speed-rated tires are the two most effective upgrades you can make to the OE suspension. Depending on the condition of your roads and your driving style (boulevard cruiser or canyon carver) rebound adjustable shocks allow you to dial in the ride and handling to your preference.

Duke

[Ronald W.]

Re: adjustable spax shocks or adjustable QA-1 shocks on a C2

I have the Spax on my 66 SB coupe. Love them. Easy to adjust and once dialed in I have never touched them. Paint them OEM gray before installation.

[Harry L.]

Re: adjustable spax shocks or adjustable QA-1 shocks on a C2

Does anyone have a spax dealer in the USA that I could talk to. I would like some information about these shocks.

[Ronald W.]

Re: adjustable spax shocks or adjustable QA-1 shocks on a C2

Mustang Plus. Also the Spax corporate website lists other US dealers.