Rob Copeland’s Retro-fit coil-over mod…

Most coil-over suspension modifications are usually quite invasive especially on a Fiat Spider. The front of the car needs to be re-enforced by building some sort of tube sub-frame for the top shock mounts and a strengthening of the pivot area is also needed where the coil-over would mount on the lower control arm. Similar re-enforcement is necessary in the rear as well. The whole process is tedious and requires good structural knowledge of the car.

Most of these modifications are done typically to racecars, not on a street ride. When I decided to start building my car I did not want something that would be considered of the norm. A complete drive-train swap necessitated the need for several front suspension modifications, which included new rack and pinion steering with custom linkage and either custom springs or a coil-over setup.

My hotrodding experience gave me the familiarity with a lot of the parts involved in building these types of cars. One thing that caught my eye was a coil-over that would retro-fit into an existing suspension by utilizing the existing upper spring buckets on the car. Offered by several manufacturers these kits require little or no fabrication to install. Unfortunately, most of these kits are model specific and not geared toward a European car, let alone a Fiat Spider.

After examining the designs of many of these retro-fit style coil-over kits, I found that QA1 manufactured a kit for a Mustang II type suspension that had similar mounting points to the Spider’s. I called QA1 and talked to a rep who gave me the specs for a kit designed for front-ends weighing 1100 to 1400 lbs and compared them to the stock spring weights, diameters and shock extended and retracted lengths. Everything matched with the exception of the extended length which about an inch shorter. The kit number is MS1365 – System 1 and can be ordered from most popular performance outlets like Jeg’s or Summit Racing.

In order to install this kit on a Spider, the lower control arm shock mount must be strengthened and may have to be relocated to adjust for the shorter shock length and/or weight differences. I recommend using a 220V mig or stick arc welding with 6011 rod to get the penetration necessary to strengthen the mount. I used 1/8” steel plate and layered it in with the existing structure of the control arm for strength. Drilled new pivot holes and an access hole for removing the pivot bolt on the backside of the control arm.

Once the control arms were strengthened assembly was a snap. Just bolt the shock to the lower mount, set the spring on the adjustable perch and guide the shock and spring into the upper spring bucket and shock mount. For someone with fabrication experience the whole assembly would take about a day to complete, far less time than with traditional coil-overs.

As for gains in performance, there are 12 positions for rebound adjustment as well as complete ride height adjustability. Just dial in the ride you want and leave it or adjust it as needed per road conditions.