This has been discussed to death but I still can't quite find the right solution. I want to lower the rear of my (standard) A500 just 20mm or so. I put a 50kg weight in to the back of the car just to see how it looks and for me, its perfect. Now all I need is the right springs etc to keep it at 20mm lower.

Most spring kits I've seen seem to drop the car between 30mm and 50mm but I don't want to go that low. I'm happy to get coilovers but need to get the right ones so that I can get it the car exactly how I want it.

Any advice guys?

You could take a look at the Koni FSD kit for the rear (or all round).
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Koni-FSD...YiOjMsInNvIjoxNTAwLCJjIjo3MDEzOX0=&rmvSB=true



My 595 Turismo has it on the rear and it does look a bit more squat than the standard 595 model and earlier A500's, though I think the 17" wheels help.



It's also designed to help with the rear hopping about, something I believe they suffer from.

Goudrons said:

You could take a look at the Koni FSD kit for the rear (or all round).
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Koni-FSD...YiOjMsInNvIjoxNTAwLCJjIjo3MDEzOX0=&rmvSB=true



My 595 Turismo has it on the rear and it does look a bit more squat than the standard 595 model and earlier A500's, though I think the 17" wheels help.



It's also designed to help with the rear hopping about, something I believe they suffer from.

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Shock absorbers don’t dictate ride height, springs do. That’s is unles the shocks are stupidly short travel ones which I doubt the FSDs are.

I took the fact a large weight has been placed in the boot and the inquiry regarding suspension changes to the rear might not have been about appearance, but about a common complaint of A500 owners.
That the rear can hop about over rough roads and bumpy surfaces.

The answer to this came from the factory and they fitted Koni FSD shocks, which is why I made the suggestion and made a reference to the issue.

Yes, they will not cause a difference in ride height alone, but they do help with a problem I thought the OP might be trying to over come.

As we're in a corrective mood, springs are not the only component responsible for ride height, the size of the wheel rim and profile of the tyre will also effect a vehicles ride height as will the position of the spring retainers.

Their primary concern seemed to be rife height, hence placing the weight in the boot.

If we’re trying to make the car handle better then FSDs or even better IMHO are B14 coilovers.

Tbh the B14s should be able to get the ride height balance the OP was after anyway.

There is a company called 'AHM' i think that do rear lowering springs. I've seen them fitted to a car in person and they do level the rear somits the same as the front. However these are £100 new and not many people have them so fiding a second hand set would be highly unlikely.

I've recently bought and fitted Eibach pro kit springs to my 595 which dropped the entire car by 20mm which isn't too low. theyve also improved the ride comfort slightly. got them for £140 delivered from TMC Motorsport. which to me seems like a better idea. if you go for any kind of lowered spring be sure to get some Fiat Coupe rear bump stops as the standard ones are too big and youd be constantly bottoming out at the rear.

Oh hi seeka , how are you getting on with your new Abarth here in Ireland? Wouldn't it be skittish / hard enough on our bad roads ? Lowering rear could spoil ride but if it's for cosmetic reasons I guess that's not as important .The rear can have a huge effect on handling .I think the unbelievably hard ride on Panda 100hp was due to rear and standard 500 was supposed to be a bit of an unsure handler until rear stiffened .

Simply fitting shorter springs is not as simple as it sounds. Cutting any spring will make it stiffer. 10% shorter = 10% stiffer. Proper quality manufacturers will have thought of this so do check the spring rate you are buying, not just the length and ride height.

You could fit the 30mm lower springs then use the rubber pads (normally fitted to the top only) at both ends. This will raise the ride height a little. Also check the springs used by Fiat and Abarth for their various models.

Early 500s had a stiff ride. When Ford wanted Fiat to build the new Ka they asked Fiat to improve the ride quality, resulting in the anti roll bar and 30% softer rear springs. Putting a later model 500 axle and springs under a Panda 169 gives a hugely better ride quality.

You can maybe cut the rear spring a half winding, would give you around a centimeter.

DaveMcT said:

Simply fitting shorter springs is not as simple as it sounds. Cutting any spring will make it stiffer. 10% shorter = 10% stiffer. Proper quality manufacturers will have thought of this so do check the spring rate you are buying, not just the length and ride height.

You could fit the 30mm lower springs then use the rubber pads (normally fitted to the top only) at both ends. This will raise the ride height a little. Also check the springs used by Fiat and Abarth for their various models.

Early 500s had a stiff ride. When Ford wanted Fiat to build the new Ka they asked Fiat to improve the ride quality, resulting in the anti roll bar and 30% softer rear springs. Putting a later model 500 axle and springs under a Panda 169 gives a hugely better ride quality.

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Cutting springs doesn’t make them stiffer?

The whole anti-rollbar thing is a misnomer, it’s not an anti-rollbar, it’s just a stiffer rear beam.

The Pretender said:

You can maybe cut the rear spring a half winding, would give you around a centimeter.

Click to expand...

Is one end of the spring "flat" or do both ends fit in a specific place?

John202020 said:

Is one end of the spring "flat" or do both ends fit in a specific place?

Click to expand...

The spring has a top and bottom end, with mounting rubbers on both ends.
When you cut the spring, you just turn the mounting rubber in place.

Can you make a picture from the rear of the spring, car normally on the ground.
I then can tell you if you can cut the the spring or not.