1967 F41 Spring information and source

[Gary F.]

I am looking for information on the 3832518 F41 front coil spring for a 1967 L71 car. Is the 550 lbs/inch rate and 12.25 free length correct? What is the wire size? Where is a good source for this spring?

[Duke W.]

Re: 1967 F41 Spring information and source

I'm fairly certain that the HD suspension components that were introduced with the '63 Z-06 and later became F-40 and F-41 were all the same parts through the early C3 era. I also believe the same HD springs were part of the FE7 option, beginning in 1975. The HD front springs are 550 lb/in, a bit more than double the base '63 260 lb/in rate, which means the wheel rate/ride frequency is over double. They were designed for smooth, high speed tracks and aren't well suited for our deteriorating public roads.

Rate and dimension data is in the AMA specs for all years they were used in production. These are part of the "vehicle information package" pdfs that you can download from the GM Heritage Web site... easy Web search.

Duke

[Joe L.]

Re: 1967 F41 Spring information and source

I'm fairly certain that the HD suspension components that were introduced with the '63 Z-06 and later became F-40 and F-41 were all the same parts through the early C3 era. I also believe the same HD springs were part of the FE7 option, beginning in 1975. The HD front springs are 550 lb/in, a bit more than double the base '63 260 lb/in rate, which means the wheel rate/ride frequency is over double. They were designed for smooth, high speed tracks and aren't well suited for our deteriorating public roads.

Rate and dimension data is in the AMA specs for all years they were used in production. These are part of the "vehicle information package" pdfs that you can download from the GM Heritage Web site... easy Web search.

Duke

Duke------


Yes, the GM #3832518 coil springs were used for 1963-73 Corvettes with F-40 and F-41 suspension. For 1974-75 with FE-7 the springs used were GM #340519. For 1976-79 the springs used were GM #340519, 354131, 362150, and 362151, depending on vehicle weight. 1980-82 with FE-7 used GM #14021601 and 14021602, depending on weight. The "fine tuning" of the springs in the 1976-82 period was due to the need to maintain bumper height in a specific range. All of the aforementioned springs except the 3832518 have been discontinued for more than 25 years. The 3832518 was discontinued about 15 years ago. All of the 1974-82 FE-7 springs were similar in configuration to the 3832518. Exactly what the differences were, I do not know.

I agree with your assessment regarding the use of these springs on a street driven car. I have several NOS examples of the 3832518 [none for sale] but I would NEVER, EVER use them on a street driven Corvette. NEVER, EVER.