Cracking leaf springs?
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Aug 2017
Posts: 17
Likes: 7
Cracking leaf springs?
Ugh, I think I know the answer already but is this bad?
This is my buddy's C5. We've just got him into cars and Corvettes and we're really hoping to autocross this weekend but if you all think this is a problem we probably won't. It's a 2000 z51 with 45k miles. This is the front spring.
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Aug 2017
Posts: 17
Likes: 7
By the way, the reason I even thought to look was the car is sitting really low so I checked the ride height screws to see if they were bottomed out. They were actually pretty high.
I think I know they're toast, I just want to know if this is the kind of thing where it will get worse and worse or if it's going to crack over a bump or at autocross this Sunday.
Thanks in advance.
I think I know they're toast, I just want to know if this is the kind of thing where it will get worse and worse or if it's going to crack over a bump or at autocross this Sunday.
Thanks in advance.
Safety Car
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 3,938
Likes: 498
From: Fords, NJ
Here's a thread on the subject :
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...ble-rates.html
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Aug 2017
Posts: 17
Likes: 7
No. Unfortunately they are not.
Here's a thread on the subject :
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...ble-rates.html
Here's a thread on the subject :
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...ble-rates.html
I actually can cnfir. confirm that yes, the front c6z spring is a perfect fit for the C5. The rears as others have said does not fit. I will post pictures when I'm not on mobile. Right now I'm just happy we were able to fix it so quickly.
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 48
Likes: 14
From: Tupelo Mississippi
my 2004 Z51 front spring with 80,000 on it was showing similar cracks. I bought a C6 Z51 spring on Ebay for $89 and it bolted right in - same part number molded in.. there is a vendor out there who makes new jack screws. They aren't availble seperately NOS. You might want to consider those if your old screws have messed up rubber where they contact the A-arm.
apparently these cracks can be formed by someone using a caustic or acid based cleaning product and letting it get on the spring. Think about some yo-yo previous owner spraying down the engine compartment with a cleaner and letting it drip down all over the spring.
apparently these cracks can be formed by someone using a caustic or acid based cleaning product and letting it get on the spring. Think about some yo-yo previous owner spraying down the engine compartment with a cleaner and letting it drip down all over the spring.
Last edited by tupeloC5; Jul 2, 2018 at 02:32 PM.
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Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: Aug 2017
Posts: 17
Likes: 7
my 2004 Z51 front spring with 80,000 on it was showing similar cracks. I bought a C6 Z51 spring on Ebay for $89 and it bolted right in - same part number molded in.. there is a vendor out there who makes new jack screws. They aren't availble seperately NOS. You might want to consider those if your old screws have messed up rubber where they contact the A-arm.
apparently these cracks can be formed by someone using a caustic or acid based cleaning product and letting it get on the spring. Think about some yo-yo previous owner spraying down the engine compartment with a cleaner and letting it drip down all over the spring.
apparently these cracks can be formed by someone using a caustic or acid based cleaning product and letting it get on the spring. Think about some yo-yo previous owner spraying down the engine compartment with a cleaner and letting it drip down all over the spring.
Hmm...interesting.
I'll have to be careful about that. I'm guilty of using engine degreaser on my car. Not often, maybe once a year. I like to keep the engine really clean not just for how it looks but just one of those 'my old man taught me' things where if you keep the engine clean you can find and fix leaks much faster.
We used the jack screws from the old spring which were actually in better shape.
I found the same thing as you when I was frantically searching about this issue that the part numbers are the same. I think the 'casting' numbers between c5 z51 and c6 z51 are the same but not the 'part' number on the label? Can't remember now. I could see GM using the same mold but saying its a different 'part' if the jack screws or something are different. This was a c6z spring 'casting' number 22200990 and 'part' number (on the label) 15233395. I cant read the 'casting' number from the pictures I have but the 'label number' was 22178729. I have seen used parts vendors use both numbers.