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Bump stops. Do they need to be cut when lowered?

37K views 33 replies 15 participants last post by  Mistersixx  
#1 · (Edited)
I was under my car today. Looked at my suspension and noticed that the rears are sitting on the bump stops. Correct me if I am wrong but shouldn't there be a gap? I know on my last car when I put in lowering springs I had to cut the bump stop and inch or 2 to compensate for the drop. And once sitting the car has a couple inches or so before it made contact with them.

When I bought my car it already had tein springs installed. The ass end sits up higher than the front. Which is odd considering the v6 mazda 6's the springs are actually for, they sit a lot lower in the rear than my car. So anyone who has had put on lowering springs for the speed6 did you have to cut the bump stops? I so how much? Here is a pic I snapped when I was under the car.

Image

Image

You can't see in this pic because of the spring but it is definetly sitting on them. Just curious if this was normal.

Thanks,

Qwik
 
#3 ·
yep he's got it right

i removed 1 nub from the front and 2 from the rear per side when i did mine
 
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#4 ·
How much should I actually remove? Keep in mind its already a more than a 2.5" drop than stock. Im mad I have been driving like this for 55k miles.
 
#5 ·
you dont really need to measure, they are like huge anal beads... just chop a couple beads off

lol
 
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#27 · (Edited)
they are like huge anal beads... just chop a couple beads off
I saw anal beads
anal beads. i just cut all four of mine in half
Cut 2 anal beeds off the rears.
WTF, are you guys trying to get a group buy going for anal beads?!?! LOL!!

You should re-name this thread "OUCH!! My Anal Beads Are Too Damn Big... what do I do?" And Qwik I vote that you post a pic of the diff strap-on on your car domain site ;)
 
#6 ·
lol. I'll try 2. What is the easiest way to cut them without removing the springs?
 
#7 ·
a little hand saw might do it..
 
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#8 ·
Thought so. Thanks for the help guys.
 
#9 ·
I laughed so hard when I saw anal beads....LOLOL
 
#10 ·
If you're dropping it real low with the Megans or C/Os, you'll need to trim them. I didn't need to trim mine when I put the RPM Street springs on, but the drop with those is more subtle.
 
#11 ·
i used a razor knife, they are just a soft rubber and cut very easy









anal beads lol
 
#13 ·
Ok guys. Cut 2 anal beeds off the rears. I didnt see any on the fronts? Or that I could get to anyways. Car drived much better now that I am not bottomed out all the time. Rears rub like a mofo now on any decent turns or hard accel. I was hoping it lowered the rear but only an 1/8" or so.
 
#14 ·
time for a fender roll if you havent done it yet.


the bump stops in the front are behind the slinky sleeve(i know that aint the proper name, lol)

on the shock, toward the top, youll see a cover. its under that in the shock tower cup thing, lol. im sucking tonite for the technical names, lol
 
#15 ·
time for a fender roll if you havent done it yet.


the bump stops in the front are behind the slinky sleeve(i know that aint the proper name, lol)

on the shock, toward the top, youll see a cover. its under that in the shock tower cup thing, lol. im sucking tonite for the technical names, lol
And you pull that cover down? I tried pulling on mine and it acted like it didnt want to come down easy so I left it.

Yes my fenders are rolled and pulled. More pulled on the drivers side thats why only my passenger side is rubbing. The fact that I have 5mm spacers in the rear for some hell flushness doesn't help.:D I can't stand how the rears on the speed6 sit in while the fronts are flush. A 5mm spacer solved this. Time to find a fender roller and pull out the passeneger side some more.
 
#17 ·
The shop cut mine all the way off. but i dont have any problems. Atleast not that i know of.
 
#18 ·
Im gonna hold off on the fronts. The rub bad enough as it is. once I get my camber right I will cit them
 
#20 ·
Thanks sellers. Now how bout them tail lights?
 
#22 ·
How about not. :slap:
 
#25 ·
would it be wise to assume it safe to cut off the amount your lowering the car by?

i.e...1.5" drop, so cut that amount off the bump stop?
 
#26 · (Edited)
Uhmmmm, no. If you cut the bump stop any more than 1" or about 2 sections, it is too short to function. If that isn't enough to allow adequate suspension travel at the ride height desired, then you need a shorter damper body or relocate the entire bump stop.

The bump stop length and spring rate is really another suspension tuning device. You can buy them in various lengths and rates from the racing aftermarket. I've used the bump stop selection to set the overall spring rate in my competition car. You can run a "slightly" softer spring which will keep the car from becoming unsettled on short, sharp bumps on the fast sections of the course and when heavily loaded as in a corner, the spring rate rises as the bump stop comes into play. If the bump stop rate is too high, the car will understeer and skitter (a highly technical term!) across any bumps, where if it is chosen properly for the car weight and desired spring rate, the car will stiffen up just right without the use of heavy sway(anti-roll) bars...

If you can see my avatar, note that the left front is solidly on the bump stop as are MOST street-based cars in hard corners....

Probably more info than you wanted, but most folks only know that "riding the bump stops" is a very bad thing, but most folks are not actual racers of street-based cars either.....
 
#30 ·
so Forzda 1, how much did you cut your bump stops.

i wanna get it right because i do autocross in the summer months. i also intend to take some hpde's. (as soon as i have sufficient braking)
i auto cross my miata as well and cut one bead off the bumpstops and it work out perfect. so i guess i could start small. you can always take off more.
 
#31 · (Edited)
Right now I haven't cut any off on the Speed6. It is SO heavy that I think you may be good without cutting them. They will bring the spring rate right up there to hold the car a bit flatter in a hard corner. I'm on the OEM front bar and although it does have a bit of body roll(see the photo), the outer front tire tread is flat on the track with only -2.0 deg static camber. You must have good low-speed (damper shaft speed) damping to keep the car from bouncing though. I have my Konis set to ~1 turn off full hard in front and 1/4 turn off full hard in the rear. As you well know I'm sure, a bit of trial and error is always required to fine tune the setup until it feels good to YOU.

I cut one section off my `03 Miata stops though. It has very limited travel anyway plus I have Konis with "Hard-S" Mazda springs on it with 1/2 coil cut off the fronts and 1 full coil off the rears. Works REAL good with the 15x8 949Racing wheels & 225/45x15 Hankook RS-2
 
#33 ·
Yup, stockers for sure. This car (Speed6) is simply a fun street car.:D
 
#34 ·
thanks for the info. i'll go with no cut for now and see how it feels. springs go on tomorrow.

oh, and those are the exact wheels i want for my miata:D