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Go Back   Madabout Kitcars Forum > Mad Build Area > Marlin Sportster, Cabrio, Berlinetta and Roadster builds

Marlin Sportster, Cabrio, Berlinetta and Roadster builds Enthused or Confused about your vintage Marlin build? Ask away here or show off your build.

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  #81  
Old 11th January 2012, 20:26
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yep, I heard from her today too and mine are coming direct from the supplier on Friday

The M3 E36 and non-M3 E36 rear suspension componants are essentially identical. I think the only notable differences are the thickness of the ARB, the bottom arm outer joint has a ball rather than a bush (which I've replicated in my 325 arms) and most import of all, an M logo as part of the casting of the rear trailing arm.

The offset on the E36 is nothing like as bad as the E30 but still needs some correction. fortunatley the bottom seats are provided with the kit so it's a case of just fixing them on in the correct place rather than major surgery. I'll see if I can capture it on a photo
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  #82  
Old 11th January 2012, 21:42
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This is what the Marlin supplied seat looks like where I bolted it in concentric to the original mount that is part of the top wishbone



You can see in this photo that the bottom seat is about 1cm offset inboard relative to the top seat. Front to back looks perfect.



I have to take my bottom seats out anyway to counter sink the screw holes but I'm going to have to take the entire arms out to correct this as new holes will need to be drilled through 1cm further out

But, if a jobs worth doing...
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  #83  
Old 18th January 2012, 19:30
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yay, after much waiting my rear springs arrived on Monday direct from the factory.

I now have some work to do this week correcting the position of the bottom seats and provided I can get some new tyres on Saturday, there will be another Sportster rolling out of a garage on the weekend.
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  #84  
Old 19th January 2012, 23:56
NigelB NigelB is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by morris View Post
yay, after much waiting my rear springs arrived on Monday direct from the factory.

.
Ian,

So what have they sent you??
2 1/4" ID I guess but what is the length and rate.
Or is it still being kept a secret.........................
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  #85  
Old 20th January 2012, 07:43
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Chris Cussen Chris Cussen is offline
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Merlin Motorsport at Castle Combe can measure them, I'm sure that other race prep firms can do the same
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  #86  
Old 20th January 2012, 19:13
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I don't know if it's a secret still. they're 6 inches long and are marked 400 which I'm taking to be the rate but don't take my word for it. As you stated on the pic on flickr, that seems quite harsh but only time will tell. Trouble is that what Mark wants from it may be different from other people if he's into a sport/race setup (which I suspect he is). You may well find that your 300s are the better bet for a road car. only time will tell. hopefully once a few more E36 based cars are on the road we'll build up some advise on what to go for to get the ride you want. The main thing is you picked the right length so it should sit nice and level once the body is on.
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  #87  
Old 24th January 2012, 16:24
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Re coilovers, for anyone interested here is the reply from GAZ re Marlin rear setup, bang up to date:
The rear coilover for the E30 is still GP8-2015 & will cost you £90.00 each + springs £22.00 each. On the E30 we have to run a new ali bearing mount to take the weight of the car on the coilover, is this the same on Marlin. All prices are + carriage & vat.

They supply a variety of spring rates ....John
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  #88  
Old 10th July 2013, 23:13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by morris View Post
hopefully once a few more E36 based cars are on the road we'll build up some advise on what to go for to get the ride you want. The main thing is you picked the right length so it should sit nice and level once the body is on.
I now have 500 miles on the car (E36 based) and on any surface other than a motorway or recently resurfaced "A" road my suspension was bottoming out with spine crushing bump and a deafening noise.

So today I have replaced my 6" 300lbs springs with 7" 400lbs alternatives. I have also cut 10mm off the skirt of the upper spring platform to further reduce the chance of the upper and lower platforms coming into contact. And the ride is now perfect. No more bottoming out and little noticeable difference in the stiffness of the suspension. She feels taught but compliant and very secure even on fast corners with uneven surfaces. I had to drop the swing arm off its pivot point to give me enough room to get the 7" spring in but it has certainly given me a lot more travel to soak up the bumps.

So 7" 400lbs would be my recommendation. I have a rear axle weight of approx. 550kg with two up and the length and rate seems well suited.

Nigel.

Last edited by NigelB; 13th July 2013 at 12:39..
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  #89  
Old 1st November 2015, 19:43
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Good job I came and looked at this old post. I just had my finger hovering over the 'buy now' button on some 6" 300lb springs as I'm finding the 6" 400 that marlin supplied a little on the crashy side. I just ordered some 6mm thick rubber sheet to make up some rubbers for the top and bottom mounts so I'll see if that helps and at least it should reduce some of the noise. I haven't noticed the suspension bottom out yet though.

Does anyone use a lock nut on top of the upper rear spring mount to hold the hat in position once they've set the height. Mine are currently set on the lowest ride setting (wound all the way to the top) so hasn't been necessary. I want to raise the rear ride height by 2-3cm but I'm not sure that it won't slowly wind it's way back down in a short space of time.
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  #90  
Old 2nd November 2015, 10:02
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MartinClan MartinClan is offline
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I didn't use a locknut. I haven't noticed any winding or unwinding of the plate in over 5000 miles (Perhaps it has unwound and wound in equal amounts lol). I would have prefered to use locknuts but they are difficult to find in that size.

Cheers, Robin
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  #91  
Old 2nd November 2015, 17:54
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I haven't had a look at actually measuring the thread yet so not sure what diameter or pitch it is.

Thinking about it, it shouldn't wind or unwind unless the spring is loose. Having a 400lb spring compressed against it is more than enough to keep the threads tight
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  #92  
Old 2nd November 2015, 20:37
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Quote:
Originally Posted by morris View Post
I haven't had a look at actually measuring the thread yet so not sure what diameter or pitch it is.

Thinking about it, it shouldn't wind or unwind unless the spring is loose. Having a 400lb spring compressed against it is more than enough to keep the threads tight
That was my thinking too. I've certainy seen no change in the length of the exposed thread in 2 1/2 years.

My 400lbs springs seem just about right and the 7" gives me that little bit more travel when I'm loaded down with a heavy suitcase on the boot rack. I have Spax adjustables on the rear but I have never had them on anything other than the softest setting. And I found some suspension rubbers on Ebay. I seem to remember they were intended for aTR3a.

Nigel
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