does spring preload make the coilover softer?

[saxophonias]

This is the exact question. I have been told that by giving a little amount of spring preload in a coilover that is fully adjustable (height adjustment not through the spring but through the bottom of the coilover) you can actually make your suspension a bit softer. Can someone explain whether this is working and why?

 

[MeisterR]

Uh... no, it shouldn't be the case.
I find having no pre-load give the smoothest ride.

If you have "slack" in your springs right now, then maybe tighten it...
But I don't think giving more pre-load will make the ride softer.

Possible to up the damping a bit and make the car more stable and therefore feel "softer", as your car no longer "wobble" after hitting bumps.

 

[leeK9]

pre loading a spring will make the ride harder

having little load on the spring will make it softer

but a hard spring will always be hard

and tightening it will only make it even harder

 

[Rory]

Pre-loading the spring will only give you a harder task of controlling the rebound,and the possibility of binding the coil before maximum damper stroke but it wont make it "stiffer" as such

pre loading a spring will make the ride harder

having little load on the spring will make it softer

but a hard spring will always be hard

and tightening it will only make it even harder

From my own experiance with coilovers, 2 full turns on pre-load from initial nip of the spring is what " I " would recommend.
If its to soft or to hard, start thinking of changing the springs to suit, but you cant go for big changes at once, or the valving would possibly need looked at.

 

[saxophonias]

some people suggest the preload when the shock's rebound is a bit hard leading to a bouncy ride. Could that be the case?

 

[MeisterR]

some people suggest the preload when the shock's rebound is a bit hard leading to a bouncy ride. Could that be the case?

Thats just miss match setup...

If you pre-load on a damper that is too hard, that will just make the car even harder.
If you pre-load on a damper that is too soft, it will just bounce more as the damper cannot control the recoil of the springs.

So I don't see pre-load a solution for either of the above problem.