Hilka Coil Spring Compressor Kit- Product Review

We’ve all heard the horror stories. Those tales of woe involving the amateur mechanic trying to remove coil springs from their classic car only to have the pesky things ping off and take someone’s knee/eye out. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Yes, a car’s suspension is under a lot of compression, therefore storing a huge amount of potential energy, but that doesn’t have to equate to potential injury, at least not when you’re using a decent coil spring compressor. Liberating a car’s coil spring from its suspension strut is a simple process in the grand scheme of things – it’s only nuts and bolts after all – but it’s one of those jobs, like removing brake lines, where having the right tool is as necessary as ending every taxi journey with the phrase “anywhere here is fine”. And the right tool is exactly what UK stalwart Hilka provide with its Coil Spring Compressor Kit.

Get your Hilka Spring Compressor Kit here.

The Product

Make no mistake, this is about as basic as it gets, but then it doesn’t need to be a complicated affair and at less than fifteen quid at the time of writing we’re certainly OK with that. The compressor is essentially a threaded rod with a 21mm head on the end to get a socket/spanner on for tightening, fitted with two opposite facing hooks. That’s it. Made from heat treated tempered steel with drop forged steel claws its a sturdy tool which instils a certain degree of confidence in its operation – a welcome feeling when compressing springs. The hooks are large enough to accommodate most standard spring diameters and they are “hooky” enough to ensure a good grip, but how easy are they to use and will they sufficiently do the job? Well, let’s find out shall we?

The Test

We picked up a set of Hilka Coil Spring Compressors recently (the kit comes with two compressors) due to having to replace the dampers in our Volvo 940’s suspension struts. One was shot and so we chose to replace all four as a matter of course. Do it once, do it properly and all that. Anyway, the struts obviously had to come out and then the springs had to be removed. Cue the Hilka Coil Spring Compressor Kit. Marketed as “heavy duty” it opens up to 24cms, which is plenty for our needs and so we set to work.

The Result

The claws clamped on to the spring with an excellent grip and tightening each side down with a socket wrench was a doddle. The thing you have to remember when using any manual spring compressor is to tighten each side equally. You can’t just crank one down then move on to the other, instead it is necessary to incrementally compress opposite sides of the spring in turn to achieve an even squeeze and to prevent the possibility of those injuries mentioned above. Having said that, with the spring satisfactorily compressed it was then easy to undo the rest of the strut and remove the spring and damper safely without fear of blindness or some form of limp.

The Verdict – 5 out of 5

This is a classic case of a tool that works exactly as intended. No frills, no superfluous features, just simple engineering that does what its supposed to and all at a price that won’t break the bank. We had no issues fitting, operating or removing the compressors from our coil springs and we can be confident in removing or replacing them in the future. A permanent and useful addition to the tool box and one you cannot be without if you’re considering similar work on your own classic car.