Steven X. Schwenk wrote:
>
> I will kill this thread if requested.  However, it is an important topic
> and the issue at hand remains unresolved.
> steve

Steve,
You are correct in your logic.
If it's any help, I find it's often useful, when doing thought
excersizes, to envision them in an exaggerated form. In this case,
imagine the use of as many spacers as necessary to compress the spring
nearly to the binding point, e.g. with the coils nearly touching each
other. Is the van now sitting higher? Hell, YES! Is the spring any
stiffer? Hell, YES! Thus it follows, in your proposal, that the springs
WILL be stiffer AND the van will sit higher.
That's all I have to say.
Larry