LauriePreist,
I appreciate the vote of confidence, but I'm still learning Maya myself. I'm answering what I can to force me to learn faster.

Stickdude, are you more concerned with the look of the springs or how they actually work?

If you're going for the springs' look, are you looking for actual coiled springs or for shock absorbing struts?

If you're looking for the spring effect, will you animate it yourself or are you wanting physics to solve it?