VikingTrad3r

this happen often?

ideas on how it could happen?

there has been no front end damage on this car.

one of the aluminum rear leaf brackets has also cracked. there WAS a rear driver side impact at some point that i assume was mostly costmeric as the PO did the repair himself and i do not see any evidence of new rear suspension parts. he put a late c4 clip on this 86.

as you can tell from the photo, this car has alot of surface rust and has been driven out on the coast for most of its life.

i paid $650 for the car, im using it as a track car so doesnt need to be super pretty.

thoughts on how the rack does this?

Gibbles

Pull the rack and take a look on the inside of the mount with the rubber removed.
I'm curious is the inside is corroded.

Also curious if that's rubber or polyurethane.

VikingTrad3r

will do. that is aluminum with a rubber/poly bushing right?

Gibbles

Correct, you should be able to see some rubber sticking out with it bolted in there.

VikingTrad3r

I looked on zip for a new rack. Can anybody confirm that the 84 and 85 are the same but 86 and 87 or different? Can I put an 84 on an 86? There is one locally I could use

WVZR-1

You can use any rack that has the correct inner tie rod length. The local should do well if it's from '87 or earlier.

VikingTrad3r

I am also safe to bolt on a Z 51 rack as well?

I read somewhere about a cooler line on the Z 51 system that may interfere if a vehicle was a standard rack from the factory.

WVZR-1

I've never heard what you mention and can't imagine it either. Inner tie-rod length determines the fit.

Gibbles

I have a z51 rack in my car, but my car never had the factory cooler.

I can't imagine there being much difference, but it is listed as "heavy duty" iirc.

I'm also a huge fan of the fast ratio, very fun in tight windy roads.

VikingTrad3r

sounded strange to me aswell. said it was cooler line that that interfered with rad. perhaps that poster had a non factory rad. who knows but i will proceed.

my daily driver was a Z 52 87 and I love the Fastrack ratio. I will definitely be getting one as a replacement thank you. I think at Napa they referred to the Z 51 and said 52 rack as the HD version

VikingTrad3r

bump has anybody seen this before? or have any ideas on how I crack forms here? Other than an accident or frontal impact

bill mcdonald

Is the other mount looking ok? It is just a strap type mount.

Here is mine, I just took the pics so you can see it. Fast ratio rack that I installed and found it was off a tooth and pulled it back out. It has not been in the car for a decade.

Your car looks like it was parked in a foot deep of salt water for some period of time.

VikingTrad3r

Thanks Bill. I havnt inspected the other side. But i see now it looks to be a "split" based on your photos.

no doubt on the rust. this is the 3rd c4 ive owned and it has WWAAYY more rust than any of my other ones.

It was a nova scotia car (east coast maritimes of canada) so salt water seabreeze may have had a role. and it has 140k miles on it. it was driven!

i will pull the various brackets off and soak them in mild muriatic to remove the rust and then re coat them black.

will look much better when i am finished and looking fwd to bagging on her at the track!

bill mcdonald

You can see by the pics, your appears to have split at a point where there is not other bracing, or extra casting. Just right on the thin spot.

I have been thinking how to crack that... maybe hit a tire really hard into something.... Curbed it. drop the car off a jack... I don't really know how. Maybe water inside froze and forced it open??? Corrosion.

It is really mysterious.
But yeah it is aluminum, and not really strong at that mount point... but the other stuff protecting it would be the suspension. Got me... would like to see some pics if and when you get it out.

The rest of the rack, mount, and a few other spots got the rust bad... It kind of drives me nuts just seeing pictures of it. lol. I want to put a wire wheel on a drill and clean it off.

VikingTrad3r

so whats up with your rack thats been sitting? sell it? im in the market!

bill mcdonald

ha... So I put it in, and it turn to the left like crazy. Turn to the right, it might take a 3 point turn. Tried to "adjust" it, and could not get it to somewhat center out. I even tried modding the steering shaft to deal with it.

I have been wondering for years about taking it apart and seeing if there is a gear I could adjust to get it centered.

It was really nice having the fast ratio, it just pissed me off when I went to turn right I could not reach full right.

I put the old one back in to see WTF was happening and in fact I was correct. This Rack is jacked.