straight or not





To check if your chassis is square, corner to corner, and not a parallelogram, using a plumb bob mark the exact location of what ever front and rear reference points you choose and compare the diagonal measurements. Any variation indicates a degree of being "out-of-square" as seen from the top view. The further out these dimensions, the more likely your front and rear are dog-tracking.
As for any warp relative to heights, make sure the Z and D suspension heights (explanation below) are equal from side to side, then compare various points, particularly L to R. Note that the numbers in the pic below are given relative to each other, and not necessarily the numbers you'll have. It is possible for these measurements to appear good, and still have some warp that would only show up when the corner weights are taken, but you'll have a fairly good idea of what you've got without spending the money to have a frame shop jig it up for you.
“Z” height is the distance from the lower control arm front pivot bolt CL (centerline) to level ground, minus the distance from the bottom surface of the spindle support (also referred to as the steering knuckle) to level ground. That last point is the underside on which the lower ball joint nut bears.
“D” height is the distance from the inner camber strut rod link CL to level ground, minus the distance from the outer camber strut rod link CL to level ground.

Last edited by TheSkunkWorks; Sep 1, 2007 at 03:13 PM.
If one wheel is not touching the road when the other three are
If the gap between the hood and the body looks like a toaster opening
........................................ ........................................ ................You might have a bent frame
Seriously, you have good advice in the prior post. I look for serious bubba shims at the hood hinges, crossmember, radiator support, bumper brackets, and of coarse the upper and lower A arms.





If one wheel is not touching the road when the other three are
If the gap between the hood and the body looks like a toaster opening
........................................ ........................................ ................You might have a bent frame






