front suspension adjustment
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2005
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front suspension adjustment
i have installed the lower/upper control arms on my frame with new balljoints and used the same shims on the upper controlarm
but looking at both sides i notice a difference in angle .. no idea if this is common..or needs adjustment ?
pictures are taken on the front:
right wheel... it is about angle of the lower end of balljoint and the upper end ( of the lowerballjoint)
the left wheel , the angle is of the lower end en upper end (of the lowerballjoint) is smaller , the rubber isn't squeezed either.
are there visual refference points for adjustments while installing..or is this something that has to be done when the car has been assembled completely?
thank you
art-corvette
but looking at both sides i notice a difference in angle .. no idea if this is common..or needs adjustment ?
pictures are taken on the front:
right wheel... it is about angle of the lower end of balljoint and the upper end ( of the lowerballjoint)
the left wheel , the angle is of the lower end en upper end (of the lowerballjoint) is smaller , the rubber isn't squeezed either.
are there visual refference points for adjustments while installing..or is this something that has to be done when the car has been assembled completely?
thank you
art-corvette
Race Director
Joined: Sep 2002
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From: San Diego - Deep Within The State of CONFUSION!
First, a car will ALWAYS need alignment after the front end is repaired. Second, if you are sure there's a difference between sides, are you positive you didn't mix the upper control arms side to side?
Instructor
Joined: Mar 2003
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From: Eagle Wi
I think the angle you are looking at will depend on how far the spring pushed the suspension down. If I remember there are rubber stops (bumpers) under the upper a-arm. If you have one more worn than the other you might get this condition.
Assuming your springs are not shot I would assume you will see everything look correct when she is back on the wheels.
Assuming your springs are not shot I would assume you will see everything look correct when she is back on the wheels.
Thread Starter
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thankz for the reply, the springs are new, i'll check out when she is back on her wheels.
actually can't think of anything that can be adjusted beside the shims on the upper control arm shaft.
art-corvette
actually can't think of anything that can be adjusted beside the shims on the upper control arm shaft.
art-corvette
Thread Starter
Intermediate
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hmm.. haven't thought about it might be bend... will check that out.
i already noticed on a picture made during disassembling the car , the rubber on right lower balljoint was squeezed the same way as this new one.
thankz
art-corvette
i already noticed on a picture made during disassembling the car , the rubber on right lower balljoint was squeezed the same way as this new one.
thankz
art-corvette
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the caliper bracket is bent but it doesn't look like the spindle is bent but it's hard to see and those photoshop lines are nowhere near accurate enough. Are you saying that you used the same amount of shims left and right on the upper arms? That's no guarantee for a similar angle, the frame may have deformed a bit and it's very common to need different amount of shims left and right to get it right.
Last edited by Twin_Turbo; Sep 12, 2005 at 04:03 PM.
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twin turbo (mark als ik het goed heb ;-) you're right , it is hard to see on a photo, i just checked out , even the calliper bracket is not bent although on that picture above it sure does look like it is.
when tighten my coilspring to disassemble the spindle i could see the squeezed rubber got in normal position, so i guess it is something to look at when the car is back on it's wheels with all weight on the coils/spindles being equal again
about the shims, i meant i put the original (amount) of shims back on their places
art-corvette
when tighten my coilspring to disassemble the spindle i could see the squeezed rubber got in normal position, so i guess it is something to look at when the car is back on it's wheels with all weight on the coils/spindles being equal again
about the shims, i meant i put the original (amount) of shims back on their places
art-corvette
Instructor
Joined: Nov 2002
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From: Hillsborough NJ
Maybe I'm missing something, but the two "ends" of the ball joint shouldn't be aligned (especially when you are at full droop). Isn't the purpose of the ball joints to pivot so that you can get articulation in the suspension?
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Originally Posted by art-corvette
twin turbo (mark als ik het goed heb ;-) you're right , it is hard to see on a photo, i just checked out , even the calliper bracket is not bent although on that picture above it sure does look like it is.
when tighten my coilspring to disassemble the spindle i could see the squeezed rubber got in normal position, so i guess it is something to look at when the car is back on it's wheels with all weight on the coils/spindles being equal again
about the shims, i meant i put the original (amount) of shims back on their places
art-corvette
when tighten my coilspring to disassemble the spindle i could see the squeezed rubber got in normal position, so i guess it is something to look at when the car is back on it's wheels with all weight on the coils/spindles being equal again
about the shims, i meant i put the original (amount) of shims back on their places
art-corvette
If the bracket is straight then that does show how misleading a picture can be, you loose all the depth and perspective in it and can't even judge properly if something is straight or not....
The squeezed rubber is not a problem, it will do that on full droop and full bump, that's how it's supposed to be. Looking at the pics it looks like the control arms are not at the same angles to the spindle, meaning one pic is taken at a different droop/bump height than the other or the caster settings on both are not the same. Have it aligned by a good alignment shop.
Did you install new bushings in the control arms? If so, there's no way the original setting will be dead on accurate, the car may have been realigned some time and any wear in the bushings will have been reflected in the shimming, with fresh bushings the usual result will be too little camber setting.
... you must be arthuro from the HCC forum then....right?
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From: Living in the Hartland
Before I rebuilt my front suspension I noticed there where a lot of shims on the passenger side compared to the drivers die but the car always drove true so I didn't give it a second thought. After I rebuilt the front suspension I had to remove almost all the shims from the passenger side and ended up with almost the same shimming for each side.
