I'm in the process of removing the rear suspension of my '71. One of the struts is bent and I'm thinking about replacing the strut assembly with VBP's Smart Struts. This will be a stock rebuild. I've read here about the jam nuts being a problem and now wonder if should stay with the stock strut assembly. What will Smart Struts 'really' do for me ?

Thanks

Jim

 

i've had my VBP's Smart Struts on my car for 12 yrs now and never had 1 loosen up on me. i just painted the ends and the threads litely and that does the job. go for it, you'll love em.

 

If yall dont mind me hijacking this a bit...

Exactly whats going on with a "Smart" strut? Whats the difference between this and and a normal strut, or a heavy duty tube/heim joint setup?

 

My understanding is that they move the inboard pivot point down to where the rods are parallel to the ground. This minimizes camber changes when the tire travels through it's arc.

 

Would a spacer plate under the stock mount do the same thing? (Given that the stock strut rods are fixed length, and generally pretty crappy... they'd be replaced.)

 

Far superior to stock. I highly recommend this upgrade.

 

I did mine a few weeks ago and its allot better then original

 

Be careful, it's common to find struts bent intentionally to compensate for worn out diff side yokes. Check your diff yoke endplay.

 

the risk involved is worth it! get the smart struts! if you are that worried, check them every time you chage the oil and put a few wraps of safety wire on the rod end to crowd the jam nut in place.

 

Does anyone have measurements for the Smart Struts bracket. It wouldn't be difficult to make one.

 

Look up "Vette Improvement Program" in the Corvrtte FAQ site. It's a collection of magazine reprints which goes step by step thru a number of handling improvements. Long before "Smart Struts" were around, he (either Lee Greenwood or Herb Adams, I can't remeber right now) told how to put a metal plate between the differential and the strut mount plate to decrease the camber change caused by the different angles of the suspension members, i.e., the driveshafts and struts. I think he calls out for a 3/4" thick plate. I got a 1/2 " aluminum piece, approximately 4" X 8", from a metal shop for $7 and made mine. I cannot say what difference it made because I rebuilt the entire front and rear suspensions at the same time, but it was a lot cheaper (and more fun to make) than the store-bought unit.
As for the struts themselves, definately get the VBP adjustible ones. They're a lot stronger than the OEM style and way easy to adjust. Mine have never had the locknuts back off, even with Coppercoat anti-sieze on them, but I haven't really pushed the car too hard yet either. I do believe, after the comments I've seen here, that when I pull the differential next month for a rebuild (and hopefully fix the last handling/suspension problem--slop in my stub axles) I will double-nut my struts.

John

P.S. The bent OEM strut is a very common Bubba fix when the OEM adjuster cam siezes from age. Almost every old stock Vette I've met has this "issue".

 

I believe the reason some people experiance rod ends coming loose with poly is the lack of side flex allowed with poly. Rubber ends and spherical ends offer side movement. I contacted VBP and they said to assemble with the Left Hand Thread rod end at the wheel side on the driver side, and Right Hand Thread rod end at the wheel side on the passenger side. This arrangement will use the limited amount of motion to constantly tighten the rod ends. I am installing Poly ends at the rear & Spherical ends at the wheels.

 

I think that VBP also offers a heim joint option with their smart struts. The heim joints accomodate any twisting torque that occurs were the end of the strut rods fit into the spindle fork. (The spindle fork moves up in down in a slightly circular arc since the spindle fork moves about the trailing arm/frame bolt pivot. This slight arc motion provides a "twisting" to the strut rod, since it's end can move only straight up and down.)

I have heim joints, although I have yet to drive the car.

 

Our Smart Strut Bracket with Cams gives you an additional place to adjust. You can adjust the rods and then also the cams on the bracket to get a closer adjustment/dial right in better to take the corner turns nice and flat.

Also, we offer the assembly with poly ends or metal heim joint/spherical ends. The metal ends, of course, will need maintenance but are stronger for racing applications.

We have just now introduced our new poly with forged ends. These are now forged, one piece, for additional strength.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email me directly at pattie@vbandp.com or call toll free at 1-800-237-9991. If you do not have our new 2006 catalog, I can email a spec sheet and pic of the new forged ends.

Pattie
VBP

 

I plan on making my own with heim joints ill go measure them on my dads 66 and see.

 

I used the Smart Struts for several years on mine and put them through a good bit of abuse....never a problem and never came loose. They do as designed and keep camber under control.

I also had VB make me a set of custom heim jointed strut rods for my Dana 60 IRS setup. Great products, Great people, Great service!


JIM

 

Isn't the camber change intentional on independent rear suspensions?

If smart struts reduce or effectively eliminate the camber change, wouldn't that be most effective if the car ALSO had big bars to keep the body flat around corners?

Just curious . (and looking for a free handling lesson).

 

The suspension still moves up and down through the corners and that cuase camber change. The sway bars prevent the car from rolling so much.