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After you get the car back together find a shop that will pull all the shims and center the differential and shim it from there. I was lucky enough to find a alignment tech who "knew" how to set up the rear end of a C3. He literally made the car track so much better. It takes a bit longer but getting the differential centered was one of the best things I have had done to my C3. It made the Car into a Corvette again as it drove like it was on rails.
If the wheels are not centered in the rear wheel wells the differential being centered will help resolve that.
Interesting i did not know about centering..mine looks centered but who knows. I put back shims as they were as I recently had a 4 wheel alignment and man was that worth it. I have to wait on one guy at belle tire as he is the only one who does it around me. I still have the one year come back for adjustment as i dd this job and replaced my spring with 6 leaf gymkhana..
ok all back together no parts left over and brakes don’t leak! No clunk….
had a ticking right rear when turning left or accelerating..was the mickey mouse ear clip on e brake needed to be turned so ears do not hit wheel weights.
what is weird is it handles great but for whatever reason now when i gas it in like a round about the back end breaks loose much easier..much funner! Seems tires squawk more on turns I don’t know why.. interesting…
I want to thank everyone for their expertise pm’s and support..
i am all in maybe ~120 bucks..
i would encourage others on budget give it a go.. i bet you could do this for 60 bucks usa products.. i am officially offering loaner bushing too for anyone on budget or highly recommended top flight automotive tool..50 bucks free ship offer.. and bairs for bushings and bolts.
cold sunny day time to filler up and getting close to breaking 40000 miles!
Merry Christmas!
Closing in 40000! Got it with 28000 -2.5 years ago
Last edited by interpon; Dec 19, 2021 at 04:53 PM.
Can I rent the tool? I'm just outside Chicago and trailing arms are out. I was just about to attempt myself without the tool. New member, not sure I can PM yet.
Can I rent the tool? I'm just outside Chicago and trailing arms are out. I was just about to attempt myself without the tool. New member, not sure I can PM yet.
I really appreciate the corvette love and willingness to loan the bushing tool out.
I ended up making a tool out of some 1/4 inch steel, some 1/4 inch bolts, and a 3/4 inch bolt for staking the trailing arm bushing sleeve. I made it for about 9$, not including the drill and drill bits I already had. I like to support the kind corvette specialty companies that make it easier for DIYers like me who make these tools, but it was really a time issue. By the time I ordered it waited for shipping, it would be a week later. Honestly, for what it is, I think it sells for too much money.
This was part of a project that i totally rebuilt my trailing arms, including the spindle bearings. I bought the 3 tools needed for the spindle bearing, the knock out tool, bearing and shim set up tool, and the screw on press thing to get it all back together.
I'm willing to loan these tools out as well if someone wants to totally rebuild their TAs too.
Feel free to PM me if anyone is interesred.
Awesome.. nice fabrication..
if i try my bearings I’ll be looking you up! Thanks for offering up..
who’s ready next..?
fyi it cost me about 11 dollars to ship bushing tool..usps
i’m also ok if someone doing both that eventually the next ship point combines the tools as a set (just speaking for myself)
Last edited by interpon; Jan 15, 2022 at 11:21 AM.
interpon - very nice work. I recently reinstalled my trailing arms after having them rebuilt, new bushings and axle bearings, seals etc. I had SS shims at the front of the arms from years ago. I put the same shims back in and the car drives fine on the road as is but I'm planning on getting an alignment done, after the winter. What kind of shop did your alignment? Who knows how to deal with a C3?
interpon - very nice work. I recently reinstalled my trailing arms after having them rebuilt, new bushings and axle bearings, seals etc. I had SS shims at the front of the arms from years ago. I put the same shims back in and the car drives fine on the road as is but I'm planning on getting an alignment done, after the winter. What kind of shop did your alignment? Who knows how to deal with a C3?
it is my suggestion that it is tough to beat state of the art equipment…look for new tire shops around you,tire barn, belle tire (insert crazy tire shops popping up everywhere), then find out who knows rear c3.. there usually is one or two master mechanics that visit multiple facilities in a chain or you get lucky and have someone who knows with great equipment,
i bought the 99 buck one year unlimited alignment..that paid off with spring replacement, rear trailing arms, etc.
i do tip well and make appointment with same guy..
buy shim kit or have extras..
the best thing i ever did for driveability . Many on here are diy experts..this one i learned my limitations.. iwill say that the first alignment took over hour and he must have rolled that car 50x back and forth while adjusting.. he said he enjoyed it!
i told him feel free to take it out and run it..he said he could barely get it in garage with wide boots lol…or he would…
good luck..
interpon - Thanks for that info. I guess I am surprised that you found a knowledgeable guy at one of the modern, chain store, type of tire/alignment shops. I do have a set of new, SS shims like you show in the attached thread. I will bring them with me to see if anybody at the local shops knows what they are. That should be a good starting point.
I realize this is a old thread,,,,,
.
... But you must realize the drive line in your C3 is NOT ' centered ' in the car. Its all one inch off center to the passenger side..
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Slideshow: A Jaguar designer's personal project imagines what a modern front-engined Corvette might look like if Chevrolet revisited the golden age of the Stingray.
