Lowered my C5 now need help.........
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 164
Likes: 0
From: Washington DC
Lowered my C5 now need help.........
Last night I lowered my C5 and now I have some questions about getting each side even. I lowered the front almost down to the bushings and the rear bolts until there were 2 threads showing.
So I drive down off the ramps and the rear passenger side is about 1 finger lower. Maybe a half inch.
So the real question is do I keep raising the bolt on that side until both wheel wells have the same amount of space?
Shouldn't the sides be even if they're lowered to the same point on the bolt?
If I do raise the one side to make it even am I damaging anything in the suspension or causing tire wear because the bolts are lowered to different levels? Please help guys!
:banghead: :banghead:
By the way - both tires are inflated to the same pressure and the wear is even. Thanks!
So I drive down off the ramps and the rear passenger side is about 1 finger lower. Maybe a half inch.
So the real question is do I keep raising the bolt on that side until both wheel wells have the same amount of space?
Shouldn't the sides be even if they're lowered to the same point on the bolt?
If I do raise the one side to make it even am I damaging anything in the suspension or causing tire wear because the bolts are lowered to different levels? Please help guys!
:banghead: :banghead:
By the way - both tires are inflated to the same pressure and the wear is even. Thanks!
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 164
Likes: 0
From: Washington DC
Re: Lowered my C5 now need help......... (TIKTGTR)
Yeah, I'll give it a couple days. I'm just worried if it's still uneven after that and I adjust the one bolt to a different height to compensate that I'll be damaging the suspension or f*&#ing with the ride. Thanks man. Pictures will follow when I get off my butt and get a new battery charger for my camera.
Racer
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 488
Likes: 0
Re: Lowered my C5 now need help......... (2000TicketMachine)
When you first lower a Vette off the jackstands the suspension does not settle. You need to go drive it around the block a lil bit (I swerve a lot to enhance the effect) for it to settle enough to get a good idea of the work you just did. :)
Team Owner
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 36,453
Likes: 2
From: Overwhelmed as one would be, placed in my position.... DFW, TX
St. Jude Donor '05
Re: Lowered my C5 now need help......... (2000TicketMachine)
1) Drive the car a few days and let it settle.
2) Measure the height at the wheel center from ground to the fenderwell. Obviously, this has to be done on a flat surface. Use these measurements to "even" up the sides if it differes from driver to pass side.
3) Adjust the rear suspension (it's easier) so the back is at the proper "attitude" for you. I prefer to have the rear higher than the front- like it came out of the factory.
GET AN ALIGNEMENT. Mine was off front AND rear after I lowered it.
2) Measure the height at the wheel center from ground to the fenderwell. Obviously, this has to be done on a flat surface. Use these measurements to "even" up the sides if it differes from driver to pass side.
3) Adjust the rear suspension (it's easier) so the back is at the proper "attitude" for you. I prefer to have the rear higher than the front- like it came out of the factory.
GET AN ALIGNEMENT. Mine was off front AND rear after I lowered it.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Sep 1999
Posts: 7,393
Likes: 7
From: Los Angeles CA
Re: Lowered my C5 now need help......... (2000TicketMachine)
Yeah, I'll give it a couple days. I'm just worried if it's still uneven after that and I adjust the one bolt to a different height to compensate that I'll be damaging the suspension or f*&#ing with the ride. Thanks man. Pictures will follow when I get off my butt and get a new battery charger for my camera.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 2,333
Likes: 32
From: USA
Re: Lowered my C5 now need help......... (2000TicketMachine)
Ticket,
There is no correlation to the amount of threads showing on the bolts to the ride height of the car (side to side).
You should have measured the ride height of the car before you did anything.
Then lower the car by turning the bolts an equal amount from side to side. This is how GM recommends doing it so the factory ride height remains close.
Too many folks here tell you to lower the rear until 2 threads are showing. That is just not correct. There is more to it than just turning some bolts.
Did you count the rear threads showing before you lowered it? If you did, I bet you will find that the threads showing from the factory were not even side to side.
Just change the height on the rears to match and do not worry about it.
My rears are the same height and there are 6 threads difference on the bolts.
Dave
There is no correlation to the amount of threads showing on the bolts to the ride height of the car (side to side).
You should have measured the ride height of the car before you did anything.
Then lower the car by turning the bolts an equal amount from side to side. This is how GM recommends doing it so the factory ride height remains close.
Too many folks here tell you to lower the rear until 2 threads are showing. That is just not correct. There is more to it than just turning some bolts.
Did you count the rear threads showing before you lowered it? If you did, I bet you will find that the threads showing from the factory were not even side to side.
Just change the height on the rears to match and do not worry about it.
My rears are the same height and there are 6 threads difference on the bolts.
Dave
Safety Car
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 4,174
Likes: 2
From: Parker Colorado
Re: Lowered my C5 now need help......... (Umrswimr)
1) Drive the car a few days and let it settle.
2) Measure the height at the wheel center from ground to the fenderwell. Obviously, this has to be done on a flat surface. Use these measurements to "even" up the sides if it differes from driver to pass side.
3) Adjust the rear suspension (it's easier) so the back is at the proper "attitude" for you. I prefer to have the rear higher than the front- like it came out of the factory.
GET AN ALIGNEMENT. Mine was off front AND rear after I lowered it.
2) Measure the height at the wheel center from ground to the fenderwell. Obviously, this has to be done on a flat surface. Use these measurements to "even" up the sides if it differes from driver to pass side.
3) Adjust the rear suspension (it's easier) so the back is at the proper "attitude" for you. I prefer to have the rear higher than the front- like it came out of the factory.
GET AN ALIGNEMENT. Mine was off front AND rear after I lowered it.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Safety Car
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 3,556
Likes: 2
Re: Lowered my C5 now need help......... (RUGBY)
Depending on how long you've had the car in the air (with the suspension unloaded will directly correlate with how longyou need to drive the car to get it to settle. Give a week or a little over 100 miles than recheck.
Also, a lot of 'vettes end up higher on the passenger side for some reason, and it is easily corrected by adjusting the rear bolts only. For instance, if the pax side is higher, raising the driver rear slightly will adjust the height of the pax side, and vice versa.
Also, a lot of 'vettes end up higher on the passenger side for some reason, and it is easily corrected by adjusting the rear bolts only. For instance, if the pax side is higher, raising the driver rear slightly will adjust the height of the pax side, and vice versa.