Front end done, wheels back on, but something doesn't look right...
 

Front end rebuild is done, with the exception of torquing the a-arm pivot bolts. Wheels are back on and I set the car down on some ramps. Right away I noticed that the front end seems to be sitting high. It's been awhile since I've seen things back together, but for some reason it doesn't look right. Take a look. I ran a tape from the tire to the fender and I have about 5 inches of clearance. Is this right?

http://memimage.cardomain.net/member...28_52_full.jpg
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member...28_53_full.jpg

BET ODDS the coil springs are not seated correctly in the upper pockets...don't ask how I know this...OK???

GENE

Is the engine in?

You've got a serious problem somewhere.


better pull the wheel and show us what you did. Its more than just a spring not seated.

Good news is you won't have to worry about bottoming out over speed bumps. :D

Turtle, think so??, what in hell other than a missing engine could cause that much height problem??? nothing I can think of....

I know I had one HELL of a ride height problem on some car in the past...can't remember which...been a while...and that's what it wuz...

GENE

I agree with Mrvette, and don't ask me how I know either!

I guess he should put it down and roll it around but that ain't gonna lower it 4 inches. Its almost like he has the wrong springs or ball joints or incorrect installation. I agree it may be the spring is not in the pocket too but is that gonna raise it 4 inches. It seems someting else in addition to a spring seating problem.

He needs to take some more picts of his work to give us a clue.

:iagree:

I'll post some more pics when I get a chance. probably wont be for a day. I'm working a double today. Spring seats was the only thing I could think of too. Tight coils were up. Made sure the end of the spring was seated just before and not covering the drain in the lower arm.

This sucks. I spent so many hours cleaning, sandblasting, painting, wrenching, and now this. Would be nice to drive the car again this summer. Can you give me a list of things to look for and I'll start troubleshooting and snapping pics.

Thanks,

Align the upper spring in the groove. Don't worry about the lower arm/spring/drain hole alignment.

You might have the 4x4 off road option - it is very rare :D
Seriously - need more pics...

Why Jughead?
Isn´t the effect to ride height the same if upper end OR lower end is not properly seated at the pocked (around 1/2 inch max since the pocket is not that deep?)? :eek:

Let's say I had to rotate the spring. How much do I need to tear down to do so? When I was installing the springs, I was able to use a pipe wrench to turn them into place, but now with the compression on the springs with the spindle back on, I doubt I'm going to be able to do that. I really don't want to pull ball joints again. Might as well order some new boots right away.

When I replaced my front springs 2 weeks ago I opened the inner side of the lower control arm - it sits tight behing 3 bolts only - I think that is easier and you need no special tools for that compared to open the ball joint...maybe...

My new 550 springs are that short that you might be able to turn them without opening anything...Do not know your spring type...

stock springs.

Just talked to a buddy at work and it's possible I may have snugged up the pivot bolts too tight on the lower arms, keeping the arms from rotating up. I'll try jacking the car back up, loosening those bolts a little more and set the car down and hopefully that does the trick. I find it hard to believe those bushings could hold the car up like that, but maybe it's possible.

Like Jughead said - gotta align the top end with the 'drain hole'
in the upper pocket.
You can use a small 2-jaw gear puller to pop the ball joint out
without hammering the boot with a pickle fork.
One of those screw/lever type tie rod end removers may work, too.

:seeya

If I do have to break the knuckle, I'll definitely use a puller.

Mine isnt that high without the motor or trans in it. I do have one spring seated wrong so one side is 1 inch higher.

:withstupid:

:iagree:

I eliminated that possibility because you stated you hadn't torqued them yet.

If the spring is in the proper spot (bottom end of coil at the stop) the upper part will be aligned correctly. On a recent change I noticed the upper part had to be shifted not rotated to insure that it was in the correct shock tower position during the compression part of the installation. It wanted to jam in kind of sideways. If the spring is "cock-eyed" that could be the problem. But if both sides are the same height
I don't know what the problem might be. BB springs on a SB?

springs appear to be seated correctly. I loosened the pivot bolts on the a-arms and set the car back down. Still not settling. If I tightenend everything on the sway bar before setting the car down, could that be the source of my troubles?

No engine and sitting on ramps will make it sit high like that. My father's 76 L-82 had that much clearance with the engine/trans out just sitting on the ground. If anything I think that vettes along this year always sit up too high in the front. My '77 that I'm building is gonna sit about 2-3 inches lower in the front when I get through cutting the springs.

KC

Glad I found this thread. I was going to post a thread on the same thing. After replacing all ball joints, bushings idler arms etc. , I reinstalled the original springs and low and behold the car sits way too high!!!!!!! ride height should be in the 27 inch range and my is sitting at a whopping 30 3/4 inches!!!!!!! equally on both sides. Absolutely mind boggling. Before the new overhaul and install the car height was perfect. This really sucks!!!!!!!

Let me know what you find and I'll do the same, because I'm still trying to figure it out. Will try a few things tonight.

I'm pretty sure the motor is in. I should probably check when I get home. It's that metal thingy under the door on the top of the car that opens the wrong way, right?

Don't be offended by the comment, I definitely want more comments from people as I work on the car, just can't get over how many people asked about the motor being in it. :crazy:

Very unlikely that the sway bar is holding the front up like that.

Q: How is the back sitting ? If the back is adjusted to be sitting
very low, that will force the front up. Trouble is, I don't think
it would push it THAT far up.

Where did you get the front end rebuild kit ?

Can you get some pics of the ball joints - installed ?

My MOOG stock replacements from the local parts store (460s)
installed very easily and they seem to sit nicely - under $50.
Are you going for NCRS points ?

:seeya

have you set the car on the ground? Try pushing down on the front end.

where did you buy the spring? Any possibility its just too long?

you are so very high it looks like the engine isn't in, thats why all the questions. actually my car sits lower in front than that without an engine.

How about did you tighten the a-arms while the car was in the air? All suspension rubber parts need to albeit the pain in the arse that it is to get to when on the ground.... If you tightened down on those bad boys that could be part of your problem.. Dave..

:lurk:

You never said if the engine was in fact in the car or not. :toetap:

KC

front springs can be a pain !
 

I am going through the same problems on a lesser scale but I replaced my original springs with new 460 springs from VBP. Whats up with your springs ? Are they original, new, or replacemants ?My 460 's changed my ride hight from 27.5 to 30 that settled to 29 after a couple drives around town. I cut 5/8 of a coil off hoping for a drop of 1 1/2 inches but have only achieved 1 inch so far. I am hoping it will setle in 1/2 an inch more. Brent

Original springs. Got front end rebuild kit from van steel. set the car down and pushed down on it. suspension gives, but then restores to the heightened position (motor is in the car, radiator isn't). I'm measuring about 4.5" from tire to fender on one side and about 5" on the other. Sway bar is loose. A-arm pivots are loose. looked inside the springs as best I could to see if they are seated correctly up top, and they appear to be. Seated in the bottom with the end of the spring just before the drain. If the bottom is seated right, the top should be (as far as rotating the spring goes). Somehow it just has to be the springs. There's nothing else left that could be lifting the car.

I know I'm going to kick myself in the arse when I get this figured out.

here you can see the ball joints installed. Let me know if you want me to try and get a pic of something else.

http://memimage.cardomain.net/member...28_56_full.jpg

your bottom ball joint is on the wrong way.

what do i win?

If that's the case... :o

I kind of had a feeling that might've been it. I was looking in the gm service manual and saw some pics of the chevelle, nova, etc with the spindle bolting on from the top, but they didn't have any pics of the corvette.

I'm sorry, it is right, just looked at mine.

we'll keep lookin.

Look up on top of the spring pocket and either try looking at the peep hole, or poking it with a small screwdriver to make sure the spring is actually seated there. Most likely the spring isnt sitting in the seat. The upper control arm will block most of your view, so that is why you might have to do it by feel. The spring end should rest right around that hole, if you look closely you can see how there is an indention soon after the hole.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...n/100_2538.jpg

So, is my lower ball joint in upside down or not? Nova, Chevelle, Monte Carlo and Camaro show the lower joint up, or stud is pointing up and grease fitting down. Is the corvette opposite?

wait, that has to be right. There's no way it could go the other way.

lower ball joint is fine

IMO the only way to get this very long original spring correctly seated: use a threaded rod (allthread) and insert it through the hole that the shock mounts through. Use a nut at the top and bottom and some washers and a bracket (homemade) to compress the spring. I can email you a photo of the compressor that I built....
Compress the spring against the upper pocket, then raise the lower control arm...

good luck

Just checked mine...it is correct. Cannot be anything else except either wrong springs or not seated.

i used an actual spring compressor when I put them in. I dropped the rod down through the tower and use one set of hooks to compress the spring against the upper tower. That way I made sure it was seated right, but might just have to be rotated. I then lifted the lower arm with the jack and used my foot to bend the bottom of the spring toward and into the bottom arm. I put the spindle onto the upper and lower joints, just tightened the nuts on a couple threads to keep the spring in place, used a pipe wrench to turn the spring where it needed to be and then torqued the nuts on the ball joints.

I'll try peeking around again to see if I need to rotate something. trying to cook dinner, but keep jumping on the computer.

Did you roll the car back & forth after setting it back on the ground? The wheels hit the ground at an angle and willnot spread back to their original position due to friction. Make sure the bushing bolts are loose & roll the car several feet back & forth. CAn you take a pic from the front that shows both wheels?

Jim

New springs and gas charged shocks are the problem :D

Looks like you have the sway bar tightened down way to tight. The torque spec is some where around 14 ft lbs. The sway bar should not be tightened down as far as you have it. Dave..

Take the shocks out and see if it settles, if not, its got to be the springs, could they be installed upside down? push on the front end several times and check for full range of motion...

pushing down on car and suspension seems to operate fine. dropped the car and rolled it around so the wheels could kick out. I'm now measuring 3-3/4" between the tire and fender on drivers side and 4" on the passenger side. tires are 235/60's. Similar to the rear end. with 295/50's, I'm measuring about 3-1/2" to 3-3/4". tip of nose is just about 20" off the floor. Am I back in the ball park?

If I am in the ball park now, how do I adjust the height on each side so they match?

thanks for the comments guys. i appreciate the help.

I torqued to 18 ft-lbs like the gm manual says. just to make sure it's not overtightened, i shot dan at van steel a note to see what he has to say. i also thought the bolts were hanging a little low myself after tightening, and wondered if I over did it.

I just looked to see if I have a pic of mine as I installed them.. However I know that you have them torqued to tight... If you did it with the car on jackstands the torque rating was incorrect.. SUSPENSION parts that have RUBBER should be torqued at REST not while on the stands... This is to include the a-arms upper and lower, sway bar, trailing arm bolts, rear shock mounts, etc... Loosen the sway bar and that will probably help some loosen the a-arm bolt and move the car forward and back even in and out of the driveway. Then retorque... Dave..

Sway bar is loose as are the a-arm bolts. Everything was installed without any weight on the suspension. GM says to torque sway bar with suspension loose. Only thing tightened when the car was on the floor were the lugnuts. A-arm pivots will be torqued with the car on ramps.

I took some measurements again last night after moving the car around and posted them. Can someone let me know if they measure the same or close on theirs? stock springs and rubber is 235/60/15

"If I am in the ball park now, how do I adjust the height on each side so they match?"

Take em back out and cut a half coil off or so. :rofl:

But come on - that is the truth :ack: :D With rear end you might chance longer bolts, but with front end :crazy: :smash: :smash: :smash:

can someone measure their clearance from the top of the wheel to the fender or from the nose of the car to the ground, so I can determine whether or not things are where they are suppose to be? I'd like to torque down the pivot bolts if I'm set.

I ha ve slightly over 2 fingers between the tire and the lip, but my tires are 245/45/17 !!!

I have 26.5 " from the garage floor to the center of my front wheelwell lip.But,this is after cutting a half of both front stock coils and my tires are 245-60-15's. :)

Edit:It is important to understand that average factory heights measured from ground to center of wheelwell lip was 27.50" =+ at curb weight (gas tank full). No one uses the height from the top of the tire or the "nose" for a reference...it is either as I have quoted,or a dimension from the ground to the underside of the frame,which is consistant with factory charts for curb weight as delivered.
So take dimensions from these points,and tell us what you have. :eek:

I have 27" with 550 front springs and 245/45/17 tires

[QUOTE=rihwoods]Edit:It is important to understand that average factory heights measured from ground to center of wheelwell lip was 27.50" QUOTE]

ok. see I wasn't aware of that. I'll check that when I get home. I'll just have to adjust for the difference in tire heights (stock vs. what's on the car now)