Hi all.. I'm sure this has been discussed at length so forgive me for my lousy search capabilities.. I've got some issues with my left front geometry. I have just finished completely rebuilding my front end with mostly NOS parts. There were some drake re-pop stuff (lower control arms) that have been replaced. Prior to this rebuild I could run blue dots or Avon 205/70/15 on my cragars with no issues. The left front wheel arch had less than 1/4" of clearance up at the front (close to the headlight end) between it and the "front" on the tires. But, I rarely if ever had any rubbing. The right has much better clearance. Maybe a solid 3/4 -1" in the same spot. Now after the re-build I have a rubbing/clearance issue on the left. The issue is exacerbated since I bought some Torq Thrust wheels to put the Avon's on. (Model VN105) They have a different offset than the cragars. The alignment is within spec. The other issue I have noticed which may or may not have existed prior to the rebuild is that the wheelbase is 1/2" longer on the left than the right. While most "street cars" have some variance I expect 1/2" is a little extreme. It appears that I need to move the upper and lower control arms back towards the firewall a bit to solve this problem. Yes I put the same number of shims in the front and rear of the upper as there were before the rebuild. In order to move the upper back if I remove the shims it appears that I will need to "shorten" the rear stud on the upper control arm to allow for clearance for the headers. Right now the end of the stud is essentially a business card away from touching the header. OK soooo Have any of you guys done this or had to do this? I"m told these "differences" are common on 65's? If I shorten the rear stud on the upper control arm (allowing me to use less shims) I can see that solving the issue for the upper. What is the best way to move the lower control arm towards the firewall?? Add washers on the front of the stabilizer strut? Something different? Am I looking at this the wrong way??? Your thoughts are always appreciated!!!!
Cheers,
John
5S275 used to have the same issues with Blue Dots (27,61" diameter) on original Cragars. Tire rubbed
on the driver side and worse when backing and turning the wheel. I solved the problem by having a
speed shop aligning the front end and hammering the fender edge. Since then no problems.
Texas Swede
Thanks for the quick reply! Fender lip already rolled! Still too close. :(
I think you are on the right track reducing the # of shims, shortening the stud, going factory on the LCA and if needed, adjusting the support strut.
If you increase the castor, you will get interference. Often (but not always) that's where the issue lies.
Problem solved! Thanks guys... Shortening the upper control arm shaft bolt provided enough room to make the proper caster adjustment and provide the needed tire clearance.
See you all at the National. I have a shop at Sonoma Raceway so I will have my 65 and my 06 Heritage Edition GT at the convention.
Cheers,
John
John(dockbay), please call me when you have a few minutes to chat. I have a question or two about the suspension issues we're having on our 65's. Thank you, Paul at 817-691-0159.