Front suspension still too high!
Discussion
Well after replacing my aftermarket springs with the newly powder coated original springs today the suspension is still too high.I still have one aftermarket setup on the drivers side and original spring now on the passenger side but it is still an 1 1/4" higher than it used to be, the drivers side is 2 1/2" !
What other factors could cause the increase in ride height, I have replaced all ball joints with genuine Ford items,fitted poly bushes and new AVO dampers and spring seats. The new spring seats will have increased the height slightly after seeing how bad the old ones were but not by 1 1/4". Will it settle after a while, I have still to re-fit the anti roll bar, will this make any difference??
Help because im starting to loose heart now :(
Cheers
Andy
What other factors could cause the increase in ride height, I have replaced all ball joints with genuine Ford items,fitted poly bushes and new AVO dampers and spring seats. The new spring seats will have increased the height slightly after seeing how bad the old ones were but not by 1 1/4". Will it settle after a while, I have still to re-fit the anti roll bar, will this make any difference??
Help because im starting to loose heart now :(
Cheers
Andy
What is the height from the top of the wheel to the bottom of the wheel arch? What size wheels and tyres are you running? I seem to recall a post a couple of years back stating that many of the wedges run too low with not enough spring travel. I can't think of much other than the springs that would effect the ride height.
The height of the side with the original spring on is now 6 3/4" from top of the wheel rim to the bottom of the arch. I am running the standard 400 15" rims on 60 series Bridgestones.
I also thought that the spring was the determining factor in the ride height which is why I decided to put the originals back on, now im just confused!
I will sort a photo out in the morning to see if anyone can see something that im missing!
I also thought that the spring was the determining factor in the ride height which is why I decided to put the originals back on, now im just confused!
I will sort a photo out in the morning to see if anyone can see something that im missing!
I've just reread your post. If you have fitted the original springs I would have thought this should be OK. Have you driven the car since you re-fitted the springs? Maybe it needs to settle. I know that when I have worked on mine it takes a bit of a drive before it settles to the correct ride height. Maybe remove the damper, it's the only thing I can think of that could effect things. I think around 2" to 3" from the top of the tyre to the bottom of the wheel arch is normal, but I have seen many running much lower.
Is the end of the spring fully located in the 'dimple' in the lower wishbone ? If not you need to turn the spring until it is home fully - difficult if it is a tight fit at the top.
Did you load the suspension whilst torquing up the inner pivots (if not the poly bushes act as torsion springs and hold the ride height up.)
You can overload the front (add weight)when you torque up which will pull the height down a lttle.
It will settle a when used - the spring beds into the socket and the bushes will 'releave' themselves.
David
>> Edited by djc1001 on Sunday 30th October 16:08
Did you load the suspension whilst torquing up the inner pivots (if not the poly bushes act as torsion springs and hold the ride height up.)
You can overload the front (add weight)when you torque up which will pull the height down a lttle.
It will settle a when used - the spring beds into the socket and the bushes will 'releave' themselves.
David
>> Edited by djc1001 on Sunday 30th October 16:08
My mistake, I meant 50 series tyres.
Springs located correctly and upper and lower wishbone bolts torqued up whilst on the road wheels.
I tried disconnecting the damper so it sat on springs alone, no difference at all so could it be the larger ball joints? clutching at straws now!
I have not run it yet, so maybe it will settle down a bit but it seems a lot to settle compared to how it used to be. Take a look at the photo just incase im missing something glaringly obvious
Thanks all for the replies so far.
>> Edited by AM400 on Sunday 30th October 20:44
Springs located correctly and upper and lower wishbone bolts torqued up whilst on the road wheels.
I tried disconnecting the damper so it sat on springs alone, no difference at all so could it be the larger ball joints? clutching at straws now!
I have not run it yet, so maybe it will settle down a bit but it seems a lot to settle compared to how it used to be. Take a look at the photo just incase im missing something glaringly obvious
Thanks all for the replies so far.
>> Edited by AM400 on Sunday 30th October 20:44
Andy,
After I rebuilt my car with new springs, polybushes and dampers it sat a little high. (I did not tighten suspension bushes etc until after weight was on the suspension.)
After a few hundred miles it had settled down a little, and has remained at the settled height since.
Rgds
Hamish
After I rebuilt my car with new springs, polybushes and dampers it sat a little high. (I did not tighten suspension bushes etc until after weight was on the suspension.)
After a few hundred miles it had settled down a little, and has remained at the settled height since.
Rgds
Hamish
AM400 said:
I still have one aftermarket setup on the drivers side and original spring now on the passenger side but it is still an 1 1/4" higher than it used to be, the drivers side is 2 1/2" !
Sounds like you have answered your own question. You need to have both original springs back on as the aftermarket spring can affect the ride height on the other side.
Kev
AM400 said:
The problem is I dont have the original ride height!
I will get the other side sorted then see how well it settles before trying anything else. I may just be being paranoid about the height but I will reserve judgement until then.
I guess that you must have missed this:
JR said:
The height of the side with the original spring on is now 6 3/4" from top of the wheel rim to the bottom of the arch.
So that's about 172mm. Knock off 112mm standard tyre height and that leaves you with 60mm which is correct.
sevans said:
I think around 2" to 3" from the top of the tyre to the bottom of the wheel arch is normal, but I have seen many running much lower.
Yes but many also left the factory with a 4" gap.
>> I have not run it yet, so maybe it will settle down a bit
This might be a silly question, but did you move the car at all since getting it down off the jacks?
If not, that would explain it. The front wheels won't sit properly on the ground until they have done a revolution or two. This also applies to the rears.
Drive it half out of the garage, then back in, and it should settle down.
This might be a silly question, but did you move the car at all since getting it down off the jacks?
If not, that would explain it. The front wheels won't sit properly on the ground until they have done a revolution or two. This also applies to the rears.
Drive it half out of the garage, then back in, and it should settle down.
adam quantrill said:
>> I have not run it yet, so maybe it will settle down a bit
This might be a silly question, but did you move the car at all since getting it down off the jacks?
If not, that would explain it. The front wheels won't sit properly on the ground until they have done a revolution or two. This also applies to the rears.
Drive it half out of the garage, then back in, and it should settle down.
Agree with Adam, and mine normally drops about 1 inch at the front by running it a bit on the road after it has been up in the air. I have replaced my standard springs (as one was broken) with heavy duty and the ride height is the same with about 1.5 inch of space between tyre and wheel arch (and very much like this look) on standard 15 inch with 60-series 205 Bridgestones.
To be complete: Changed to poly bushes, new standard Ford balljoints, and added GAZ adjustable shocks(but all, including the shocks do not interfere with ride height - and should not either).
Rob
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