Fellow Enthusiasts,
I've made progress on fixing the condition where my car sat lower (3/4" or
so) on the left side.
After replacing the usual suspects (all bushings and springs on all four
corners) I discovered the ball-joint tapers were different.
I installed matching ball joints and am glad to report that the left side
height is much better! I want to let the suspension components (e.g.,
spring pads) settle for a few days before I re-evaluate, but my simple
where-on-the-leg-does-the wheel-arch-hit comparison shows no difference
from left to right side. This is definite improvement.
The long-tapered ball joint increased the distance between the ball joint
and the lower spring pan on that side. (Recall that the upper end of the
front spring fits in a tower rigidly attached to the frame.) It then makes
sense that the side with longer distance would sit lower, because more
distance must be taken up to reach balance (I'm struggling for the right
words here --- a picture would help). The distance I measured between the
upper ball joint and lower wishbone-trunnion thru-bolt only differed by 1/4
inch (left/right) with the
mis-matched ball joints. It seems a little puzzling that such a small
difference could make 3/4 inch difference at the wheel arch. However, it
only takes a few pounds pushing down on a fender to move it down a
noticeable amount, and the wheel arch is much further from the centerline
of the car, so the effect would be greater there. In any case, replacing
the ball joints was helpful.
I would be interested to know if others out there with puzzling
one-side-low problems also have a similar difference between the ball-joint
and trunnion/wishbone.
Regards,
Cregg
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