NEED ADVICE with tie rod sway bar clearance
02-20-2009, 04:13 PM
#1
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NEED ADVICE with tie rod sway bar clearance Hey guys, Im shortening my endlinks to stop my sway bar from hitting my APS inlet tube like everybody else had to do
and i noticed when I was checking the clearances that i can get 2 fingers inbetween the drivers side tie rod and the sway bar, When i check the passanger side, i can only get one ! Is this offset like this on our cars? or did UMI mess up when welding the steering rack mounts on my K member and weld the passanger side steering rake mount higher on the passanger side???
and i noticed when I was checking the clearances that i can get 2 fingers inbetween the drivers side tie rod and the sway bar, When i check the passanger side, i can only get one ! Is this offset like this on our cars? or did UMI mess up when welding the steering rack mounts on my K member and weld the passanger side steering rake mount higher on the passanger side??? 
02-20-2009, 04:42 PM
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pics As you can see from the pics ,,I can almost get 2 fingers on the drivers side and almost 1 on the passanger side Did UMI weld my steering rack mounts in the wrong place or am i missing something else?
http://s243.photobucket.com/albums/f...at/tie%20rods/
http://s243.photobucket.com/albums/f...at/tie%20rods/
02-20-2009, 04:56 PM
#4
Something is WAY WRONG, but can't tell completely, based on the pictures. Look at the angle of your pass. side tie rod, which is parallel to the ground, which it should be. Then look a the drivers side, which is going WAY UPHILL. Although I can't see it, because the pic doesn't go out that far, did you, by some chance, put the tie rod through the spindle from the top, on one side, and through the bottom, the correct way, on the other?
After looking at the pics some more, just for grins, did you try putting the links on the pass. side also, just to see where it shakes out?
After looking at the pics some more, just for grins, did you try putting the links on the pass. side also, just to see where it shakes out?
02-20-2009, 05:06 PM
#5
Ed---
Dude, you are going to cause yourself a ton of problems here all because of that damned turbo pipe. Fix the pipe, don't band-aid the suspension 8 other ways.
Dude, you are going to cause yourself a ton of problems here all because of that damned turbo pipe. Fix the pipe, don't band-aid the suspension 8 other ways.
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Results matter. Talk is cheap. We are miles beyond the success anyone else has had with the 4th gens, and C5, C6, C7 Corvettes,
10 SCCA Solo National Championships, 2008 Driver of they Year, 2012 Driver of Eminence
13 SCCA Pro Solo Nationals Championships
2023 UMI King of the Mountain Champion
02-20-2009, 05:37 PM
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This is why i cant lower my sway bar Sam!!It looks like UMI welded my steering rack mount on croocked!!The drivers side is good with a 2 finger gap !Now look at the passanger side LOL I can barly get one finger between the tie rod and sway bar. Even in the center pic,,,Is it me or is the steering rack going up hill on the passanger side
02-20-2009, 05:40 PM
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Something is WAY WRONG, but can't tell completely, based on the pictures. Look at the angle of your pass. side tie rod, which is parallel to the ground, which it should be. Then look a the drivers side, which is going WAY UPHILL. Although I can't see it, because the pic doesn't go out that far, did you, by some chance, put the tie rod through the spindle from the top, on one side, and through the bottom, the correct way, on the other?
After looking at the pics some more, just for grins, did you try putting the links on the pass. side also, just to see where it shakes out?
After looking at the pics some more, just for grins, did you try putting the links on the pass. side also, just to see where it shakes out?
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02-20-2009, 05:59 PM
#8
Your actually correct by opposite LOL Its the drivers side thats good,, with the 2 finger gap and the passanger side is barely 1 finger gap.This steering rack is going up hill on the K member towards the passanger side thus making the passanger side tie rod to close to the sway bar
BUT, the tie rods are supposed to be parallel to the ground....which the passenger side is! Your drivers side tie rod is jacked up in some funky angle. That's not right, even though it clears the sway bar by a greater distance. As I said, somethin' funky is goin on there!
02-20-2009, 06:05 PM
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BUT, the tie rods are supposed to be parallel to the ground....which the passenger side is! Your drivers side tie rod is jacked up in some funky angle. That's not right, even though it clears the sway bar by a greater distance. As I said, somethin' funky is goin on there!
02-20-2009, 06:23 PM
#12
I have to sign off for the evening, but let me say this...The sway bar connects to the front frame horns, which don't move. Unless the car has been hit, the two frame horns should be level and parallel to each other.
It's obvious that you've changed K-members, so by making that change, you've introduced a possibility for something to be mis-aligned. I've never done a K-member swap myself, so I'm not up to speed on how it goes, but I've seen discussion of alignment pins, bolt holes, etc. Are you POSITIVE the K-member is flush and square to the subframe of the car? Secondly, how did the sway bar line up before the K-member swap? If it fit OK, then the problem is somewhere in the K-member or how it's sitting in the car.
The sway bar itself...Has it been bent, somehow?
Again, going back to your original set of pictures, the left tie rod is going way uphill. If left that way, that completely screws your "bump steer", and probably the toe in, and overall steering as well. BOTH tie rods have to follow similar arcs in order for the car to steer correctly. And, they ideally, are parallel to the ground, at ride height.
Good Luck!
(I was writing this while you were taking the pics)
It's obvious that you've changed K-members, so by making that change, you've introduced a possibility for something to be mis-aligned. I've never done a K-member swap myself, so I'm not up to speed on how it goes, but I've seen discussion of alignment pins, bolt holes, etc. Are you POSITIVE the K-member is flush and square to the subframe of the car? Secondly, how did the sway bar line up before the K-member swap? If it fit OK, then the problem is somewhere in the K-member or how it's sitting in the car.
The sway bar itself...Has it been bent, somehow?
Again, going back to your original set of pictures, the left tie rod is going way uphill. If left that way, that completely screws your "bump steer", and probably the toe in, and overall steering as well. BOTH tie rods have to follow similar arcs in order for the car to steer correctly. And, they ideally, are parallel to the ground, at ride height.
Good Luck!
(I was writing this while you were taking the pics)
02-20-2009, 06:31 PM
#13
OK, I took a look at the pics...Compare the relationship of the "bellows" on both sides of the rack, to the lower control arm bolts (the pivot bolts are a "hard" point). The right side bellows is slightly above the bolt, and the drivers side is a bit below. It would appear that the rack is tipped "down", toward the drivers side.....
Gotta go, good luck........
Gotta go, good luck........
02-20-2009, 07:20 PM
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I have to sign off for the evening, but let me say this...The sway bar connects to the front frame horns, which don't move. Unless the car has been hit, the two frame horns should be level and parallel to each other.
It's obvious that you've changed K-members, so by making that change, you've introduced a possibility for something to be mis-aligned. I've never done a K-member swap myself, so I'm not up to speed on how it goes, but I've seen discussion of alignment pins, bolt holes, etc. Are you POSITIVE the K-member is flush and square to the subframe of the car? Secondly, how did the sway bar line up before the K-member swap? If it fit OK, then the problem is somewhere in the K-member or how it's sitting in the car.
The sway bar itself...Has it been bent, somehow?
Again, going back to your original set of pictures, the left tie rod is going way uphill. If left that way, that completely screws your "bump steer", and probably the toe in, and overall steering as well. BOTH tie rods have to follow similar arcs in order for the car to steer correctly. And, they ideally, are parallel to the ground, at ride height.
Good Luck!
(I was writing this while you were taking the pics)
It's obvious that you've changed K-members, so by making that change, you've introduced a possibility for something to be mis-aligned. I've never done a K-member swap myself, so I'm not up to speed on how it goes, but I've seen discussion of alignment pins, bolt holes, etc. Are you POSITIVE the K-member is flush and square to the subframe of the car? Secondly, how did the sway bar line up before the K-member swap? If it fit OK, then the problem is somewhere in the K-member or how it's sitting in the car.
The sway bar itself...Has it been bent, somehow?
Again, going back to your original set of pictures, the left tie rod is going way uphill. If left that way, that completely screws your "bump steer", and probably the toe in, and overall steering as well. BOTH tie rods have to follow similar arcs in order for the car to steer correctly. And, they ideally, are parallel to the ground, at ride height.
Good Luck!
(I was writing this while you were taking the pics)
Last edited by barnat; 02-20-2009 at 07:28 PM.
02-21-2009, 07:08 AM
#15
"barnat", did you, by any chance, look at the K-member "as installed" picture on UMI's site? I just did, and in their shot, the drivers side of the rack looks to be a bit lower than the passenger side. It's not as radical as your picture, but still sloping a bit. Again, use the rack's bellows and the lower control arm bolts as a reference.
Also, in their picture, you can see that the sway bar is closer to the tie rod on the right side of the car. Their picture is taken with the car on a lift, with the suspension at "full drop", so the bar and tie rod are at their closest point.
Also, in their picture, you can see that the sway bar is closer to the tie rod on the right side of the car. Their picture is taken with the car on a lift, with the suspension at "full drop", so the bar and tie rod are at their closest point.
