rear ride height?
rear ride height? My 1998 Camaro Z28 with all stock suspension except for Koni Strt shocks is not even. I noticed looking at the rear of my car today it didn't sit right. I measured from the wheel opening to the ground and on the passenger side i got 27 1/2" and 26 1/2" on the driver side. Is there an easy fix for this unbalance?
I haven't had any Fbody that didn't have a lean like that, including my current. I have always just chalked it up to how the rear suspension works with the panhard rod setup. I've tried turning the isolators and all...nothing fixes it.
wow... I bought this car in November of 1997 and never noticed this lean as you call it. I looked at everything underneath and all looks good. Is there any way to fix this? I was thinking maybe the spring is just shot but only the one.
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Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 723
Likes: 25
From: go get your shine box tommy
I found some 1/4" aluminium spacers on ebay pretty cheap. They are some kind of circle/dirt/nascar surplus and they have different sizes so gotta find the right one. I think it is about 4 7/8" ID, 5 1/2" OD
And of course measuring to the fender is for looks only. If you care about better balance, put it on level surface and measure the to rear lower control arm bolt (body side) and the front bolt of the front lower control arm. Fronts should be about 3/4" lower than rear.
And of course measuring to the fender is for looks only. If you care about better balance, put it on level surface and measure the to rear lower control arm bolt (body side) and the front bolt of the front lower control arm. Fronts should be about 3/4" lower than rear.
I found some 1/4" aluminium spacers on ebay pretty cheap. They are some kind of circle/dirt/nascar surplus and they have different sizes so gotta find the right one. I think it is about 4 7/8" ID, 5 1/2" OD
And of course measuring to the fender is for looks only. If you care about better balance, put it on level surface and measure the to rear lower control arm bolt (body side) and the front bolt of the front lower control arm. Fronts should be about 3/4" lower than rear.
And of course measuring to the fender is for looks only. If you care about better balance, put it on level surface and measure the to rear lower control arm bolt (body side) and the front bolt of the front lower control arm. Fronts should be about 3/4" lower than rear.
Since they're super easy to remove why not try switching the left and right to see if you still have the problem?
I have seen this intermittently on these cars. Out of the 12 or so I have owned, about half have had it. Different years, models, options etc. seems to be no consistent pattern.
However, one thing I have found on cars that have had suspension work done, is sometimes taking the sway bar end links loose and letting the car settle, then reconnecting them with the car under load. I have seen them put preload into the chassis that causes a ride height variation and often ride quality issues as well
However, one thing I have found on cars that have had suspension work done, is sometimes taking the sway bar end links loose and letting the car settle, then reconnecting them with the car under load. I have seen them put preload into the chassis that causes a ride height variation and often ride quality issues as well
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Glenn ***
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Glenn ***
Sales Tech
www.bmrsuspension.com
813.986.9302
Find a Quality alignment shop near you!
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 723
Likes: 25
From: go get your shine box tommy
My 1998 Camaro Z28 with all stock suspension except for Koni Strt shocks is not even. I noticed looking at the rear of my car today it didn't sit right. I measured from the wheel opening to the ground and on the passenger side i got 27 1/2" and 26 1/2" on the driver side. Is there an easy fix for this unbalance?
The body is notorious for not being even on these. Most people just live with it and other people dont even notice.
I have seen this intermittently on these cars. Out of the 12 or so I have owned, about half have had it. Different years, models, options etc. seems to be no consistent pattern.
However, one thing I have found on cars that have had suspension work done, is sometimes taking the sway bar end links loose and letting the car settle, then reconnecting them with the car under load. I have seen them put preload into the chassis that causes a ride height variation and often ride quality issues as well
However, one thing I have found on cars that have had suspension work done, is sometimes taking the sway bar end links loose and letting the car settle, then reconnecting them with the car under load. I have seen them put preload into the chassis that causes a ride height variation and often ride quality issues as well
I'm not sure I follow, you said in the first post you measured the wheel opening. If you measure from the ground to the bolt center that holds the rear lca to the body, it should be 7-8" on a stock 4th gen.
The body is notorious for not being even on these. Most people just live with it and other people don't even notice.
The body is notorious for not being even on these. Most people just live with it and other people don't even notice.
My Corvette has adjusting bolts to take care of this issue.
My Trans Am had the same issue. It may have been leaning even more than yours because it was pretty obvious when looking at it from the back. Over time, I had replaced every rear suspension part and almost every front part and it never changed. I tried rotating the rear springs, hose mod, even tried a hose mod on just the driver side. Nothing changed it. I eventually concluded the frame was twisted, bought a roller, and swapped everything in. The new car has about 1/4 inch lean which evens out when I'm sitting in it.
I know this isn't what you wanted to here but good luck.
I know this isn't what you wanted to here but good luck.
TECH Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 5,798
Likes: 16
From: St.Charles MO
The frame is in balance the body is not. You are saying that this is a common issue with these cars. It seems a shim will fix it. Anybody have a part# or place that I can call/contact to get one? I would like my car to sit level
My Corvette has adjusting bolts to take care of this issue.
My Corvette has adjusting bolts to take care of this issue.
Take a look at how the springs are sitting on the axle, due to how the perch is on the axle the springs should have a very slight bow to them, here is an example from a third gen, compare how straight the spring is to the panhard bar mount:
Im betting something like this will alter ride height a little, especially if those mounts on the axle are bent a little, causing the spring to sit even funnier.
I don't see how the frame can be "in balance" but the body not, these are unibody cars, the body is the frame.
Take a look at how the springs are sitting on the axle, due to how the perch is on the axle the springs should have a very slight bow to them, here is an example from a third gen, compare how straight the spring is to the panhard bar mount:
Im betting something like this will alter ride height a little, especially if those mounts on the axle are bent a little, causing the spring to sit even funnier.
Take a look at how the springs are sitting on the axle, due to how the perch is on the axle the springs should have a very slight bow to them, here is an example from a third gen, compare how straight the spring is to the panhard bar mount:
Im betting something like this will alter ride height a little, especially if those mounts on the axle are bent a little, causing the spring to sit even funnier.
So since people say thia is common with these cars and nobody has come up with a Fix in 25 years I guess I will need to come up with something myself.