Suspension work done

[gbullman]

The rest of the spring and shock project took a lot longer than expected but it is finally done. I have a wheel alignment scheduled for early next week but putting everything back the way I found it seems to be pretty close.

I got both sides of the rear done in 1 long day and that included replacing the rear brake shoes. The fronts were much harder, especially the first one I did (right) because I tried to follow the manual and get the camber adjustment bolt out with the spring still in place. After hours of trying to remove that bolt I finally just let the jack all the way down with the camber bolt in place and there is very little compression (1/2 “ or less) of the spring so I got it out. I was working in the driveway on aged blacktop and putting that side back together went pretty smoothly, I was able to move the jack around as I was compressing the spring and got everything to line up and go together.

So remaining side should be easy, right? I did get it apart in a fraction of the time I spent on the right side. But putting it back together on a nice smooth concrete floor proved to be a challenge. I was working alone and could not hold the jack where I needed it and reach the bolt at the same time, luckily a good friend stopped by to control the jack while I did the assembly. One more minor annoyance with the last shock, somehow there were coarse thread nuts in the package but the shock upper mount is fine thread, I had some fine thread nuts around and finished up.

Car rides a little better (it wasn’t that bad before), no ill effects from the wider tires and slightly less backspace and the car looks great. Alignment is next, then the rest of the wheel trim and I’m really done.

[bbodie52]

Looks like it is shaping up nicely...


In the Beginning...


I appreciate your suspension work tips. I have a 1966 Corsa convertible and a1966 Monza 4-door Sedan that both need front and rear suspension work. Your documentation and guidelines will certainly make things easier!

[gbullman]

Brad,

Glad my commentary will be helpful. I went into this thinking it should take me 2 days, possibly even one. Rears went better than expected, fronts much harder than expected.

It has been a long time since I’ve done this sort of work, at least I know I can still do it.

If I own this car as long as I plan to (hopefully my last Classic for the next couple of decades) I expect I’ll have to pull the powerpack one day for either clutch or engine work. Hopefully I’ll still be able to do that when the time comes.

[bbodie52]

I think I can, I think I can...



In a couple of decades, I'll be 90! I guess I should not procrastinate...

IF THE CORVAIR LIVES ON, SO WILL I! (Maybe)

[66vairguy]

Glad you got it done. Quite a project, but worth it.

I will warn you that I had a horrible experience with my local alignment shop that supposedly specialized in old cars and understood Corvairs. Years ago I posted the bad experience on the CCF and I was surprised by the number of folks that also had bad experiences with alignment shops. A few were experienced Corvair repair folks. It took me a couple years to learn how to do a "home" alignment from others, but I managed and the car steered so much better.

I'm not suggesting you do your own as it's a LOT of work with home tools and you'll have to buy a few tools. However you can keep an eye on your alignment guy and I'll find my specs that worked well (if you run wider tires the factory specs don't work the best).

One major issue is the front caster adjustment. The caster rod has the nuts on either side of the rubber bushing in the suspension sub-frame. The nuts tend to rust up, especially back East. If the alignment shop has an issue with them, then that's extra work and time. To avoid telling the owner "Oh we found an issue and it will cost more" they just will NOT adjust the caster. The early Mustangs also use this type of setup and Mustang folks have the same issue with alignment shops refusing to adjust them. Even out West it is an issue. I remove the rods, cutting the one nut if needed, and sand blast the threads to bare metal. I install new nuts (they are locking type so they go on with a binding motion) with lubricant. AFTER the adjustment is made I paint the threaded portion.

BTW - the old Covair rubber bushings aren't the best. The Chevy II used a more robust bushing (and easier to install) that Clark's sells as HD bushings. I've got an appointment. Later I'll post the alignment specs and bushing part number.

[gbullman]

Glad you got it done. Quite a project, but worth it.

I will warn you that I had a horrible experience with my local alignment shop that supposedly specialized in old cars and understood Corvairs. Years ago I posted the bad experience on the CCF and I was surprised by the number of folks that also had bad experiences with alignment shops. A few were experienced Corvair repair folks. It took me a couple years to learn how to do a "home" alignment from others, but I managed and the car steered so much better.

…

66vairguy,

Thanks for the heads up!

I have moved all of the adjustment nuts and bolts except the caster nuts so I think I will do those as well before taking the car in. I am fortunate that my car appears to have lead a fairly charmed life, no body rust that I’ve found and all the suspension bolts were only lightly rusted so far.

I have a good relationship with the shop that will be doing the work so I expect they will be honest with me. They did a really good alignment on my MGB a few years back and I’m hoping this is a repeat of that experience. I’ve created an info pack for them with pages from the shop manual and some other notes, including alignment specs that I want. I would appreciate seeing the specs you use to verify I’m asking for the right settings. I get the sense that alignment specs with radial tires is a topic not that different from which oil should I use but I’ve tried to read a bunch of postings and have settled on the following;

Front
Camber 0 to a little positive degrees (figure when there are occupants in the car suspension will compress and go a little negative)
Caster 2 to 3 degrees positive (have seen suggestions as high as 4 but I don’t want a twitchy car)
Toe in .15 degrees each wheel for a total of .3 degrees

Rear
Camber same as above
Toe in same as above

I wish I knew what I had before all this work because it wasn’t bad at all.

I’ve seen some recommendations of 0 to -.5 camber but doesn’t make sense to me to have wheels tilted in at top a little before there is weight in the car.

I’ve driven the car about 5 miles after the work and new wheels and tires and very happy so far. I had concerns about heavy steering that even without an alignment is not an issue. I have a feeling the car is really going to stick on dry pavement, a lot more rubber on the road and it stuck pretty good before.

[66vairguy]

An honest alignment shop will quote a price with the caveat ----- "Old suspension issues can result in parts replacement and difficulty making adjustments. So the price is usually more by the time we are done". If you get a "No problem is will cost $xx.xx" BEWARE.

The 1966 shop manual supplement has an error for CASTER @ +3 +/- 0.5 degrees. All the other years are +2 +/- 0.5 degrees.

Yes a wider tire and a radial make a difference, ESPECIALLY if a wider rim doesn't have the same scrub radias (backspace value increased for the wider rim)

I had reassemble the front and rear suspension with new parts and only drove it to the alignment shop. When I got it back the car wandered on the highway and asI turned the steering wheel into a corner the pressure increased dramatically -- like the car didn't want to turn!!! Miserable. The shop said "everthing was on spec." - no help.

I educated myself and discovered the more positive CASTER is the greater the "self centering" (wheel return) after you turn into a curve. It also makes the car "twitchy" at highway speeds.

I bought some tools and made my own alignment stand and leveled it. Crude but effective. The caster was positive 3 - 1/2 degrees!!!!!!!!!!!!! I also found they didn't TORQUE the rear lower arm camber bolts and one rear tire was leaning in at the top NOTICEABLY. The factory torque rating seems high, but it is necessary - ONLY torque when the car is sitting level or it will cause premature bushing failure.

I use 205/70x14 tires up front and 235/60x14 tires in the back. Due to the extra wide tire in back I set the camber at ZERO. After I set up my alignment the car is now easy to turn into a tight turn and it tracks straight on the highway without constant corrections. I prefer a more linear curve turn in pressure at the wheel (better road feel), but on return I have to move the wheel the last half turn to center (like the old Chrysler K cars that had little self wheel return to minimize torque steer).

Here is what I used. As you said --- it's like talking motor oil - no shortage of opinions!!! All I can say is the car drives nice and goes straight down the road and is fun on a curvy road.

Front Camber = +1.0 degree (Factor +1 +/- 0.5)
Front Caster = +1.5 degree (Factory +2 +/- 0.5)
Front Toe In = 1/8 inch (Factor 1/4 - 1/8 " for 65, 3/16 - 5/16" for 67-79)

Rear Camber = 0 degrees (Factory -1 to 0 for 65, +0.5 to +1.5 for 66 - 69)
Rear Toe in = 1/8" (note 1/16" for EACH side from car center line or car will go down road a bit sideways) (Factor 1/4 - 1/8 " for 65, 3/16 - 5/16" for 67-79)

[Beers]

That looks great! A fresh suspension and those color matched Rally’s really fill up the wheel well nice.

[66vairguy]

gbullman The MOOG heavy duty bushing that goes on the control rod for the caster adjustment apparently went OUT OF PRODUCTION during 2021 due to supply chain issues. Now only Rock Auto lists them.

It is used on the early Chevy II as an "improved" part and works on the Corvair. Part number is MOOG K6094. I installed them on a couple of my cars and the ride isn't changed, but when you stop fast you don't get the "bounce back" like you do with the stock bushings.

[JohnDB]

Looking good!

After I did my rear suspension work (torque arm bushings and strut rods) I had my alignment done by one of our club members. He's got an alignment rack in his garage and is very knowledgeable on the early and late Corvair alignment specs and procedures. My front castor nuts took some effort, but they did move and allow for a proper alignment. If you take a look in my Corsa topic in the forum you can find a picture of the specs we finished with. The car drives great and it is pretty much in line with what you have listed.