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Lowering Midgets

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jaybird

jaybird

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Anyone here lower their rubber bumper?

My son is thinking about it. Has a lowering kit on his Christmas Wish List. His wife told me to order 'car stuff' for him. The only thing I found in Moss is part #264-665 front suspension lowering kit lowers car approx 1/2", $23.95

This can't be all. And is it really worth the energy to lower it 1/2"???
 
NO! He still has those bumpers out there - even though they aren't as heavy as the bumpers on a B, they'll probably offset all the $$'s he spends lowering it!
 
If you're going to lower the front, I guess you need to lower the back as well, otherwise it'll look like a dragster!
I know from a friend who has a racing Frogeye that if you shorten the front springs by 1", it lowers the car by 2", and it then is VERY low - you wouldn't want to try and use it on the road!
The kit you refer to I suspect is just a spacer between the bottom spring pan and the wishbone.
I don't know how you lower the back end with half eliptics, but it must be possible as race cars must do it. Presumably it's new springs??
 
or lowering blocks are used. between the spring and the rear end. moss has them

mark
 
this is the can-o-worms question. Yes you can lower the car by putting shims under the spring pad in the front.(don't need a kit for that,just longer bolts and shims/washers) You can also buy competition front springs that will lower the car a bit. I like to use the competition springs in the front and cut one active coil off too. this stiffens the car a bit and lowers it about and inch and 1/2.
The rear is another story. Lowering blocks can be used to lower the car 1 and 1/2 inches on 1/2 eliptical springs( this works fine). Some will argue it induces spring wrap-up. This is not a concern with low HP. There is a way to de-arch the springs with a hammer,anvil and time and it works and is easy to do. It will work on 1/4 eliptical units too. I will explain it if some wants.
you can place a shim under the rear of the spring support to lower the 1/4 eliptical springs too.
That should confuse you enough for now.
 
JollyRoger, i would be interested in hearing how that is done. I would think an anvil and a ball peen hammer would be involved??

I have lowered the front of mine with shorter springs, and put two extra/per side in the rear (trying to fix the Legendary Lean) and it doesn't look like a dragster that badly. I don't have a good side view pic , and the car is in storage 15mi away.

mark
 
Moss sells 1" and 2" lowered springs. Despite the fact that they claim they won't fit into 1500's, they will. The bodies are a bit different structurally, but not in this area. I purchased the 1" lowered, and this works fine with panhard rod, 5" minilite repro's and Yokohama A032R tires. I feel that this is a good solution to lower the rear, and if you want a little more, then you can use lowering blocks. The springs aren't too expensive, but they're not as cheap as front springs either ($120 each, as I recall ...). I checked, but as of about this time last year, VB didn't sell them. Interestingly enough, before I took it for a ride the first time, the new lowered springs were actually higher than stock. I believe that spring sag may have made my actual lowering more like .25" in the rear.

One possible reason why you may not notice a front-only lowering is because of the relatively long wheelbase versus the height change. The wheelbase is probably 5 feet (I'm guessing) and the height change amounts to 1-1.5 inches. Assuming 60" inches wheelbase and 1.5" change, that's all of 1.5 degrees slope, versus an assumed level condition initially. Not too bad, eh?
 
Does anyone have any thoughts on raising?

I know you all must think I am crazy, but as I mentioned in an earlier post, my car lists a bit to port. I was wondering how insane it would be to place shims on the shackle mount to raise the left side of the car a bit.

Would this lead to the certain destruction of myself and my car?

morris
 
Mark, You can take the spring pack apart. Lay the main leaf(long one) inverted over the anvil or vise. Take a ballpean hammer and hit the spring where it touches the anvil. as you do this slide the spring back and forth while you strike it with the hammer. This will cause the spring to flatten out or uncurl. You can also add arch by turning the spring up(you know where both ends are up rather than down. Only hit the spring where it touches the hard surface. I use a vise and close the jaws. I use the area created by the closed jaws.
After doing this on the main spring to get the arch you think you need then do each smaller sping to match the arch of the first one. Warning,if you don't strike the spring just right it will rattle the handle a bit. Use gloves. It will take a bit to get the hang, but it work great and is cheap.
On your leaning concern. I would take a look at the front springs. If it is leaning to the left I will bet that you have too much right front spring. Springs have a diagonal affect. Stiffen the spring on the left front and it will transfer more weight to the right rear.(almost sounds like you have either a sagging front or a mix of late model and early model fronts. Not uncommon on these things.) this will cause the car to squat on the rear. Now is everyone confused..because I am.
 
That is the most detailed account of that procedure and spring geometry that I have read here. Thanks so much for that info. You might even consider putting a little something about it in the knowledge base forum as many of us are suffering from leaning cars...lol. I plan to swap the front springs when I rebuild the front suspension to see if that changes the list to port or at least counters it a bit.
JC
 
Thanx jollyroger, so basicily you hammer on the bottom of the spring to shrink the metal and de-arch it.


I have tried every trick in the book, to get the car level.. i tried shims under the front rear leaf mounts, i tried longer shackles, i switched leaf springs side to side i switched front springs side to side...get the idea?.. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif after i stiffened up the rears with 2 extra leafs, had plenty of them around, it was mostly level. kinda figured i had done all i could. i just corner real hard to the left and she sits ok ...

mark
 
To check the "lean" of the rear springs:
1) disconnect one link or mount for the rear anti-roll bar (sway bar) and panhard rod (track bar) if fitted.
2) make sure the rear tires have equal amounts of air in them, and that the height from the ground to the top of the wheel rim is the same, side-to-side.
3)measure the ground clearance at the front of each rocker panel. If they are not the same, note the average.
4) raise the front end and remove the front wheels.
5) set the front end on jackstands so that the car is level side to side, and so you get the same measurement you made in (3) above.
This eliminates the front end and front spring rate produced "wedge" as a cause of lean.
(4) Now measure vertically from the ground through the center of the wheel to the bottom edge of the fender on both sides. Measure with or without the driver depending on whether you want to level the car as it sits or as it drives.
This simple test should tell you if one of your rear springs has sagged.
By putting the rear of the car level on jack stands you can make a similar check of the front springs (dont forget to disconnect one end of the front sway bar first).
 
Wow, how come I didn't think of that answer.

LOL, so easy when someone else builds a check list.
 
200mph, (& I wish I knew your name so I could say this personally) that is a great tip...THANK YOU!
 
Also on the front suspension, I would recommend putting offset upper trunion bushings in to nuetralize the camber. Offset A Arm bushings are also available, but not necessary for street run vehicles.
 
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