Front Suspension not settling

[joe newsom]

I just lowered my car off the jack stands to install the motor.

 

I have installed new polyurethane bushing throughout, new struts along with eibach lowering springs for a overall 1 inch lower. My front end does not want to relax and be a natural state. Is this due to not having the engine in? Is the front typically that stiff? Not sure of what the norm is..

 

 

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[Zed Head]

You have to roll it back and forth.  The wheels and tires move inward as the suspension drops.  They hit the ground inward to the position they should be in, and will move out as they roll.

[joe newsom]

Ok thank you


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[Captain Obvious]

And yes... The front end will be significantly higher than desired without the weight of the engine. Putting the engine in will drop the height quite a bit.

[AlbatrossCafe]

I kinda like that look... haha. Make it 1 tire size bigger and take it off road.

[joe newsom]

Got the engine in and it went down abit. Rolled back a forth several feet and is still sitting abit high. It doesn’t feel like much give on the front end. I thought I followed all torque numbers. Could there be anything else?


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[Zed Head]

I completely overlooked the fact that the engine was not in.  400 lbs would make a difference, of course.

CO has posted on this often - the bushing bolts need to be torqued when the suspension is loaded.  Leave them loose until then.  The factory bushing rubber is bonded to the metal sleeves and actually adds a small amount of elastic resistance to wheel or body movement, once the metal sleeves are locked in to place with final torque settings.  It's described in the Service Manual.

If that doesn't do it, it might be the springs.  What kind are they?  Progressive or straight rate?  People have had problems with the progressive springs for many years.

[joe newsom]

Ha yes I remember hearing that thank you again.


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[Patcon]

47 minutes ago, Zed Head said:

CO has posted on this often - the bushing bolts need to be torqued when the suspension is loaded.  Leave them loose until then.

Is this the case with Poly bushings? He said he went Poly in the first post...

[Zed Head]

I can't criticize writing if I can't do reading.  But, "throughout" doesn't really tell the whole story.  You're right though, if the front link bushings are polyurethane now, then that FSM passage doesn't matter.

Back to Eibach springs.  The're something weird about the Eibachs.  Many people have problems, either too high or too low, but there doesn't seem to be much consistency.  It's a dice roll as to what you'll get.  Could be counterfeits, could be low QC on a low volume product.  I'd never use Eibachs myself, too many people have problems.

I'd post some links but there are so many stories.  Some too high, some too low...general confusion.  You can read the stories but none will have a solid answer.

 

[Zed Head]

Here's a thread from this year that kind of shows how things are still confusing.  Some people like them, some people like them after they fix them, some people don't like them.  Old Eibach doesn't seem like new Eibach.  Nobody knows where they really come from.  It's madness.  

But the name sounds good - Eibach.  Like salsa.

 

[jfa.series1]

The initial post also mentions new struts - presumably that's new gas charged shocks.  New shocks such as Tokico HP's now become an active part of the suspension, unlike the OE hydraulic shocks which were passive.  A while back Carl Beck commented on this effect and noted he had measured as much as 60 lbs. of lift (if I recall correctly).