do I need new shock absorbers?

[1969dodgedartgt]

I noticed one side of my rear was lower then the other today. I did some measurements and found my shock absorbers are not even. (see pics)

I read in my manual that I should only replace an absorber only if its broken or badly leaking. I dont see any leaking but I'm not sure if its broken. the manual also says I dont have to replace both at once.

So the questions: (opinions matter)
1) should I pull it off and test if its broken or just replace?
2) if I replace one should I just replace them both, maybe the front ones too?
3) what absorbers would you recommend?

4) oh and most importantly, how dangerous to my health and the health of my car is it to drive around with things as they are?

Its a 69 dart with a tow hitch on the back. I may wish to tow some things in the future. street car (daily driver)

TY

 

[RedFish]

springs or torsion bar fatigue are more likely the problem. The shock absorbers dont support any weight.

 

[jaimus]

springs or torsion bar fatigue are more likely the problem. The shock absorbers dont support any weight.

I agree, Shock's control occilations (bumps),...But,...Those are air shocks, check for a broken/leaking air line or release valve (if so equipped) feeding one of the shocks,...

 

[slant6/4speed]

Which side is high? Shocks have nothing to do with ride hight, only smoothness.

 

[Dusterdude72]

as was mentioned before ....the shocks are most likely not to blame.

if its sitting crookid your going to want to look for (if air shocks) as was mentioned leaking lines or bad fitting, sprung torsion bar,weak leaf springs,broken leafs , broken shackel, air pressure in your tires of course,and so on and so on.

as for replacing shocks in pairs.....I always atleast replace 2 at a time (fronts or rears) ....if you have one with 30,000 miles on it and one brand new....you may notice that you get a slight leaning sensation when hitting certain bumps due to one shock being stiffer than the other.

also, if it has a hitch on it .....the shocks have probably seen as bit more use than just from daily driving and depending on how many miles are on them...it may not be a bad idea to change them just for the heck of it BUT I doubt it will fix the problem you speak of.

good way to test your shocks is to put your weight on the back bumper and push up and down and try to get the car bouncing....if it bounces a bunch then the shocks are probably worn but if its tough to bounce let alone push down in the first place than your shocks are still probably in good shape.

sorry for the long message lol

 

[Dusterdude72]

Which side is high? Shocks have nothing to do with ride hight, only smoothness.

if it has air shocks it does

 

[daredevil]

pull the shock bottom nuts off and pull the shocks off the studs. Then check ride heighth. If one sides low it may be that spring. BUT if front torsion bar adjustment is not level it can make rear high or low on one side. You can always run seperate shock lines and use the shocks to level it up but thats a band aid fix. One more thing. If someone has installed s/s springs the rear wont be level as the spring rate is different side to side.

 

[67Dart273]

If the air shocks are holding air, "that part" of the shock is OK, but do you have a single or twin air filler valve? You used to be able to get them both ways.

HERE's a story for ya:

When I was in the Navy, a kid had a 318 '7x Barracuda, which got nailed in the side. He took it to Tijuana to get it fixed. One day, I was lying on a creeper working on my car, and looked over at his, a "rear view." Looked to me like it wasn't sitting level.

I said something to him, and he says, "Yeah, I know, only quarter we could find was off a 'Cuda which has larger rear wheel cutouts."

So he has a small cutout on one side, and a large one on the other!!!

("Hey, ya only look at one side at a time!!")

 

[1969dodgedartgt]

drivers side is high.
I just tested and its not real bouncy but MAYBE the passangers side is a bit bouncier than the drivers side.

I have an appointment with a mechanic tomorrow morning, for a carb problem that I seem to have just fixed, I'll have him look at it. I Feel I owe him some money anyway for looking at my car today, including going for a ride with me and identifying some car noises, very helpful....

 

[1969dodgedartgt]

ok, now i gotta ask a stupider question:

I'm trying to check my ride height on each side, the service manual says to measure from the lowest point of the adjusting blade to the floor. They have a pic but things arent clear to me.

would someone kindly point out what the adjusting blade or the lowest point of the adjusting blade in these pictures are. Is it the thing I have the arrow pointing to?

 

[1969dodgedartgt]

well I'm taking that square metal piece sticking out of my lower control arm to be the "adjusting blade", with that the riding height looks up to specs and is even on both sides.

the drivers side front is about an inch higher than the passenger front as measured from bottom of body panel in front of tire....

leaf springs look ok, torsion bars look ok,

those are air shocks or "super shocks", we can tell this from the rubber thats shown in the pictures right? they also have an apparently long empty tube going between the two shocks connecting to the outer casing.

what should I look for in the leaf springs or torsion bars? I see nothing obvious.

you can see in the picture that the one shock is more compressed than the other. I'm thinking of taking shocks off to inspect further. car doesnt bounce obnoxiously so shocks seem to be working ok. But my front suspension is suspect because it rides pretty rough.

what can I look for? any more advice?

 

[1969dodgedartgt]

If the air shocks are holding air, "that part" of the shock is OK, but do you have a single or twin air filler valve? You used to be able to get them both ways.

[\QUOTE]

I'm not sure what this is let me research a minute...

err still dont know

 

[1969dodgedartgt]

if its sitting crookid your going to want to look for (if air shocks) as was mentioned leaking lines or bad fitting, sprung torsion bar,weak leaf springs,broken leafs , broken shackel, air pressure in your tires of course,and so on and so on.

sprung torsion bars , broken leafs, broken shackel these sound like they should be obvious...
anyway of identifying a weak leaf spring.

errr nm http://www.ehow.com/how_7346545_determine-leaf-springs-weak.html, sorry for my blabbering just trying to work my way through this.