Horrible Ride Height

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74Dusted

74Dusted

Stock Piler of 340's
Joined
Apr 11, 2011
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Lewistown, PA
This is on my '74 Duster (Daily Driver) with 340 Torsion Bars (.870? My memory is drawing a blank)

I've got my bars cranked all but to the max (maybe 1/4" of adjustment left), the front suspension feels about right, but the front end is too low. I have to be careful pulling in or out of a parking lot or my driveway (in fact my oil pan, k-frame and exhaust drags the ground pulling out of my driveway)

Running 185/75/14's up front (a little small, i know), on level concrete i've got 3" from the K-Frame to the Floor and about 1/4" to 1/2" from the Lower Bump Stops to the Control Arms. And the Tires are actually tucked up in past the Lip on the Fender (scrub a little bit during sharp turns).

The alignment is dead on, but the front end sits too low. I've had it up higher, but it always returns to this point no matter what i do to the front end. It was like this before i snapped the driver's side bar, replaced the LCA (bushing was shot, had a pair of NOS arms on hand so i swapped those on) and replaced the bar with one from my '73 340 Dart Sport

New Ball Joints, NOS Calipers, New Rotors, NOS Control Arms, Sway Bar (new bushings), New Tie Rods, ect. The only thing that isn't new in the front end is the torsion bars (about the 3rd set i've had in the car). Drives like a dream, but it sits way too low and will rattle your teeth when you drive over a manhole, train tracks or any bump in the road (suspension bottoms out). Am i just encountering a bunch of worn out (used) torsion bars?

I was looking at a set of Hotchkis 1.03" Bars come Tax Return time, but i don't want it to keep repeating this if there is something i'm missing. I'm not exactly gentle on the car, I enjoy the nasty little 340 on a daily basis, and i've learned to come to almost a complete stop when pulling in somewhere (much to the dismay of people behind me) But i'd rather the car handle better and sit a little higher in the front. I don't like mowing grass and grading stones/dirt with my k-frame and new chrome oil pan.

It's actually sitting a little higher in the front at the moment (the k-frame is high-centered on a raised patch of stone in the parking lot)

SANY0103.jpg
 
T bars installed wrong. search this site for correct install procedures :)

edit: it rattles your teeth because you have no suspension travel, it's resting on the bump stops, if they're even installed
 
The t-bars could be installed wrong, but I can also tell you that slightly too much toe-in will cause the front end to suck down. Put it in reverse and back up about ten feet and see if it changes. You also might be adjusting them incorrectly. The car needs to be on alignment plates or bounced up and down a few times to set the height as the tires will tend to stay in the same place.
 
Last time i adjusted the bars, i did the following (searched but didn't really see a guideline on the bars, i probably didn't search for the right phrases)

Lifted the car up off the ground (love the lift)
Loosen the Nut on the LCA Pivot at the K-Frame
Crank the Adjuster in (usually 1/4" to 1/2" at a time)
Set the Car back on the floor
Tighten up the Nut on the LCA Pivot
Take the Car for a test drive on the back roads (twisty-windy roads)
Back to the shop
Put it on the Alignment Machine
Set the Alignment


When i replaced the bar on the driver's side (made sure i had the Left Side/Driver's Side bar) it was a similar proceedure, with a few extra steps (obviously, lol) I also pulled out the Passenger Side bar and reinstalled it, not knowing how the previous owner had installed them.
 
What engine is in it. You could go to .890 or .920. I'd stay away from the 1" bars unless you're rally racing or running a BB and even then it's probably to much. Check the socket that the back end of the bars fits into and make sure that the welds that fix them into the cross member haven't broke loose.
 
340/727/8.75 combo.

The factory welds on the torsion bar sockets were poor at best, so while i had the bars out i Mig'd the crossmember sockets in better. They hadn't broken loose, but i didn't trust them. lol.
 
Can you installal new bars wrong? I have new MP 0,92" bars now in my Valiant. Passenger side adjusting bolt is ½" deeper that driversside, to get front end level... It´s nowhere near stock height and not much adjusting left on other side :/
 
No reason to loosen the pivot pin nut AFTER the ride height is set the first time. This usually causes an argument, but if you actually look at what the adjuster does you will see that this is true. What is the toe set to?
 
Toe In, 1/32"

Although i can bring it into the shop and check it again. Got a 3-Day weekend coming up, and the boss doesn't mind if i work on my stuff as long as it's not in there when we open up in the mornings :tongue5:
 
it looks good the way it is...... but if it dont workthat looking good dont matter i cant help ya on this wish i could
 
Ive learned that torsion bars are a peculiar thing by that I mean Ive had old ones that are seemingly indestructable and others while not broken and seem fine need constant adjustment to keep from sagging and doing what yours are doing . new ones are the same way in alot of cases if its the run of the mill parts store brands .
I bought a new set one time that i swear for about 6mo after they were on i was adjusting the ride height every weekend so it would stay where i wanted which meant i was always raising it up a little at a time after that it stayed at about the right height untill about the 1 1/2 year mark at which time i got home went inside n woke up the next morning and the rt front was on the ground it had snapped in half overnight just sitting there! that was a v8 torsion bar in a /6 car . ive used /6 bars in a 360 car that was raced on weekends and never had to touch em even pulling the tires off the track launching didnt hurt em any . sold the car 5 yrs ago n seen it last month the guy still has the same ones under it lol. what im getting at is its very possible you have gotten a bad batch of used ones as long as you are sure they were installed properly because if they are loose in the socket the end will turn inside it under load making them completely ineffective at holding up the front of your car so check both the ends of the bar and the socket for wear then if all is ok i would think about investing in a new set from a reputable company.
im basing it off my experiences with them though and at 34 i know others are more experienced so see what they have to say as well i dont want to steer you wrong and throw money into parts you dont need.
 
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