Progress Thread 12th Owner: My '93 Notchback Restoration & Performance Build

Yes, handles the same left to right. No obvious body panel gaps and the car tracks straight. I even went so far as to triple check the MM panhard bar installation as it sits high on the right. I realize that that may not be related to a bent frame, but it's evidence of something.

Here's a quick salute to rowing through the gears at the 2,450 rpm point. Love, love, love hearing the exhaust pitch change.

So I brought my car to a local collision center today and they advised me that my car's frame is not twisted. They suggested that the side to side height imbalance may be from the suspension components. So I'll be taking the rear springs and shocks out this weekend and comparing them to each other. I've never heard of this, but suspect one loaded spring or loaded shock could be different in height than the other. This seems highly unlikely, but possible. Any thoughts?

I can measure it in the car. I'll also pull them and measure them unloaded, but all the suspension is brand new.

It looks more and more that the springs are to blame for the height imbalance issue. I have both installed with the pig tails at 6 o'clock, but now MM is advising me that the springs should be pointed to the left. Does anyone have any experience with this or even adjusting the height by turning/installing one spring differently then the other?

I'm still trying to chase down my suspension bug (why the right rear sits higher than the left rear). Here is Maximum Motorsports' advise to me:

I would jack the car up, loosen both locknuts at the end of the PHB rod. Remember, the one with notches machined on the OD is a left hand thread nut. Back both nuts off several turns. Put the car on level ground. Spin the PHB rod by hand CW then CCW, until you find the place where it turns the easiest. This is the point at which the rod’s length is correctly set to match the geometry of the rear suspension. Jack the car up and torque the locknuts. These will eliminate any possibility of the PHB jacking one side of the car up. It can do this, but only if there is a lot of preload on it.

For any of the control arms which have rubber bushings installed in them, you do need to make sure that the bolts were tightened when the suspension was at ride height. You can do this in the rear by putting jack stands under the rear axle. The FCA bolts need to be down with the car on a drive on lift. If you tighten these bolts with the suspension not at ride height, the rubber bushings will either raise or lower the ride height at that corner of the car as they are torsional springs.

For the rear springs, the end of the coils should point to the left. This is the same things as saying that the end of the coils should be located in the 6 o’clock position when viewed from the top.

To reduce the ride height, you could try clocking the rear springs to the 9 o’clock position. Do not try to cut the rear springs. If you do this, they will no longer fit properly. You can clock the springs differently from side to side.

When you pull the springs out to compare them, remove all isolators, put the springs with the ground end (top) down and set them side by side so that the open end (bottom) of the springs are nearest to each other. That will make it easy to very accurately compare their free lengths.

When you put the springs back in the car, I would swap them from side to side.

On one car, I have seen the box which is above the rear upper spring perch was collapsed. This caused the ride height on one side to be reduced. If this is happening on your car, it would be the LR upper spring perch.

Spent a lot of time this weekend pulling my rear springs, loosening and retightening the UCAs and LCAs with the car resting on the ground and adjusting the panhard bar to have it centered and also have the correct height symmetry all around. I ended with a nearly perfectly level car left to right, but the axle extending approximately 9/16" out to the right. I'll be taking a break for a bit with messing around with it and will be dropping my carved today at a local transmission shot to rebuild the T5 trans. If anyone has any tips for stronger gears/synchros/clutch forks, I'm all ears.

90sickfox said:

Thegearbox.com has good parts and prices for upgraded t5 parts. My go to has always been Hanlon Motorsports for performance t5 builds. Summit sells a stronger g force case for the t5 around 300 bucks.

My 4 banger t5 has out lived all of my other t5s. 1 true cobra z spec....numerous v8 t5s. The one I've had for the last 11yrs came out of a v8 79 pace car. Had the small I put shaft and definitely a 4 cylinder trans. Has lived behind a stock 5.0...a 306...a 347...and now my turbo 331. Im sure it'll die soon though.

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Great information. Thanks

Visited the tranny shop today. Turns out I have a "World Class" T-5. So I'm going to go ahead and rebuild it with new parts primarily the 3rd and 5th gear. I also purchased a steel bearing retainer through LMR. Thanks to all for the good tips.

deathb4dismount said:

Are you rebuilding it, or is the transmission shop doing it?

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A local tranny shop is rebuilding it. I don't have the time to do it myself and I don't want my garage to resemble a slaughterhouse.