wrong shocks? 92 notchback

OldManRiver

Active Member

Feb 14, 2015

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Central Wisconsin

Jun 12, 2020

#21

• Jun 12, 2020

• #21

These new control arms you installed,any info like brand/part #?
How do they compare in length to the stockers or the ones they replaced?

 

Anti_Hero0932

Well-Known Member

Jan 29, 2012

435

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LaGrange, MO

Jun 15, 2020

#22

• Jun 15, 2020

• #22

sorry guys ive been a little bit busy. i will get some pictures. they are just cheap ebay ones. this car was a shell when i got it. there was no interior no rear end. no kmember. so i have no control arms to compare too.

 

Anti_Hero0932

Well-Known Member

Jan 29, 2012

435

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LaGrange, MO

Jun 25, 2020

#23

• Jun 25, 2020

• #23

Sorry guys I’ve been really busy at work. Here’s some pictures

 

Mustang5L5

That is…until I whipped out my Bissell

Mod Dude

Feb 18, 2001

43,167

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Massachusetts

Jun 25, 2020

#24

• Jun 25, 2020

• #24

Your missing the shock mount brackets. It would drop the shock mounting point down a couple inches but not sure that would affect ride height.

 

Anti_Hero0932

Well-Known Member

Jan 29, 2012

435

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LaGrange, MO

Jun 25, 2020

#25

• Jun 25, 2020

• #25

It’s got the shocks off of it and the weight on the rear end... that’s what it looks like..... I just wanted to take shocks out of the equation

 

KRUISR

10 Year Member

Apr 16, 2015

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Jun 25, 2020

#26

• Jun 25, 2020

• #26

Anti_Hero0932 said:

I just wanted to take shocks out of the equation

Click to expand...

Good call on disconnecting the shocks. The next thing I can think of is suspension bind. Can you pull the springs and see if the rear suspension fully cycles? Essentially through ride height and lower. If it does not, you may have a bind in the uppers. I have same control arms on my 90, no issues. When I installed new poly bushings in the upper ears of the rear, I had to move them inboard 1/4-3/8". You may need to do that as well.

Try the cycling the suspension first. If a bind, disconnect an upper arm and see if in its neutral state it lines up with the ear. If not, both may need adjustment.

 

Anti_Hero0932

Well-Known Member

Jan 29, 2012

435

184

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LaGrange, MO

Jun 26, 2020

#27

• Jun 26, 2020

• #27

I will try this today. Thank you

 

Anti_Hero0932

Well-Known Member

Jan 29, 2012

435

184

63

LaGrange, MO

Jun 26, 2020

#28

• Jun 26, 2020

• #28

 

Anti_Hero0932

Well-Known Member

Jan 29, 2012

435

184

63

LaGrange, MO

Jun 26, 2020

#29

• Jun 26, 2020

• #29

It goes up with no springs in it

 

Anti_Hero0932

Well-Known Member

Jan 29, 2012

435

184

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LaGrange, MO

Jun 26, 2020

#30

• Jun 26, 2020

• #30

 

Mustang5L5

That is…until I whipped out my Bissell

Mod Dude

Feb 18, 2001

43,167

17,862

224

Massachusetts

Jun 26, 2020

#31

• Jun 26, 2020

• #31

What springs are those? They sure are long. What’s the uncompressed height?

Edit: I’ve got 12” on a 03-04 mach 1 rear spring for comparison

 

Anti_Hero0932

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Jan 29, 2012

435

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LaGrange, MO

Jun 26, 2020

#32

• Jun 26, 2020

• #32

I had to run to work and stuff. I’ll get a measurement. I thought the same thing. The coils look super tight at the bottom. They came
Out of a 89 4chl t-5 car but who knows what someone did before I got it

 

7991LXnSHO

wanna catch the space herp

10 Year Member

Sep 1, 2010

7,387

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Kearney, NE

Jun 26, 2020

#33

• Jun 26, 2020

• #33

My guess after you have done the other steps is someone put freakin’ 1970’s like tall springs to clear the tires.

 

Anti_Hero0932

Well-Known Member

Jan 29, 2012

435

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LaGrange, MO

Jun 26, 2020

#34

• Jun 26, 2020

• #34

lol that could be. the car i took them out of was a mess.... had spray foam in the quarter panels. it had roof flashing in the door sills. it was pretty cherry.

 

Anti_Hero0932

Well-Known Member

Jan 29, 2012

435

184

63

LaGrange, MO

Jun 26, 2020

#35

• Jun 26, 2020

• #35

these are damn near 14"

 

Mustang5L5

That is…until I whipped out my Bissell

Mod Dude

Feb 18, 2001

43,167

17,862

224

Massachusetts

Jun 26, 2020

#36

• Jun 26, 2020

• #36

I think those springs are the issue.

 

Reactions: General karthief

H

Happster

New Member

May 30, 2010

18

0

1

Dunstable, MA

Nov 7, 2020

#37

• Nov 7, 2020

• #37

Ever resolve this? Having the same issue with a 1997 GT Convertible. Put upper and lower torque box brackets on. Like an idiot, i torqued it hanging, but loosened it right away before ever dropping the car down. Torque boxes seemed to spring back, no obvious damage to anything. Rear end and springs are original to car, aftermarket control arms worked on my 98. I loosend all cotrol arms and took out the shocks to take them out of the equation and compressed those by hand no problem. No change. Took the springs out and it went up no problem with the control arms still loose, no mechanical binding. Can't for the life of me figure out why it won't settle with control arms loose. Even if I effed up the torque boxes, loose they should compress. Id suspect the springs if the car didn't roll in here on them. Going to try some softer and shorter eibach lowering springs I have lying around, but it's a head scratcher. Any other way to check for torque box damage? I can't see how the torque box brackets would change any thing. They're outside the lowers and don't interfere inside the uppers.

 

H

Happster

New Member

May 30, 2010

18

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1

Dunstable, MA

Nov 7, 2020

#38

• Nov 7, 2020

• #38

KRUISR said:

As said above, take the springs out and cycle the rear through full range of motion. When near normal (for a Foxbody) height the wheel should be better centered in wheel well.

Something to check, if you installed aftermarket rear control arms, could the uppers be in a bind? I know when I swapped my rear suspension bushings to polyurethane pieces (in stock arms at the time) I had to move the sleeves in the rear end ears toward the center of car 1/4-3/8 to allow the bushings to fit and seat right and not bind.

Click to expand...

Kruisr, how did you move those ears? My uppers were a beyatch to get aligned. That's probably where I'm binding up, even with the botls loose

 

General karthief

wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

Mod Dude

Aug 25, 2016

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polk county florida

Nov 7, 2020

#39

• Nov 7, 2020

• #39

You may need to look at the front to figure it out.
Did it sag on one side before you worked on the boxes?

 

KRUISR

10 Year Member

Apr 16, 2015

1,796

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Nov 7, 2020

#40

• Nov 7, 2020

• #40

Happster said:

Kruisr, how did you move those ears? My uppers were a beyatch to get aligned. That's probably where I'm binding up, even with the botls loose

Click to expand...

2x4 and big hammer. 2x4 laying flat along the flange of the sleeve and a mini sledge to beat on the 2x4. Obviously you want to move it slowly to not overshoot where you want to be as moving it back will be much harder. If your bushings are already installed and can't be removed, just put the 2x4 on the bushing face.

I would observe and be aware of how close both ears are to alignment as this is the centering of the rear end as well.

The way to test how much you need to move is have lower arms installed (car obviously supported high enough to work underneath) and rear end jacked up/supported at about ride height. Install uppers on the chassis side and see how close the alignment is with the rear end when you swing the arms down. They should just slide over the rear end ears. Don't forget, the metal sleeve (with flange on edge of sleeve pointed to outside of car) was the rub surface of upper arm in OEM configuration. Most poly bushing sets have a shouldered bushing to go into that sleeve. The thickness of the shoulder is how much I moved the sleeve inward.

Happster... pics always help with diagnosing the problem or suggesting a way to complete the install.

 

Last edited: Nov 7, 2020

Reactions: Happster