un-even ride height! HELP.

[@ndy]

Evening guys!

Thanks for all the replies.

Just to confirm; shocks, springs, top mounts, castle nuts and drop links are all new.

Tonight I've measured (rather roughly) the distance from the wheel centre to the top of the arch.

O/S/F = 302.5MM
N/S/F = 330MM
O/S/R = 340MM
N/S/R = 355MM

So not much difference at the rear but about 30mm at the front!

V6beast, as far as I know the wing is an original. If not it appears to be a well made copy as all the folds/creases line up with the body work.

The shocks/springs/top mounts have only been on the car about 3 weeks so i can't see them been bent.

Andy

[newsh]

Are you sure that the ground that you're on is completely flat?

[fourringsrus]

Are you sure that the ground that you're on is completely flat?

Good idea but if our man is measuring from wheel centre to wing edge then the ground level shouldn't play a part, should it.

RE; the 5 pot mention above, I wondered if the engine weight "slanting" in the o/s direction could have an impact aswell, but if we bought that car "new" we surely would never accept the dealer saying it was right and moreso I never saw a new car that was that tilted, so if all parts FRONT AND REAR are right and fitted right,..............................well, got me.

[newsh]

Good idea but if our man is measuring from wheel centre to wing edge then the ground level shouldn't play a part, should it.

Measure your car that way then drive one wheel up on the kerb, I think you'll find the measurement changes

[fourringsrus]

Just looking at the pictures again, is the vertical angle normal or the same on both sides ( caster? or camber, whichever that is ), possibly angle imperfection giving the illusion of twistedness.???

[Error404]

Are you sure that the ground that you're on is completely flat?

[fourringsrus]

Measure your car that way then drive one wheel up on the kerb, I think you'll find the measurement changes

A good point, well made

[chezz]

The best place to measure the vehicle would probably be a garages hydraulic lift - perfectly flat.

[re2500]

It looks to me by the measurements uve taken that thankfully chassis twist is not the culprit (if the ground is level) as your car seems to be up on the NS on both axles. I'd take your front suspension off and double check everything. Mainly the assembly of your struts and the dimensions on the struts. Hub bolts to lower spring perch dimension would be my first thing to check ( u could do this by just taking the wheel off!!)

[targus]

have you got both the same wishbones on the car?

If you have one cast and one pressed on the car it will give results like this, btdt tho it wasn't as noticable with 19's.

also are the ball joints both on the correct way to the wishbone, i.e. with a cast wishbone you can have the ball joint above and below the wishbone.

[@ndy]

v6beast, there are similar amounts of camber on both sides, the drivers side is definetly lower as I cant my fingers between the gap (ooo er misses) of the arch and the tyre. on the passenger side I can easily.

my drive way has a bit of a slope, but the measurements are the same in the works car park.

Took these pictures last night of the wishbone and the ball joint, is it me or is one of the ball joints lower?

N/S


O/S


These were taken from the front of the car, with the camera against the inside of the wheel.

[@ndy]

looking at it again, the ball joint looks different??

[Pat D]

N/S ball joint looks like it has more angle on it, but that could be the camera.

[macspring]

The ball joints look different to me, They are cheap to replace, and would ensure that they are not the problem if height issue is still present after the ball joint change.

Can't believe, "that's the way thery're made"

If that doesn't cure it, take both struts/springs back out, disassemble them, side by side, a bit of one and then the same item on the other and so on to ensure everything is identical.

When it is all apart measure everything, write down the measurements and photograph everything at each stage as a reference. One's memory is not good enough.

I've put stut combinations together that I was sure were right, but when stripped them, I could see my mistake / omission.

Post up the cure when you nail it.

[5cylinderman]

I don't see how different ball joints will affect your ride height, as the wishbone is below the stub axle. The problem here lies in the distance between the stub axle and the top mounts.