Coil springs-axle problem-coils bent

S

stevieb

NAXJA Forum User
Location
South Africa
i seem to have a problem which i can't sort out. the wrong side of the wheel base is shorter-should be the other side. coils are rubbing the bump stop towers, coils look bent.
i had this problem before installing the RC 6.5 kit and now just seems to have magnified. here are 2 pix and would like some suggestions to what is or may be wrong. both LCA's are the same length as well as both upper uppers according to instruction manual at 16.5 lower and 15.5 upper but still is not right.
all the chart say 17" for lower but RC say 16.5". there is actually no place for the bump stop rubbers as they catch.
DSC000722.jpg

left side
DSC000732.jpg

right side
you can actually see on the lower pic how the bump stop rubber has chaffed away already. these pix were take with the wheels off standing on jack stands if that help anything so it is standing as if it standing on wheels.
if you look at the left side the shock looks to be parallel with the coil but DAMN on the right side it is not. could the bump stop tower be bent a little back or what? the right hand side wheel base is actually an inch shorter than the left side where it should be the other way around. one thing i can say is that there ain't any control arm shims either side. can i extend both sides but a little more on the right side. in other words
uneven lengths or what. damn i'm fed up:firedevil:flamemad::flame:

please help me else i gonna leave her parked for life
steve
 
further more will it be possible to put bump stop rubbers on the shock shafts instead of the OEM place. this would make it easier to adjust, add or remove as well???
 
If it were me, I would pull both springs and set them side by side to see if they are bent or if it is the vehicle bending them.
As for the bump stops being bent they look , from the pics, to be the same angle in relation to the shocks. They look like extended bumpstops maybe you could do a "stop" on top and on the bottom to reduce how far they drop down inside the spring. Just a thought.
Next I would measure from center rear axle to center front axle on both sides with the springs and tires on to see how far they are off. (seems you have done something like that already)
Next I would see if my frame/ unibody is bent or tweeked in any way.
I would then even everything up so the wheelbase is the same on both sides and get it alligned.
I also noticed the swaybar is disconnected. Is there any change in your measurements with it connected?
Also look at the bolt holes for your LCAs and see if any are oval instead of round.
Just throwing some things out there, Maybe you have done some or all so far.
Good Luck,
Stukboy
 
I wanna say that at 6.5" and your still with short arms, and no drop brackets even, your arms arent long enough to hold the axle in the right spot. Like its holding the axle too far back because of the harsh angle, and your spring is bending because its perches are like this...

....---

---
 
yeah, looks to me like the control arms aren't long enough, it's keeping the axle too far back which is causing the issue.
 
With the axle at full droop, and if the Trackbar is too short, it would pull the axle to the drivers side. What does it look like from the front? It then, in turn, could cause the coil to be in an awkward position like it is.



Just a thought......:wave1:
 
Those arms may be adjustable for 8.5", but if they are not adjusted correctly then that could be your problem.
 
If you just lengthen the arms, when you stuff the tire it will hit the front of the fender. That is why people run drop brackets or long arms. With control arm angles as steep as yours, it must ride pretty rough.
 
Backroads said:
I wanna say that at 6.5" and your still with short arms, and no drop brackets even, your arms arent long enough to hold the axle in the right spot. Like its holding the axle too far back because of the harsh angle, and your spring is bending because its perches are like this...

....---

---
Click to expand...

This.

jasonsxj said:
those l.c.a's are good for 8" of lift !!?
Click to expand...

And who said this? They're short arms, not long arms!

Just noticed its RHD too.
 
CanMan said:
Just noticed its RHD too.
Click to expand...
Me too know that you mention it.......
That blows my theroy to pot. (it was a long shot to begin with):D
 
thx for all the suggestions and help so far. the kit was just installed the past weekend so have not ridden it as yet. i am having the OEM track bar cut, drilled and tapped to except a heim seeing that adjustable RHD track bars are non existent in this part of the southern hemisphere. the bracket will be modified as well to except the heim.
this is the reason i think i have all the problem at the moment>
DSC00126.jpg

you can't see it in the pic but i came down on the right hand side before the left hand side. then i had a slight fender bender with an old lady on the right hand side.

the arms are RC adjustable CA's and no there are no drop brackets and they are not long LA's either. i know it ain't an ideal setup but the little orange piggy bank is now empty after importing the kit. anybody got plans for building a home brew set? Eric suggested lengthening the right hand side arms to equal the left and right hand side wheel base out.
I have the CA's at 16.5" at the bottom and 15.5" as suggested in the RC manual. i had a look at a couple of those CA length tables and they all suggest 17" for the lowers. What would you guys suggest?
Steve
 
Steve, if you have room for the wheels to clear anything towards to front of the vehicle when the wheels are stuffed, I'd say lenthen the arms to push the axle forward. Regarding the control arm lengths in the various tables - when I had short arms mounted in the OE locations with 6" lift I tried the suggested lenghts of 17" lower and 15.5" upper and I ended up with my pinion pointing downward and 9 degrees of caster. So, if you do lengthen then, lengthen the uppers a similar amount as the lowers, i.e. 17" lower, 16" upper.

Bear in mind, if the springs are like that with the weight of the vehicle on them, it would be even worse when the suspension droops in a flex situation.

Drop brackets seems to be on your Christmas wish list!!
 
Oh, and regarding the shock and the bumpstop post angles being different between left and right - if you lengthen the upper and lower control arms to move the axle forward, the angle of the shock compared to the bumpstop post will change as well, becasue the shock is mounted to the axle and will also move forward....seem obvious doens't it ;)
 
You can build your own, depending on your fab skills, but at 6.5" you really need CAD brackets to fix your geometry.
 
i think you climb in your xj ride the 1800 odd kilo's and come help me. the e-mail Eric sent me suggests the same thing. hey, gonna be busy in this cold again this weekend. when you sending me those hockey jobbies? gonna need a good couple to do the job.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

X
Drop Brackets to fix bent frame mounts?
2
Replies
31
Views
1K
Bent
Bent
Bilskirnir3124
Looking for recommendations on replacement rear leaf springs
Replies
18
Views
686
Bilskirnir3124
Bilskirnir3124
R
Is 2wd upper control arm mount(on axle)the same on both sides?
Replies
7
Views
3K
Rallyrs
R
NCCherokee
JK tube doors on XJ with pics
Replies
4
Views
295
NCCherokee
NCCherokee
A
99 XJ Power Locks Challenge
Replies
1
Views
315
SurplusFan98
S
Back
Top