Lower strut length.

[2059]

Are the lower strut rods different lengths for Power steering vs. manual steering cars?'64 Dodge 330. The reason I ask is because I had the car aligned friday by an old school shop that knows his stuff. He said the best he could do was get +1* at max cam placement. (which is the spec for power steering cars, as the car used to be PS).

I should be at 0* to -1* for the manual steering. If I shorten the lower strut rods I'll pull the lower control arm forward and get my +1* or more, if I understand it right.

Thanks, Mike

 

[Cranky]

Nope...same length...at least they are on the 66 and up cars. You might have other issues going on with the front end and if you're having trouble getting more camber and caster, you might can go with the special bushings that's available.

 

[nm9stheham]

To get more - caster, you need to move the lower control arm back or the upper forward. Or the reverse for more + caster: upper ball joint back or LCA forward (shorter strut rod). I am not sure which you are aiming for, + or -, from your original post...can you clairfy that please???

The common way to get this to + caster is to use the Moog offset upper bushing kit; it requires the upper control arms to be removed and these offset bushings installed.

But, first, you need to be sure this is not caused by worn upper and/or lower control arm bushings, or bent parts. If the bushings are old, I would not be surprised that you cannot get to the proper alignment.

 

[2059]

Nope...same length...at least they are on the 66 and up cars. You might have other issues going on with the front end and if you're having trouble getting more camber and caster, you might can go with the special bushings that's available.

Not sure if was ever right. Meaning after the initial rebuild everything seemed ok. But i never asked which spec they used. Power or manual. All new parts Bob Mosers shop did the rebuild on the front end. So I'm sure that's ok. This came up after the fresh engine was installed.

- - - Updated - - -

To get more - caster, you need to move the lower control arm back or the upper forward. Or the reverse for more + caster: upper ball joint back or LCA forward (shorter strut rod). I am not sure which you are aiming for, + or -, from your original post...can you clairfy that

But, first, you need to be sure this is not caused by worn upper and/or lower control arm bushings, or bent parts. If the bushings are old, I would not be surprised that you cannot get to the proper alignment.

All parts are new and stock spec. The k- member is self-positioning. Gonna keep looking. I'm told I have +1 and I should have -1 for manual.

 

[Cranky]

I never go for negative caster on any kind of steering on these old cars. Positive caster helps with high speed stability while 0 or -1 will help with low speed steering like parallel parking and makes the steering easier for manual steering cars especially at slow speeds. If you have a heavy car with manual steering with wide tires you might like the 0 or -1 settings. Only way to find out how you like it at higher speeds is to give it a try. Me....I'll take all the caster I can get....and also like a lot of negative camber too and usually deviate from book settings.

 

[2059]

That's what I always thought too Cranky. I don't like having zero option for heavier caster. Maybe one of the projects for this winter will be the offset bushings.

 

[nm9stheham]

I have the stock - caster in my manual steering '62 but it is an all original car. It makes the steering very light at all speeds, even on the interstate, but the lack of positive self-centering force that come from postive caster take some getting used to. With the front end and steering all new, it steers with no real vagueness; but, just the lack of the self-centering force and that tactile 'feedback' that you get from the steering wheel with newer cars makes it easy to over correct when you makes the usual small corrections going down the road. It is not unlike the old 'no feel' power steering.

I can see why this was done: to make it easier for ladies to drive these cars and to give the impression of easy steering even with a manual box.