My ride is to stiff. Whats wrong?

[RickKlem]

When ever I ride over railroad tracks or any small dips or holes in the road , it rattles my teeth loose. If I drive over the flat reflectors in the center of the road if fills like someone is hittting the car with a hammer. So much that it jars the fuses loose in their holders (which doesn't take much to do) .

I dont think it's the shocks, could it be bushings and if so which ones. The car is a 77 and to my knowledge the bushings or shocks have not been replaced . I know our cars are setup for a stiff suspension, but this is more like a hard thump. I found a few things using the search function ,but no real answers to my problem. The shocks are green (Bilstens)

Help
Rick

[qcwang]

How old are your tires?

I got my car in August and had the same problem. Going over the reflectors was a really jolt. The tires were 6 or 7 years old and I replaced them. Now with new tires it rides much better and no more jolting. I'm sure new shocks would improve the ride more, but for now new tires did the trick in my case.

[RickKlem]

Well , in years they are old (9 to 10 years) ,but in miles there young ( maybe 1800-2000 miles). I replaced them along time ago but stopped driving the car daily. It was garaged and I did move it around (so flat spotting should not be a problem, I guess). Could the fact that they are ten years old be enough to make them ride "hard"?

Rick

[ubiquity0]

Age hardens tires, not miles. If they're 10 years old they warrant replacing.

[speeder]

I agree, and also worn shocks can make for a horrible ride, they no longer dampen the torsion bars (springs).

[makaio]

Originally posted by RickKlem
Could the fact that they are ten years old be enough to make them ride "hard"?

Yes! I imagine you are experiencing a combination of old tires, bushings, and shocks. Changing the tires should help some, and bushings and shocks would make it even better.

I read somewhere recently that the factory recommends changing any tire that is more than 6 years old, regardless of mileage.

[svandamme]

is the lowered?

a car that's lowered without modifying things properly can give a really bad result in this area...

don't know how and why , i'm not suspension tuning expert, but i do know there's more to a good lowering job then adjusting the ride height and putting big rims with low profile tyres on it..

anybody who starts modifying with the stock suspension of any decent sports car, better know what he's doing

[qcwang]

I bet the age of the tires is the problem. I bet the rubber is now very hard which is translating all the jolts to you. In my case the rubber on the side walls were cracking so I mainly replaced them even with a fairly good tread due to safety in mind. At first I thought the shocks were bad and was planning on replacing them after the tires. To my amazement, it drove great with the new tires that I have to say it was the tires that was the cause.

Ten years I think is really "old" for tires. Not for P-cars. :-)

[Zeke]

What tire pressures are you using? On what size tires?

I know how cold it is in AL this time of year. Are you letting the tires warm up a bit? If it's 35* outside in the morning and you are hitting the tracks a mile from your house, you can expect to have your teeth rattled.

New tires will help. But four cold stones are going to do that. (especially if you've got over 32 lbs. in them.)

[vesnyder]

New tires and new shocks and you won't recognize the ride. You will think you got a new car. Can be pricey, but well worth the investment!

[RickKlem]

No it has not been lowered. It is at the stock ride height.


I kinda figured it was the old tires. I'm working on adding SC flares to the car so that I can buy 16's or maybe 17's (if they will fit) plus a little wider tire and wheel setup. So I will deal with it until the body work is done. And then I will add a new set of wheels and tires and bushings. Which brings up the question again ( which bushings)?

Thanks
Rick

[RickKlem]

Milt,

Good point , the tracks are exactly a mile from the house ( How did you know that, ha ha). But it does seem to react this way all day long . The afternoons warm up to around 65 or so. I think the pressure is around 34 to 36psi, I'm not sure about the size ,I will check tonight.

[masraum]

Too much viagra??

Sorry, just couldn't resist.

[Zeke]

Originally posted by RickKlem
Milt,

Good point , the tracks are exactly a mile from the house ( How did you know that, ha ha). But it does seem to react this way all day long . The afternoons warm up to around 65 or so. I think the pressure is around 34 to 36psi, I'm not sure about the size ,I will check tonight.

I used to run 28/32 cold in my '77 Targa on Potenzas. 205/60s, IIRC.

[campbellcj]

Worn bushings can also lead to a funky, jarring ride and non-optimal handling. The rear spring plate bushings might be shot, if they are original.