Ian,

I hate to say this, but unless you are ready for a serious project, I would leave the covers alone. My car had about 90k miles on it when I decided to play around with the rear brakes, which lead to a FULL rear suspension rebuild. I am willing to bet that your spring plate bushings are well worn and that your trailing arm bushings could use replacing as well. Although it is somewhat time consuming to replace all the bushings, the handling improvements are well worth the effort.

There is a ton of information in the archives on changing out the bushings. Do a search and then ask for additional advice. If you decide to get new spring plate bushings, go ahead and buy some used SC or Carrera (pre '87) adjustable spring plates. They run about $100 used and make it super easy to adjust the ride height.

Neilk:

Thanks for the advise. If that what I find I guess that is what I have to deal with. November is right around the bend so this can be my next winter project.

Thanks.

Ian