Front end height adjusters rattling around...? Are front struts worn?

[Danny_Ocean]

My car is pretty low. The adjustment is not quite as low as it could be, as there is some adjustment left in the bolt. I noticed the car was "knocking" from the front end everytime I hit a significant bump in the road. I raised the front end and everything seems tight, with the exception of the (now unloaded) torsion-bar adjusters. If I grab them by the cap, I can rattle 'em around (which sounds very similar to the aforementioned "knock"). Do I need to re-index the torsion bars or is this another issue?

Also, how does one tell if their front struts are worn? On my 911 (with the front end lifted in the air), I can move the wheel somewhat easily up/down. There seems to be little resistance from the strut. In comparison, on my 914, I can barely budge the wheel.

[Zeke]

The adjusters commonly are loose when the car is in the air. If they weren't, you'd have a hell of time getting them off. Well at least if you couldn't back them out to rattle loose condition. In some index positions, the things will be loose in the air (did I just say that? ) AFA your hitting on bumps, too low is too low. Get some raised spindles and restore your full travel.

I once suggested that if the a-arms were level and the bump stops were cut by one third, the car would be OK. Steve Wiener corrected me on that. The arms have to be slightly downward at the ball joints for optimum handling. That's as low as you should go w/o raised spindles.

[Danny_Ocean]

Unfortunately, I have to live with the lowered look. Raising the car (with the current wheel/tire combo) won't look right. Raised spindles are on the X-mas list.

I'm getting a metal on metal "knock" when hitting bumps. Worn struts bottoming out? Struts too tall for the lowered car?

[jester911]

You may be hitting the stops on the front struts. It is possible to take off the top spacer and gain a little room. Do a search as there was just a thread on this in the last week where Tyson explains how to do it.