corner weight-advice on technique?!

[dickster]

i am having a real ass of a time getting this done.

i spoke to a guy today (indie) who said save your money (£300) and try this:

find a quiet, straight, stretch of road, get up to 50mph, and then SLAM the brakes on. which ever side locks up (front) is the light side and will require adjustment.

turn that side up (lift the corner) 1/4 turn and repeat until both fronts lock at the same time.

it sounds ok in theory, but is this gonna do the trick?

i've already cranked up the left front (before this guy told me to see what would happen) and now the left back is higher than the right back. its not cured the problem of rolling (its better though), do i keep going.

what about the back? as i lift the left front (say) the left back will rise, do i need to adjust the back as well?

anyone tried this method??

i can't help thinking something else is wrong. could the left torsion bar just be v. weak?

[dickster]

*bump*


i know i've been a right pita and exhausted the questions on this subject but i gotta get my car right guys, its driving me nuts

if the right side locks first, which i would expect, that means there's not enough weight on the left. so does it matter whether i raise the left (increase weight) or lower the right front (decrease weight on that corner and so increase on left)??

.........................hello, hello, hello

oh well, time to crack open a beer...............

[911pcars]

I suppose your indie shop's suggestion could be a way of validating whether the chassis is balanced. However, consider the following:

All four corners are related. Changing height on one end/one corner affects the other end/another corner. If the rear balance is off, how are you going to a validate? As you may be aware, adjusting rear height is not like the front; much more work then you'd want using the method suggested.

How much tire rubber and brake pad material are you willing to sacrifice?

Corner balancing is adjusted and checked with the sway bars disconnected so they don't exert any influence on the corner weights. If the ride heights are not the same after corner balancing (entirely possible), reconnecting the bar will exert a preload on the wheels. This is not ideal for handling; each corner will have a different spring rate (i.e. corner balance will be off). Adjustable drop links on the sway bars allows each corner height to be slightly off without exerting any preload at rest. That means replacing the stock sway bars with adjustable versions or doing the best you can with the stock ones.

Other than the sway bar issue, your options are to pay someone to do it, get a group of owners together and purchase the needed equipment ($170 - $1200 USD) or do it yourself.

Hope this helps somewhat,
Sherwood Lee
http://members.rennlist.org/911pcars/cornerbalance.htm

[dean]

I think you are going to have to spend the money and get it done.

[dickster]

thanks guys. i'm getting really desparate with this. i'm getting conflicting advice from the specialists and don't wanna throw good money after bad.

theres one place that seems to now their stuff so maybe thats where my money should be going. i don't mind paying if its gonna cure the problem.

appreciated as always

[dean]

My SC use to pull to the right all the time. I replaced all the worn parts, it still pulled. I got an alignment, still pulled. I cornerbalanced it. The weight were off 100lbs. Now they are withinn 10lbs. The car goes straight now.
So if everything else is in order and the last thing that you can think of is cornerbalancing. Go for it

[dickster]

ok, i adjusted the left front upwards and the handling has improved but not perfect. the brakes are pulling up together as i laid down some nice lines, and left plenty of smoke behind me - gotta remember to check mirrors for cars behind!

i think i gonna stcik with this and overhaul the whole lot before i get the alignment etc. i know bushes are worn etc, so may as well go for it. i figure if parts are worn the alignment will only be stop gap anyways.

THANKS