suspension roll

[methos76]

yes I had my 66 tbird in the shop to fix my front right wheel it appeared that the suspension rolled forward, the garage put it back in place and I just picked up the car and on the way home[ 5 miles] it did it again. anyone know how I can get it to stay in place, or what the root cause is

[jtschug]

I'm not sure I understand what "rolled forward" means.

Does it mean the front tire moved forward relative to the body? If yes my guess is strut rod bushings, but I would assume a good suspension shop would see that and not allow you to leave until that was fixed.

[methos76]

the bottom of the spring is angled forward, wheel moved forward

[methos76]

thank you I will have to order new ones

[methos76]

it appears the 2 bolts that connect the strut rod to assembly are what keeps coming loose, is there a special reason for that. had it put back in place and tightened down but came loose on the way home from the garage

[jtschug]

Insufficient torque or worn fasteners.

Clean them, apply blue loctite and torque to spec

[RAVEN]

Before torqueing the strut rod bolts (big square headed bolts) to lower control arm, I would check the serations cut into the Rod, the lower arm and the interface plate washers. Possibly do to corrosion the serations have rusted away and the surfaces are now smooth, preventing complete locking ability.
I have the same issue, and I found replacement lower arms, and am having a machine shop remake me the interface serated plates currently.
In my case, in taking my front end apart for restoration, I found one side had the strut rod and the lower arm "WELDED" together, to maintain castor.
Check it out.
Just for giggles, let us know your situation, and cure, and provide feed back, it helps us know what you found. and your action to repair.

W

[methos76]

thank you I actually thought about having it welded in place. will definitely check it out

[RAVEN]

I would never weld the front end parts together! The weld process can weaken the metal, plus prevents future adjustments. That is one of the reasons I obtained newer parts. The strut Rod's are forged to my understanding and welding will take out the "temper" causing a possible failure. IF I REMEMBER MY METALURGY FROM SCHOOL, correct me if I am wrong, from the group.

[methos76]

ok I had the garage put my wheel back in place and tightened down on the way home it moved again, I called the garage to ask them about it and they said the bolts were loose when they repositioned it. so my question is why are the bolts coming loose and how can I stop it as far as I know there is no frame damage

[Alan H. Tast]

Next time you have it on a lift, get pictures (control arms and struts, bushings, linkage, bolted connections etc.), and then upload here so we can see what the ****'s going on. Especially try to get pics of the strut rod that bolts from the underbody structure to the lower control arm - I'm curious if the serrations are worn out, which would warrant replacing the lower control arm and strut rod. If the 'teeth' on the arm and rod are worn down enough, that could help explain your "roll".

[David Langhorne]

I think it's about time to inject some commonsense into this discussion. I think the primary function of the serrations is a guide for setting the castor angle. As I mentioned before the arm bolts are torqued to a hefty 120 -165 ft/lbs. I haven't noticed my front discs coming loose (75-100) or my wheels dropping off (75-110). Indeed my flywheel to crankshaft nuts are also holding on at 75-85 ft/lbs! All without serrations!
In the words of Scotty Kilmer you are going to find this car an endless money pit unless you either do it yourself or find a mechanic who can although come to think of it mine is an endless money pit even though I do it myself.

[RAVEN]

In my case, the serations were small to none. I purchased lower arms as mine were questionable. Having a machine shop make serrated plates and verifying my struts are good. Once bolted up I will not have issues of concern. Is it called over kill! or preventative.

[methos76]

In my case, the serations were small to none. I purchased lower arms as mine were questionable. Having a machine shop make serrated plates and verifying my struts are good. Once bolted up I will not have issues of concern. Is it called over kill! or preventative.

so where are you putting the serrated plates, if you purchased other lower arms and your rods are good. just trying to figure out how they are going to mount and do what they are supposed to do. I mean you cant weld them to the lower arm or the strut rod. just asking

[methos76]

im going to order new strut bushings, they looked like crap and go from there, ill have to unbolt it from the arm anyway ill get a good look at whats there or not after I find a place to work on it