Looking at a front suspension rebuild

[kmack]

I noticed a problem with the front end of the Ex the other day. My driver's front tire is wearing on the inside edge and appears to have negative camber. I already know my shocks need to be replaced as I'm seeing the beginning signs of cupping on the tires. I put an angle measurement tool on the front wheels and came up with the following:
Pass side = 0* +/- 0.5*
Driver side = -3* +/- 0.5* (visually obvious, too)

So it looks like my drivers side is sitting about -3* camber which would cause the inside wear I'm seeing.

I also measured the fender lip height as it sat in the street, and my driver side is sagging a bit more than the pass side. I don't recall the actual amount (written down at home), but we're talking over 3/8" or more.

Couple things I know that could cause this:
- The Ex sits a LOT w/o being driven. Always has it's entire life.
- When it is driven, it's usually by just one person.
- I have an extra 250-300 lbs hanging off the front in a Ranch Hand full-replacement bumper (cause of spring sag beyond just old age)

I'm going to start pricing new springs, new shocks, new bushings, etc, but wasn't sure if there are HD springs available to counter the extra weight. I know OEM springs will be better than what I currently have and will last for quite a few years. And that may be fine depending on costs. Just curious on the options.

 

[FR-425]

Option #1 rebuild front end. bushings ball joints, etc. Jeez, it's 25 years old!

 

[kmack]

^^ That's the plan for after the first of the year. It needs it.
I was just looking at what options are available for front springs, basically.

 

[massacre]

I rebuilt the entire front end of my truck a few months ago. Big job but totally worth it.

 

[kmack]

So here are the measurements I made (accuracy could be considered highly questionable...):
(all height measurements are vertical thru the center of the axle, from bottom of fender lip to ground, and +/- 1/16")

Driver Front: Hgt 31-11/16"
Pass Front: Hgt 32"
Driver Rear: Hgt 31-7/8"
Pass Rear: Hgt 32-1/4"

Driver camber: -3* (+/- 0.5*)
Pass camber: 0* (+/- 0.5*)

Yeah, she's saggin a bit!

 

[massacre]

Is the ground level?

 

[kmack]

yes

 

[Centaurious]

Camber is not a tire wearing angle in and of itself.
Toe-in/out is very much a tire wearing angle
Caster/King-pin angle can cause wear in turns.

Check out a first gen VW Bug without CV joints in the back and the tires tip way in at the top... but don't wear out the tires on the inside.

You will probably find excess toe-in or caster as well as the camber on that side.

 

[410Fortune]

did you adjust your tire pressures before taking measurements?
I do TTB alignments in house with 4 jack stands and some string, tape measure. I also use an angle gauge to adjust camber. If you get accurate measurements before you jack up the truck then you can make the proper adjustments with the truck in the air
Your TTB likely needs some work, radius arm bushings, ball joints, etc etc

 

[kmack]

Ok, so I forgot that I started this thread awhile back...really far back!
I'll post my updates since this work has been done.

I don't drive mu Ex very much which is why this work wasn't completed until June 2020. Here is what I took out...

Both front shocks were OEM parts but not sure if they had been replaced before (my wife's uncle, orig owner of the Ex, may have replaced them and would have done so at a dealer). Either way, they were well beyond gone! I replaced the rear shocks also, but those had previously been replaced by me when my FIL owned this truck. Sway bar bushings and radius arm bushings were done. And the springs...well, you see they were original.

In process...

While I was in there, I thought about raising the front a little to help overcome the front bumper weight and level the Ex out. Even though the new springs were going to "raise" things back to stock levels, I wanted a little less "nose-down" attitude on the stance. I looked into adding washers under the springs, but I didn't really like that idea. Then I remembered I had some 3/4"-thick brass rings that had been used as counter-balance weights for some research stuff. These are half-moon rings that bolted together with a (roughly) 1.5" dia. hole in the middle; outer dia. is 4". The size made for some great, solid spring perches.

Some new KYB shocks all-around and everything went back together nicely.

Initial measurements afterwards showed an almost 2" increase in the front over the original sagging numbers listed above. Since I've only put about 800 miles on since June, I have not gone back to measure after letting things settle a bit, but I will to get final numbers.

I took my time doing this and it was a little under 5 hours total. Not bad!

 

[BKennedy]

Nice job, I like the spacers. Keep an eye on the spring hold down nuts and the lower radius arm bolt as they have a tendency to loosen once removed and reused. Some blue thread locker usually takes care of that. I would have replaced the ball joints and repacked the wheel bearings while it was apart. Did you get it aligned?

 

[kmack]

I held off on tie-rod end replacement for the time-being. They were a bit crusty but still holding grease well and no noticeable play.
Wheel bearings were replaced a couple years ago already. I'll look at them again soon as I have plans for converting the hubs to manual.
Good idea on checking the spring hold-down nuts. Hadn't thought about re-use being a potential issue. I'll keep an eye on those.

I have not done an alignment yet. Steering currently is still centered and it does not wander on the road while driving. But I have been measuring tread depth just in case. I measured 9/32" of tread depth after the rebuild. Still holding that now. I already have a pair of adjustable bushings for the alignment, if needed.

The alignment is next on the list, but our other vehicles have been taking most of our vehicle repair funds right now.

 

[massacre]

Great job man!

 

[410Fortune]

that is one interesting place to jack up the front end from!!!
Never seen that before.

Might consider cleaning up the brake caliper slide pins and their mounting surfaces, introduce some new lubricant (high heat brake parts lube)
If your pins are cracked and marred up you can get new ones fairly cheap.


Well done, take care of your TTB and it will take care of you!!!

 

[kmack]

All new brakes front & rear including new hardware all around was done 2 months ago.