Torsion bars

[rapidtrans]

I found installing stiffer shocks helped with the floaty front end a lot. A put Gabriel adj. shocks on my Cordoba years ago. Set the fronts on firmest and the rears on softest. Car rode and handled great. On our cars stiffer is a relative term. I don't think the stiffer bars will turn it into a ground pounder like my 16 R/T.

 

[commando1]

A fifty year old TB will have less than 80% of it's original spring rate left.

I believe you. I'm not arguing with you. Not disputing this.
But just where did this number come from?

 

[tallhair]

I found installing stiffer shocks helped with the floaty front end a lot. A put Gabriel adj. shocks on my Cordoba years ago. Set the fronts on firmest and the rears on softest. Car rode and handled great. On our cars stiffer is a relative term. I don't think the stiffer bars will turn it into a ground pounder like my 16 R/T.

Glad you brought up shocks. What are you doing with shocks or what have you done Dave?

Note: Not a C body but I put new Bilstein Shocks on my 99 Durango 4x4 and I absolutely love the ride now. The vehicle had stock shocks from 99. Much firmer and flatter through corners or curves. Of course the old shocks were old and new shocks were new but they are also very well liked by most reviews I've read and mopar website threads.

 

[twostick]

I would go with some good shocks like Bilstiens and a big front sway bar first and see how you like it.

This with a more performance oriented alignment spec should dramatically improve the handling without messing with the ride quality. If you think it's still lacking, you could swap the Tbars later.

I hope offset upper bushings were part of the rebuild as getting enough/any positive caster without them is mostly impossible.

Kevin

 

[tallhair]

He already has the bars out twosick. Time to do it is now and he won't regret a small upsize but concur on shocks and take a look at swaybars too.

 

[polara71]

I am going to install the Bilstein shocks on all 4 s . The rear springs were replaced two years ago, ESPOs 1" over stock height,7 leaf

 

[tallhair]

Glad you brought up springs. What are you doing with springs or what have you done Dave?

Note: Not a C body but I put new Bilstein Shocks on my 99 Durango 4x4 and I absolutely love the ride now. The vehicle had stock shocks from 99. Much firmer and flatter through corners or curves. Of course the old shocks were old and new shocks were new but they are also very well liked by most reviews I've read and mopar website threads.

where I said springs I meant shocks Doh LOL. edited for clarity of future readers.

 

[Big_John]

If you do anything to increase front spring rate or roll resistance, you are increasing understeer. Simple handling facts that you can look up anywhere, not just my opinion.

In a front heavy car, increasing understeer does make the car feel more "stable", but when you push the car hard, the front just isn't gonna go where you want it to. Since these cars are bad understeering monsters to begin with, making understeer worse is not what you want... You won't feel it when you're tooling down the road, but the first time that kid runs out and you turn the wheel and the car goes straight... Well... You get it.

You have to do a corresponding adjustment to the rear. Put a larger sway bar on the front and you need to put one on the rear. Increase the spring rate on the front... same with the rear.

 

[1978 NYB]

There isn't anything wrong with the original's and they do not wear out. I would put them back in. We still use torsion bar technology on tanks and artillery. Not much has changed in decades. The only thing to make sure you are going to get the exact factory ride is bust out the FSM and check the measurement from the bottom of the bumper to the ground and adjust the T-Bars to get the factory height. If that is the procedure for checking and adjusting ride height on Polara's....

I would spend the money on KYB Gas-A-Just shocks on all 4 corners instead of wasting it on T-Bars.

 

[tallhair]

i concur. The factory upgraded all, springs, shocks, sway-bars. All should correspond.

He has upgraded rear springs already, is upgrading to bilsteins, and I'm sure is looking at sway-bars if he does do the increase.

 

[polara71]

She has the factory front sway. I am planning on doing the rear but probably not before Carlisle.
I however can't get out from under a car once I'm there.

The Bilstein shocks are a bunch better than the KYB s

 

[polara71]

And, I'm looking for a better than factory ride for comfort and handling

 

[Slantsix]

And he has upgraded tires also, unless he uses almost 50year old stock bias ply tires.
I would go bigger t-bars. Most of people are scared of them, because they "think" those are harsh. But 99,9999% of people have never tested em.
Same talk is at Moparts cornering section with AEB bodies.

 

[commando1]

And, I'm looking for a better than factory ride for comfort and handling

Duplicate the suspension specs for the cop car and I believe that you will have the best balance between ride and handling.

 

[tallhair]

Duplicate the suspension specs for the cop car and I believe that you will have the best balance between ride and handling.

cop tires, cop suspensions, cop shocks. It's a model ...

 

[330dTA]

I believe you. I'm not arguing with you. Not disputing this.
But just where did this number come from?

The number is a rough estimate only. Calculating the spring fatigue is a complex engineering problem, and relies mainly on statistical analysis. That is, on empirical evidence. Google "calculating spring fatigue".

More reading here:
http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2741&context=etd
Or try this:
Spring durability and spring fatigue are of great interest for springs

 

[polara71]

There isn't anything wrong with the original's and they do not wear out. .

Its a spring, I used to think the same way but over the years have reconsidered

 

[70bigblockdodge]

TB's will also transmit more vibration to your steering wheel. Not much, but some. That was a major design problem with torsion bar suspensions from day one

So you are saying that a stiffer TB further from the wheel will transmit more vibration through the steering linkage than a stiffer coil spring also acting on the LCA does. That's interesting through the seat I would have bought with longitudinal bars but steering wheel.
You have to change the alignment specs if you are going to change bars and I already know that Dave is not a guy that rides around on 80 year old bias play tech.

 

[polara71]

This is the Lucky recipient of the new front end stuff. Since she has the most miles on her by over 45000 compared to the other two and is driven a lot more, she is first on the list.

 

[tallhair]

So you are saying that a stiffer TB further from the wheel will transmit more vibration through the steering linkage than a stiffer coil spring also acting on the LCA does.

I just thought that was more "road feel" than chevys and fords LOL