C - 1 Front Suspension

[Larry W.]

I have what may be a silly question. I am going to rebuild my front suspension using the Van Steel Deluxe Kit. Would it be a good idea to drop the front crossmember out, install the suspension - less tie rods - and reinstall the crossmember with new suspension?
Any help will be greatly appreciated especially tips to make things go smoother.

[Tom P.]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

To specifically answer your question, yes, it would be easier to rebuild the front suspension with the cross member removed. BUT, if this is your first time, the additional effort to remove the front cross member (if the body and engine are still on) may or may not be worth the effort for you. I have been rebuilding these frontends for over 40yrs (49-54 pass car is the same) now, and many years ago, I devoted an engine stand to be used only with the early front cross member. I attach the cross member to the engine stand by using the four holes where the center steering arm bracket bolts to the cross member. This allows the cross member to be rotated as needed for painting and assembly.

[Larry W.]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

It is my first time but I plan to do it over the winter and by effort if you mean just additional time I am not worried if you mean it is technically more difficult that would be a concern. I climb under and have a look.
Thank you for the response.

[Susan G.]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

Hi Larry, I have a 58 that had its front suspension just done, I could not do it and took mine to a restoration shop. They dropped the whole front end. It took 2 weeks with alot of resources to throw at it. Good luck!!

[Larry W.]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

Susan,
Thanks for the info but as this project is a pitiful attempt to regain my youth I think I'll take a crack at it. One question though,whose parts did you use? I think I will go with Van Steel. Any comments?

[Christopher R.]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

1. I went through this thought process when I did mine. One thing I forgot is that when the suspension is out of the car, you lose some leverage. For instance, the lower outer pivot bushing takes 175 ft/lbs of torque to install. Can you imagine what it takes to get it out? Same with king pins. If you need to really crank on something or beat on it, you might want it attached to the car so it doesn't move around on you. Even if you do decide to remove the suspension, you may wish to take it apart while it's attached to the car. Removing the springs will be easier if the suspension's still attached. See the ST-12.

2. If you do take the suspension out, make sure you put the shims in there when you put it back in. If your car didn't have them, now's the time to put them in. There was a Technical Bulletin on this.

3. Big advantage to taking the suspension out is the ability to do the upper inner shaft and bushings. However, you may find you don't need to do them. And if you don't need them, you don't want to do them. There have been lots of reports of the replacement parts not fitting.

After much deliberation, I didn't remove my front suspension when I rebuilt it. I only need king pins and the lower outer pivot pin bushings. The wear patterns on this metal to metal suspension are such that usually only 1 or 2 of the points needs replacing. If the others are OK, it's best to leave them alone.

4. Don't forget the steering box.

5. Don't forget the front wheel bearings. Consider upgrading to tapered roller bearings.

6. I hope you've got radials.

7. I hope you can find somebody who'll take the time to align this properly.

[Susan G.]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

hi Larry in response to what parts I used. I got some from Ecklers and some from Corvette Central. The initial repair was for the replacement of the bushings upper inner and lower. When we got into it the king pins were shot too. My suggestion is that you check the parts when they come very carefully. We ran into lots of trouble with the shaft kits not fitting the bushings. If I remember it was a problem with left hand threads etc . Also came to the reality that this was a good time for a new set of tires. The front end alignment was the hardest part. I am no mechanic and it was hard to find a shop that even had someome who knew how to do it. Also if you find you need help and the mechanic starts talking about using a jig to machine anything while the car is assembled dont let them do it. You have to drop the whole front end. This happened to me and the engline compartment wall was cut and left a hole I still need to fix. In this same area there is a grease fitting and some previous owner cut the fiberglass to get at it. Is yours the same? While I am fixing other spots I should maybe do this to - but not sure if its original. Could you look at yours Larry and let me know, regards susan

[Larry W.]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

I am able to get to all bolts, nuts, grease fittings, etc. but I think my 58 was a race car and not a good template for anything but I am bringing everything up to standard and I have no idea about ec fiberglass - yet.

[Larry W.]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

The suspension on my car is suspect at best and I am going to get Van Steel's Kit - A-Arm Shaft kit, King Pins & Bushings, Grease seals & Fittings and Sway Bar Link Kit, Tie Rod Tubes, all 4 Tie Rod Ends, Coil Springs, Aluminum Shims, 3rd Member Bearing and Upper Shaft so I hope fit will not be a problem. I have tapered rollers and radials and will check with some vette clubs and vette specialists in the area about alignment.
Any more good tips? Sorry to be so greedy.
Thanks for the info.

[paul bowers]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

Larry,

I also agree this is time to replace old besrings with newer style they are a little pricely but no big deal in the long run
paul

[William C.]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

Keep in mind that the replacement upper inner a-arm shafts are oversize by design to insure a tight fit into the tower. there are several different diameters of oversize available, so you might want to ask various suppliers to measure the therad diameter of what they are selling. Remember these parts are common to '54 and earlier Chevrolet passenger cars so there are a lot of kits out there from Chevrolet passenger car parts vendors. Some of these might be a better fit. It is almost worth taking the front end apart before ordering parts to get a better handle on what you need, particularly on the upper inner shaft.

[Christopher R.]

Re: C - 1 Front Suspension

What's wrong with the springs? Is the car sitting too low in the front? You can measure for that. If not, you probably don't need springs. Some of the repro stuff for sale is wrong and doesn't fit. Resist the temptation to replace everything. Many times the repro parts aren't that good, and will create more problems than they solve.

What's wrong with the tie rod tubes? Are they bent? Tie rod ends are $20 apiece. What's wrong with them? They're easy to check while they're on the car.

3rd member bearing? Has it got play?

The ST-12 has measurements and checks for all these items.

There are 4 A-arm shafts and bushings per side. There's a good chance at least one of them needs replacing. But there's also a good chance that not all 8 need replacing. If it were me, I'd jack up the car, wiggle the wheel around, and find out which ones need replacing.

You almost certainly need king pins and sway bar bushings. Shocks and their bushings too. Grease fittings are cheap enough. You won't be able to get the grease seals on unless you take the bushings off the end of the pin and out of the A-arm.

Search the archives for lots of posts on using threaded rod to hold the A-arms to hold the springs or to remove the springs. The ST-12 has you do it with a floor jack. That method is a little dangerous. The threaded rod method is much safer and easier.

When you go to have the car aligned, bring a 1/4" allen wrench and photocopies of the relevant pages of the ST-12 on alignment. Try to worm your way in the bay to watch them while they do it. They'll give yo uall sorts of attitude beforehand. "We're experts. We know how to do this." They're not and they don't.

When you take the bushings off, some of them may have "GM" stamped on them. If os, they're original and worth money. Don't throw them away. The replacement ones are not so stamped.

[Clare Carpenter]

Original bushings GM stamped

"When you take the bushings off, some of them may have "GM" stamped on them. If os, they're original and worth money. Don't throw them away. The replacement ones are not so stamped."

Yep, that's true. I took my spindle assemblies and third arm assembly to a well known local shop for king pin and bearing installation. I also brought along my lower inner shafts for bead blasting, which was to be followed by satin PC'ing. I had left the original GM bushings screwed onto the ends to protect the threads. When my order was ready for pick up, the shafts and bushings were missing. The shop said they didn't know I wanted them cleaned and PC'd along with the other parts. They said they always replace the lower inner shafts and bushings when redoing front ends and usually throw the originals away. This shop should've known better and they usually do very good work. In my case, the shafts and bushings were good enough to reuse.

Lots of good info in this thread. This is the first and only time I have rebuilt a front end. From my experience here's what I learned:

#1.) Don't buy anything until you have inspected what you have. If possible, do a complete diagnostic examination before disassembly following the guidelines in the service manual, ST-12. Once you have disassembled the front end, (be careful with the coil springs, etc. as others have stated) you can take a close look at all parts to determine exactly what you'll need.

#2.) Resist the temptation to buy the deluxe front end rebuild kits as offered by several of the vendors, which include shims, coil springs, upper outer shafts, etc. Your car may not need coil springs, and or, all of the other suspension pieces if the car has been maintained and kept well lubricated. My shims and coils were in nearly perfect condition.

#3.) Parts you WILL likely need include king pins, all bearings, seals, and shocks along with their assorted bushings and hardware. Most of the other stuff can be ordered piecemeal, if needed.

#.4) The replacement of the upper outer shafts is a complicated job best left for professionals. The replacement bushings, if needed, are sold as a set with the shafts, which may not be needed. Don't use them if not needed and be sure to check the replacement bushings for size and thread compatability with the original shafts.

#.5) The seals as packaged with the lower inner shaft and bushing kit may not be the right size. I got mine from Paragon and they are aware of this. Their supplier, which I am sure is the same one who supplies everyone else, is apparently packing the wrong sized bushings with their kits. Paragon recommends a separate seal kit be included with your purchase so you don't get caught short with the wrong seals. If you use the the wrong sized seals, you won't have a complete seal after correctly torquing the bushings. HAS ANYONE ELSE RUN INTO THIS PROBLEM WITH OTHER VENDORS?

#6.) New grease zerks can be purchased from your local GM parts counter.

#7.) If you are planning to reuse your fasteners and have them replated, be sure to treat for hydrogen embrittlement. Invest in a good torque wrench and make sure everything is torqued to spec.

Good luck. It's not that complicated but it's not what I'd call an easy job either.

[Larry W.]

Re: Original bushings GM stamped

Clare -
Thank you I think you gave me good advice and I appreciate it.
By the way,I do need all of the new parts. V poor maintainence.