Started Putting My Suspension Together
 

Finally got some of my suspension on today, well chuffed as it makes my roadster start to look like a car :) The only bit I found a bit confusing was putting the transit drag links into the top wishbones. The book seemed to suggest the locking nut would go on but once the drag link is fully screwed in it sits flush with the end of the thread and I don't have enough thread to put the nut on?? Here's some pictures of where I got to, I think I've done it right but if anyone spots anything let me know!

Hi Bb007, if you have a look on page 124 in the book there is a good picture and it shows the nut between wishbone and balljoint.
Regards
John

Do you mean the balljoint taper doesn't go far enough through the mushroom to get the nut on? I got my Balljoints from EDS and my mushrooms from 3GE and they didn't fit either. See this thread

http://www.haynes.co.uk/forums/showt...ght=balljoints

Edit. Crap. Just read your post again and see you're talking about the adjuster lock nut.

No sorry I'm not on about the ball joints (austin maxi ones), I'm on about the transit drag links and screwing them into the top front wishbone. I'm guessing I just have to screw the locking nut right down the bottom and the drag link itself doesn't screw completely into the wishbone?

Yes I was, Ithought that was the nut you were talking about or do you mean the nut that goes inside the mushroom?

Did you have a look at the picture on page 124, I think that picture confirms what you have just said.

No sorry, the book is out in the shed. It's not the nut inside the mushroom but one that should go onto the drag link's thread but at which end?

I would'nt get too fussy about the lock nut and the transit drag link too much at this point, you will only be able to set it up properly when you have the full weight of the car sat on it's wheels.

I made my mushrooms from a diagram on here and the one thing I noticed between the drawing on here and John's mushrooms there is a 10mm difference in the thickness of material ie John's have 30mm thickness of alu for the taper to go through the ones in the drawing on here has only 20mm to go through so I would say you need a longer threaded draglink or have the mushrooms turned down a little 5mm off the top and 5mm from the inside....just my tuppeneth

I'll try and get a picture of what I mean later today as I'm not explaining this well :S I got my mushrooms and bones from talon and my draglinks, balljoints, etc from saturn. The draglinks, mushrooms, and balljoints all fit together into my upright really nice and snug without having to apply any force really.

Thats the correct way to do it ;)

thread the halfnut locknut fully onto the drag link thread then fit the drag link into the top wishbone, once you have fully built your car , with all the weight onto the suspension you can then adjust everything to set it up correctly.

cheers
andy

In this photo you can just see the lock nuts between the draglink "knuckle" & the wishbone threaded boss.





hope it helps.

cheers
andy

Don't mean to sound picky but the engine in the picture does not appear to be central in the chassis.

Phoenix rising from the pixies ?

Not sure what you are implying there?

Cool cheers for the help guys, having a nightmare with this bit :| Managed to get the locknut all the down after alot of hard work with the drag link in the vice. Noticed though after putting it all together the angles looked all wrong and if you look in the picture I posted the drivers side bottom wishbones sits lower than the passenger side one. At first I thought it was something to do with the dampeners but then I realised I've not welded it in the right spot :'( So i'm going to have cut the brackets off and then make / buy new ones to get them in the right spot. I'm guessing the bottom wishbone should sit level with the ground when there's no weight in the car?

I can see what you mean, but the angle of the photo is also quite deceiving too, tho you might also notice that there is no floor fitted into my chassis at this point, it was purely a mock up so that I could check the shortened sump to ground clearance, but I assure you, everything is fitted all straight & true in my Roadster now, cheers for the "pointer " tho :)


cheers
andy

Well from the photograph the engine looks to be bolted in place that is why I mentioned it. Ideally the engine should be central.