How do I lift the rear of my 68 Charger?

[sixpack_sid]

I have a 68 Charger and the rear sits a little lower than the front of the car. When I go over bumps or make turns, the tire hits the wheel well. I want to raise the rear, but am not sure if buying new leaf springs will give me the height I'm looking for. Since the axle is over the leaf spring, I'm not able to add blocks or additional springs to raise it. There are shackles on it already and still not high enough.
Any ideas on how to raise the rear?
Thanks!
Sid

[Dino]

That's not right. It should sit pretty high with shackles. This is mine with stock springs. Can you snap some pics of what you have there? Maybe the leafs are just done for.

[XH29N0G]

I assume the front ride height is correct, and not so high that it is shifting weight to the back. 

[HPP]

Best way is to replace the spring packs with a + set. However, you could also just add  a leaf to your existing pack.  This would provide a slight lift plus increase rate to prevent the hitting you experience.

[Troy]

Before all that... what size tire do you have and what is the offset on your wheels? It could be the case that your suspension is fine (you just need to lower the front) but your tires are in the wrong spot so they hit. Did they ever NOT hit?

Troy

[sixpack_sid]

Thank you for the replies. Let me start by saying that the front was bottoming out when I would go over bumps. So I cranked the torsion bars to raise the front. The rear tires were hitting the rear wheel wells before I adjusted the torsion bars. I take the whole family when I go out, so the car is full. Is it possible that the leaf springs are just that weak and need to be replaced? The rear tires are 275x60x15. The depth is 6 & 3/4.
Thanks for the help!
Sid

[Mike DC]

     
Just a general comment on this topic:

When it comes to suspension changes, there is only one practical way to measure/compare ride heights: look at where the center point of the wheel is, in relation to the body.  

If you try to use anything else (like how high the bumper is off the ground, how angled the car is, etc) you will just get confusing info and run yourself in circles.  There is too much variation in things like tires and pavement.  

[c00nhunterjoe]

Looks like 235'60s on the front and that front end is 4x4 high. From what i can see, the rear does not look like its sagging.

[c00nhunterjoe]

Fwiw, my suspension is origonal to the car, never changed. Rt suspension package. Here is 275/60 or rear and 245/60 front with the t bars cranked up 3/4 adjustment. 2nd pic is bars lowered to half thread adjustment and 205/75 on front.

[303 Mopar]

My springs were sagging so I went with 440/Hemi springs +1" from www.espo.com.  Also installed Monroe Sensa-trac shocks with a coil over.  Nice ride and fits my 30x12 MTs no problem.

[HPP]

Thank you for the replies. Let me start by saying that the front was bottoming out when I would go over bumps. So I cranked the torsion bars to raise the front. The rear tires were hitting the rear wheel wells before I adjusted the torsion bars. I take the whole family when I go out, so the car is full. Is it possible that the leaf springs are just that weak and need to be replaced? The rear tires are 275x60x15. The depth is 6 & 3/4.
Thanks for the help!
Sid

Yes, your springs are simply that weak. They are, after all, 38 years old and have been subjected to who knows how much abuse. We also don't know if you have a inherently weak ,4 leaf base system, but I suspect you might. While piling the whole family into the car will push your suspension through a full range of motion and possibly even bottom things out, the bottoming should be an exception  for really big dips or high speed bumps and not be a constant. Your t-bars are weak as well. IMO, the best solution would be to talk to the guys at Firm Feel about a package of  t-bars, leafs, and shocks as you want extra rate to support the family and may also want extra ride height for when you're fully loaded.

[Troy]

Thank you for the replies. Let me start by saying that the front was bottoming out when I would go over bumps. So I cranked the torsion bars to raise the front. The rear tires were hitting the rear wheel wells before I adjusted the torsion bars. I take the whole family when I go out, so the car is full. Is it possible that the leaf springs are just that weak and need to be replaced? The rear tires are 275x60x15. The depth is 6 & 3/4.
Thanks for the help!
Sid

What exactly does "The depth is 6 & 3/4" mean? Where is that measured from?

For example: The typical setup on a Charger is a 275/60-15 on an 8" wide wheel with 4.5" of backspacing. Since the 8" is measured from inside the outer edge (where the tire will sit), the whole wheel width is about 9" and the 4.5" of backspacing will make that dead center. These will fit in a 2nd generation Charger rear wheel well without rubbing in most all cases. I bought wheels for my Barracuda (slightly less room in the wells than a Charger) and accidentally got 8" wheels with only 3.75" of backspacing. Even though it's only 3/4" difference that actually pushed the wheel out into the quarter panel. I could not even get the wheel with 275s mounted in there to see if it would fit! I put on 255s and it was tight but still rubbed on large bumps. I later moved those wheels to my 68 Charger and they had plenty of clearance. I'm not sure the 275s would have fit without rubbing though. The opposite is also true: a wheel that sits well over the axle will cause the tires to rub on the inside of the wheel house or even against the springs (as opposed to the outer wheel house by the quarter panel). As the tire moves up the space starts to get fairly tight in several directions with that wide of a tire so you need to be as centered as possible.

With a full load of passengers and old springs I can see wide tires hitting. But brand new tires in the wrong location will also hit with very little load. Check your measurements and look to see where the tires are hitting.

Troy