Height increase

[twodko]

I want to raise my cars ride height up an inch+. Is the right way to do this new leaf springs and cranking on the torsion bars?

[Cooter]

Yes, but with cranking the T-bars remember, your ride stiffness/firmness(Is that a word?) will increase.

[Mike DC]

Yes, but with cranking the T-bars remember, your ride stiffness/firmness(Is that a word?) will increase.

Umm, actually it won't.  The stiffness stays the same but the ride height goes up. 

If you measured how much pressure it took to compress the front end from ride height to full compression, it would be more than before.  But that's because it had more distance to compress the latter time, not because the spring rate itself was higher.  If you measured the amount of weight necessary to compress the spring just a single inch, it would be the same regardless of the height setting. 



I'm not positive on this, but I think the resistance of a steel spring actually stays the same even as it sags over time - as a set of rear leafs wear out, the ride height of the rearend just settles down lower and lower.  The spring rate per inch of compression stays the same.

[68X426]

new leaf springs ?

I think you can just add one new leaf at a time, not all of them new. Or have one or two re-arched.

Or go to a mono spring set up from Cal-Trac. That's what's on my Road Runner and it works great.

http://calvertracing.com/splitmonoleaf.php

[JB400]

new leaf springs ?

I think you can just add one new leaf at a time, not all of them new. Or have one or two re-arched.

Or go to a mono spring set up from Cal-Trac. That's what's on my Road Runner and it works great.

http://calvertracing.com/splitmonoleaf.php

Any idea how much axle wrap you have with these?   I know a pinion snubber would take out some of the wrap, but not all of it.

[Cooter]

Yes, but with cranking the T-bars remember, your ride stiffness/firmness(Is that a word?) will increase.

Umm, actually it won't.  The stiffness stays the same but the ride height goes up.  

With this thinking, one could possibly crank them all the way up and still have decent ride quality as with them a half mast. Granted, an 1" prolly won't be as bad as a 3" ride hieght increase, but stiffer none the less. Same thing with Engine Valve spring rates. On the seat is a LOT different than over the nose pressures.. Maybe on some piece of scientific paper, but not in the real world. Been there-done that.
MY experience was stiffer ride quality, depending on how much is lowered/raised.. You are beginning from a stiffer point on the bars deflection. Therefore, if you've ever lowered one of these cars, you would see that once the torsional force is decreased, your ride quality goes down. (IE: Cars suspension gets REALLY bouncy/weak).

[C928BRAN]

i put gabriel hi jacker air shocks on the rear, and turned the torsion bars up in the front, looks great and rides great. i like the gabriels, because they have a shock absorber on the top, not just the air boot.