Aaron_King
Aaron_King GRM+ Memberand UltimaDork
6/17/24 11:01 p.m.

We put axles in Tyler's 86 900, the ones in it were so bad you could move the shaft from side to side.  Since we put them in the front wheels have pronounced positive camber and now the nose of the car is way up.  Anyone know if there were different length axles for these cars, like newer ones are longer?

The nose up attitude it has now very well could be worn out rear springs, but the camber thing has me wondering.

Streetwiseguy
Streetwiseguy MegaDork
6/17/24 11:11 p.m.

You've screwed up the wheel alignment somehow.  Either a camber adjuster has been moved, or the toe is way off and it's jacking the car because of tire scrub.

Aaron_King
Aaron_King GRM+ Memberand UltimaDork
6/18/24 1:03 a.m.

In reply to Streetwiseguy :

Thanks.

procainestart
procainestart SuperDork
6/18/24 5:30 p.m.

In reply to Aaron_King :

On all years, the right axle is a bit longer than the left.

In '87, both axles were lengthened 6 mm. Bentley manual explicitly states that new/old are not interchangeable.

Were the lower control arms removed, or the tie rod ends unscrewed, vs. popping them out by whacking the side of the spindle with a BFH?

Rear springs almost always sag (except the very stiff ones on SPGs), in my experience.

Aaron_King
Aaron_King GRM+ Memberand UltimaDork
6/18/24 6:36 p.m.

In reply to procainestart :

The tie rod ends were replaced, but my son counted the turns so I wouldn't think they are that far off but maybe.  We may have gotten the axles switched when we put them in, or I got the later ones, which kind of makes since to me.  If they are too long I would think the camber would be off so I need to try and find the length of the correct ones and compare that against what I ended up with.

I think I will have Tyler swap the axles side to side and see what happens.  The car has been driven some and the tripods are not popping out so my guess is they are the correct size bearings but something is deffenetly not right.

 

Aaron_King
Aaron_King GRM+ Memberand UltimaDork
6/18/24 6:47 p.m.

I forgot to say that before the axle/tie rod swap the car drove fine, camber and toe were good and it was not so nose up.  We had to have messed something up. 

procainestart
procainestart SuperDork
6/19/24 9:26 a.m.

In reply to Aaron_King :

I've seen tie rod ends of different lengths. Wondering if the new ones are shorter than the old ones. 

I can't see how the axles affect alignment. 

dean1484
dean1484 GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
6/19/24 11:45 a.m.

By chance did a spring or springs come out of its perch when it was jacked up?  When it was lowered the springs did not seat properly?  

Aaron_King
Aaron_King GRM+ Memberand UltimaDork
6/19/24 12:20 p.m.

We are going to get the car up, wheels off, and take a look this weekend.  Tyler is feeling a little defeated with regards to the car and my rehab of the AC system in my DD has kept the garage occupied.   
 

Hopefully it's something simple I overlooked.  If not I have a line on a set of used axles that we can rebuild if it comes to that.   I am pissed at myself for trying to to hoard parts and getting rid of the old axles. 

You'll need to log in to post.

Our Preferred Partners
DtIKKPxutJetqFpMjPYnn68PtIghNkeNfXBXxBedmRPI4X1mWpwU1Ury2mUCxqcu