Front of car too high

[Bill Stuck]

Hello,  I bought a CMC/ Fiberfab MGTD kit that was partailly built.  The three provious owners had done a very good job from the look of it and I had a rolling chassis with the only body parts installed being the body, the interior liner and the battery box.   All of the other parts were still in their original wraping.

Now, I have completed assembling the fenders, hood, wiring and all and it is essntially ready for the state inspection.  ( maybe next week) .

The front end seams high – so I thought I would get some measurements and post them.

My tires are 195/75/14

Floor to top of front fender is 34 3/4

Floor to top of the side opening on the front fender is 30 3/4 ( easier to accurately measure).

Floor to top of winshield is 55

Floor to top of rear cover is 36

Do any of these line up with yours? 

[Dan Rosa]

   Bill   ,    Same size tires but 2 inches lower on all ,,one more measurement  on my chevette migi kit the height from the floor to top of the shock tower       21 “on mine     the height of the running boards are    10”                   it may be the springs are not worn out  I know it must look tall, many people have told me the same thing I think body parts can be lowered ? some one told me to cut my springs i do not think that is a solution….!?Dan

Dan R40412.8416319444

[edward ericson]

Cutting springs is generally bad unless you’re going autocrossing. Even then. You lower the ride height but increase the spring rate (ride stiffness).

Another solution will present itself.

[Rob Baker]

I believe the quick fix is cutting the springs or getting new springs that are the correct lenght and the correct compression rate.

but

I believe the correct way to resolve this would be coilovers with the correct spring rate for the weight of the car.  This would be an expensive alterative but would really solve every issue.

[Larry Murphy]

 Bill, In the Download Manuals section ,under CMC Chevette ,on page 27, it instructs the builder to obtain Chevrolet part # 362193ATD spring. Cut one full coil off the bottom of the spring .

 This is the CMC method to lower the front of the car. Be it the correct way to do it or not , it is the method they chose. If I am thinking right, the front springs on these cars are not of the variable rate design, so cutting off a coil will not stiffen the spring rate but will shorten the distance the suspension can travel before bottoming out.It will defintely lower the car in the process. Cutting your existing springs is the least expensive way to get it lower,if the results are not satisfactory,you could then search out other options.You may need shorter shocks as well.

[edward ericson]

I stand corrected.

I cut a full coil off each new front spring in my old Nova, which lowered the nose a healthy inch or inch and a half (which was my aim & purpose & which looked mean), but she rode like a brick thereafter and ate ball joints like bar peanuts on account of I changed the angle of the lower control arms. Every time I took her in for an alignment the boys were all like, “when you gonna put new springs in this beast, daddy-o?”

My mistake was going lower than stock height. Bill is trying to get the thing to go back to stock height.

Seems like in this case we’d want weaker springs to account for the lesser weight over the front suspension–much like the situation with the VW kits.

Cutting a coil from a stock spring (even “ATD” spring as instructed) should lower the car to the correct ride height, as right now it’s too high. So bottoming out won’t be a problem, but it will be a little too stiff, as the springs are designed for a car with, let’s say, 200 or 250 pounds more weight up front. And, contrary to what’s above, cutting the springs does increase the spring rate, or stiffness.

Finally, if you do cut them, use a saw, not a torch. I’d maybe try a half coil from my existing springs first.

[Bill Stuck]

Added information:

The distance from the floor to the bottom edge of the short running board piece is 13 in rear and 14 in the front.   The height to the top of the shock brace is 23 3/4.

I knew that the book called for 4 specific coil springs (362193ATD ) and specific shocks (TRW 80822 for the front and TRW 80802 for the rear).  The rolling chassis part was completed when I got the car. Since I could nlot find any markings on the springs and the shocks were new ( RED ) I just moved ahead.  I will be getting it on a lift soon — and for the first time be able to give it a very good look. Are there any varifying marks on the springs? 

Since I may be changing the springs and shocks — WHAT ARE THE CORRECT HEIGHT MEASUREMENT???  What should I try to get to?

billsflorida40413.6141203704

[Larry Murphy]

 If I’m reading the CMC manual correctly ,only the front springs are to be changed and cut, the rear ones are used as they come off the doner car.  The rears are varible rate  ,the front are constant rate  according to Rock Auto Parts.  Check their website, it lists several different springs showing the wire diameter, spring diameter, compressed height and extended height. This could give you something to compare to what you have now, unfortunately you can not compare them till they  are removed.

I think part of the problem is that CMC is trying to adapt the factory suspension to serve their purpose with as little modification as possible.

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