We have a '59 Kingswood I lowered 3", new springs, went through whole suspension, new stock length shocks, bias ply whites, Inland Empire driveshaft, etc. Pretty bouncy and it rides really damn rough. None of my other vehicles have ever been this hard. What can be done? My only thought is the stock length shocks.
Shocks? Springs are softer? My 56 with Aerostars which has 2 rates and it does move more on a bump than stock springs but the shocks stop it from rebounding over one time. Good Luck.
If you lowered it 3 inches with springs how did you expect it to ride? You my be bottoming out the shocks. The only way to lower a car without messing up the steering geometry is with drop spindles.
Could it be hitting the snubbers? If it's still got them. You mentioned new springs - what kind are they and are you sure they're not "stacking" on one end or the other?
You made quite a number of changes all at once. Hindsight being 20/20, might have been wiser to do a few at a time. I would look for any binding in the suspension, try swapping to another set of shocks.
What do you mean by "rides really rough"? I have a '59 Bel Air and I lowered it 3" with new, custom springs. It rides better than it did with the original springs. Stock shocks. It rides smooth and isn't bouncy. Every few years one of the shocks wears out and that side gets a little bouncy. I should probably get the right shocks, but this set up has been working for me for about 15 years. Rough ride might be those bias plys. Are they properly balanced and inflated? Did "went through the whole suspension" include replacing all bushings, or just inspecting them?
Did you install the front springs in front and rear in the rear? Sounds dumb, but they have different spring rates.
This is the first car I've had with springs all around. All my past have had leaf on the back. None have given me these issues. Anyway, I got the springs from Ecklers. I know the springs are correct because the fronts were on back order for a while. It rides rough as in you feel -every-single-bump in the road and it feels like a pogo stick and every bounce makes a big shock through the car. It may be hitting the bump stops. I certainly wouldn't want to get rid of those would I? I'd be hitting frame instead of rubber.
I wonder if they sent you the wrong springs. My springs came from the same company that Eckler's gets theirs from. The pogo effect sounds like bad shocks. Hitting the bump stops sounds like the wrong springs, like wrong car, or they didn't account for added weight of a wagon, and/or the difference in engine weight if you changed engines. FWIW, I originally heated my springs to lower them and it was rougher than the stock springs, but even then I didn't have the symptoms that you describe.
I spent all weekend working on it. The front lower bump stops were 1/2" from touching, I removed those. The rear, it was resting on them, I cut them down. After that the rear end dropped even lower. My driveshaft was hitting the tunnel. I had enough and took the rear springs out and cut 2 coils off the old ones and I am ever so much happier. I contacted Eckler, the 3" rear are discontinued... I wonder why? This pic shows original, too low rear, and as it sits now.
I'll bet youre on bump stops and or bottoming out the shocks. Yank one or the other and see. Shorter travel merits shorter shocks and shorter stops
Removing bumpstops might just let the rear/A frames hit the chassis, metal to metal. Not a good thing! I found progressive rate bump stops that you can adapt to fit your car. Originally they were for some sort of Chevy Cavalier sport model, but there are universal replacements now. I use them on all the lowered cars I build.
Yep- those clowns. Thought your problem was familiar. I'm working on a '59 Biscayne for a client, and dealt with Eckler's. What a slipshod outfit they are. After getting the runaround- and a dual-reservoir kit that set a new low for crappiness- I cancelled the spring order which was an easy decision as the units were back-ordered. I also invited them to jump up my butt for wasting my time and patience. Glad you found your way around the Eckler's problem. What I still need are P/Ns for the shorter shocks, so...if anyone has 'em, I'd be obliged. By the way- very cool wagon.
My first thought after reading all these replies is to ask you to drop the air pressure in your tires and go for a little drive and see what difference it makes. These old cars change a lot with a few psi difference
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