Hello!. I have a 31 model A sedan with leaf front suspension. It does have a drop axle and standard shocks mounted. The front end rides VERY stiff. It is to the point that if you hit a good enough bump it will kick the tires off the ground (not good). So i am looking for options to make it softer. There is no fenders or hood, so has less weight than stock. The front end kit was from speedway for the car. Any help would be great. Thanks
Yes, good pictures are a must. They may show if your shocks are bottoming out. Other things to consider, what is your tire pressure? A lot of guys run regular passenger car pressures and the fronts ride like superballs.
There are several different front springs with differing number of leaves. How many does your current one have?
The current spring has 6. The tires are modern cooper cobra radials running 30psi. Shock is centered in throw when sitting. Here are some pics
OK, I see nothing crazy, you could lose a leaf or two, that spring looks beefy. What is your tire pressure?
Too high, on my old Touring and my 33 Ford PU I ran low 20s. You are dealing with superballs like I mentioned before
Drop air pressure . On my A & 32 I run 22 front with full fenders . Where is your spring spacer ? Top or bottom. By the pic looks that spring is bottoming out . Looks that you need @ least a 1inch spacer on top.
Put a zip tie around the rod of the shock and push it down as far as it will go. Then go for a ride. When you get back see where the zip tie is. If. it is all the way to the top of the shock the shock is bottoming out.
IMO, for tires that size and the estimated weight of your front end, you have waaay too much tire pressure. That may not be all of your problem, follow other's recommendations as well. Ray
To me your shocks look like they are way to close to their full travel at rest. Unless it’s an optical illusion, they wouldn’t take much to bottom out.
This might sound simple but are the bolts on your suspension too tight ? Jason at Pete&Jakes told me the components need to move to work properly. If they’re too tight everything gets bound up.
1. Spring too stiff/too many leaves. 2. Possibly very little travel and the spring bottoming on the frame. 3. Shocks generally need 2/3 upward and 1/3 down travel from rest. (They are also possibly bottoming out) 4. Too much tire pressure. Disconnect the shocks. Bounce the car. It should have a gentle easy bounce. If not, look at points 1 & 2 above. (Why is it always Speedway? )
I would step on your front frame horns and see if your suspension moves. If it's too stiff to move a couple of inches, disconnect the shocks and step on the frame horns again. If your suspension moves up and down a couple of inches, get lighter shocks, if it's still too stiff you can remove a leaf (say the 3rd longest one) put it back together and step on it again. If it's still too stiff remove another leaf (say the 5th longest one). Try it again. You can move the 3rd and 5th leafs to the second and third position from the top so your ride height doesn't change.
Matching tire pressure to vehicle mass is a simple concept, yet it seems to be a dark art for many. It is important to understand that your tires do not carry the load. Vehicle mass is supported by the air pressure contained in the tires. It then becomes easier to see that it is proporsional. More mass needs more pressure, and less mass needs less pressure. Reading your tread contact with the road is the key. EDIT: It is always better to have a little too much pressure rather than not quite enough. Too low, heat will build up in the tire, which may contribute to tire failure.
Caution:Too little air pressure in front tires can cause steering issues under heavy breaking when car weight transfers forward especially with those nice disc brakes
I run 24 psi and have 3 way adjustable shocks. Also looks like shocks are bottoming out. Try the zip strap idea above and see how much they move. Adjustable shocks made a big difference for me.
I will try all of the above mentioned. If I stand on the bumper and bounce (200lbs) it moves a half in on the shocks.
Your spring looks flat @ top ,Not much arch . Between crossmember & spring . There should be more clearance between spring and your frame rail .
Mine is hitting a little , New build so I will be adding start with a 1/2 inch spacer , mine is hitting because of over 500 pds of torque from motor when front end comes back down thoe .
Yep spring hitting frame. Since your at the end of the spring where its hitting the frame its going basically solid suspension. Not even enough spring past the frame to allow the spring to even flex once it contacts the frame.....
Ya It can be fun & little crazy @ times , There like behind the wheel of my Blown Altered, I can not post to much pic wise , All 3 cars 60ish looking H-Rs but not HAMB friendly because of certain parts Being Modern race parts & Engineering,
The Jalopy Journal
