I am having a clearance issue on my driver side rear tire and fender. I am running a 40 ford rear with a model A coupe rear spring and it is setup as spring behind. My tire is rubbing the lip of the fender and I am unsure how to raise just the driver side rear? I did put a 1 inch spacer to raise the back of the car up allready and it helps but not enough. I do have tube shocks in the back that i am running similiar to a 48 ford rear shock setup. When i put a level on the bottom side of my car it shows the car to be unlevel and shows the driver side to be lower than the passenger side. You can also see the isnt to level. I am running a new solid frame also. Its as if the driver side needs to be jacked up 1.5-2 inches. I am just unsure how todo so ?
I'm not sure about the fix, but I'd suggest that you first determine where the problem is...front or back suspension...or a combination of both. If one corner is too high, it can cause the opposite corner to be too low. Put a jack under the exact center of the rear, and check level at front. Maybe using a piece of small tubing or a big bolt as the resting point. Put a jack under the center of the front, and check level at rear. I suspect that the the rear spring has uneven spring pressure left to right and needs to be rearched or replaced, or the mount was welded on unevenly. A spring mount that's out of level by only 1/8" can cause an inch or two difference at the end of the axle. Guys...can the spring be shimmed at the mount to compensate?
Do you have a body shop with a frame alignment machine nearby? 1.5-2 inches is a lot to be out! Was the floor replaced, and if so, is it in straight and plumb? Good luck! Bob
Ya gotta determine the cause. Could be a tweaked frame, body mounts, etc. Initially, I'd look under the car from the side and visually line up the bottom of both frame rails to check for parallel. But the problem may be at the ends of the frame...which would be harder to determine without some careful measuring. Do a bunch of measuring, and track down the cause...then you'll know what needs to be done. Good luck.
The frame is new and straight. The spring mounts are the original ones that are on the 40 ford banjo. I did put parts of a new floor in it and have shimmed the body. When ever i jack the body up and away from the rear the spring stretches out and when i lower the car back down i have the clearance around the tire but when i drive down the road the car settles back down to where it was. I did feel up on top of the rear crossmember and the spring is centered. Also i have my gas tank and battery in the trunk like the tardel coupe and my gas tank is on the driver.side and i am 270 6'5 so when i have a full tank and me driving there is no clearance.
Try a wedge shaped shim between the spring and crossmember on the left side. Kinda sounds like YOU are the problem: 270#
Make sure the two U bolts holding the spring to the crossmember are evenly tightened. Are any springs broken, maybe on one side? Trace the profile of the spring on a piece of cardboard, maybe it will show where the problem is.
Before you go cutting, bending or breaking anything check the Ubolts, with you car on a level floor place jack stands at equal height under all corners of the car at equal points. Then loosen the Ubolts of the cross springs up so they are completely loose. Now level the car body front and rear. With the body level and the spring bolts indexed in the crossmember holes begin to tighten the Ubolts evenly 2 rounds at a time in a crisscross pattern first at the front and then the rear. Do not tighten one side of the Ubolt faster than the other side or this will rock the chassis on the spring and give your car a lean to the tighter side. After you have tightended the Ubolt place the car on the ground and check for level.
Mr. Spadaro to the rescue once again with a simple procedure. You must always remember that ANY used springs (leaves or coils) will be "worn" more on the driver's side than the left because there is ALWAYS a driver in place while the wear is taking place on the road.
If the above suggestions didn't solve it, flip the spring and see if the problem moves to the other side, if it did a new spring is next ... just went through this Vergil
I ended up purchasing a new spring and it seemed to help but after driving the spring settled and the fender is rubbing the tire again when driving and hitting bumps. I got to looking today and it looks like my left wheel and tire is sitting a little further out past the fender than the passenger fender? Is this normal?
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