Help with preload for a ladder bar/coil over car

[Mark Yacavone]

Originally Posted by 68Coupe

looking for help suggestions

Resisting the urge to tell you to buy something, let's start here.
Assuming everything is square, and sitting on the tires, you would want the left front bolt out, and your weight in the driver's seat.
Now you would adjust the left bar until the bolt just easily slips into the hole.
That would be zero pre-load, and where you want to start.

[Mike Pearson]

Originally Posted by Mark Yacavone

Resisting the urge to tell you to buy something, let's start here.
Assuming everything is square, and sitting on the tires, you would want the left front bolt out, and your weight in the driver's seat.
Now you would adjust the left bar until the bolt just easily slips into the hole.
That would be zero pre-load, and where you want to start.

Pretty hard to do that with a coil over car

[Mark Yacavone]

Originally Posted by Mike Pearson

Pretty hard to do that with a coil over car

Good point, Mike..I keep forgetting that S/S cars are steadily becoming GT car under the skin.

[Jim Caughlin]

Quick and dirty way to check preload (assuming you don't own scales): park the car on a flat floor, load weight into the driver seat to simulate driver weight, locate floor jack under rearend center section and slowly start jacking the rearend up. If you see the right or left tire raising first, you have preload on the other side. If you see the left rear tire clear the floor before the right side, you're likely going to be having problems.

[Shaun Quill]

Originally Posted by Jim Caughlin

Quick and dirty way to check preload (assuming you don't own scales): park the car on a flat floor, load weight into the driver seat to simulate driver weight, locate floor jack under rearend center section and slowly start jacking the rearend up. If you see the right or left tire raising first, you have preload on the other side. If you see the left rear tire clear the floor before the right side, you're likely going to be having problems.

This way works perfect for me.I do mine on my full deck open trailer and it’ll go straight as a string