If you get sqealing when you take corners, that sounds more like a
toe-in/toe-out problem to me. You're dragging one of your wheels a
little sideways around corners. With bad caster, good toe-in, I've
never had squealing. On the other hand, I have had some nasty
squealing (tire dragging) with toe-in problems. It's easy to check
your toe-in. Measure the distance between the rear of your front
tires, then measure the difference between the front of your front
tires. I like to pick a tread block to hook the tape measure onto and
just stick with that tread section. On my Dart, I keep the front
measurement 1" less than the rear measurement and it's perfect (you
want a little toe-in, usually). On my truck, it's a little more
because the tires are bigger. If you get it between 1" and 2" you'll
be in the ballpark. There's also some personal preference here...
different toe-in settings will get you a little different performance,
particularly in cornering. Don't ask me what the difference is.
Don in CT
89 Dakota Convertible 318 NV3500 4x4
74 Dart Sport 340
On 5/25/07, Jamie Calder <jcalder3@cfl.rr.com> wrote:
>
> It's very noticeable when I crank the wheels to either side. The top of the
> wheels are slanted way out. It causes the outer edges to wear out very
> fast. Tons of squealing when making tight turns. Tight turns made in lose
> gravel or sand will leave skid marks where the tires are fighting the
> ground. I actually has to give quite a bit of gas to get it to move when
> turned all the way in either direction. Feels like the brakes are being
> applied.
> Does anyone with a 4X4 that hasn't messed with the bars have this problem?
>
> Thanks for the replies!
>
> James
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net
> [mailto:owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net] On Behalf Of
> Walt@Walt-n-Ingrid.Com
> Sent: Friday, May 25, 2007 7:42 AM
> To: dakota-truck-moderator@bent.twistedbits.net
> Subject: Re: DML: Different Question Regarding Torsion Bars
>
>
> That is correct. The upper control arm is shorter and at more of an angle
> than the lower arm which is almost horizontal. As the bars are cranked, the
> geometry causes the caster to pull in towards the top (If I'd paid attention
> in High School Geometry class, I'd know the formula for it). Lowering it
> would have the opposite effect. There are 2 bolts that hold the upper
> control arm shaft to the frame bracket with about an half inch of adjustment
> there which allows the caster to be set. We've seen them come loose while
> descending down Pikes Peak (I have photos of the DML NGTG road service on
> Dom Mallet's Dakota at the half-way point).
>
> Walt
>
> In article <f41ff3ad0705250328m27797694pe7f0423fee3ab331@mail.gmail.com>,
> radon220@gmail.com ("Don Rey") writes:
> >
> > Caster, btw, is the "wheel slant" that you're talking about, just to
> > clarify. It's too early in the morning for me to remember whether your
> > caster increases or decreases (which way they slant) when you crank
> > the bars. After the morning cobwebs clear, think about the upper vs
> > lower control arm lengths and what would happen when you pivot the LCA
> > at the torsion bar mount.
> >
>
>
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Fri Jun 01 2007 - 09:06:10 EDT