marc_w

I've had problem with my torsion bar suspended truck leaning while parked, and during odd times while driving. I've been trying to level the thing from side to side for MONTHS, rather unsuccessfully, until recently.

Here's what I've come up with to get the truck sitting rather nice and level.

You'll need a yardstick or tape measure, a breaker or 3/4" drive ratchet with appropriate socket for the torsion bar adjusters, a dial caliper or similar accurate measuring device, a jack (stands, all that fun stuff), a nice flat paved or concrete surface to park on, and a pen and paper.

What you want to do before you start:

1: Measure the distance that your t-bar adjuster bolts are sticking out with the dial-caliper, and jot those number down. In case you need to, you can use these numbers to go back to your stock setting.

2: Pick a ride height you'd like to shoot for. On my stock suspension SS, it's 35 1/8" from fender to ground.

3: Make sure your tires are all set to the recommended pressures.

My little leveling procedure:

All you want to do, is independently set ride height for each side of the truck. You completely remove a bolt from one side of the truck, and set the ride height of the other. The trick here is that you need to shoot for a "target ride height" of about 1/4" less than your target ride height with both torsion bar adjuster bolts in.

So, you pull the adjuster bolt out of the drivers side. Set the ride height of the passenger side, write down the number of millimeters the bolt head is exposed from the adjuster, and remove that bolt. Move on to the drivers side, get that bolt back in there, set that height, and record the adjuster bolt number. Put the passenger side bolt back in to your previously recorded number, and you should be good to go.

With both of the torsion bars supporting the truck, you'll get back your 1/4" in ride height. Maybe a little more, possibly a little less... If you need to adjust from here, make changes on each side equally.

This proceedure should assure that both torsion bars are supporting their side of the truck, equally. (Sometimes it's possible to raise both sides of the truck by using too much preload on one side.)

Tip: I found that I prefer to set ride height with about 1/2 to 3/4 of a tank of gas in the truck. Even the weight from my smaller 24gal tank makes a difference in front ride height. 1/2 to 3/4 is pretty much in the middle of the road. My truck can vary about 3/8" in the front, depending on the amount of gas I have, and the grade of the parking spot.

Once all of this is done, you'll probably need to get yourself to an alignment shop. I think I've got that covered too:

ALIGNMENT:

Stock GM specs for my 4x4 torsion-bar truck, call for a staggered alignment. This is due to all of the heavy components on one side of the truck. The battery, the front pumpkin, the front driveshaft, the t-case, and the gas tank. I think GM actually designed this truck to lean.

With your truck sitting nice and level, you "shouldn't" need these alignment specs. I've just completely my fourth alignment in 7 months, and I think I finally got it dialed in well.

Per the f-body handling forum on here, I went with +4.5 caster, and 0 toe. The f-body guys were looking for -.5 to -.8, sometimes up to -1.5 on the camber. I chose to keep it within my trucks specs, and went for -.2 You want everything equal/even from side to side. A local Sears was happy to do my alignment(s). I'll be happy to give a recommendation to a shop for you MA guys, just PM me.

A quick rundown:

Caster: This is the rearward angle of an imaginary line drawn between the two balljoints on each side of the truck. Straight up and down would be 0 caster, tilting the top back to the driver is adding caster. More caster improves the feel of the steering, taking away that "dead" feeling in the center, that these GM trucks are known for. It also improves straight line stability. If you have uneven caster - the truck will tend to pull to the side with less caster.

Camber: The inward/outward tilt of the tires, looking at them from the front of the vehicle. Positive camber would be a "goofy looking" setup with tires sticking out at the top. Negative camber is the standard looking setup with the tops of the tires tucking in. If I understand camber, it is there to give better you a better contact patch while cornering. If you have uneven camber - the truck will tend to pull to the side with more positive camber.

Toe: Slight toe in, like 1/32" to 1/16" will improve straight line stability, with the cost of slightly more tire wear. Toe out isn't all that recommended on street vehicles from what I hear. It's good for road-course cars if anything. 0 toe will give you best tire wear, but the font can be come shifty and it may follow cracks in the road and such.

Running the above specs, the truck tracks straight as an arrow on the highway. I can take my hands off and count to 10. The 'non responsive' part of the steering is now vastly reduced, if not completely eliminated - the steering is much "tighter". On our uneven sideroads, I believe because of the 0 toe, the front end IS a little shifty. Not near as shifty as it would be with a bum alignment. Get the truck into some nice corners though, and the thing is sweet. I feel like I have all the control in the world. It's a lot better than having an alignment shop go by the standard specs on my vehicle. I think it's due to the now-level stance I have.

Tip: GM says you should have a full tank of gas in the truck during the alignment. I'm up in the air about that, because you only run a full tank for a short period of time. I got mine done a hair above 3/4.

Well. I hope this info helps SOMEONE out. Some of this info may sound VERY **** to some. Yeah, that's me. When it come to a level ride, and nice steering feel, I'm a real perfectionist. I loose sleep at night over this stuff.

chevymec

iTrader: (19)

I ended up having to level mine with a set of Aftermarket cams . I got the of of Ebay for half the price regular companines were going for.I like them because there is still plenty of room between the cam and crossmember. Right now ive got 38" from fender to ground clearance at all the tires. IT has settled about 1/2" since ive done it. When I started the process the front was about 35.25" on both sides and the rear was about 37.5". Im running 285/75/16 and I still have a smooth ride except when I'm in a curve that has a good amont of bumps in it. Good right up!!

Sport Side

iTrader: (6)

nice write up.
seems like it was worth the effort

silverado_sport_truck

Is there a general rule to how far you can turn the bolts out? I would like to get as much of a drop as possible without sacrificing the ride.

Thanks