Sideways Posted November 22, 2012 Share Posted November 22, 2012 All I can find is that it limits you, but no real solid answers on how much. ive got a 72 Z with T3 adjustable TC rods and poly bushings- Anyone have a clue on how much caster I can run "safely" on a setup like this? Im HOPING for about 5-6, but not sure if this is "asking for too much"? While on caster, ive one more question ive had difficulty finding any input on. "What does it take" to actually get some good numbers of caster? It seems anywhere from 5-9 degrees is considered "good" depending on the track- But what does this actually involve? Ill be hacking away my fenders to install ZG flares- And ive got an msa type 2 (ducted) air dam. Ive got a set of 245/40 (or 50s? its late and my memory is going fuzzy, haha) on a set of the group buy konigs. Any "ball park" ideas of what I can see or hope for? Will the airdam be a concern and require trimming (i mean im sure it would depending on how much caster were talking about, but how much is that?)? ANY input on how much caster anyone was able to get, and what they had to do to get there would be super handy As always- Thanks everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luseboy Posted November 22, 2012 Share Posted November 22, 2012 Sorry if I'm missing something, but are you saying you have stock LCA's with poly bushings? That's all I can figure. If your goal is to get caster, why not run T3 LCA's too? Then you can run lots of caster and the rod end can handle it just fine. Anyways I'm running the t3 LCA's and T/C rods, and I'm gonna be running a fair bit of caster to clear my custom dropped battery tray. I've heard of people having to cut around 3" per side off their air dams. I'm not too excited about that since I've got a G nose but oh well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted November 22, 2012 Share Posted November 22, 2012 I think you can run quite a bit safely but the issue is more that the poly bushing will be bound up pretty hard by the TC rod, so you're increasing stiction and stress on the crossmember. Get TTT's LCA or something similar and you'll solve that problem. As far as what needs to be changed, you'll probably run out of room at the front fender if you get past 5-ish degrees. If you run a whole lot of caster, you may run out of room on the turnbuckles and might want to install longer ones. The rule of thumb is 1.5x the thread diameter inside the turnbuckle, which on a 5/8" turnbuckle leaves you with about 5/16" of adjustment. I think most people tend to ignore the rule of thumb for that reason. Check TC rod clearance with the wheel at full lock as well. Depending on your backspacing you might have issues there too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted November 22, 2012 Share Posted November 22, 2012 With a MSA airdam and in-cut fenders I'm maxed out at 4 degrees with 225/50/16s. My tire rubs the tc rod before full lock. I have lots more room for mor caster with 225/50/15s but my setup is based on my tallest tire combo. If you ran 13s you could run lots of caster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideways Posted November 23, 2012 Author Share Posted November 23, 2012 RebekahsZ- Mind if I ask how much backspacing you have on those rims? Im already leaning towards the T3 control arms, its just a matter of time/money. This is just to hold me over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted November 23, 2012 Share Posted November 23, 2012 My pretty wheels are 16X8 Rota RBRs with +10 backspacing. They clear the front fenders fine (I'm non-flared and lowered quite a bit), but would rub on bumps in the back if I had not narrowed my rear track. I have T3 control arms and I can't remember where I got my adjustable TC rods (they were recommended by johnc), but I think I'd be happy with the T3 TC rods just the same. My TC rods use inner tie rod ends where the rod attaches to the frame. The tie rod end is the wear component and when I called the vendor to findout where they get the tire rod ends, they wouldn't tell me. Perhaps they thought I would try to steal their product, but I really just wanted to know how to keep my car running forever should they go out of business (as seems to be happening a lot lately). The T3 TC rod uses rod ends that you can get just about anywhere. On my winter work list is putting clamps on my steering rack to limit how far I can turn the wheel (thus limiting my tire scrub on the TC rod). The TC rod scrub is a result of wide wheels, not caster. Be advised that the combination of wide wheels and increased camber significantly increases steering effort (probably why you see the racers on this forum going to power steering). Even with the increased camber, the car likes to follow cracks in the pavement due to the wide tires. When I put my skinnies on for drag racing, the car stops following cracks. In fact, for a long drive on the highway I prefer my narrow tires, which make the car dart less and require a lot less steering effort. If you drive your car on the street a lot, or if you ever want to be able to sip a cup of coffee while driving, I wouldn't worry with increasing the caster - it is mostly a race car thing. Try not to go crazy with super wide wheels/tires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted November 23, 2012 Share Posted November 23, 2012 As Jon mentioned above there isn't really a safety issue. You'll get to the point that the LCA will bind so tight you will have very little suspesnion movement. With urethane LCA bushings I won't run more then about +4 on caster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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