Next job is to trial fit the Avenger crossmember. The Avenger one is a wee bit wider so the bolt holes need elongating. I needed to file out the slots from 15mm to 22mm to get it to bolt on. This puts the bolt heads too close to the wall of the crossmember to use a socket on the normal hex heads so I'm going to use socket (allen) head or Torx head bolts to attach it to the chassis.
Fitted to the car it looks like this:
And from above:
The steering box will stay for a while, the original centre track rod is doing a useful job, it's holding up the front of the gearbox
After lots of measuring I've concluded that if I cut the Rapier lower links to the same length as the Avenger ones then the front track will increase by 17mm, so I need to make them a bit shorter. I have to cut about 80mm out of the Rapier lower links. Hopefully there will be enough adjustment on the steering rack to compensate for having 8.5mm shorter lower links. I'll need to measure up again to make certain before I start cutting up the lower links. But that's it for this weekend - there's some beer in the fridge that needs disposing of...
This is a plan view of the suspension from the workshop manual, it helps understand how it all connects together:
I thought I might be able to use the Avenger struts - but these are a couple of inches too short. You can see that the spring mount of the Rapier strut (the new one) is a couple of inches further away from the hub.
So next plan is to join the Rapier strut to the Avenger lower link or maybe find a way to use the Rapier lower link. The Rapier lower link (suspension arm) is a bit longer than the Avenger - see below:
But the good news - it bolts right onto the Avenger crossmember.
So shortening the Rapier lower link should work. On this picture you can see that Rapier lower link is at an angle, the ball joint for the strut is about level with the rear of the cross member. The Avenger one is at much less of an angle. This will put the wheel too far forward. But the Rapier lower link is longer than the Avenger one and I have to shorten it to get track right - so I can put a kink in at the same time.
This is where the project starts. A 1968 Rapier in much better condition than it looks thanks to the first owner who very thoughtfully rust proofed it. It's had one sill and I've found a hole in one the chassis leg under the passenger foot well. The rest of the chassis looks very good, original and unwelded.
This shows a Rapier crossmember and suspensions arms compared to an Avenger one. The Rapier one is a rusty one I pulled out of muddy field.
A closer look:
So first job is to remove the big lump of metal that's in the way:
1922's steering rack project
Posted - 16 May 2010 : 18:34:58
