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dsraven · 04-10-2017, 10:31 AM

looks like a clip redo to me. the clip looks like it must have been welded in too high.
when sitting at ride height the lower control arms should be parallel to the ground, side to side and front to rear, for proper steering geometry and suspension travel, or at least sitting at the angle like they would in the stock vehicle. that would put the amount of suspension travel somewhere in the midrange when sitting static and give you the proper steering geometry for caster, anti dive etc. if the wheel only drops a little bit when lifting the truck then maybe the springs are from a heavier engine'd car so the suspension is sitting closer to full droop already. that would mean there is lots of room for the wheel to go into the fender but not much room for the wheel to drop as the truck is jacked up. seems like the only real fix is to place the clip at the right place on the frame to start with and get the proper set of springs for the engine combo you have.
to get it right,
-set the clip ride height for a stock vehicle it came from and lock it on. there are a couple of ways of doing this. one way says check the spring wire diameter first to find out what you have there compared to what would be available for engines in the car the clip came from. if the springs are from a big block engine car and you now have a small block then the clip suspension will sit high because of the lesser amount of weight it is carrying compared to what the spring was made to carry. also compare the weight of the truck now compared to the weight of the original vehcle the clip came from. if it was a heavy car and you now have it under a light truck then the springs may need to be swapped with a lighter spring before you start messing with the clip. get the right set of springs in there first so the ride height will be correct for the suspension to sit at regardless of how high or low it places the truck. then lock the suspension travel at the point where it sits with the weight of the truck on the correct set of springs. check the control arm angle against the stock angle to ensure it is close so you have suspension travel equal going up and down roughly, not sitting close to one suspension limit. then lock it there with a metal link from shock mount to shock mount or threaded rod or whatever. now if the truck is still sitting too low you can cut the clip out and re-install at the proper height.

ya, I know, lots of work right?
it sounds like the clip has springs that are too heavy for the load so the clip was maybe installed to high in the frame and then when it was done and set down on the ground the guy went "uh-oh" and his fix was stronger springs to get it siting where it is now.I say this because you said the wheels only drop a little bit when the truck is jacked up. does it ride harsh as well? did you get any history on what the clip came from?

04-10-2017, 10:31 AM	#6
dsraven Registered User Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: calgary alberta Posts: 7,835	Re: Camaro clip on 49 looks like a clip redo to me. the clip looks like it must have been welded in too high. when sitting at ride height the lower control arms should be parallel to the ground, side to side and front to rear, for proper steering geometry and suspension travel, or at least sitting at the angle like they would in the stock vehicle. that would put the amount of suspension travel somewhere in the midrange when sitting static and give you the proper steering geometry for caster, anti dive etc. if the wheel only drops a little bit when lifting the truck then maybe the springs are from a heavier engine'd car so the suspension is sitting closer to full droop already. that would mean there is lots of room for the wheel to go into the fender but not much room for the wheel to drop as the truck is jacked up. seems like the only real fix is to place the clip at the right place on the frame to start with and get the proper set of springs for the engine combo you have. to get it right, -set the clip ride height for a stock vehicle it came from and lock it on. there are a couple of ways of doing this. one way says check the spring wire diameter first to find out what you have there compared to what would be available for engines in the car the clip came from. if the springs are from a big block engine car and you now have a small block then the clip suspension will sit high because of the lesser amount of weight it is carrying compared to what the spring was made to carry. also compare the weight of the truck now compared to the weight of the original vehcle the clip came from. if it was a heavy car and you now have it under a light truck then the springs may need to be swapped with a lighter spring before you start messing with the clip. get the right set of springs in there first so the ride height will be correct for the suspension to sit at regardless of how high or low it places the truck. then lock the suspension travel at the point where it sits with the weight of the truck on the correct set of springs. check the control arm angle against the stock angle to ensure it is close so you have suspension travel equal going up and down roughly, not sitting close to one suspension limit. then lock it there with a metal link from shock mount to shock mount or threaded rod or whatever. now if the truck is still sitting too low you can cut the clip out and re-install at the proper height. ya, I know, lots of work right? it sounds like the clip has springs that are too heavy for the load so the clip was maybe installed to high in the frame and then when it was done and set down on the ground the guy went "uh-oh" and his fix was stronger springs to get it siting where it is now.I say this because you said the wheels only drop a little bit when the truck is jacked up. does it ride harsh as well? did you get any history on what the clip came from?