well after several times going to the track and tyring to make the car go straight i was told that I probably need a bump steer kit. The rear of the car starts to skate (side to side) after 100' or so and just gets progressively worst with speed. Ive messed with the rear suspension every which way possible to try and remidy this but it hasnt helped. I took the car to another alignment shop and they told me I need the kit to correct the geometry. Do you guys have any tips and or pics of the easiest way of doing this?

The car is an 88 formula with k-member,a-arms, coil over kit and manual rack all from PA Racing. Thanks in advance guys

 

I got my Baer bumpsteer kit from Scoggin-Dickey a while back. They were well worth the money spent.

 

forgive my possible ignorance here, but what would a bumpsteer kit do to affect the rear of the car? What tires are you using? shocks?

 

That's what I was wondering.

 

well from what ive been told when the geometry is off the slightest correction while steering gets multiplied in the rear. ive never had this problem so im trying to figure it out with help from others. the rear suspension has been adjusted by a chassis shop (pinion angle,etc) and i have tinkered with the anti roll bar at the tack but hasnt helped much.the biggest improvement came when i realized that the car had too much toe in and i put it back to neutral when the car was realigned.the car is now somewhat driveable but does not go as straight as it should.

the car has et fronts and 28x10.5 stiff sidewall slicks out back.spa1 konis up front full firm and strange adjustibles full firm out back

 

I just did a huge search for a definition of 'Bump-Steer and could not find one explaination. My front steering is doing something freeky and I'm searching for answers. Nitro-Nicky

 

What do you mean by "something freeky"? I had issues with my steering after I lowered my GTA with the car getting squirely very quickly. After installing the bumpsteer kit from Baer I haven't had any problems. The Bumpsteer kit allows for vertical as well as horizontal adjustment of the tie rods.

 

The car now corners like a red flyer sled with all new & upgraded suspension, but what I've been trying to solve since it was all installed is that when I turn the wheels to the left or right it's like the front tires grab and stick to the asphalt, then they kick loose, a corner of the front body lifts up and then the tire regrabs. It gets worse the farther I turn the wheels towards full lock. It dosn't matter if the car is sitting still or moving. The first half turn of the wheel is fine and then it progressively grabs, gives & hops, then grabs again. Plus it dosn't feel stable at speed. It's been six months of frustration while I've been working around it.
The race shop I work with are experts at drag racing; having just appeared on 'Pinks all out'. They have no clue what to do (like I'm supposed to?)
Thanks for responding, Nitro

 

I had my suspension aligned with a laser alignment with me in the drivers seat and the kmember up front raised 3/4" to simulate me going down the track. No fancy bumpsteer kit and my car goes straight as an arrow. What was your thrust angle? Do you have adjustable LCA so they can square up the rear to the body centerline in case it is dog walking.

 

what are you running for tire pressure?

 

One of our board members sent me a message and it turned out that the inner tie-rods were hooked up in front of the centerlink instead of behind. That's what has caused me untold frustration over the past six months. I havn't corrected it yet as I'm polishing up new HMS deep strut plates to bring the Koni's back to the 'sweet spot' they're designed to perform at. Then I'll take care of the center link bar and recheck the pinion angle. I should know better of what the car really wants to do once that's all corrected. I also can tell that my rear shocks (Red Koni's) are set softer than the front which might be part of why mine feels less stable at speed. Good thread; got me to think deeper. Nitro

Hey Skateboarder (IROC adio); who were you directing your tire pressure question to? I'm running 36 on all four.