Hey guys - my 88 GTA sits with the front end a good 1.5 - 2 inches higher than the rear. Painfully obvious. The suspension was apparently modified by another owner and is not adjustable. I was told by a local shop they could redo the entire susp for $730.00 (new parts and labor). Now i've changed suspension once on a 2000 Chrysler Sebring (please...no jokes) and it was a PAIN in the A**. I did it with the help of a friend...but what a hassle. I haven't looked REALLY close, but on the Trans, one thing I've noticed that's different from the Chrysler is that the strut and spring are separate from each other and aren't one piece. Easier?

Bottom line - before I jump into something like this, in your opinion, is it worth doing a new suspension myself? I would consider myself pretty mechanically inclined, as I perform all the regular maintenance and general repairs on our other cars. But going back to the Chrysler experience, I don't know I would want to go through that suspension hassle again if it'll be just as hard.

Would love to hear what you guys think. Thanks!

 

What parts of the suspension are you thinking of changing? Just the springs? A picture of your car may help determine wether you need to look at the front or back of your car for the problem. The rear springs are very easy to change. The fronts can be complicated. The reason is that they are compressed in there and can pop out and hurt you if your not careful.

 

need more info but in general if you have done these cars before it's straight forward but time consuming, if this is first it will take longer and you might need some extra tools depending on what it is you want to do. Once there is more info we can update you and then you can weigh that against the $750 cost

 

Hey guys. That's what I'm not sure about. I would think both struts and springs (at least that's what the guy quoted me). But I'm also not sure what would raise the back end and/or lower the front - a strut or spring. It doesn't feel like the suspension is going bad. So presumably the parts are good. It's just more of a cosmetic thing. Thus, if I just need one of the two parts (strut or spring), that's fine too. Here's a few pics of the rear suspension currently:



And a pic of the front:

 

UGH - stupid photobucket didn't save the rotated pics. Sorry for the neck strain guys.

 

Pics look good to me.

I can tell you your car has been lowered already. Those are Eibach springs.

Couple things to look for. Make sure the front spring is indexed correctly. There is a pocket in the control arm that the end of the spring has to sit in. If it doesnt, it will make the car sit high.

Also check to see that the rubber piece that goes on top of the rear spring between the spring and the body, is there. Its hard to tell from the pic, but its about an inch thick or so. If its missing, it will make the rear sit too low.

Do you have a pic of the car from the side showing the front and back on the ground at the same time?

 

Here's a pic from the side. Tried to crop it so you can really see what I mean. Though it's at an angle, you'll see the front end is definitely higher than the rear.

 

A colleague mentioned the front struts looked factory to him, and from the pic, said they are likely 'frozen'. He said they are designed to freeze in the up position so the car doesn't sag. What do you guys think? Does the front strut look bad to you?

 

I have never heard that before, and frankly, don't see how that's plausible at all. If a strut goes bad, it just goes to mush. If it were frozen, then you wouldn't get any suspension travel at all. It would feel like you were in a go kart or something.

As far as your initial question, I feel that we have a relatively simple suspension setup. Before you do anything, I'd do an inventory of what is actually on your car and evaluate from there. As was already mentioned, check to see if your springs are indexed correctly and if the isolators are on the rear springs. An easy fix is to get the rear spring isolators from a fourth gen T/A. They are a bit taller than the third gen and will help level out the stance of the car.

 

Thx guys. Just did some checking. Rear isolators are there. Front coils are indexed just fine. BLACK - interesting suggestion. How much higher are the rear isolators on a 4th gen? Remember I'd likely need 1.5 - 2" if the car is to be somewhat even.

 

Where the fronts are concerned, is the end of the spring positioned between the two drain holes in the a-arm pocket? If not, reposition them for proper indexing. If you're unfamiliar with the drain holes, check post #5 of the following link:

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/susp...nsion-how.html

I've heard the fourthgen isolators will raise the car about an inch.

JamesC

 

What if the guy switched the isolators? That would make a definite noticement in the ride height.

 

Yes.

JamesC

 

Like James said, the isolators from a 4th gen add about an inch or so to the height over the 3rd gen ones.

 

Looks like the rear isolators are missing? That could explain the drop in back as they raise it up about 1". Easy to check, just look/feel up in the spring pocket. Easy to install if they're missing, just undo the shocks and lower the rear end til the springs fall out (don't let the brake line stretch too much).

Fronts not indexed will raise the front, but that was already covered.

Replacing the struts and shocks is way easier than swapping front springs. I hate that job.

You've also got LCARBs J (yay) and I'd go ahead and replace those end-link bushings.

 

Are the front springs Eibachs? Maybe the rear Eibachs were put in & they decided the fronts were too hard to do?

That would definitely account for the rear drop but the front appearing to be at stock height.

 

Thanks for all the guidance guys. The rear isolators ARe there. Not 100% sure if the front ones are Eibachs or not (is there a way to tell?) Regarding the 4th gen isolators, I might just try that. Seems like the least expensive fix right now. Just curious though - would adding another third gen isolator to each hurt the suspension or become dangerous at all? (basically block the two together on each side of the rear wheels).

 

Hard to tell if those are Eibachs or not from the pic. Do they have a logo on them like the rear springs? As far as your question about stacking multiple 3rd gen isolators-just think that one through and I'm sure you'll figure out why that is such a bad idea. The 4th gen isolators don't cost that much and would be much safer than stacking smaller isolators.

 

In that case who has some four gen isolators laying around!?

 

Sorry guys - one more question - does anyone happen to know the dimensions of the Third gen isolators? Specifically the height / width in inches? Trying to avoid having to take it out since I still need to drive the car for a while. Thanks again

 

Pic #1 is the top (pocket side) and measures 5 3/4" in diameter
Pic #2 is the bottom (spring side). With the isolator on its top, the measurement to the top lip is 1 1/2" high. Note the spring index.

JamesC

 

Thanks James. I'll be sure to let you guys know how it turns out!