[968TDG]

I messed around with the torque on the nut of the main shaft coming through the control arm last night. I was wondering if I had over tightened it causing the bearing to deform and bind. I think the torque spec for this nut is "Control arm bearing to aluminum control arm (caster eccentric) - 76 ftlb." If I set it loose, like 10 ft-lb then it didn't make any sound at all, but I could see as I lifted the car up and down with a floor jack that the bearing wasn't even rotating at all at this point. When I tightened it to spec, the bearing was rotating, but making loud creaking sounds every degree or so.



I called the vendor and told them about the defect and they are sending me a replacement bearing. I'll pull the castor blocks off the car and swap out the bearings and reinstall. I'm doing both to be safe, though the passenger side unit is worse.



I've attached a pic of my old castor block. Yep, that's what I thought the noise was :-)



Phil

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[Ryan]

Wow Phil, that is ugly. I have never seen the newer type that messed up. Your car should really feel different with the new hardware.

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[968TDG]

Haha, It does feel much tighter in the corners...more consistent steering feel...though I don't want to push it too hard until I switch out the bearings and get an alignment. They were both ugly, but this one is worse because I had a really bad oil filter housing leak last year.



Phil

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[Ryan]

Phil, Have you considered replacing the front bushings on the control arms as well. Seems like if the rears were that bad than the fronts couldn't be far behind.





It is a much bigger pain in the a$$ to remove the front bushing, but removing the control arm isn't that tough.

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[craigawoodman]

Due to the posts and the photo's (and that the car is going through a major rebuild at the moment), I have lashed out and purchased the Racers Edge units for the suspension and torque tube.



By the end of the current round of mod's I don't think there is much left to do. Given how critical these are to the handling and suspension, it should be a priority for most to ensure that these castor blocks are in good condition.



Hopefully the Racers Edge units will help on the track as well.



Thanks for the post and the warning - I for one have heeded it.

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[968TDG]

I haven't looked into replacing the front bushings. I'd originally purchased the Elephant Racing castor blocks 6 months ago so that I could replace the old ones when I installed the lower brace. I didn't realize they were in such poor shape until the passenger side one started making a clunking noise. Is it possible to visibly inspect the front bushings?



phil

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[craigawoodman]

For those of you who have changed out your castor blocks for the Racers Edge or Elephant racing units - what if any impact has this had on ride comfort and harshness when driving?



Thanks,



Craig

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[flash]

i noticed no impact on harshness - however, once i added the upper strut bearings (camber plates), it was a mess - those came back out - but others say they don't think that camber plates make it harsh - so i think it is more about leaving something rubber somewhere



definitely touchier on alignment though, and the need for a good castor setting - once it's done, it's fine, but since there is no rubber there, it becomes more critical to have it set right

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[pure&simple]

Agreed. No impact on harshness, but alignment needs to be spot on. Some increase in tramlining.

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[Langley968]

Another item to add to the "inspect" and/or "to do" list!

Thanks for posting pictures to go along with the discription! A picture "speaks a thousand words" or at the least prods us into quicker action! <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/wink.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



Question: Aside from age, would different climates affect the longevity of rubber components?

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[craigawoodman]

Flash & Pure&Simple,



Thanks for the feedback. Flash, I am running camber plates, but the car is mostly tracked (I am never home to change the tyres over to the road ones). I have bought them now, so we will see. Hopefully it will make a difference on the track.



Engine is currently in pieces. Cams need to be replaced, but head was in very good shape (it was done prior to my purchase) - so ceramic coating the piston skirts, etc as guides do not need to be done. There is no way the car will be on the road for the first shakedown meeting of our season - might even be pushing it for the first round - hopefully will make it.



Thanks,



Craig

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[Scott Collins]

Update:



When I first installed the Elephant Racing sealed mono-ball castor blocks, they made no noise whatsoever and the car went straight for miles. Flash said I should buy a lottery ticket.



The handling has drastically improved, almost certainly because of 1. The original castor blocks were falling apart, and 2. New castor blocks are a performance upgrade from OEM.



Now, after having the car up on a lift to have a CV joint replaced along with some suspension tuning, the blocks are now making a slight "popping" sound. Perhaps from having the wheels hanging and suspendedI actually thought it was my CV joint, still acting up, but my mechanic from a *local shop said that he knew right away that the sound was from the Elephant Racing units, that they have seen that before, and if it persists, they will be replaced for new units. So I'll post again in another month to let everyone know if the popping persists. But I will say that he handling is "sweet".



*I am omitting the name of the shop just in case they don't want to go on record criticizing Elephant Racing.

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[flash]

i had one wear out too - by far the exception to the rule, but stuff happens

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[mefforddk]

Are the stock castor blocks statisfactory for street performance and an occasional track day or should I invest in the Elephant Racing sealed mono-ball castor blocks? The price difference is substantial and I would rather not pay for performance that I will never really use. Thoughts anyone?

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[flash]

yes, as long as you don't have any leaks, and the OEM ones are supple and not old, hard, and cracked

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[mefforddk]

ha ha don't have any leaks. I have been chasing that darn lower BS seal leak for ever to no avail. I fear it is the main crank seal leaking down into the lower BS shaft area. Anyway I am inspecting my castor blocks as soon as it warms up here. I have another post about my front wheel "scrubing" during hard left hand turns and wondered if those bushing could be the issue. It is a periodic tire scrub on the pavement or castor angle change while turning. Hard to tell while driving and I don't have a relaible aid to help.

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[flash]

the castor angle should not change during a turn - the camber angle would though - in either event, the wheel should always turn - if it is locking up and skidding, you have another problem, but you would know if that was what was happening, as the car would suddenly dive in that direction - likely what is going on is the tire is scrubbing against the inner fender well - that could be due to a number of things, not the least of which could be ride height being too low, or tires being too large in diameter

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[mefforddk]

Nah, its not the inner fender well. its hard to explain as I have only had someone watch the tire as I back it up. I'll have to get a trusted friend to back it up and I'll video what is happening. although it is starting to happen in both forward and backward directions. As it was explained to me it appeared as if you have postive traction rearend and one wheel turns at a different speed than the other, hence a bit of tire scrub around sharp turns. However, this is the front tire. we thought maybe the ball joint was worn out. maybe even wheel bearing when a sharp turn increases a load on the tire?

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[mefforddk]

BTW, let me add something else. The wheel is still rolling, it appears to skid on the pavement as your rolling. All this happens while backing up or doing a u turn.

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[flash]

something is wrong - at no time should the front wheel stop spinning freely, unless your brakes are somehow getting involved

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