[alfa] Front-end maintenance?

[Jon Pike <jhpike@xxxxxxx>]

Hi Matt..

Well.. I went thru my front end when worked over the 77 Spider we got a 
while ago.. here's some impressions..

To check joints,  pry or push on them with screwdrivers, prybars, 
etc...  there should be little to no play.  You won't be able to 
properly pry on everything, but give it a try.  Some joints can be loose 
but not noticably due to spring pressure or car weight preventing motion 
with your measly prying.  For instance, my lower A bushings were not 
loose in my pry tests, but with the springs out and arm removed had 
about 1/8" play!  I think a ball joint seemed a bit loose and didn't 
seem so early also due to the 1600lbs of spring force holding it.

The clunk when you apply the brakes is probably the classic loose caster 
bushing, either the ball at the body end of the diagonal rod or the 
round one where it attaches to the upper arm, probably the latter.  This 
you should be able to pry/pull on and get some motion.

I got a Xmas special (that now seems to be a regular item) of all the 
front bushings and joints for a discount price at Centerline..   you 
might consider something like that..  The old "well they're all that 
old, might as well change them all" philosophy works here if the money 
isn't an issue..  I was surprised at how few of them all had no 
detectable loosness and was glad I did do them all.

Look back for threads on spring removal methods.. I asked everybody, and 
ended up with the basic 4 threaded rods procedure,  with slight 
innovations in stacking washers to shim the bottom nut up so a cheap 
pair of ratcheting wrenches could work without interference under the 
spring pan. You WANT all the help you can get with the hundreds of turns 
of those wrenches!! There should be a writeup I did on that..  Key 
points:  3/8" rods, coarser thread than smaller stock,  need to be 9-10" 
long,  find washers that fit flush under the spring pan for spacing.. 
and find that pair of low budget ratcheting wrenches (mine were $7-8 at 
Ace) at some hardware store..

I don't know how badly a ball joint can fail.. I think they rarely 
separate.. just get loose and clunky.. and probably exponentally worse 
once they get rather bad.

Check your steering box for cracks,  the steering arm for play or the 
shaft having some play on internal box bushings,  and the idler arm on 
the other side of the car. 
If the steering gear is good,  you replace all the bushings with tight 
new ones.. you will have a fine front end that will feel wonderful and 
responsive..  I've been enjoying mine!

Jon
77 Spider
Irvine, CA


> Time to start working on the Spider ('73).  I'd like some advice on checking 
> the front suspension. Alas, my garage is outdoor & small, so I can't really 
> work on it until it gets warm enough out, otherwise this would have been 
> done months ago...
>
> Anyway, my spider makes a bit of a clunk up front when I apply the brakes.  
> According to the bible, I had thought it was the bushings, but after 
> listening to Klick & Klack a bit, I just want to make sure it's not a ball 
> joint or something more serious (at least the bible makes the bushings sound 
> non-fatal)
>
> I've got the car on blocks as I'm doing some coolant work anyway, so the 
> car's not drivable, either.  Any advice as to what I should look for?  I 
> opened the CarDisc but just found a bunch of stuff on toe-in & the like...
>
> Thanks in advance
>
> - - Matt
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