RideTech Tru Turn System

[dragonfly jones]

How did you make out with big block header clearance? I have a complete front ridetech kit coming this week and have Hooker super comps / 454

This still seems to be the million dollar question.

[bret]

I just wanted to share with every one what I dreamed up. This allows me to run 5.5 - 6 inch back space, you can use any spindle and it cost me $30 bucks a side. I have it on my 67 and 69. I have been running it on my 67 camaro for 8 years now, no issues, no bump steer.
It allows the tie rod to tuck inside the rim. Attachment 110357Attachment 110356Attachment 110358Attachment 110359

Can you define "no bumpsteer", as in a direct toe angle change throughout the suspension travel? Also, can you determine the amount of steering radius loss?
Hard to tell from the picture...did you reposition the inner tie rod ends as well as the outer?m

[q67]

Hi Bret , Nice to chat with you, this was some thing I came up with on my own, to allow the rim to fit without hitting the tie rod. I am not a suspension expert, but when I mention no bump steer I mean the steering wheel does not dart left or right when I hit a bump. As for Steering radius lost I have nothing to compare it to , as I made the mod along with all the other changes at the same time.
No I did not reposition the inner tie rods and I know that they should be lowered also to keep the geometry correct but it has not adversely
affected steering - handling.

[67SSDan]

This is pretty interesting to me as my setup just needs a hair more clearance. I did some digging, and apparently people have been swapping tie rod ends for heim joints for a long time (probably not news to anyone but me) in the 4x4 / offroading community. Turns out Baer even sells a kit like this for our cars.

Bret, is it the angle of the bar leading to the tie ride end that makes a difference, or the length of all these things together that wrecks stuff? Eyeballing my setup, it looks like the only thing that would slightly change would be that angle I mentioned a second ago as the heim joint isn't as thick as the tie rod end (which gives me the clearance I need).

Thanks for the education.

Dan

[darren@ridetech]

q67... The only way to determine how much bumpsteer you currently have would be to measure it. You might be surprised at how much bumpsteer one can "live with" during normal street driving. You also would be surprised at how much the driveability of a car can improve when eliminating the bumpsteer.

67SSDan, both the length of the tie rods and the angle affect bumpsteer. I've seen some extreme cases in which you can see that a car has a bumpsteer issue simply by looking at... but to get anywhere in the ball park of "acceptable" you must measure it.

[67SSDan]

67SSDan, both the length of the tie rods and the angle affect bumpsteer. I've seen some extreme cases in which you can see that a car has a bumpsteer issue simply by looking at... but to get anywhere in the ball park of "acceptable" you must measure it.

Interesting. Is that measuring something anyone can do, or does it take special equipment? Can you point me in a direction here?

Thanks for the input. Good stuff!

Dan

[BonzoHansen]

Interesting. Is that measuring something anyone can do, or does it take special equipment? Can you point me in a direction here?

Thanks for the input. Good stuff!

Dan

might help

http://www.longacreracing.com/techni...e=Bump%20Steer

[SSLance]

I dialed in my bumpsteer using my lift, my homemade alignment jigs on each front tire with laser pointers attached to them pointed at sheets of grid graph paper 7' in front of the car. I cycled the front suspension up and down (with springs removed) and charted how much the laser pointers moved in and out during the travel, then made an adjustment on the Baer tie rods ends and charted again. It was time consuming...but the result was great. It is amazing how just a little change on the tie rod end height can affect the bumpsteer changes during suspension travel.

Some shops have a jig that they use to pull the front suspension down on the alignment rack to check and adjust bumpsteer which is pretty cool as well as another option. This keeps from having to pull the front springs.

[JakeD]

Say I run the Hotchkis 2" drop on my 67 firebird. Would these spindes drop the car furthur? Would the be compatible with the aftermarket control arms/shocks/springs?

[MCB Matt]

Say I run the Hotchkis 2" drop on my 67 firebird. Would these spindes drop the car furthur? Would the be compatible with the aftermarket control arms/shocks/springs?

The spindles will drop the car exactly 2" further than it is already with the stock spindles, assuming the springs are already installed. If they are not, it is VERY hard to say where the car will sit as stock coil's sag over the years, may have been cut, swapped, ect..

The tall spindles are compatible with SOME tubular upper arms. not all! We do carry the correct arms for tall spindles.

The spindle has no effect on the spring/shock other than the height of the coil.

Matt

[DarkoNova]

Say I run the Hotchkis 2" drop on my 67 firebird. Would these spindes drop the car furthur? Would the be compatible with the aftermarket control arms/shocks/springs?

I don't know how similar the arch of the fender opening is on a 67 Camaro compared to my 69 Nova, nor do I know how the inner wheel wells compare, but on my 69 with 2" drop Hotchkis springs, I had to get adjustable coil spacers. The springs combined with the spindles had the inner wheel wells basically sitting on the tires.

[JakeD]

Hmmm... Well that is some food for thought... I do not want a 4" drop. Its either one or the other I suppose.

[JakeD]

I don't know how similar the arch of the fender opening is on a 67 Camaro compared to my 69 Nova, nor do I know how the inner wheel wells compare, but on my 69 with 2" drop Hotchkis springs, I had to get adjustable coil spacers. The springs combined with the spindles had the inner wheel wells basically sitting on the tires.

The spindles will drop the car exactly 2" further than it is already with the stock spindles, assuming the springs are already installed. If they are not, it is VERY hard to say where the car will sit as stock coil's sag over the years, may have been cut, swapped, ect..

The tall spindles are compatible with SOME tubular upper arms. not all! We do carry the correct arms for tall spindles.

The spindle has no effect on the spring/shock other than the height of the coil.

Matt

So I guess if you are going to install the tru-turn system, you may aswell match with the UCA/LCA and coil over shocks from ride tech as well? What about sway bars.. Any preferences? Should I add Hotchkis sway bars or the Muscle Bar from ridetech?

[MuscleRodz]

So I guess if you are going to install the tru-turn system, you may aswell match with the UCA/LCA and coil over shocks from ride tech as well? What about sway bars.. Any preferences? Should I add Hotchkis sway bars or the Muscle Bar from ridetech?

I would run everything from ridetech rather than mixing and matching. You will be very happy with ride quality and performance especially if you switch to coil overs.

[DarkoNova]

So I guess if you are going to install the tru-turn system, you may aswell match with the UCA/LCA and coil over shocks from ride tech as well? What about sway bars.. Any preferences? Should I add Hotchkis sway bars or the Muscle Bar from ridetech?

Yeah, I'd get a sway bar from ridetech. I was running a 1 1/8" Hotchkis bar and the tires hit it at full lock so I took it out. A musclebar is next on my list.

[JakeD]

So I am considering of ordering a Level 2 ridetech setup with front/rear muscle bars & the TruTurn setup. Big investment I know... How is it for everyday driving? Im not on the track everyday. To be honest, I never really am, but i like carving up the road. Is it durable? Will i be able to get the suspension serviced if it breaks? I am a bit skeptical as Hotchkis seems like a sure thing, simple to work on and easy to fix. The ridetech system seems more involved. This is difficult for me as I live in Vancouver, and there isnt a shop right around the corner that deals RideTech.

Also, Currently I am running a 10bolt GM open rear end. If i go with the 4 link, I plan on replacing my rear end at the same time I do the suspension upgrade (Kind of a 48 hour Firebird). Now, in the 48 hour Camaro videos, they ordered a GM 12 bolt from Moser. I have been looking into it and have decided to also run the 12bolt GM from Moser. I am just curious if I can get the brackets for the 4 list RideTech Suspension already fabricated and welded to the rear end as they do on the 48 hour Camaro. Don't see anything on their website... Maybe i will have to call them long distance?

[Kcorrigan2]

So I am considering of ordering a Level 2 ridetech setup with front/rear muscle bars & the TruTurn setup. Big investment I know... How is it for everyday driving? Im not on the track everyday. To be honest, I never really am, but i like carving up the road. Is it durable? Will i be able to get the suspension serviced if it breaks? I am a bit skeptical as Hotchkis seems like a sure thing, simple to work on and easy to fix. The ridetech system seems more involved. This is difficult for me as I live in Vancouver, and there isnt a shop right around the corner that deals RideTech.

Also, Currently I am running a 10bolt GM open rear end. If i go with the 4 link, I plan on replacing my rear end at the same time I do the suspension upgrade (Kind of a 48 hour Firebird). Now, in the 48 hour Camaro videos, they ordered a GM 12 bolt from Moser. I have been looking into it and have decided to also run the 12bolt GM from Moser. I am just curious if I can get the brackets for the 4 list RideTech Suspension already fabricated and welded to the rear end as they do on the 48 hour Camaro. Don't see anything on their website... Maybe i will have to call them long distance?

So, I happen to own another one of the '68 test mules that RideTech used to design and test some of these same parts...Velocity was the 48-hour Camaros predecessor and I can tell you that Ridetech does not build parts that fail. The reason the race these cars and beat in them is to find weak points and correct the design. By the time the parts are available to the public for sale they have been refined a few times and are as close to bullet proof as a part can get. That's why I bought Velocity when I had the chance. I do believe that Hotchkis builds good parts as well but if you are concerned about having the rideTech parts repaired...don't worry about them...they will outlast your car provided you don't wrap it around a tree or something along those lines!

[MCB Matt]

Keith pretty much covered it in one shot!!

For you apparent intended use of the car, a bolt-in kit like this is a solid choice. You see to have done some shopping. I do sell both brands too and they both have their place in the market. If you have the means and the knowledge the build and learn to drive the car on a 4 link and coil overs, I don't think anyone would suggest you go any other direction.

Warranty claims are few and handled with class. It's what you expect as a consumer and what distributors like us appreciate so much, we stay busy enough chasing things we shouldn't have to... This is one less.

The ride is very street compliant and can be tuned or driven into a weekend AX or Road Couse/Race, and as Keith said, you can beat the snot out of it.

It's a requirement mainly because the owner can break just about anything!! He is the perfect test pilot

Matt

[medici78]

What kind of camber are you guys with Novas or Camaros running?

[Josh@Ridetech]

What kind of camber are you guys with Novas or Camaros running?

For a street car, we recommend -.5° to -1°.