o No: My 1969 Buick GS350 is a little cockeyed If you are standing behind my GS, the right side is sitting higher than the left by about 2 inches. I was told by the seller that the car was never in any type of collision. I was thinking that maybe the shocks and springs should be replaced. After all, the car is 34 years old and all that equipment looks original. I am also hoping that the whining noise the wheels or front wheel bearings are making, might just go away if I do this. (shocks and springs). Any feed back about the high right thing would be helpful! Aloha!:grin: Scott Bolter Pearl City, Hawaii
Easy fix. The problem was that all of the bodies and ammo slid to the left side after taking a hard right turn. Solution, either dump all evidence or use it up quickly. :shock: Sorry I didn't have anything useful to say, but the setup was too perfect :laugh: .
Springs & Shocks..... Dan and Group, If I am going to go to all the trouble to replace the rear springs and shocks then the front as well, if my intentions were to replace any worn front end parts like control arms, ball joints, bushings and such: would it be best to do this while the car is up and has the suspension out? If there is anything anyone can think of that I should do while I have the front end apart, let me know... Scott Bolter Pearl City, Hawaii 1969 GS 350 in the works
Scott - from the looks of it, you're committed to fixing this fine example of Buick Muscle from soup to nuts !!! I hope i can be of help to you along the way - Im not an expert but know a bit about the '69s having owned a few other than my current crop over the years.....also have lots of parts i can help you with along the way. As for your Q - is the whole side of the car sitting lop-sided or just the back or front ?? After sitting on the original springs for 34 years they do sag quite a bit. My '69 Skylark sits about 2.5" lower all around on its original springs than my GS Conv. does. Next time I have the GS out of the Garage I'll snap some pix of them side by side. Not only will a new set of springs and shocks fix the Look but it will also give it a much better ride. If you're comitted to the project, you can redo the complete suspension systems front and back along with all the steering components up front. Upper and lower control arm bushings (front and back), end links, center link, pitman arm, tie rods, ...the whole deal. Companies such as Just Suspension and Spsupension technologies offer most of it as a Kit. Its also a good time to Box the rear control arms and add a sway bar back there if you dont have one. Be prepared - you'll be turning your marshmellow into a slot car:grin: :TU: The ride will still be good but alot more crisp - night and day. Add fresh tires and you'll think you went to heaven the next time you throw 'er into and exit ramp. The only real choice to make is to use original Rubber or Graphite impregnated Poly Urethane bushings. Rubber has more of a stock float to it where poly is stiffer. If you go Poly, mkae sure its the graphite impreg. type as it reduces squeeks. Just got back from your State and i Loved it.....sorry we couldn't hook up All the best
take a car that sets reasonably level parked on a level area with no one in it and measure from each corner of the car to the ground. put a driver of 200+ pounds in the seat and measure each corner of the car and compare it to your previous numbers. now unhook the sway bar end links to simulate broken or missing sway bar bushings and measure the corners again with the driver in the car. a correct and healthy sway bar install plays a pretty big part in how the car will set especially with a driver in it. if a car happens to set for an extended period of time with some tires being flat and some being aired up, the sway bar over time may end up with a pemanent twist that will contribute to an unlevel ride and inconsistant cornering. dont skimp on the sway bar stuff .... plus, big bars make the corners a lil more fun too. on old pontiacs this problem could get magnified by the battery being mounted on the drivers side of the car. rotsa ruk!!
Right side only Just to mention after I took a look at the car from the front end and the rear end. The right side is higher on the right side both front and rear, or the left side is lower...You chose!o No: Thanks for all the teamwork! Scott Bolter Pearl City, Hawaii Q: How do I apply my name where I live and car type permanently, so I don't have to keep adding to each post and new thread? Aloha
There is a button at the top right of this page that says "user cp". Click on that and then click on "Edit Profile". When you get to that page there is a box towards the middle of the page that says "Signature". Use this box to specify what you want your permanent signature to say. This will then appear automatically every time you post a message on the board.
sag beside weak springs , better check the rubber body mounts . if they have rotted away on one side more that the other , u will get sag . gerry
Replacement(s) Aloha, How easy or difficult is it to replace body mounts? While I am doing this is there any other part of my resto that I should do, or is the body mount replacement job not so in depth that I should worry about anything else. Same question goes for the springs and shocks. It appears that the rear are going to be easy to replace and someone already told me just to use KYB shocks, are they suitable?. I was thinking of buying new springs with a 1/2" drop all the way around (lowered). Any pos/neg feedback on that? I am keeping the 350cid if that matters to anyone. Now the front I was told will require a bit more time and skill. Any leads on the best way to tackle this job and what else can I do while I am down in the front end, or should I let an exp. mechanic do this part? Thanks a bunch!
the rear shocks are actually harder than the front. the bottoms will come easy, but the tops are hard to get to becuase of the spring and your exhaust (assuming you run normal tailpipes). also, the bolts have nuts on the top that must be held with a wrench in a tiny little space...not fun.
and you get rust and dirt specs in your teeth...any eyes. it does suck. You'll look like a coal miner when you're done with the rear shocks. Although when you touch any part of a car you'll look like you've been hit with a grease gun.
