5625's New Front End

[Trstno1]

Hey guys –

So this winter I had decided I would use my D’s down time in order to restore the front end. I had some rust on the frame that needed taking care of, so I figured since everything was going to be apart anyway, it would be a good time to upgrade/restore everything and lower the front end for a look something like this:

48872

So, first I dismantled the whole front end including the steering rack.

4887948880


I chipped away all the loose epoxy from the frame, sanded down any rust, and prepped the metal for buildup. I was lucky to have no holes in any metal. Just the perfect time to be cleaned/re-sealed. I ended up using 4 coats of POR 15 (kind of watery), and then multiple layers of paint to bring the front of the frame back to a color match with the rest of the frame.

48873488744887548876

Then, it was time to purchase parts….always fun!

After much research I decided on the following parts: I know people will have certain opinions about some or all of these parts, but no matter how you cut it, the results should be a huge improvement over the 36 year old stock parts that were in there previously-

 Front end recall kit – DPI
 New DMC Steering rack – DMCMW
 Font end nuts/bolts - DMCMW
 UCA’s w/ new upper ball joints – DMCMW
 LCA’s (black aluminum) with new euro lower ball joints – DeloreanClub.uk
 Front Lowering Springs – DeloreanClub.uk
 Front Spax Shocks – DeloreanClub.uk
 ARB poly bushings – DeloreanClub.uk
 Lower U-joint assembley – DeloreanClub.uk
 ARB and steering knuckles were just cleaned up and re-painted.

4887748878

I already have the steering rack and the front end rebuild kit in:

488824888148883

I am also excited to say that I have next week off from work and was hoping to get everything back together and get my D back on the ground for the first time since November! :headbang:


I'll post progress and any questions I have along the way.

[Morpheus]

Just finished this job myself, and it's a lot of work. But, the end result is completely worth it!

[Rich_NYS]

Looks great, what did you use on the hubs?

[Trstno1]

Just finished this job myself, and it's a lot of work. But, the end result is completely worth it!

I'll bet!! Can't wait!

[Trstno1]

Looks great, what did you use on the hubs?

My bearings on the hubs are good, so I just cleaned them up and sprayed them with a bronze paint to freshen them up a bit.

[DMC-81]

Looking really nice! Love new parts! Congrats.

[Trstno1]

Alright guys-

Starting to put things back together!

Though I do have a few questions:

What should be connected to the front suspension prior to torquing the shock absorber to spec? Should I have the lca, uca, arb, and steering knuckle installed first?

Also, I faintly remember reading that certain suspension bolts/nuts should be torqued to spec once the vehicle is sitting on its tires. Which ones were they?

Thanks ahead of time! :wrenchin:

[Morpheus]

The suspension bolts that should be torqued with the weight on the suspension are the pivot bolts for the UCA, LCA, and the lower shock mounts. I installed the knuckle and torqued the ball joints and spindle before jacking up the LCA and torquing the pivot bolts. Keep in mind that this is only necessary if you are using OEM rubber bushings. If you are switching to poly, it isn't required... but i torqued mine with the suspension loaded anyway.

In addition, the front sway bar can't be installed or torqued properly without the wheels on and the weight on the suspension.

[Trstno1]

For the love of god!! Can anyone tell me what tool I need to use in order to properly torque the lower nut on the upper shock? I can't seem to find any combination of tools that will allow me to get a 3/8" torque wrench on that sucker. I just don't have the clearance required. And when the manual says 20lbs torque is that the bottom nut or the top one?

[ATTACH=CONFIG]48925[/ATTACH

[Mark D]

The new front end is looking great! I second what Brandon said in regards to torquing the pivot bolts with the suspension loaded.

If you're looking for the correct torque specs be sure to review the service manual and the related service bulletins that revised some of the values, especially for the ball joints.

http://dmcnews.com/bulletins/ST-09-7.81.html
http://dmcnews.com/bulletins/ST-24-10.81.html

[Mark D]

For the love of god!! Can anyone tell me what tool I need to use in order to properly torque the lower nut on the upper shock? I can't seem to find any combination of tools that will allow me to get a 3/8" torque wrench on that sucker. I just don't have the clearance required. And when the manual says 20lbs torque is that the bottom nut or the top one?

[ATTACH=CONFIG]48925[/ATTACH

If I'm remembering correctly when I torqued these on my car I ended up having to use a regular open ended wrench due to the same lack of clearance. The listed spec is there mainly to prevent you from over tightening and stripping out the threads on the shock. Unless you go full gorilla mode tightening the nut down you should be OK doing it by feel. Or you can buy open ended crows foot to attach to your torque wrench and do a conversion on the torque value due to the slight addition in length to the moment arm. More info here. http://www.finishing.com/118/94_crows_foot_torque.shtml

I'm usually a stickler when it comes to torquing bolts but in this case I went by feel since there is the jam nut on top which is really what prevents the nut from backing itself off, not the torque spec/clamp load on the fastener. Most of the tightening will be compressing the bushings on either side of the frame. And you'll get to 20 Ft-lbs before completely compressing the bushing.

From your photos it looks like you're using the cupped washers supplied from SPAX. In the past these have been known to be too thin and they bend and distort after use allowing the bushing (and the top of the shock) to chatter in the frame. The stock cupped washers are more robust so you can reuse those instead, or I think DPI has a kit along with poly bushings to replace the weaker SPAX washers and rubber bushings.

[Trstno1]

The new front end is looking great! I second what Brandon said in regards to torquing the pivot bolts with the suspension loaded.

If you're looking for the correct torque specs be sure to review the service manual and the related service bulletins that revised some of the values, especially for the ball joints.

http://dmcnews.com/bulletins/ST-09-7.81.html
http://dmcnews.com/bulletins/ST-24-10.81.html

Yup, I've got all the torque specs and will definitely torque the pivot bolts with the suspension loaded. Do you actually put it back on the ground for a time period prior to torque? I imagine lowering the front end onto ramps would provide enough clearance right?

[Trstno1]

If I'm remembering correctly when I torqued these on my car I ended up having to use a regular open ended wrench due to the same lack of clearance. The listed spec is there mainly to prevent you from over tightening and stripping out the threads on the shock. Unless you go full gorilla mode tightening the nut down you should be OK doing it by feel. Or you can buy open ended crows foot to attach to your torque wrench and do a conversion on the torque value due to the slight addition in length to the moment arm. More info here. http://www.finishing.com/118/94_crows_foot_torque.shtml

I'm usually a stickler when it comes to torquing bolts but in this case I went by feel since there is the jam nut on top which is really what prevents the nut from backing itself off, not the torque spec/clamp load on the fastener. Most of the tightening will be compressing the bushings on either side of the frame. And you'll get to 20 Ft-lbs before completely compressing the bushing.

From your photos it looks like you're using the cupped washers supplied from SPAX. In the past these have been known to be too thin and they bend and distort after use allowing the bushing (and the top of the shock) to chatter in the frame. The stock cupped washers are more robust so you can reuse those instead, or I think DPI has a kit along with poly bushings to replace the weaker SPAX washers and rubber bushings.

Ahh....good to know. Might you have a photo on how much I should be crushing the bushing with the lower nut prior to putting on the top nut? Also, do you think the spax cupped washers will be ok for awhile or is this an immediate thing that needs to be taken care of prior to mile 1 on the new suspension?

[Mark D]

Yup, I've got all the torque specs and will definitely torque the pivot bolts with the suspension loaded. Do you actually put it back on the ground for a time period prior to torque? I imagine lowering the front end onto ramps would provide enough clearance right?

Right now, I'm just scratching my head on what combo of tools I need to properly put 20 lbs of torque on the upper shock bolt. I can't seem to find anything that will clear the tight space. What did you do?


To load up the suspension I just put a floor jack under the LCA and compressed the suspension until the car just about lifted off the jack stands it was sitting on. I'm not sure how else to do it since once the the wheels are on you lose good access to the bolts you need to tighten.

What you're really going for is to tighten everything with the suspension in the position where it would be when the car is 'neutral' sitting on the ground. That way there is no preload twist on the bushings from being tightened with the suspension at full droop. As Brandon said though, if you've got poly bushings it's not so much of an issue since the inner sleeve of the poly bushings can rotate freely, unlike the stock rubber bushings that have the inner sleeve vulcanized to the rubber.

I posted more on that upper shock bolt too if you see my previous post. :-)

[Trstno1]

Today's progress!

[Mark D]

Ahh....good to know. Might you have a photo on how much I should be crushing the bushing with the lower nut prior to putting on the top nut? Also, do you think the spax cupped washers will be ok for awhile or is this an immediate thing that needs to be taken care of prior to mile 1 on the new suspension?

I do!

Here are a couple pics (sorry not the best quality) but it looks like I had the bushings pretty much all the way compressed.

I'm still actually running the stock SPAX washers myself as seen in these photos, but this summer I"m planning on swapping them out. I check them from time to time to make sure they are not loose and so far they're OK. Others have had them fail though so if you can't get to it now I'd still put it on your to-do list. If you can get to it while you're in there now though it'll save you having to take a second trip 'in there' to fix.

http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=48930&d=1486961082

[Trstno1]

I do!

Here are a couple pics (sorry not the best quality) but it looks like I had the bushings pretty much all the way compressed.

I'm still actually running the stock SPAX washers myself as seen in these photos, but this summer I"m planning on swapping them out. I check them from time to time to make sure they are not loose and so far they're OK. Others have had them fail though so if you can't get to it now I'd still put it on your to-do list. If you can get to it while you're in there now though it'll save you having to take a second trip 'in there' to fix.

http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=48930&d=1486961082

Awesome, thanks! Much appreciated sir.

[Trstno1]

Hey guys-

I have mostly everything back together. How ever I'm having difficulty with getting the locknut on the tie rod end to suck down to the knuckle. I get to the nylon portion of the locknut but then the shaft starts spinning. Does anyone have a tip to get it to bite and tighten up? Thought I should ask prior to using a jack to put some pressure on the bottom of the tie rod end.

[Mark D]

Hey guys-

I have mostly everything back together. How ever I'm having difficulty with getting the locknut on the tie rod end to suck down to the knuckle. I get to the nylon portion of the locknut but then the shaft starts spinning. Does anyone have a tip to get it to bite and tighten up? Thought I should ask prior to using a jack to put some pressure on the bottom of the tie rod end.

Using a jack to try and stop the ball joint from spinning will probably work since you'll force the tapers together be more like likely to stop shaft from spinning. Just be careful not to put too much pressure on the back side of the tie rod end and crush in the thinner material around the joint.

You could also try using an air impact gun if you've got one (set on low setting) to spin the nut on past the nylock part. Then switch over to a torque wrench once the nut has pulled the tie rod end tight enough to start engaging the taper lock.

I used a cordless drill on mine and just pulsed it a few times to get the nut to spin on without the ball joint spinning.

Hope that helps!

[Morpheus]

I used a floor jack to apply light pressure to the bottom of the joint so the taper seats all the way. You don't need much. Don't forget to torque it properly before you finish.

[Trstno1]

Thank you for the reply!

[Trstno1]

All Finished!!

I think things turned out rather well. I wish I could take her for a drive but it will be awhile as I still have 7ft. of snow in the front yard.

489584895948960489614896248963

After I was done, I completed a poor man's front end alignment, but not really sure how accurate it would be since our cars do not have a solid rear axle. Though I figured it would be a little better than eye balling it. It should be good enough to get it to an alignment shop this spring.

4896448965

My completed ride height on the front hovers between 24" - 25" depending on how many times I roll it over my highly uneven garage floor and copress the front end. The lowest it seems to stay at after doing so is 24". I'm hoping it settles around 24" all said and done. I guess time will tell.

4896648967

I want to thank everyone who chimed in with help. Much appreciated!!

[DMC-81]

Looks awesome! Congrats!

[Mark D]

NICE JOB! I bet it was awesome when the wheels touched down again and it was finally back on all four.

Love the white letter cooper cobras too. Did you paint the white on the fronts yourself?

[Trstno1]

NICE JOB! I bet it was awesome when the wheels touched down again and it was finally back on all four.

Love the white letter cooper cobras too. Did you paint the white on the fronts yourself?


Actually the front tires are not painted at all. I went to Tredwearletters.com and got them to print me rubber RWL's for my car. The end result looks pretty good, albeit in that picture they are quite dirty....

[Morpheus]

Great job, that looks awesome! It must suck to not be able to drive it right away, though. Mine was down for 10 weeks and I couldn't wait to drive it when I was finished...

[Trstno1]

Great job, that looks awesome! It must suck to not be able to drive it right away, though. Mine was down for 10 weeks and I couldn't wait to drive it when I was finished...

Yeah....that's pretty much exactly where I'm at. Though I'll just move on to the next project, new DMCH seat covers!

[Will F.]

Im getting ready to rebuild my entire brake system and front end. Sick of the blown universal and clunk from the passenger side. Yours looks like it came out great.


Will