<VV> Listing to the Left (humor?)

[Tony]

At 1936 03/24/2004 -0500, Louis C. Armer, Jr. wrote:
>Hey Ian, This is a common problem among EM's. and especially
>63 and 64 models. The "dunlop" syndrome develops over an undetermined
>period of time since different owners have different eating habits. The
experts
>in this syndrome are Tony Underwood and Lon Anderson 

Uh huh...  Ooohhh Kaaay  Chuckie...   you know that Lon and I both know you
and we know you're gonna be in Lexington soon.  

And how come you didn't mention Hank?   Is it because he foolishly got rid
of his early?   

>who are both active
>on VV and I am sure they will respond quickly to your post. If you are in the
>Central division, Director Joe Robbins may be able to help you !!!<GGG>
>Does your Corvair attend a lot of Cruise-ins at Fast food eateries??? <GGG>


>///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
>At 03:52 PM 3/24/04 -0800, you wrote:
>>I have a 63 Corvair that is listing to the left.  It has a 64
>>rear suspension.  It didn't lean when I got it, so it has
>>happened relatively gradually.

First, check to see which end is being bad.    Jack up the car via the
center of the front crossmember and check the ride height of the car to see
if the lean is being caused by the rear springs (common).   It's pretty
easy... yard stick at the mid-point of the rear wheel well, works for me.   

If the car sits level when supported by the jack in the center of the front
crossmember, it suggests one of the front springs are at fault.   Usually a
front spring will sag in concert with its twin but not always...  although
on occasion one spring will break and the car will lean to the "soft" side.
  You may or may not hear the spring break and you may not notice it at
first.   By the way, this can also happen in back.   

It is possible one of the shocks is bad, and sticking, causing the car to
hang up in a high or low condition.   Bounce the car on each corner to see
if it settles high or low, and to see if it feels excessively stiff or
rough during the jouncing.   


>>A visual inspection of springs, shocks, etc doesn't show
>>anything bent or broken ( I haven't driven it much ).  The lean
>>seems to be about the same front and back, it is about 1.5
>>inches.


Uh... Chuck might have the answer here.   Does the car lean with or without
the driver seated inside...?  And how well fed is the driver? ;)   


>>What should I look for?

It's likely to be sagging springs if you're sure nothing appears broken.
Keep in mind that a front spring can break at the top coil inside the
spring pocket and the break may not be readily visible.   Does the car make
any noises up front if you negotiate bouncy rough roads?   What happens
when you put your weight on each corner of the car?   Have someone measure
the sag while you do this, see if one side (front and rear) sags more than
the other side.   

Of course, you could always simply replace all the springs and be done with
it.    


tony..