Suspension setup help Options

[75ninefourteen]

I've been researching the 914 suspension (factory setup) due to the fact I noticed my car was lower on the driver side. I want to make adjustments prior to getting new tires an know this should be set before getting an alignment. Plus I would like to try and understand the modifications made by POs.

Details:
* '75 914 with 1.8
* Springs/Shocks replaced on 6/23/00 at 45,881 miles (~68k miles now)
* Springs changed to 100#
* Bilstein Shocks (F4-B46-0179-H0 == 24-001793)
* Shock is set to the top most groove (6 grooves total)

As of right now, I've adjusted to get fender heights match side to side when comparing the front or the rears. I should also mention the rear fenders are about 1.5" from the top of the wheel rim.

Taking a measurement from the "donuts" on the underside the front sits 1 inch higher than the rear. (Front == 6.75" and Rear == 5.75"). I still have some adjustment left in the front to lower, but not sure how low the car should be lowered. My understanding is the rear should be slightly higher.

Center of the wheels measure right at 12" and the torsion cap is 7.5" (center to ground). Based on the manual I should technically need to raise the front to get back to within factory specs, but I know the car isn't running factory springs.

From what I've gathered, this current setup might have been more for autoxing rather than street driving.

All that said I am trying to get some clear answers about factory setup:

* What is stock height and where should I get a measurement from?
* To raise the rear suspension height, is to adjust the shocks and spring location? I have spare shims for the trailing arm, but if I am following correctly this is only for alignment purposes.
* What's a good way to see if rear shocks/springs are wore out? Pushing on the front bumper. I feel like the fronts should be replaced. So my guess is the back is probably due to be replaced after 25 years.

Thanks for the help in advance.

[75ninefourteen]

Thought I would add a couple pics for reference

[rjames]

IIRC, the stock height is taller than most like.

I adjusted mine to look like most of the other 914s I see, so I can't give you exact dimensions of what you should be aiming for. Your rear ride height is similar to mine, but my front looks lower. I like for the front to be a little lower than the back, but not so much that it stands out.

What I can offer is that you need to ensure that you're car is on level ground to get it right. Any adjustment you make on one corner can (and likely will) impact all other corners. If you're not on level ground to start with, you'll be making adjustments in the dark.

[bkrantz]

You might know this, but the factory spec for front ride height is based on the angle the A-arm makes. And the rear was not adjustable.

Be careful using fender openings for comparing ride height since even the brand new cars had some variation from side to side.

[Montreal914]

Weren't the north american cars set higher in the front due to headlight minimum height regulations? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)

[IronHillRestorations]

The factory ride height is the difference between the center of the front wheel and the center of the torsion spring. The stock number is 90mm +\- 5mm. This is measured with a half tank of fuel and the driver’s weight in the left seat.

Raise the front to unload the torsion springs to make adjustments, otherwise you can break the adjuster screws.

I like the front of the car to be a little lower. I measure along the bottom pinchweld, as far rear before it curves up, and as far forward before it curves in towards the center. About 1/4” lower in front seems to work well. You can go a little lower but never higher in the front.

[75ninefourteen]

Thanks for the feedback. I know that the front should be lower than the rear. I just stopped at this point to see where I was at with measurements. And based on the manual and using calculating out the "proper" height I was that I was already around an 1.25" lower than what was recommended in the book. Main item I wanted to be sure of is that I'm not to lower and should just match up with the height of my rear. And from what I can see its adjusted to give max height now.

Initially when I started, the front driver side adjustment was all the way at the top making it as low as possible. Which made the car visibly lower on that side. I basically adjusted to match the passenger side height were it was. I am on level ground and was only using fender height as a reference to see if there was sag anywhere. I was using underbody points as the main reference.

I think I will start off by getting a full tank of gas in the car before I make any more adjustments. I think it only has about a quarter of a tank now.

I plan to swap out the rear shocks since they're 20 years old at this point. Fronts as well, I think they might be older since I didn't see any notes on them being updated.

Thoughts on changing out the rear springs as well? Any recommendations? From what I have read the 100# rating is a nice upgrade? I see 914Rubber sells a set.