Fr Track damper install

[PC_GUARD]

I'm going to install my dampers and springs tomorrow. My current setup has MM caster/camber plates. Are they worth continuing to use?

No plans to track the car any time soon, so I won't be changing settings at all.

Any advantage to keeping them?

I'm thinking the "clang" I hear when I hit something square isn't my endlinks but maybe those plates??

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[GregO]

I'm going to install my dampers and springs tomorrow. My current setup has MM caster/camber plates. Are they worth continuing to use?

No plans to track the car any time soon, so I won't be changing settings at all.

Any advantage to keeping them?

I'm thinking the "clang" I hear when I hit something square isn't my endlinks but maybe those plates??

Ditch the plates. They get noisy besides if you purchased the FP kit you’ll have new OEM strut mounts and bearings to install.

 

[PC_GUARD]

Ditch the plates. They get noisy besides if you purchased the FP kit you’ll have new OEM strut mounts and bearings to install.

Fair enough.

Honestly I really didn't/don't feel like screwing with getting them off the oe set lol

Thanks for enabling my laziness Greg

 

[Labradog]

I would keep them. You have no camber adjustment otherwise.

 

[Dave2013M3]

As long as you don't want to go beyond -1.5 deg neg camber you would be fine with just the Ford Racing Track kit. Beyond that you would want to keep the plates or move on to something else.

 

[Labradog]

As long as you don't want to go beyond -1.5 deg neg camber you would be fine with just the Ford Racing Track kit. Beyond that you would want to keep the plates or move on to something else.

I have -1.75 from the BMR min drop springs and have no way to decrease that. If I was doing to do it again I'd put a set of plates on at the time of install.

 

[PC_GUARD]

Everything all in and clocked, only issues was some retardation on my part, that GregO was kind enough to point out.

Long of the short of it, if you're swapping springs or doing what I did (fr dampers steeda springs) and do not have a pass through set, here's a solution that worked for me. Go to local parts store and get an 02 sensor Crawfoot socket, 7/8 is the same size as the top nut. You can get it torqued about 99% of the way, and jam the top nut enough to put the proper torque number with a single socket.

Side note: I got new lower strut bolts and nuts from the dealer, anticipating old ones would potentially be screwed up. The bolts the dealer gave me were NOT splined, I asked the parts lady about it, and she said that's the replacement they use. When I put mine together I used a liberal amount of loctite and torqued them. If there's ever an issue I'll get splined and nylocks.

While on the subject of the lower strut bolts. I can see where this could be an issue for guys. Here's how I drove mine out.

Invert the nuts and flush them with the end of the stud. I loaned my 2lb drilling hammer and only had my 28 estwing framing hammer. I hit each one and realized they're going to fight. I used my 2' pry bar and hit the strut frame/mount at the knuckle, mostly just to shock loose what I could and perhaps prevent any binding. Went to work driving the top one and got it moving, drove my 8" prybar behind the head and pryed while driving the stud, out they came.

While things were apart I replaced my sway bar endlinks, which one was meh, but not gone. Probably a wasted investment but piece of mind.

I installed the bmr 010+762 at the same time everything went very easy, other than doing the shocks last was a dumb move, however while I had everything still mostly dangling, there's a provision in the lca you can get a pry bar in, and stand on it and get the upper shock mount in.


I do not have alignment pins or anything of the sort, and had zero issues dropping the cradle, alone, with just a floor jack under the center member. I had zero issues at all, with any of it, other than I did not end up using the MM camber plates, due to a snapped bolt.

I have never had the rear wheels off, whomever last did had the lugs way over torqued and dinged the threads on the inside of one of the wheel studs. I could not flat file it straight, and had no choice but to impact the lug back on, and will replace that stud this week. Whomever handled the lugs on all my wheels beat the shit out of all of them, and they need to be replaced.

Overall I was about 5 hours of total investment, not going fast and just puttering along. Nothing difficult about any of it.


The one and only issue that's popped up is, my 2 point k brace hits my garage floor going in or out. I need to look at it and see if I can invert it. The garage door keyway in the concrete is about 1 3/4 - 2", ridiculous square edge that I hate.

 

[PC_GUARD]

Heres an update, my former alignment guy who literally was the best guy in the panhandle of florida, lost his shop due to Hurricane michael and he rolled up the cords and is gone. He didnt even have a rack, he worked from a pit in the floor, and did everything old school and no matter what troublesome POS you could bring him, he would get it right.

I asked a buddy who's does lots of drift events who he uses in town, so i got myself an appointment, and the dude didnt knock dick about s550 rears, and apparently too lazy to look at the program to tell him theres more than one rear camber adjustment, I was furious and left before i had an issue. It's close enough for the moment because there is more work to do.


Which brings up another thing. I was pulling my hair out trying to figure out wtf was this initial torque wind "pop" (more like a pebble getting kicked out of a tire sound) never does it happen turning, bouncing, shifting nothing. I re torqued, triple checked, quad check, and figured well when it goes on the rack, and I told them to clock the bushings ( i didnt it but figured have them double check) and the noise is still present.

Now road noise has increased with this setup, not unruly or irritating just more noticeable. Last night i took another drive windows up, radio off, ac off and really listening. I was speculating tires being cupped making a bit "womp womp" noise (and being at -2.5) and on decel i could faintly hear what almost sounded like pinion whine. Very faint, not like my 4.30 gears I had in my SN95 that I paid to have installed that howled for 3 years... anyway I got home and started googling, well the "pop" is an apparent axle nut issue, I am fully convinced of that. Then I wanted to hear some examples of bad rear bearings on these cars and found this, which is more extreme than mine, but same exact thing



I used MOOG in front, and bought timpkin for the back. RA had them for around $50 each. The good news (sort of) I still have to do the lower knuckle bearing (back ordered from steeda) anyway, and I wont have to drive out that bad wheel stud lol..

As far as I know, about 10k miles ago, Ford completely replaced the entire cradle assembly in my car. Did they skip wheel bearings?

I'll get thrust washers and new axle nuts, red loctite. I'll probably do a 3 jaw puller to brake the assemblies off. No sense in fighting stuff, impact, puller and move on.

Lastly and this goes along with stuck or problematic separations, if you dont have this product in your tool arsenal you're wrong. It melts anything oxidated, stuck, whatever, and prevents rust too. My father uses it on his deep sea fishing gear, boat, and stainless isnt always stainless especially on a salt water boat. He goes around with a Q-tip dressing any fastener screw to clean and prevent rust.

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