Dan, I suggest getting an exact measurement on the wheelbase. Make sure the steering wheel is straight. Measure from center of wheel to center of wheel on each side. Sometimes it's easier to measure from the front edge of the front wheel to the front edge of the rear wheel...you get the same measurement either way. Anyway, you shouldn't have any more than about 3/16" difference at most. Some cars have as much as 1/4" tolerance but I think that's a bit much. If it's off more than that I suggest taking it to an alignment shop and having them check for 4 wheel alignment. They can tell you what's going on with the computerized systems they have now. If the rear end did shift, then you definitely have more of a problem that just sliding it back in place...the alignment pin must be damaged. Must be all that power. Glad I didn't have to race YOU now! Let us know what you find.
Dan I don't think that the strap caused the problem, we didn't have it that tight, a couple of things that have been mentioned: the bolt that goes down the center of the spring, if its broken a parts store will have it, it keeps the springs from shifting side to side or slipping out , if you never noticed it before it could have been that way since you had the car and never knew it, when I drove a tow truck before I used to chain the ambulances down very tight on the rear axle and front suspension and never had a problem with any alignment of sorts, also bushings or slightly bend shackles or bushing holes can cause this, last but not least maybe one to many buffets!! keep me informed.
Hmm... My '74 Grabber leans to the passenger side also. The driver's side rear tire seemes to be wearing out alot quicker then I expected. It had about 50% tread when I put it on and now 5,000 miles later it's almost bald. I'll have to go check this stuff out to...
I'm inclined to agree with everyone about the alignment pin or bolt. If the spring plates were just a little bit loose,when you pulled the strap down tight in the trailer you probably shifted the axle. Like mentioned above, take a mesurement from the center of the front wheel to the center of the rear wheel on both sides and compare them....they should be the same. If not, loosen the spring plates on the side that seem to be back further and see if you can move the axle forward by hand, repeatedly checking the measurements untill they are the same. If it's too diffucult to move by hand, you may have to use a come a long to pull it back into place. The alignment pin or bolt is in the center of the spring plate, mounted to the axle housing. Sometimes they break off or fall out, allowing the spring plate to move. Make sure the spring plates are TIGHT when you do get it back in alignment.
I would believe something happened on the drag strip before I would believe a "strap" did something to it.
I Really Don't Believe That A Strap Would Move The Axle, I've Hauled Cars And Vehicles For Many Years And Have Never Had An Issue With A Rear End Moving, If A Strap Moved The Axle That Much Then There Was A Problem Before We Hauled The Car, Look How Many People Hauled Cars To The Roundup And No One Else Had An Issue, I'm Not From Missiouri But Show Me!
If the axle plate was already loose you could very easily have slide the axle. Just think, you are pulling from two differnt directions, if the axle was allready loose it could have easily shifted. Some cars have a rubber mat between the spring and axle plate, I'm not sure about Fords, if the rubber was missing or rotten it would leave a gap equal to its original thickness.....thus permitting the axle to shift. You wouldn't even notice it missing untill you took off the spring plate or the rear moved. Broken U bolt will do the same thing.
Well .. I'll find out tomorrow morning ... gonna put it on jack stands and loosen the u-bolts and see what's up ... One think I do notice ... the driver side u-bolts are pointing straight down perpendicular to the ground ... the passenger side u-bolts are angled slightly with the threaded ends pointing towards the rear of the car. Not sure what this means but they are not the same on both sides. By slight I mean maybe 5 degrees or so ...
Well .. I couldn't wait and worked on it tonight ... The u-bolts on the passenger side were not torked down very tight. The alignment bolt was in the hole on the axle but it had slid out of the hole on the lower shock plate so that is why the u-bolts were crooked since the plate had slid backwards. I got it all back together and although still not 100% level it is closer. The right wheel is still not centered as well as the left wheel ... perhaps I got an imperfect leaf spring and just didn't notice until now that I've been measuring everything. My rear bumper was also sitting slightly lower on the passenger side so it gave the illusion of it being tilted even more than it really is ... I'm also not confident my garage is 100% level so I have to check it in a parking lot or something ...
5 degrees in the length of a rearend can certainly make a difference in the stance from side to side. Paint,, powdercoating, not enough torque on the ubolts,, dunno,, bet it happened when you were drag racing.. your car got really with it and was fish tailing big time. Plenty enough stress to move something that was not completely tight. Have not read back but bet it was the right side. The side that gets the torque. Dan
Yup ... Right side ... If it doesn't level out 100% I suppose I could put a small spacer between the left spring and the axle to level it out ... The car sure looked level when I first completed it last year ...
