Rear adjustment

SciFi, Read thru other threads on alignment. There is one with specific numbers but I did not find it quickly. Personally I prefer 1-2 degree toe in on the rear but every alignment guy will give you his own opinion.

http://pantera.infopop.cc/eve/...562/m/9741014656/p/1

That is the set-up on my car, still is. The very best thing you can do for your car is get someone who knows what they were doing. They set the rear suspension first then the front to go with it. The Mangusta has a racing chassis, all Heims joints, no rubber bushings, so it is "very" sensitive. When set up right it is fantastic.

You want, at the end, a very small "thrust angle". The Mangusta is cottage industry build technology so your car will probably not get to zero thrust angle. A good experienced alignment pro will know what to do to compensate.

My car was fairly close, as you can see by the numbers on the sheet but I literally felt the difference in the first five feet that I drove in the parking lot when picking up the car.

DICK RUZZIN

One more thing,
When I did my car I had new tires and my shocks had been recently rebuilt. All my Heims joints were very tight. You want the car to sit level, use the rocker flange to set that. A little wedge is Ok, about a half inch at the rear wheel opening to get it to look right.

Too much wedge will make the car feel strange in the rearas you will feel the weight shift on turns. Also, good motor mounts are very important as well as two new polypropolyne mounts in the rear bridge. Also make sure that the front wheel bearings are adjusted properly.

The bottom line is that the Mangusta racing chassis has to be treated properly, set up right. Johnny Woods has found that the lack of a Heims joint on the outboard end of the upper rear suspension link causes the excess camber when the rear wheels are jouncing. An easy fix.

It is very likely that the first cars that were road tested by journalists were not set up right and de Tomaso did not have a clue as to the result. He did not know how to launch cars with the press. There was a Road & Track road test where the Managusta beat all comers except for an open wheel race car.

DICK RUZZIN

If the front of your rear wheels are not the same on each side, within 1/8 of an inch, then your rear suspension is out of alignment.

DICK RUZZIN

Thanks for the information. I plan to take the car to a shop which comes recommended by the local Pantera club. They have setup some other Mangustas in the past.

One of the rear suspension wishbones was broken/repaired in the past. I may have to measure it against the other side to make sure the dimensions match.

Do you have a photo showing the location of the rear bridge bushings?

Thanks
Ryan

The rear bridge goes across the rear subframe at the back and at the top. You will see a large bolt on either side.

There are some thin sheetmetal tabs welded to the frame on rach side that the bolts go through. The bushings are in the tubes that the bolts go through, a welded tube on each end of the bridge.

Dick Ruzzin