Skip to main content

4 replies

I've Set the Front Toe, It Measures Right But It Doesn't Look Right

R rrs1Member

I understand alignment pretty well, but am still confused about setting Toe. Using my Fastrax alignment tool, you measure the difference across the front of the two tires, and the backs of them. The difference is total toe. Right now I have about 1/8" toe in which is fine, but my outer tie rod threads are not even. One is turned in quite a bit more than the other. Is it possible to have correct alignment like this? Are even threads on the tie rods just a matter of centering the steering wheel? I can take the steering wheel off and center it manually for that matter. 

This is a new rack. I thought I had it evened up when I put it on, but obviously not. I have driven it a little, and seems to be okay, but it still bugs me. Looking at the front of the car, one tire appears to be toed out from the body more than the other, even though toe is correct. 

 

Last edited by George P
Original Post

Replies sorted oldest to newest

bosswrenchbosswrenchMember

We find many Pantera chassis that are not perfectly centered in the body, for a whole variety of reasons. Some appear to have been factory-assembled that way. There were at least three different welding jigs used at Vignale Coachbuilders and quite possibly they were not perfect copies of each other. And collisions over the last 45 years- however well repaired- can move panels around a bit. As long as the chassis is set correctly and handling is OK, you can spend thousands of dollars in a frame machine correcting what may well be a cosmetic defect.

But if you continue digging, you may uncover news you will wish you hadn't found: one owner was concerned about differing rear wheel clearances side to side on his car when trying a pair of giant rear tires, and finally found that his beloved Pantera had had a complete replacement rear clip installed....

kirkevanskirkevansAmeriSport GT5-S builder Pantera Parts Vendor

Starting with the current steering  wheel positioned straight forward, rotate it to the max each way and see where the final position is left to right. If it is turning farther one way than the other, figure the difference and see if the corrected position adjusts out on the tie rods. Your steering wheel will now be positioned turning left or right with the tires straight. If it does correct once you make the adjustments, either pull the wheel or adjust the splines from the shaft at the rack to re-center the wheel. If you make the adjustment at the rack, remember to pull the bolt totally out or the shaft will not come off the rack. If you make the adjustments at the wheel, look to see if the blinker cancel cam is in the correct position. It should be to the left centered on the blinker once the wheel and tires are positioned straight. This will most likely not re-align the steering perfect so you will need to tweak the tie rods one final time but it will be very close. 

Hope this helps.

kirkevanskirkevansAmeriSport GT5-S builder Pantera Parts Vendor

Didn't reads your last paragraph, sorry. The front of the Pantera tapers in so the wheels always look like they are towed out. If it is worse on one side with the car rolling straight, check the back spacing against the fenders to the tires. I have seen some of the worst repairs ever on Pantera-s so you could be suffering from a dumb ass body shop hack job. If it drives OK enjoy the ride---no one will ever see it but you.

Add Reply

Views: 382
Post

Membership Required

We're sorry. You must be signed in to continue. Sign In or Register
×
Are you sure you want to remove from your Block List?
×
Loading...
×
When you block a person, they can no longer invite you to a private message or post to your profile wall. Replies and comments they make will be collapsed/hidden by default. Finally, you'll never receive email notifications about content they create or likes they designate for your content.
Note: if you proceed, you will no longer be following .
×
Link copied to your clipboard.
×