When i returned from last weekend's gig and unloaded the band's P.A. at the singer's house, i could hear a squeak coming from the rear of the hearse. (not a vehicle you want to hear strange noises coming from behind you late at night) I thought i may have worn through a shocker bush/rubber, so i went to the suspension place that deals with the casino's limo's. they have stuff for gm's that aren't publicly released here. the guy gets under, and i hear the dreaded words: "F%#@enhell!" (that means money). on further inspection, i could see his concern. apparently its a common problem on early gm "holden" vehicles produced here in the same era. Have to now reinforce the upper mounting plate end weld up the crack. I was so happy the way the machine pulled the 80 miles to and from the gig with all the gear, and now so disapointed. oh well, it was a test. apparently, 4X4 shocks are the way to go. has anyone seen this before? ideas for reinforcement would be appreciated. you can see my introduction here: http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=76356 PS, apologies for the pic size, i'm new at this...
Wow. Probably a lot of extra weight with it being a hearse and all. Find a new piece maybe or weld up the crack and then weld up a plate over it to reinforce?
Well, I guess it was up to me to find an answer to the problem, and not being an engineer, like everything, the repair was over-engineered! don't think it will happen again. had the fire-extinguisher on standby, too.
Nice welding Are you sure big heavy 4x4 shocks are the way to go? The shocks are supposed to dampen shock to the suspension, not take the place of the proper springs. If you put shocks that are too stiff in there, it's going to transfer enrgy right to the frame again- think of the extreme example of welding a steel tube up instead of the shock. Some people put in air shocks that prop up the car....ugh. That's what the spring is for. It makes me shudder to think what is happening to the shock mount and spring perch In my opinion, many people beleive that shocks that are too weak are to blame for poor ride and low ride height, when in fact that's the area that springs should have the most to do with. Also in my opinion, your damage was caused by a shock that went bad, not a shock that wasn't stiff enough. My advice would be to check out the spring rates and select an appropriate spring for the loads you carry
No, the 4x4 idea is gone now, the current springs are useless. a decent set of springs are on the cards, and i'm considering air-bags (please don't hate me), and we're looking for a trailer for the gear. i'm not loading like that again.
Not to bounce up and down, just to have a comfortable ride height when loaded, and to dump on the ground when parked. I reckon that looks COOL!
