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Part 1 Front Suspension
First it is necessary to ascertain what parts are required and have them all available before starting to strip down the front end. This not only saves a great deal of last minute
running round for that odd part, but also ensures that on Monday morning the car will be ready for the drive to work!
Parts required:
a) 2 x springs
b) 2 x shock absorbers
c) 2 x suspension gaiters -part no. UKC4981
d) 2 x tie wraps for suspension gaiters -part no. BMK1900
e) 2 x bump stops
f) 2 x ball joint dust covers -part no. UKC3466
g) 2 x ball joint nuts (Y2" UNF Nilock). If castellated, use part no. LN2211.
h) 1 x bag of assorted split pins
i) 2 x damper unit closure nuts (supplied with shock absorber -check)
j) 2 x strut to suspension mount nuts (12mm Nilock) part no. NY112041
k) 6 x suspension mount to body nuts (8mm Nilock) ~ DO. GHF252
l) 2 x spring insulator rubber
m) 1 x tin of copper grease
n) 1 x tube of silicone grease.
Note: items c, f, g, L and 1 may not need replacing but may break when being dismantled Similarly Nilock nuts (items j and k) should not be used more than once. Now is the time to
decide which shock absorbers and springs are to be used. My personal preference for shock absorbers is the Koni heavy duty
adjustable type. These cannot be adjusted when in position on the car and are mainly adjusted for wear. The alternative is the Spax heavy duty adjustable insert. Both are widely available from Triumph specialists
and after-market suppliers. In both cases I would advise only adjusting them by a maximum of two half turns from the softest setting. If adjusted further, the ride stiffness will become seriously affected which, in
turn, will affect the overall comfort of the driver and passenger. I have often heard the words: "...screw'em up as far as you can and she will stick to the road like glue" -my only comment to that is
"how's your back and do you know a good welder'. I leave you to decide.
The springs are a much greater problem. I have delved deeply into reference books and flies to come up with the following statistics:
Front Springs
TR7 -manual/auto/heater P/No. TKCI328 Spring rate 881bf/in
TR7 -manual/auto/air con P/No. TKCI329 Spring rate 941bf/in
TR8 -UK spec with heater P/No. TKCI329 Spring rate 941bf/in
TR8 -USA spec with air con P/No. TKC3088 Spring rate %1bf/in.
Rear Springs
TR7 -nearly all models P/No. TKC3300 Spring rate 165Ibf/in.
TR7 -Italy & Japan P/No. TKC2404 Spring rate unknown (assumed 165+)
TR8 -early Coupes P/No. TKC3300 Spring rate 1651bf/in.
TR8 -all models USA & UK P/No. TKC2404 Spring rate unknown.
This still does not answer the question of changing the balance of the car when going from, say, 88/165 to 200/190 front/rear
configuration. However, I will leave further comments to people with better qualifications than mine in that field. The standard TR7 has a rear spring rate of 1651b f/in., with the genuine TR8 being a little
stiffer. Bearing this in mind the usual uprate
is 2001b f/in. The only other variable is the ride height. This is controlled by the length of the spring which can vary from
1/2" to 2" shorter. My personal preference is to go for the 1/2 lowered as it drops the wheel into the wheel arch a little without reducing the ground clearance too much. If considering either 1" or
2" lowered, bear in mind if you will be carrying passengers and/or luggage in the boot and on what type of roads you will be travelling. Many an exhaust system has been broken by Lowering the suspension too
much without any real material gain to road holding.
When carrying out my conversions. I have opted for the Triumph Tune (MOSS) 1/2" lowered 200lb f/in springs. These are also
classed as progressive as they become stiffer the further they are compressed (ie on heavy cornering). One serious word of warning, NEVER be tempted to reduce the length of the springs by cutting them shorter
yourself -this could have terminal consequences.
The last item on the agenda is the bump stop. The original TR7 ones are too long and will need to be replaced with ones of the
correct length. The originals could be cut to length, but it is simpler to buy the correct ones when buying the springs. From the above you may feel that I have spent money unnecessarily, in the long term all the
parts mentioned will need replacing as the cars are now at least 16 years old- its easier to do it as part of a major rebuild rather than in six months time when you should be enjoying the fruits of your labour.
Believe me. I speak from personal experience!
Now that all the parts have been assembled it is time to carry out the work I have endeavoured to put into chronological order for simplicity .
NOTE: I tend to use Copper Grease wherever possible as it inhibits rust and stops corrosion between steel and aluminium surfaces.
Very useful if parts have to re stripped down again at a later date.
1) Disconnect the battery -earth lead first
2) Loosen the nuts on both front wheels.
3) Remove the rubber bung on the top of each suspension turret
4) Slacken but DO NOT REMOVE the nut at the top of each suspension strut -part no. ULC2435 in the diagram. leave a full nut on the
thread -this may also require :an allen key or other suitable tool.
5) Jack up the car and place axle stands under the chassis rails by the front of the gearbox.
6) Lower the jack so that the axle stands take the weight of the front of the car
7) Remove the front wheels.
8) Work on one suspension leg at a time so if there are any doubts where a part fits you can refer to the other side.
9) Release the brake pipe from the suspension leg. Care is necessary here and probably some WD40. Do not disturb the brake pipe
union.
10) Undo the three brake calliper and steering arm bolts noting the position of the spacer washer.
11) Slide the calliper away from the disc and tie it up to one side.
12) Undo the nut holding the ball joint assembly to the suspension strut
13) Now for the difficult part which will require an extra person. Position a crow bar over the anti-roll bar and under the
sub-frame and push down. At the same time, using two hammers together, hit opposite sides of the ball joint taper. The two actions should free it -in extreme cases it may need a bit of extra muscle. Joint splitters
can re used but they tend to destroy the dust covers.
14) The suspension leg should now be free. so the three nuts on the top of the turret can be removed and the leg taken from the car.
15) Using a pair of spring clamps, compress the spring until the top mounting is loose, then remove the top nut ULC2435.
16) Carefully layout all the parts as they come off the leg and check for wear. Attention to detail at this point makes re-assembly
much easier.
17) Undo the damper unit closure nul (this may cause a problem depending on the type of nut used) and remove shock absorber.
18) Inspect the leg for any damage and clean off any surface rust
19) Read instructions for adjusting and fitting the new shock absorber. carry out the necessary adjustments and refit it after
lightly greasing the barrel.
20) Begin re-assembling the leg. fitting new parts where necessary. Smear silicone grease over the thrust collar Part No. UKC329. DO
NOT USE ordinary or copper grease. Fit the gaiter to the top mounting before sliding it inside the new spring. At the same time fit the new bump stop.
With the new spring compressed replace the top nut. Now for the tricky bit pull the bottom of the gaiter over the chassis leg and secure it with the tie-wrap. Remove the spring compressors. The leg is now ready to be refitted to the car
21) Before refitting the leg. check that the bushes and ball joint in the track arm are serviceable -if showing signs of wear they
will need to be replaced before the next MoT.
22) With the leg in place re-assemble in reverse order 13) to 8). Check tighten all nuts and bolts and tighten to the correct torque
where necessary .
23) Repeat the procedure for the other leg.
24) Before refitting the wheels, check the operation of the brakes and steering
25) After removing the axle stands and refitting the battery leads, check everything is secure then take the car for a lest drive.
26) Recheck the wheel nuts
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