Wheels/Suspension (8)
Using the supplied spanner, loosen the lower tightening ring (1). The idea is to thread up (2), the bottom adjuster part of the strut. This will shorten the length of the strut, lowering the car. If you want to raise the car- thread it down, to lengthen the strut and make the strut longer.
I took all three rings and locked them together. This made it easy to use the spanner and turn the entire strut in the direction I needed it to go to extend or shorten it.
Here is the strut in it's lowest position. Take the bottom ring and lock it down to the lower mount.
To explain this another way-
- upper gold collar adjusts preload
- lower gold collar locks upper preload collar
- lower mount in blue adjusts ride height
- collar in red locks blue lower mount in place.
Ideally you just want the gold collars barely snug against the spring. If you add preload and start to compress the spring, you will have a very very tough time adjusting ride height while the shock is on the car. This is because you are supposed to spin the shock body up or down in the blue lower mount. If the gold collars are pushing too hard against the spring, they won't let the shock body spin, and you won't be able to adjust ride height.
What about using the rings to lower the car by bringing the spring down? That's not how this system is designed. The two top rings used for the spring are to pre-load the springs. Lowering the car by adjusting the springs will damage the system. In simplest terms, it may allow the dampers to bottom out- exactly why we paid money for a high performance suspension system versus using factory parts- so it doesn't bottom out. Don't do it!
What is pre-loading and how do you do it? Loosen the lock rings and take all the preload off the springs till they hang loose and you can move them up and down between the perches. Then move the spring perch up, turning with just your thumb and index finger till you feel some resistance and cannot turn any more easily. Secure the lock ring and that should be a good starting point. This would be 0 preload.
Setting a higher preload gives the Magnum less of an initial dive/pitch under braking or acceleration. This is good to have as you want to keep the car as even as possible. You dont want to take weight off the wheels that you want to keep down during heavy acceleration or braking.
When you put the weight of a corner of a car (probably around 700lbs) over your spring it compresses to absorb that weight. With 400lb spring, it will compress about 1 3/4". So, if you start with the lower collar so that it is just tight enough to hold the top of the spring against the upper perch this would be 0 preload. Raise the collar 1 3/4", and you now have 700lb's of preload. (arbitrary #'s for the sake of illustration.) Since you have preloaded the spring, the same weight as the car's corner, when you put the car on that spring, it will not compress at all, and will simply sit on top of the spring. If you were to hit a bump, the force would still compress the spring the same amount it normally would if you had set the spring to 0 preload. Now if you set the spring to say 900lbs of preload, when you hit the bump (say its a bump that generates around 250lbs of upward force), the spring will compress much less b/c the spring is already beyond the load specified to absorb the bump. Since there is only 50lbs beyond the preload, the spring will only compress about 1/8th inch, and the car will likely be launched over the bump.
You will likely never ever preload a spring beyond the weight of the corner of the car it is on for that exact reason. Springs are there to absorb bumps, if there are any bumps at all, this is a bad idea.
What good is preloading the spring then?
It can provide you with more suspension travel in certain situations. In the ideal world, having the spring at 0 preload would place the piston inside the shock exactly halfway through it's stroke (middle of shock) once the car's weight is resting on the spring. This is almost never the case. By preloading the spring, you can adjust the amount of rebound, or compression travel you have in the shock. If you preload like 200lbs, this will give you more compression travel, and will help keep your Magnum from bottoming out when cornering. You have to be careful though, b/c you don't want to sacrifice too much rebound travel, or you could cause all sorts of other problems.
Almost everyone reccomends a preload of 0 for general street use.
1: Remove the shock. Two bolts up top, one in the bottom.
2: Loosen the upper locking ring.
3: The lower ring will be the one that is moved to raise or lower.
4: Move the lower ring in this direction to lower the car. Move it in the opposite to raise it.
5: Install the shock again. Adjust it so there is no slack- meaning that once the bottom bolt is put through, adjust it so the top is already sitting up with the shock tower. You shouldn't need to use the bolts to suck it all together.
Remember to take measurements of how one side is done, then duplicate this on the other side. Make sure both sides are equal in everything you do.
How to adjust the firmness of the ride.
Each shock and strut comes with these handy dial adjusters. They are pretty self explanatory. Set them hard for the track or soft for the street. They have 30 different adjustments. Whatever you set it as, just make sure you count them off and make them the same on the front and the same on the rear. Each axle needs to be the same.
How do I have my suspension set up?
1: I have my lower mount adjusted as far up as it will go. This is the shortest position for the strut, so the lowest my front will go.
2: I have a distance of exactly 2 ¼" between the very bottom of the spring, and the very top of the lower mount. This preloaded my spring to a 0 at least, because I can still turn it with my hands, although it's pretty stiff.
3: For driving around town, having my dampness set at the softest was ok. When I took my car on the freeway, it bottomed out on a couple of bridges. I played with the settings, and right now I have them set at this- start at the softest- and I turned them 13 clicks to the hard side- both fronts.This stiffened up the ride a bit, and we're still playing with these settings.
The distance between the ground and the wheel well (top, tires at 35PSI, 275/40/20" tires) is 28½", exactly for both front wheels.
The Rear:
In my car, I have the rear set up like this. I have a 1¼" space between the bottom of the bottom ring to the bottom of the rear collar.
The distance between the ground and the wheel well (top, tires at 35PSI, 275/40/20" tires) is 28¼", exactly for both rear wheels. The rears are a quarter inch lower than the front.
Here is the car at it's maximum height.
Here it is at it's minimum height.
Measurements from the center of the hub to the top of the wheelwell.
STOCK SUSPENSION:
On Ground Rear= 17.5"
Off Ground Rear= 21.75"
On Ground Front= 17.75"
Off Ground Front= 21.75"
BCRacing Coilovers (MAXIMUM HEIGHT)
On Ground Rear= 16"
Off Ground Rear= 20.5"
On Ground Front= 18"
Off Ground Front= 21"
BCRacing Coilovers (MINIMUM HEIGHT)
On Ground Rear= 13.5
Off Ground Rear= 18.5
On Ground Front= 15"
Off Ground Front= 18"
Now we needed to find way to get at the adjusters in the rear. When we had the shocks out, we drilled a small pilot hole up through the top shock mount. It put a small hole in the plastic in the back. Then we took a 1 1/4" hole saw and made two holes. Then we took some sandpaper and cleaned it up. Now we can make adjustments to the rear shock dampness when we need to from soft to hard. Then we bought some 1 1/4" metal plugs to put in the holes for a cleaner look.
With all of that, here is the final stance.
Now that you have seen what we did, you can view all of the photos in a larger format. Just click one.
Now that the front is done, lets tackle the rear. It's only fair to let you know that the rear is more difficult to do than the front. Even though there is less to undo, the lower control arm is tricky to get back in and get the bolt through. Having two jacks helped a lot.
Jack up your car and remove your wheel. Secure the jackstands and ensure you are working safely.
Don't tap on threads with a hammer to push these balljoints out. Use a puller. You can rent them for free at most quality auto parts stores.
|
|
Start by removing two upper bolts for the rear shock. |
| The bottom of the shock is held in place by a single bolt. Once you remove it, the entire shock can be removed. |
|
|
|
Next, we need to start removing the bolt that holds the end of the lower control arm to the rear cradle. You'll only be able to get it out so far before... |
|
You run into this- the rear exhaust is in the way. So we'll need to either drop it, or do what we did- raise it just enough for the bolt to *almost* clear. This is where the second jack came in handy. We simply raised the exhaust enough for the bolt to come out. It's still tight, but a bit easier getting the bolt out than dropping the exhaust. |
|
|
|
This picture doesn't show it too well, but the top arrow shows how the lower control arm is seperated from the cradle, the the lower arrow shows how the control arm is actually dangling down. Once it is down, you can remove your old spring in preparation for your new one. |
| Remove the old lower spring rubber. In this photo, we used some spray lubricant and ran the new spring inside it. It was a bit easier getting it on this way. |
|
 |
Now install the upper collar into the spring, and then the spring into the car. With this kit, there was also a rubber gasket that goes between the collar and the body. You'll need to remove the rubber spacer that the stock spring was sitting in because you won't need it. |
| With the spring installed, you can install the rear shock. |
 |
|
|
Now that the spring and shock are installed, you can install the lower control arm. |
Some tips on installing the lower control arm.
In the summer of 2009, we came across this thread- http://www.lxforums.com/board/showthread.php?t=178617 about coilovers for the AWD LX platform. We jumped on it, because at the time of this writing, finding any performance suspension parts for the AWD cars is tough. KW makes coilovers for the AWD platform, but they come at a high price.
Fast forward to November 2009 and their arrival. We're going to go over the initial install and fitment of them for anyone wanting to tackle this job themselves.
The coilovers are made by BCRacing and supplied by CircuitMotorsports.net. The actual coilover kit we are installing is the very first prototype kit made. This install serves as the test install for the manufacturer.
With that, lets go into the install.
Jack up your car and remove your wheel. Secure the jackstands and ensure you are working safely.
Don't tap on threads with a hammer to push these balljoints out. Use a puller. You can rent them for free at most quality auto parts stores.
|
|
Start by removing the outer tierod. Remove the bolt and use a puller to push it out. Don't tap the top with a hammer, you will damage the threads. |
| Remove either the top or bottom of the stabilizer link. We remove the top. You'll also probably need a 3-jaw puller to push it out |
|
|
|
Now we need to continue by removing the lower shock assembly. Start by removing this nut and the bolt that tightens down around the strut. |
| Next, remove the bottom bolt from the lower shock assembly and the lower control arm. |
|
|
|
With the outer tierod out of it's way, push the bolt out. You'll notice that the shaft is knurled just below the head. You can't twist it out, it has to be pushed out. |
| Once the above steps are completed, you can pull down on the lower shock assembly and remove it from the car. |
|
 |
The strut is now just being held in place by the three bolts up top on the strut tower. Have someone hold the shock to prevent it from falling out, then remove the three bolts. Your strut will now come out the bottom. |
| Installation of the new strut is the reverse of removing it. Here is a photo of it installed. |
|
Back up to 2006. When we bought this car brand new from Hanna Dodge it had the stock wheels on it.
However, that didn't last long. Within a couple of weeks, some new wheels and tires were sourced out for it. Deep dish rims were out because of the all wheel drive offset. So after much deliberation, a set of 20" Boss Motorsports rims were decided on. I've had a lot of people write to ask about the offset and the AWD. These wheels are 20 inches tall, 8.5 inches wide with a 40mm offset. Out tires are Hankook 275/40/20's.
It was time to straighten out the brake calipers on this car. I was debating on a couple of different ways to do it. There are the aluminum caliper covers you can buy or I could do the regular paint. The aluminum ones are expensive, and I did find some plastic ones on eBay that were a lot less money, but I know that you get what you pay for, and $200 for caliper covers is out of the question at this point. So lets get down to business.
WARNING! Always have the vehicle under inspection on level ground, in park with the emergency brake on. Always wear protective eyewear, gloves and necessary clothing before inspection or work begins. Always have an operational fire extinguisher close by, obey all first aid instructions in the event of an injury. Never move a car without proper brake pedal operation.
Also, this tutorial is less on how to change your brake pads and more on painting the calipers. I found a great tutorial on changing the brake pads on this website, and thanks to them for letting be borrow a couple of pictures. Credit has been given...
I bought the Duplicolor Caliper Paint at my local auto parts store.It was about $16.
First I removed the front wheels (only the fronts are done at this time, the rear are for next weekend). I needed to clean them up. I used the supplied brake cleaner, followed by a wire brush on my grinder. This cleaned them up really good, but make sure you wear a respirator or something to protect the air- you'll be releasing some yuckies and you don't want to breath any in.
Once you have them clean, you can start dissassembly of the brake system. It is only 4 bolts total. The first two bolts remove the caliper, then two bolts to remove the caliper mount.
When you remove the caliper, DO NOT just let it hang by the brake line. It's heavy and you'll cause damage to the line if you do. Damage to the line can be fatal... Use something- wire, or I used really heavy duty tie wraps to anchor it up and keep the pressure off the brake line.
Now two bolts hold on the pad retainer unit. Undo them. You can then pull off the caliper mount, then once it's off you can pull out your brake pads. Make a note of how the pads are installed. Look at the wear indicator on the inside pad in particular, and if you need to, now would be a good time to change out the pads. Carefully remove the pads, the pad support plates (the little clip-like things at the top and bottom on each pad), noting the way they are installed and their sequence. The pad support plates may be stuck to the calipers with grime and crud. Gently pry them out. Clean any crud from the caliper in the area where the caliper mounts go. Clean up the caliper mounts.
Start painting. Follow the instructions in the package. Use lots of coats. Wear rubber gloves.
I used no less than 6 coats of paint on all these parts- a little more than half the can of paint. I left the rest for the rear calipers. You need lots of coats, because the paint goes on splotchy, and you need to keep adding coats to even it out and smooth it up. Wait 15-20 minutes between coats, and don't wait more than an hour or you'll have to wait 5 days for the VOC's to escape the paint.
Once you got that straightened out, wait overnight and let the paint set. The next day- put it all together in reverse of how you took it apart. A while ago I got some Brembo decals off eBay. I used them on this project. However I do have some new Mopar decals coming so they'll be going on instead. I had a comment on the decals and I agree with what they said. I've been meaning to change them out but needed the motivation to get it done.
View a slideshow of all these photos in a higher resolution.
REAR CALIPERS
One week later I did the rear calipers. Here are some photos.
In March 2010 I bought and used the Tuff Shine tire clearcoat. In short, I will NEVER, EVER use any other type of tire shine product ever.
In February 2010, We decided to finally install our rear shock adjusters. The BCR coilovers have adjusters to firm up or soften the ride by turning the knob on the top of the shock. It has 30 levels of adjustment from nice and soft for the street to rock hard for the track.
Naturally, we jacked up the car removed the wheel.
When we originally installed these, we didn't know there were rear adjusters. We cut a 1" hole to allow adjustment, then found out these adjusters were available. We used some steel plugs to fill in the hole. However, with these adjusters, we just drilled a hole through the plug to allow the cable to come out. If we had known about these adjusters , the large hole wouldn't have been put in.
We didn't need to pull the shock right out. We just un-did the top bolts and compressed it down to install the adjuster.
After that, we needed to cut to size the inner cable and outer sheath. This cable is just like a brake cable on a bike, just a lot larger.
In that last picture we put the plug back in. Once that is all done, repeat for the other side. Lastly is as simple as installing the adjusting knob. Just be sure it's snug when you tighten the small hex screw in. We have checked our final sizes and are happy with the results.
Here are the final results. Now we can make fine tune adjustments to our suspension firmness right from the trunk even easier than before.
Click on any photo for a larger version.
