Steering Problem on LeMons Race car

[Dinodan]

We have a serious steering / front end issue on our 1973 Fiat Spyder LeMons race car. Symptoms are as follows: Once off center, effort is required to restrain the steering wheel from going all the way to full right or left lock. Furthermore, the steering does not self-center and the wheel remains turned until a conscious effort on the part of the driver returns it to a straight ahead position. It feels to the driver as though he’s fighting a giant rubber band that is constantly pulling the steering wheel one way or the other. Naturally, all of this makes the car almost impossibly difficult and tiring to drive, while eliminating any steering feel and seriously compromising car control. We cannot race the car until this is resolved.
Our best guess is that this is a caster issue, but before we go any deeper we thought it would be a good idea to solicit some input from the forum. Any ideas and suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[divace73]

If it was fine previously it cannot be caster, to change caster, the shims will have to be changed. More than likely its the idler arm, they can gum up and cause those sorts of issue, disconnect the drag link, if it easy to turn you know it the idler box, of still hard its's the steering box.

[Dinodan]

If it was fine previously it cannot be caster, to change caster, the shims will have to be changed. More than likely its the idler arm, they can gum up and cause those sorts of issue, disconnect the drag link, if it easy to turn you know it the idler box, of still hard its's the steering box.

Actually it was never fine as long as we've had the car. It's a POS that we turned into a Lemons (search "24 hours of lemons") car starting about two years ago. We've tried to run a couple of races, but with the atrocious handling and a variety of other issues, we never got very far. It does seem somewhat unlikely for the caster to go out of spec, so your suggestions are very good and we will follow through on them. Thanks!

PS Your car is gorgeous! I didn't know that they made any with RHD.

[divace73]

!

PS Your car is gorgeous! I didn't know that they made any with RHD.

Many thanks, FIAT never made them is RHD, it's actually a Californian car, we are fortunate Fiat did make RHD 124 coupes to supply the RHD parts

Re the steering, does it still have the original suspension set up? also have a good check on the bushes.
It might be wise to take it to a wheel alignment place to see what the current set up is so at least you have a starting point.
I still think the idler bx will be the culprit, I have heard them snapping off in some instances...

[vandor]

If the crossmember is separating form the body, then you will get very strange alignment and all kinds of steering issues.
1. Check that the crossmember is secure
2. Check alignment. You can do it yourself with a digital level, just look up online how to calculate caster.

[So Cal Mark]

maybe the upper arms are on the wrong sides

[JJorda]

I can't comment too specifically since I'm new to the Fiat world, but is it possible something is bent? Cars for LeMons dollars often have a questionable history. Maybe previous hidden accident damage?

My real (but off topic) comment - which race do you enter? I'm preparing a '71 coupe for the August 2015 New Jersey race.

[bobplyler]

It sounds like the upper control arms were reversed. This causes negative caster, and is almost impossible to drive. The curved part of the upper control arm should be on the front.

[Dinodan]

My real (but off topic) comment - which race do you enter? I'm preparing a '71 coupe for the August 2015 New Jersey race.

Hi. We're in Charleston South Carolina, and so far all the races we've done have been at Carolina Motorsports Park (about a 2 1/2 hour drive from here). LeMons does two races per year there, so our next chance will be sometime around March if they stick to the usual schedule for 2015.

[Dinodan]

It sounds like the upper control arms were reversed. This causes negative caster, and is almost impossible to drive. The curved part of the upper control arm should be on the front.

Well, "almost impossible to drive" sure sounds like our car. I will take a look at those control arms today. Thanks!

[Dinodan]

If the crossmember is separating form the body, then you will get very strange alignment and all kinds of steering issues.
1. Check that the crossmember is secure
2. Check alignment. You can do it yourself with a digital level, just look up online how to calculate caster.

Thank you. We had the car professionally aligned before the last attempt (I hesitate to call it a "race") and it made virtually no difference. We'll check that crossmember. Believe it or not there's quite a bit of rust on the underbody.

[Dinodan]

Thanks everyone for the great input. The upper control arms are indeed reversed, with the curved part to the rear. Problem solved!

[So Cal Mark]

and a "professional" alignment didn't catch the completely wrong caster angle? I'd ask for my money back on that one

[Curly]

and a "professional" alignment didn't catch the completely wrong caster angle? I'd ask for my money back on that one

My thoughts exactly. It should never have left the shop with that set up - indefensible

[ga.spyder]

I have driven this car in Lemons races,and had a blast at it.As Dan said,''evil handling'' hits the nail on the head.I had it spin on me in turn one with no input on my part. The alignment that was done on the car was a botched job.We could visually see that the tires were askew,and we tried our best to fix it with a string and plumb bob in the garage. Now I understand why it didn't help!! Hope you guys get her back on track...I love driving that car.
Dan,are you planning on driving,or are you taking over as team manager?
Craig