strengthening bottom arms

[draper]

whats the best way to strengthen bottom arms ? noticed aswell at PV that when high powered novas were launching front wheels were bouncing everywhere which surely isnt good for traction ?? any help/pics would be appreciated

[Big_Chap]

i struggle to see the point in this, the wheel is fixed in place by the tie bar and damper, the swing arm will only be able to move up and down.

[draper]

well is there any strengthening to be done there then ??

[Big_Chap]

weld plates along the bottom to close it up (like a box setion) i was going to do it before i painted them but didn't think it was worth it

[d]

if your rallying or the roads around your area are bad then do it, in fact just do it for the hell of it.
if you plate it right to the end then weld the nuts to the lower ball joint

[draper]

good idea

[Philsutton]

they were probably going all over the shop due to the engine ****ing everything in the engine bay. Im not sure what mine actually looks like when im launching hard but im sure it doesnt bounce an skip everywhere, doesnt feel like it anyway. If they are doing that then they are set up badly. You can strengthen them in the same way that the corsas are done, i.e plate them underneth. You cna use corsa ones but it will kick you camber out, which isnt so good for 1/4 miling.

[draper]

im trying to locate my videos of PV - sure i got 1 of yours phil

are corsa bottom arms thicker than nova ones then ?? and if i used eccentric top mounts could i re-adjust the camber or set them up better, or im i getting confused ??

[Philsutton]

I dont think you could get the camber back to zero with the corsa ones on. Not tried it though so it might work. Oh an you only want the early corsa B ones as they did change later on. Where the novas ones have nothing on the bottom of the lower arm where the bolts go the corsas have plating all the way up with 2 holes in you to get the bolts/nuts through.

[draper]

cheers phil, looks like ill be at the scrappers at the weekend then

[craig green]

Plate them over with some 2mm steel. They are prone to flexing which in turn will allow the tyre contact to be disturbed. This allows wheel spin & shaking of the wheels which Ive seen on many a Nova at the Pod. Shot bushes are also a prime reason. All this needs to be stiff as possible.

Although the TCAs should only travel up & down, try putting 200+bhp through the ends which are pulling the arms forward with the cars weight behind. I think if you analyse it you would agree that the TCAs, Tie bar brackets etc & all the front end is under massisve stresses when braking & accelerating.

Way beyond what GM intended I should think.
Still not see the point?:D

[Saloony]

Or just buy corsa 93 lower arms.

[stuartp]

Phil if ya wont to see yours go up the strip i reckon you could talk me into taking it up sunday!! dont think i would need much bring round tho!! HA!! reckon i'l do this plating to my wishbones!! Any one got pics?

[Stuart]

dont bother with a scrappy lol unless they charge you naff all.

give autovaux a try for new gm parts.... oh and dont bother emailing them, just call them.

[Big_Chap]

Plate them over with some 2mm steel. They are prone to flexing which in turn will allow the tyre contact to be disturbed. This allows wheel spin & shaking of the wheels which Ive seen on many a Nova at the Pod. Shot bushes are also a prime reason. All this needs to be stiff as possible.

Although the TCAs should only travel up & down, try putting 200+bhp through the ends which are pulling the arms forward with the cars weight behind. I think if you analyse it you would agree that the TCAs, Tie bar brackets etc & all the front end is under massisve stresses when braking & accelerating.

Way beyond what GM intended I should think.
Still not see the point?:D

nah mate, i still don't see how they can move, if the bushes on the tca and tie bar brackets are ok.

i which dirrection will they flex? the tie bars/crossmember stops them form going forwards and backwards and the shock stop it from flexing upwards.

if there were no tie bars then i'd say defo box them in.

[draper]

Or just buy corsa 93 lower arms.

is you camber out tho as phil mentioned ??

and yeah stu - new ones would be better :thumb:

[John]

nah mate, i still don't see how they can move, if the bushes on the tca and tie bar brackets are ok.

i which dirrection will they flex? the tie bars/crossmember stops them form going forwards and backwards and the shock stop it from flexing upwards.

if there were no tie bars then i'd say defo box them in.

I reckon the only way to stop a front end flexing is to weld everything up!lol

Has anyone tried driving a nova without tiebars? no didn't think so, just pushing mine around the garage without them used to dislocate the driveshafts everytime!!)

The driveshafts are trying to make a rotational force into a directional force, hence the reason why there's gonna be some movement. even if the bushes are ok, there's still going to be some flex in the front suspension, there has to be. (they're made of rubber? try jacking a standard nova up and see how much flex there is by rocking the wheel side to side, you'll be surprised!)) As the tie bars are loaded up they will naturally pull back from the crossmember.
As cg says, everything has to be as firm as poss to try and eliminate this sort of problem.

[Big_Chap]

Has anyone tried driving a nova without tiebars? no didn't think so, just pushing mine around the garage without them used to dislocate the driveshafts everytime!!)

you think i was actually suggesting driving without tie bars? lol

i wouldn't eve put the car on its wheels without tie bars let alone push it about!

[dabsy]

How much extra width do the corsa bottom arms give on the Nova?

I have been wondering about widening the front and rear track width in an attempt to get better cornering stability on my XE convert.

Anybody done this and can you just use Corsa shafts?

Cheers,

Dave.

[Stuart]

the TCA's can twist if given enough torque. no harm in welding them up tbh.

[Saloony]

is you camber out tho as phil mentioned ??

and yeah stu - new ones would be better :thumb:
Not that ive noticed. Shouldnt be as they are equal in length to the nova ones. Wouldnt have fitted them otherwise.

[stafford]

i put the back axle of a nova and corsa to see the difference and the corsa axle was about 2 - 3 inch wider. so thinking about it they would be longer

[draper]

i put the back axle of a nova and corsa to see the difference and the corsa axle was about 2 - 3 inch wider. so thinking about it they would be longer

but we're talking about the front lol

[stafford]

wel if you look at a car the wheels at the front would usually be the same distance appart from the wheels at the back

[draper]

yes but how they mount front and back is different - mounting points on the front could be further in/out and bottom arms longer/shorter but where the wheel ends up is the same

i know what i mean but cant explain it lol