The front end of my early 70's Dart was aligned about half a year ago and the adjustments are still tight as far as I can see. In the last few months, the car has slowly begun to wander on the road, and it turns quickly at the slightest touch of the wheel. I'm not a good alignment guy, but have been told that too much toeout can cause this. Any other ideas?
Thanks!
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Kent engine

Sounds like a good possibility - toe out. You want 1/16" - 1/8" toe in for the street.

Lou

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Home of Slant6-powered fun machines since 1988

i would look into caster as well, that has a bigger affect on turning and wandering

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'72 Valiant DD for over a decade-225-Disc brakes, big T-bars, big Sway bars f/r, carter bbd/super six, GM HEI, 2- 12" subs in trunk, 1000w amp...
'77 cherokee cheif widetrack-360-33x12.5 tires-no lift. keeps driveway dry-project/backup DD/mudder

any sag in the torsion bars or adjustments made? Its unbelieveable how much that effects the alignment!

No adjustments of any kind since I've had it, and the problem started a few weeks after I got it. Didn't hit anything or go over any hard bumps. I'll be checking the toe tomorrow. The car also dips the front end a little bit as you come to a stop: dip dip dip (slowing down)dip.dip....dip.......dip and so on till you stop. Don't feel this when cruzing. You can actually see this when stopping if you watch the front of the hood. I was wondering if one of the disks was a little warped.
Anyway, thanks for the responses!
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buy scale

do you feel any thump thump thump in the brake pedal or does the steering wheel wobble in time with the dip? Ive heard of brakes causing a pull but not just a general wishy washy wander. First of all I'd inspect all the parts GOOD-ball joints, bushings, etc, and probably "spring" (cough the money up that is) for a set of shocks. How do the tires look? A bum tire can make the car do all kinds of weird stuff, they effect handling and control more than most give them credit for. Even replacing a set that may "look" ok with a better or cheaper grade, can make a noticeable difference. Pressures equal? and high enough for the car?

This is a definite danger sign; deterioration in handling to this extent over a period as short as a few months typical driving, and soon after somebody was working on the front end (alignment) indicates something may be coming loose or ready to fall off. I would immediately do a thorough front end inspection, and check all nuts for tightness, cotter pins in place, etc.

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1964 Dart 225 1966 Valiant 225
1966 Dart 273 1966 Barracuda 273
1969 Dart 225
'64-170 engine '66-170 engine
(two) 198 crank/rod sets in custom-fitted wooden boxes

wooden motor scooter with hybrid-electric drive

dusty has a good point. you should throw it on some jack stands and get those wheels off and look around. if your toed out enough to cause drivability probs your gonna experience drastic tire wear. toe out will wear on the inside of the tread.

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'72 Valiant DD for over a decade-225-Disc brakes, big T-bars, big Sway bars f/r, carter bbd/super six, GM HEI, 2- 12" subs in trunk, 1000w amp...
'77 cherokee cheif widetrack-360-33x12.5 tires-no lift. keeps driveway dry-project/backup DD/mudder

I'd sure look at the strut rods while checking the suspension.

On a Mercury Monarch's shake-down run after a front end rebuild, it started acting very strangely. Sure enough, a strut rod bolt had not been torqued, or even run down to take up the slack. The rod was "self-adjusting" - sliding back and forth - as we drove.

Son's fault for not tightening it as directed. My fault for not checking it. Lesson learned. No harm done.

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"When you find a big kettle of crazy, it's best not to stir it." - Pointy-haired Boss

1964 Valiant V200, 225/Pushbutton 904
BBD, CAI, HEI, LBP, AC, AM/FM/USB, EIEIO

Okay, I went out this morning and spent the day looking over the front suspension. I found that all the control arm and strut bushings, and the ball joints seem okay. Some bushings look new and the rest have only hairline cracks in the rubber surface (the parts exposed to air). I tried every prying and push/pull test I could and found no looseness.

What I did find; As I suspected, the toe was out by nearly 3/4"!!! I got it back as close as I could until I can get to the alignment shop. The previous owner said it was aligned about half a year ago. Now I suspect he did it!! That makes me suspect both camber and caster as well.

Also, this thing has an aftermarket sway bar on the front (you can tell by the newer looking and sort of jimmy rigged brackets). I can't tell the brand (can't find any markings on it at all). Well, that's fine, except the bushings in both anchors (on the frame) are totally shot.

Another weird thing was that the rotors were very hard to turn by hand until I shoved around on the caliper a bit. I suspect a good cleaning when I change pads (soon) will fix that. Or, is it possible that there's a residual pressure valve in the master cylinder that shouldn't be there?

Anyway, this all brings up two questions: This is a '73 4 door A body running radial tires. Is there anything in particular I should tell the alignment guys about setup? And is there any source of generic bushings for sway bars? This is a BIG bar, well over 1-1/4". Maybe I should just pull it?
Thanks!
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herbalaire reviews

get as much caster you can get out of it... as far the brakes i would just clean the pins up a bit. discs can stick till they budge, specialy when dirty. a lil but no there isnt a residual pressure valve of any kind that i know of, ask dan...

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'72 Valiant DD for over a decade-225-Disc brakes, big T-bars, big Sway bars f/r, carter bbd/super six, GM HEI, 2- 12" subs in trunk, 1000w amp...
'77 cherokee cheif widetrack-360-33x12.5 tires-no lift. keeps driveway dry-project/backup DD/mudder

Sounds like an Addco, they are pretty large and have kind of crude looking mounts. Energy Suspension makes generic bushings for swap bars.

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"Mad Scientist" Matt Cramer
'66 Dart - turbocharged 225
My blog - Mad Scientist Matt's Lair