Car Chassis seems to move

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Model T Ford Forum: Forum 2013: Car Chassis seems to move
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John B -- Boston MA -- on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 11:11 am:

Anyone have any thoughts about the feeling I get when driving, that the upper car chassis is slightly moving when the vehicle is in motion ? more prominent when you take turns......any thoughts ?

Thank you

JB


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Henry Petrino in Modesto, CA on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 11:17 am:

What body style are you talking about and exactly what do you mean by "upper car chassis"? Sounds like you're talking about a closed car upper body.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Andrew Deckman, Ogden Utah on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 11:41 am:

There is a weird feeling going over bumps sometimes due to the transverse springs. Especially going over a dip or bump that hits the wheels at a 45 degree angle. Is that when you feel it?


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Frank Harris from Long Beach & Big Bear on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 11:44 am:

The Model T frame has no cross members to stiffen the frame and keep it from bending. Henry knew that the car would have to drove on very rough roads and even where there were no roads. Many farmers had to travel through plowed fields and could do it with their Model T's.

Folks have boxed the frame of a Model T Ford and made it so that it will not bend. When they do this it is no longer a Model T. It will work on modern roads but is not able to go where it could when it was new.

Our Model T has solid throttle and spark rods and when we travel down driveways and over rough roads the throttle and spark rod shafts move as the frame twists and the engine changes speeds all by its self as the rods move about as the frame twists as we travel over the slanted driveways and gutters curved to carry away the rain water. The engine speed changes as much as several hundred revolutions a minute during the frame twisting cause by the un-even road surfaces and the very flexible Model T frame.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By ex trooper on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 12:06 pm:

I feel mine as tho one spring shackle gets pulled out away from the perch and the other end goes under the opposite perch. To top that, it feels like the rear spring moves in the opposite direction, making the body feel as tho its sliding off the frame... just a bit. Thinking about a period correct panhard bar. ws


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Richard Eagle Ida Fls on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 12:09 pm:

I was at a Street Rod cruise night and took one of the Hot Rodders for a ride in my Tudor around the parking lot. He hung on for dear life every time we turned. Said it was the scariest ride he had ever taken.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Aaron Griffey, Hayward Ca. on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 12:16 pm:

I do NOT remember ever riding in a model T that I could not feel body twist.
The closed cars do not twist as much.
The tourings seem to be the worst.
I feel the twist between my feet and the front seat backrest.
If a T had springs like a Dodge or Chevvy it would be even worse.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John B -- Boston MA -- on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 12:22 pm:

I appreciate all the input. ex trooper put it correctly, it feels as though the body is going to slide off the frame, but according to some of the answers I got , this is normal...weird feeling though. Henry P from CA. if you click on my name , you can see my car and body style.

Thanks all, have a nice day.

JB


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Mike Walker, NW AR on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 12:28 pm:

JB -- The closed cars are top-heavy, so they lean quite a bit on turns. But if it feels like the body is actually sliding on the chassis, it wouldn't hurt to check the 6 body-to-frame bolts just to be sure they're in place and tight. :-)


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Val Soupios on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 01:32 pm:

The early cars flex everywhere and it sometimes feels like the whole car is twisting. That's one of the reasons the front motor mount is designed the way it is. The engine should rotate in the mount to absorb the flex and help keep the rear mounting arms from breaking. The Improved car flexes a lot less but still twists and turns more than anyone driving a modern car would be used to experiencing. By all means check to be sure the mounting hardware is in place but don't be alarmed by the twist as it is designed into the car intentionally.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Norman T. Kling on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 03:57 pm:

If you are speaking about the roadster in your profile, it is normal for some twisting to occur. You will notice it especially when one wheel goes over a bump. You will feel the seat back seem to move a little different than the floorboard. That is caused by the flexing of the chassis. It is more noticeable in an open car than a closed one. If all the bolts are tight and the chassis rivets are tight, not to worry.
Norm


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Henry Petrino in Modesto, CA on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 06:51 pm:

The fellows who said to check things over are giving you good advice. There very well may be nothing wrong, but it certainly can't hurt to be sure.

A little drift - In 1992 I went to work for a school district that had a fleet of about 25-30 transit school busses. Many were older, but still CHP certified. One particular bus was a 35 year old Crown that I had occasion to ride in. Once we got up to about 50 MPH the entire front/right portion of the roof would lift off the top of the body, from the center of the windshield to about 10' back along the right side.

Needless to say, I said, "What the heck" or words to that effect. The driver told me that it was "nothing to worry about, it's been like that for years". I instructed her to return to the bus terminal, then proceeded to have the entire fleet inspected (under my direct supervision) with attention to stressed/fractured components, particularly body and chassis parts. We found two busses with hairline cracked chassis components along with several minor problems, none of which should have existed. This was in a fleet "inspected" every 45 days or less by the district mechanic and annually by the CHP motor carrier. To make it even worse this happened immediately following the annual CHP inspections in which the CHP had grounded 6 or 7 busses already.

I learned to take NOTING for granted. If you want to know the condition of your equipment, either look it over yourself or have someone who you trust and who knows what he/she is doing inspect it for you.

PS We purchased 9 new busses that (my first) year and still had an unacceptably high fleet average age. It only takes money!


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Mack Cole ---- Earth on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 06:59 pm:

My TT flexs alot over off road terrain.It is normal.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Martin Vowell, Sylmar, CA on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 09:29 pm:

My car is a 22 touring, and it climbs over every bump, curb or rough patch of road I've hit, you can set the right front wheel on a really high curb or rock, the left wheel will be on the ground and the car will be twisted in the middle with the back wheels sitting flat on the level ground...I don't think that these cars would've of survived this long if they couldn't do that.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Tony Bowker on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 10:38 pm:

When driving my touring and cross a dip in the road, the seat back seems to move (it does) "differently" than the front of the car. I have checked the body/chassis bolts many times and assumed that the effect was due to chassis flex.
I seem to remember the same effect in my Dad's Austin Severn, which has a similar flexible chassis.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Fred Dimock, Newfields NH, USA on Sunday, July 14, 2013 - 11:05 pm:

John B,

Your first problem is that you are from Mass.
Your second is that you gave a gas light in your front yard.
Your third is that you are full of hay.

OK now that I have gotten that out of the way -- :-)

As many have pointed out the T chassis does a lot of twisting, but even with that if you bounce on one side the body will sway toward the side. Then there is a lot of twist in the body.
Put these together and you can guarantee that the T will be somewhere close to where you want it to be on the road.

My hack has the added benefit of a pair of stout wood beams just over the frames and a couple of cross braces that make it fairly ridged, but when I go thru a corner it likes to lean and if I encounter a little bump while turning it reminds me of riding downhill in my old radio flyer wagon


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By James J. Lyons III - West Virginia on Monday, July 15, 2013 - 07:04 am:

Body movement on my 13 touring can be felt in the steering wheel. It makes it soupy feeling. I attributed this to the knowledge that the 13's are weaker because of the body sils.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Wayne Sheldon, Grass Valley, CA on Monday, July 15, 2013 - 03:06 pm:

After Fred D's opening comments, I had to look at the profile photo. Nice runabout!
Welcome to the affliction!
Drive carefully, and enjoy, W2


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Jerry VanOoteghem on Monday, July 15, 2013 - 04:37 pm:

John B.

What everyone says here is essentially true. However, when you say it fells like the body is about to slide off the frame, it makes me wonder if your spring clamps, front & rear, are tight and if your springs are centered in the frame. Please check out the U-bolts that hold your springs in the frame cross members and see if your springs are well centered in the frame.


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