We suggest you read other technical pieces to become more familiar with how the IC affects traction during acceleration. This is a complex arrangement that we will mention several times throughout this story, but it is beyond the scope of this story to delve into its many details. This is an imaginary point in space that functions as the location of the force driving the vehicle forward during acceleration. This is a good place to bring up the concept of the rear suspension’s instant center (IC). This device minimizes spring wrap while not binding so the spring functions normally when load is applied. This front mount includes three different mounting locations for the leading end of the bar. This design mounts a round tube link directly under the rear axle spring pad that extends forward to a mount directly below the front spring eye. This works adequately for straight line drag racing but creates essentially an infinite spring rate, which causes massive oversteer when power is applied when exiting a corner.Ī far better solution is the CalTracs bar and its many variants. The traction bar prevents spring wrapup but also binds the spring. The classic traction bar solution for GM leaf spring cars was to bolt a rectangular steel tube to the leaf spring mount fitted with a rubber snubber designed to contact the forward part of the spring. Read More: Giving a Well-Worn, 42-year-old Chassis a New Lease on Life These cars are often also equipped with a pinion snubber that limits pinion travel and improves traction. This effectively strengthens the leading side of the spring, which minimizes spring wrap and wheelhop. Chrysler long ago moved the mounting position of the rear axle on the spring to shorten the distance from the axle tube to the front spring eye. There are several time-honored solutions to prevent wheelhop. If enough torque is applied, the S shape eventually binds the spring, which violently forces itself back to its original shape, causing the rear tire to leave the road surface. With hard acceleration from a standing start, this force can cause the main leaf to deform into an S shape. Torque is applied through the leading half of the main leaf spring, which can deflect it just behind where the spring eye attaches to the body. When power is applied to a leaf spring, the pinion gear attempts to climb the ring gear but is resisted because the rear axle tubes are attached to the spring. The spring locates the rear axle housing in the vehicle, supports the weight of the rear half of the vehicle, while also providing suspension freedom of movement. The modern leaf spring combines multiple tasks into one component. The modern automotive leaf spring is most often a multi-leaf configuration, but monoleaf springs are used, as with the ’67 Camaro. We’ll start with the simplest rear suspension that literally can be traced back to the 1700s when French carriage makers employed a flexible metal plate to cushion the ride that eventually evolved into the leaf spring. This is a ’70 Camaro rear suspension with an antisway bar attached. Most leaf springs are angled slightly inboard at the front to improve lateral stiffness. The simplest rear suspension configuration uses the rear axle locating device as the spring itself. You can then launch into a more detailed search into the system that best meets your goals. Think of this story as a smorgasbord or an ice cream taste test where you can quickly sample all the different flavors and then decide which offers the best one that suits your particular taste. Because we must cram all these systems into a single story, this means we are forced to leave out a mountain of details. We will look at the popular rear suspension designs with a simple overview of each. ![]() ![]() An optimal drag race rear suspension would be a crippling disadvantage trying to find bite coming off an autocross turn or on a road course. ![]() As a true enthusiast, it’s important to understand how each of these systems function, what makes them different, and which one offers the best approach based on the performance goal.
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