Hi Andres,
Back from out of town and gradually getting to all my mail....
I'm not sure but I strongly suspect that 26Rs had adjustable A-arms which were
basically stock parts modified to accept rod ends on the inside only. The
primary purpose would not be to clear anything though. It would be to adjust
camber and toe (in combination with an adjustable, spherical bearing at the top
of the strut).
I agree with what Tony has told you wrt the necessity for grinding both the
A-arms and the bodywork to clear the wheels. It happens that a S1 1/2 slalom
car I drove used 6" wide Minilites with stock Type 26 (not 26R) flares. This
was accomplished by ordering the wheels to be very specific offsets (different
offsets front and rear but all 6" wide). I don't have the numbers but they'd
vary slightly anyway between individual cars. It has to be measured, then
optimized.
The A-arms were radiused and the inner part of the flare was ground to almost a
knife-edge (viewed in section) without changing the shape as viewed from the
side. Also, the inner fiberglass splash guard was enlarged a bit in the front
wheel wells (we were using Goodyear Blue Streaks... treaded because this was
before slicks.... with a profile roughly equivalent to about a 40 or 45-series
today). All this, together with the use of small diameter springs and cut off
spring perches allowed everything to function without interference (finally).
The 26Rs I've seen in original settings, seemed to use larger diameter tires
than we used.... also larger at the back than the front, in some cases
(ridiculous IMO .... I'd expect that to ruin the car's natural balance). The
larger tires look to be possible only due to the 26R flares, which are better
suited than the stock S4 flares I believe you have.
Let me know how it all works out.
Rod
Subject: Elan Rear A-Arms
Author: "A. Sta. Maria" <abstamaria@sysciplaw.com> at CCGATE
Date: 4/24/98 7:29 PM
Hello Rod, Mike, and Ken,
Although my racing accident last March did not affect my rear suspension,
since I do have to replace the frame and take my Lotus 45 (S4 Elan) apart -
yet again - I thought I might look into adjustable rear A-arms.
As you may recall, I installed 26R KO hubs so I could use 6-inch 26R
magnesium wheels. The problem, of course, is that the outer ends of the
rear A arms foul the inner wheel rims, and have to be ground off at a severe
angle, cutting away a great deal of the bush and the bush housing on the
arm. "They have always had to do that, and they always will," said Tony
Thomson, the 26R specialist from England. My hubs (from Tony Thompson) have
a narrow offset to clear the standard S4 fenders without flares, and this
might have compounded the problem. Accordingly, I relied on grinding and
cutting away to gain clearance.
This time, I thought that perhaps adjustable rear A-arms with rod ends and
spherical bearings might clear the wheels. Tony Thompson's version is
adjustable on the inner ends (which have rod ends). Tony says, however,
that "this is a Lotus and you will still have to put your grinder to use on
the outer ends."
I saw an adjustable version by Lee Chapman (no relation; I asked) in
Connecticut. His I think has spherical bearings on the inner end and are
adjustable on the outer end, which have rod bearings. He says they clear
the wheels very nicely, but his experience might be with wider offset, non
26-R wheels.
Did the 26Rs indeed have adjustable rear arms? Did they have rod and
spherical bearings? Which end did they adjust at? And did they have the
wheel clearance problems as well?
Any suggestions on this very specialized issue will be appreciated!
Best regards to all.
Andres
Manila
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