BENT LOWER A FRAME

I was installing passenger side or right side lower a frame and the rear bolt only tightened up to a certain point. I removed fastner and tightened the fastner itself, and ran it up to thelast thread on the bolt. I noticed the rear bracket had beenmoved about an eighth of an inch over to the right andrewelded, could this put the control arm shaft in that much of a bind or is the lower a frame bent or the car frame itself bent any suggestions? the driver side bolted up without any problems.  

i have been looking at this post for a day ... thinking...    wondering what model you have/?????

can you measure the frame bracket spacing on both sides...

have you got a piece of steel rod you might be able to stick through the bolt holes to see if both sides are in alignment..

can you measure the lower control arms...  with them off the car... to see if they are the same width ???

frame dimension charts are available on Ebay for 5 bucks...  

you do have to understand... that the center tube in the bushing has to be pinched tight when the bolt it tightened..  it is also important that the bolt not be totally tightened until the suspension is at ride height...  not hanging..

if you tighten the bolt with the suspension hanging... it will put the bushing in a bind when the car is set back on the ground... when the suspension works...  and bottoms out.. as it does once in a while.. it may be enough to rip the bushing...     urethane bushings are usually not effected.. thats why they have to be lubed...  

thanks for the reply,, i have a 76 corvette,doing a frame off resto...i havent measured my a-arms or the gap spacings. the a arms are curently off the car, i am gong to measure them. i got the single bolt pulled up tight but took the left a arm off completely so i can measure the cross arm the arm itself comared with the other one etc. my real concern is ...is that the bracket it boltd to has been moved over approx, eighth of an inch and rewelded....i havent found out any information on measurements or what and where these brackets could be purchased but i will keep looking and wait for your response or others...and i will look for frame charts too....thanks  

here is a chart for a 75... should be the same... he may have the exact 76..


http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1975-CHEVROLET-CORVETTE-FRAME-DIMENSION-CHART_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem4ceb18b0b6QQitemZ330361778358QQptZMotorsQ5fManualsQ5fLiterature#ht_500wt_1182

only 5 bucks...

it is also in every factory repair manual..  there may a link to them. somewhere.. i did not have a chance to search for it..


i also wonder if the factory moved it..?????  

and suspension pinch bolts  usually don't bottom out the threads...... there is a steel spacer in the center of the bushing.... that is what the bolts tighten down on...     so you might want to spend a few bucks more.. buy a front and a rear front control arm bushing... or dig out the old ones...  pop them into place and see...

you might also want to check the bolts for streach.. by overlapping the threads with a known new bolt of the same pitch.. see if the threads fit together from end to end.. without gaps...  

well i figured out the problem with lower control arm, it had a slight twist in it. i found a lower control arm and purchased a new control arm shaft and bushings, got it all together and compared the two control arms and one of the ears? where the conrol arm shaft goes into had a noticeable twist or bend in it. So thanks for all the answers and suggestions that was a great help to me....now then would the interior door panels from a 1982 fit my 76 vette...