The negatives to a "rake"?

[mercuryhead]

Well, I just had new shocks 'n' springs installed.

Moog sedan fronts and Moog wagon cargo coils in the back....ACDelco shocks all the way around.

Now I have a bit of a rake.....Im not sure I like it or not........my question is , are there are any negatives to a "rake"? Is it really bad for the front end? Will my front tires wear out quicker?
My mechanic mentioned that the rear shocks wont last long ....does that make sense to you guys?
Anybody with a "rake" experience any of these things?

TIA
BTW, here's a few pics of "said" rake

[gadget73]

the rear shocks are probably going to be at their limit. Its not so much a case of them wearing out faster, they're just not really long enough for the job. You'll notice it going over railroad tracks if the shocks extend to their full limit. The car will sort of "lurch" when the body can't go upwards anymore. Big potholes at high speed like this can also be sort of interesting. If you're going fast enough, the inertia of the body can actually keep the axle from traveling downward so it will leave the road. Same with really hard cornering if you do any of that, it'll lift the outer wheel.

As far as the front end, the caster will be less negative, so the steering won't return to center quite as well. You should also get marginally less steering effort, though its probably not going to be really noticeable with the stock box having so much assist anyway. Shouldn't really do much of anything else as far as faster wear on parts or tires.

Might also want to re-adjust your headlights if you drive in areas with poor/no lighting. You'll find that having them point at the ground really sucks.

[murphmobile2]

Give it a few weeks for the shocks to break in, the car will lower itself down a little by then.

[1987cp]

Personally, I just think a car feels kind of weird with the rear much higher than the front. That's one reason I want to eventually get rid of the rubber rake with my 275/60 and 255/60 tires. I'd also make sure to double-check your headlight alignment.

BTW, you ever notice your car looks really, really, insanely nice?

[mercuryhead]

the rear shocks are probably going to be at their limit. Its not so much a case of them wearing out faster, they're just not really long enough for the job. You'll notice it going over railroad tracks if the shocks extend to their full limit. The car will sort of "lurch" when the body can't go upwards anymore. Big potholes at high speed like this can also be sort of interesting. If you're going fast enough, the inertia of the body can actually keep the axle from traveling downward so it will leave the road. Same with really hard cornering if you do any of that, it'll lift the outer wheel.

As far as the front end, the caster will be less negative, so the steering won't return to center quite as well. You should also get marginally less steering effort, though its probably not going to be really noticeable with the stock box having so much assist anyway. Shouldn't really do much of anything else as far as faster wear on parts or tires.

Might also want to re-adjust your headlights if you drive in areas with poor/no lighting. You'll find that having them point at the ground really sucks.

I noticed the slight steering difference....no big deal like you said and the steering doesn't return to center as easy either, also not a big deal.....I keep forgetting to re-adjust the headlights, but I live in nyc and all the streets are well light at night, so no biggie.
It's good to know that Im not killing my front end though....thanx for the info.
I might just switch over to F-150 shocks in the back as I read somewhere on the forum.....would you happen to know what year ones I should get?

Give it a few weeks for the shocks to break in, the car will lower itself down a little by then.

true, but the fronts will also break in, leaving me with the rake in the end

BTW, you ever notice your car looks really, really, insanely nice?

you really think so?.....thanx for the compliment!!

[88Vic]

So far the rake on my truck hasn't hurt anything, and actually it came stock like this, check it out (this is with a little over 200lbs in back thanks to the 2 girls):

[Pesty351]

Put some bigger meats in the back and she will look pretty damn mean.

[turbo2256b]

my only comment is some heaver springs in the front might have been a good move to complment thee heaver rear springs

[Archangel]

You think you got rake, eh?

I get very good tire wear, steering returns to straight, car is stable at high speed, really no difference in handling whatsoever. I did however have the front end realigned, but that was cause of new ball joints and bushings installed.

[mercuryhead]

So far the rake on my truck hasn't hurt anything, and actually it came stock like this, check it out (this is with a little over 200lbs in back thanks to the 2 girls):

trucks are designed with a rake in mind, + the bed is pretty light when empty, thus not shifting too much weight onto the front.

my only comment is some heaver springs in the front might have been a good move to complment thee heaver rear springs

tell me about it....too late now, the fronts were a PITA to get in, and Im not going through that again.

[murphmobile2]

Hey, it took my car a few weeks to start to sit right after I got my new springs put on at the end of the summer.

It will lower down a little still, and the rake doesn't hurt the car at all.

[mercuryhead]

Hey, it took my car a few weeks to start to sit right after I got my new springs put on at the end of the summer.

It will lower down a little still, and the rake doesn't hurt the car at all.

as long as it does no harm.....Im cool with it.

my next mod is gonna be emptying the cats and buyin' an h-pipe and some glasspacks.....then a temp gauge......a must on pre-'90 boxes

[86GmLsCoupe]

I think you'll be alright as you are if it doesn't bug you. You could do the wagon springs up front like turbo mentioned. The Suspension sticky has loads of great info you could check also. Was there any special reason you chose wagon springs for the rear, like load capacity or handling? I have stock springs all around and have coil-over shocks in back to help when the car is loaded up, so the car never really sags at all for me. Given you are different kinds of springs, I think the rear will always be somewhat up. Very nice care by the way, especially for NY.

[mercuryhead]

I think you'll be alright as you are if it doesn't bug you. You could do the wagon springs up front like turbo mentioned. The Suspension sticky has loads of great info you could check also. Was there any special reason you chose wagon springs for the rear, like load capacity or handling? I have stock springs all around and have coil-over shocks in back to help when the car is loaded up, so the car never really sags at all for me. Given you are different kinds of springs, I think the rear will always be somewhat up.

I went with the wagons out back cause I had crappy ACDelco springs installed and the car was lower in the back and after reading some old threads on here(some guys had did springs all around with sedan cargos out back and still had rear sag), I swapped them out to get a little more lift in the back. I also always carry about 100 pounds in the truck. Sometimes I like the raked look and sometimes it bugs me.....

Very nice car by the way, especially for NY.

thanx........The car was owned by an elderly lady way out in eastern Long Island who always garaged it. I bought car from the estate when she died......I had to give the DMV a copy of the death certificate when I had it registered.

[packman]

That's not much of a rake; this is rake and it was sitting in a small ditch (thanks to the water company).




And I agree with 1987cp, that is a really clean car. Now you can fit some larger tires/wheels if ya want to.

I am going the other route and lowering the CV about 1.5".


Packman