How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

356 Porsche-related discussions and questions.
Message
Author
User avatar
Greg Scallon
356 Fan
Posts: 781
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 1:12 pm
Location: Los Altos, CA

How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

#1 Post by Greg Scallon »

All,
In researching how to adjust the front end height of my '58 speedster I found quite a number of "how to" descriptions but none really explained the process fully so I thought I'd take a whack at it in case someone's interested and uses the Search function in the future.

The Goal: I wanted to lower my front end about 3/4" due to the car being a bit too nose-up for my liking.

The Car: My car is a '58 T-2 Speedster. I'm pretty sure the process is the same for earlier and later cars, but I'm not positive.

The How-to:

Step 1: Jack up the front end and put jack stands in place.

Step 2: Climb under the car and locate the adjusters, right in the middle of your front beam. (see Porsche manual, Elfrinks, etc for what they look like)

Step 3: Remove one end of the steering damper as it is in the way of the adjusters. I pulled the cotter pin and removed the passenger-side top nut. (17mm if I remember correctly) This allowed the passenger end of the damper to slide right off the fixing post. Once unbolted, push it out of the way of the adjusters. Hang your car key from it or something so you don't forget to bolt it back up prior to going for a test drive.

Step 4: Clean the adjusters. I used carb cleaner on a rag and some Simple Green. Remember to remove all hot lights from the area if you're going to be squirting carb cleaner or other solvents up there.

Step 5: When everything is clean and dry, paint a white mark on the side of each of the two adjuster bolts and locknuts.(these are the top screws and nuts on each adjuster unit) This is a mark that will help you determine when you've backed the bolts out a full turn or a half turn or whatever. (see photo below)

Step 6. Grab your 19mm wrench and 8mm allen wrench. Loosen each of the four 19mm locknuts without moving the allen bolts that they secure.

Step 8: Using your 8mm allen wrench, you can now back out each of the two adjusting bolts. These are the longer bolts on the top of each torsion bar. I backed mine out counterclockwise two turns to get about 3/4" of height reduction on the front end. This is a trial and error process and isn't hard so you can use my results as a guide and tweak as necessary. Note: You want to back each adjusting bolt out exactly the same amount.

Step 9: Once you've backed out the two adjusting bolts as far as you want to go, tighten the locknut on each of the two of them. (Note: You're just locking the two adjusting bolts at this time. Leave the two lower fixing nuts loose for now.)

Step 10: Lower the front end of the car such that the front wheels are sitting on ramps, or something else that will let you compress the suspension. I used old-school metal auto ramps and they worked great. Then grab your front bumper and bounce the car up and down with all of your weight on it to get the torsion bars fully settled into their new adjusted position.

Step 11: Climb back under the car and tighten the two lock nuts on the lower bolts.

Step 12: Bolt the steering damper back in place.

Step 13: Take your car out for a ride and then check the front end height. If you don't like it, repeat the process.

I hope this helps someone.
Regards,
-Greg
ps: Edited the allen wrench size thanks to Norm's post. Thanks Norm)


The car up on jackstands, prior to cleaning the adjusters.

Image


The adjusters with paint marks added.

Image


You can see the steering damper here, unbolted from the fixed bolt that you can barely make out in the lower right of the photo.

Image
Last edited by Greg Scallon on Wed Oct 27, 2010 12:42 am, edited 3 times in total.
'58 Speedster
'56 VW Deluxe Microbus 

Jon Bunin
356 Fan
Posts: 1800
Joined: Thu Oct 15, 2009 11:06 pm
Location: Vista, CA

#2 Post by Jon Bunin »

I would suggest you re-check the front wheel alignment after making such adjustments.
Jon Bunin

Norm Miller
356 Fan
Posts: 2506
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 9:14 am
Tag: Official curmudgeon
Location: Ft Collins CO

#3 Post by Norm Miller »

Greg,

Great description of the process.

I just raised a "D" this morning.

The Allen head is actually 8mm.

Norm

User avatar
Charlie White
356 Fan
Posts: 3143
Joined: Fri Mar 14, 2008 1:12 pm

Lowering a C........!

#4 Post by Charlie White »

Greg,

Great description of the process of lowering a 356! Hope it applies to 356-C's!! I just non-mechanically "slammed" my 65 356-C Coupe by using 14 inch Fuchs and low profile tires! Dropped it about 3 inches all around. Makes a noticable difference! Now, I just have to drop the front a little! Recent new shocks and front sway bar bushings keep the ride just right! And the whole process is easily reversable!

Charlie White
Charlie White

User avatar
Greg Scallon
356 Fan
Posts: 781
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 1:12 pm
Location: Los Altos, CA

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End

#5 Post by Greg Scallon »

Hello All,
Awhile ago I lowered the front end of my car using the stock adjusters which turned out to be a pretty easy procedure. Unfortunately I ran out of adjustment about 2 cm shy of what I wanted. I have since completed the project of grinding open the adjuster slots to allow for more drop. Below is a write-up of the steps involved.

The Goal: Lower the car a bit further than the stock adjuster mechanism would let me.

The Car: Same as before. 1958 T-2 Speedster.

The How-to:

Step 1: Jack up the front end and put jack stands in place. Or use a lift like I did.

Step 2: Climb under the car and locate the adjusters, right in the middle of your front beam. (see Porsche manual, Elfrinks, etc for what they look like)

Step 3: Remove the steering damper as it is in the way of the adjusters.

Step 4: Unscrew both of the screws and lock nuts from each adjuster mechanism. Also remove the clamping blocks that slide under each locking screw. Keep track of which go where. Note: Each of the two adjuster mechanisms have two screws and two nuts. The top screw is the adjusting screw and the bottom screw is the lock screw.

Step 5. Clean the parts you just removed, then climb under the car and clean the adjuster area really well, then clean some more. Having a clean work area makes this project ten times more palatable. I used carb cleaner on a rag and some Simple Green. Remember to remove all hot lights from the area if you're going to be squirting carb cleaner or other solvents up there.

Step 5. Once everything is clean, get your tools laid out and ready. You'll need a die grinder and two different carbide bits. I found that a 1/4" Christmas tree shaped bit with a slightly oval head worked perfect for grinding the slots and a larger 1/2" cylinder bit with an oval head worked perfect for grinding the hoods. (see photos) I ordered a super crappy 45 degree angled pneumatic die grinder for around $13.99 at Harbor Freight. It's probably the worst tool I've ever purchased but it lasted through this job and the 45 degree angle was a must.

Step 6. OK. Let's get a good look at what you're going to be grinding. See the two ovals that used to be obscured by the set screws and clamping blocks? You need to elongate those upwards by some amount. I opened mine up by about 8mm. That's a lot but I didn't want to ever have to do this job again. In addition to the two ovals, you need to open up the metal "hoods" above them so you can get to your set screws once they're pushed upwards into their new positions. Again, see the photos.

Step 7. You can see that in order to get a grinding bit in to elongate the oval, you have to rotate the threaded lock screw hole to make room. You do this by lowering the front wheels onto ramps or blocks or stands or something. When the suspension is compressed the torsion leaves rotate along with the threaded center clamping mechanism. So get ramps or something and lower the suspension such that the threaded hole is about 50% open to the top of the oval. When you've increased the oval to where you need more space, lower the car a bit more and the threaded part will move upwards providing you with more free space. Again, the photos do a better job of illustrating this.

Step 8: Grinding. First, be sure to cover yourself well. I recommend a turtle neck, coveralls, gloves, a tight hat and definitely tight goggles. You really really want to make sure no metal shavings get in your eyes. I learned that lesson a few years ago and it wasn't fun. Next, I'd start with the hoods. Use the larger of your bits on the 45 degree die grinder to grind open the hoods. See photos. Once you're done grinding, use some kind of sander to smooth everything over. I used a flap wheel on my standard straight die grinder which worked surprisingly well.

Step 9. Grinding. Next install the smaller 1/4" bit on your 45 degree grinder and after making sure you won't be grinding into the threaded inner clamp, begin grinding your ovals larger. This requires patience and is fairly tedious, but it's not difficult. Just keep checking your work along the way and making sure you're on track. Also, note that it's important to not make the ovals wider, just longer. This is because all of the cars side to side forces come to bear on those set screws. You don't want to give them room to move around.

Also, I chose not to use heavy grease or anything in an attempt to catch the metal shavings. It would have made a mess and keeping everything clean allowed the shavings to fall straight down onto the floor. I don't believe I got metal shavings anywhere they'll do any damage. After all, this entire mechanism, including the adjuster holes, is basically open to the environment even in stock form.

Step 10. Once done elongating the ovals, clean them up with a sanding wheel of some kind.

Step 11. Jack the car all the way up off the wheels again. You should see the set screw hole back somewhere in the center. Install your the locking screws and clamping plates and clamp them down as they are. This will insure that the top and bottom torsion leaves are equally flexed. Then install the adjuster screws and lock nuts and snug them up against the clamping blocks. Now, if you want to lower the car you can back each adjuster screw (top screw) by an equal amount, loosen the bottom lock nut to free up the locking screw, lower the car down onto your ramps until the clamping block pushes up against your adjusting screw and then tighten everything down again. Get it set the way you want and you're done.

Step 12. Reinstall the steering damper.

Step 13. Check the alignment of the front end if you'd like.


And that's it. Good luck.

-Greg

ps: A big special thanks to Dirk Heinrich who answered a bunch of questions prior to my starting this job. Thanks Dirk!
Attachments
Here's a shot of the two adjuster mechanisms in stock form.  Both locking screws and clamping blocks have been removed.  The adjusting screws and lock nuts are still on there although they've been backed way out.
Here's a shot of the two adjuster mechanisms in stock form. Both locking screws and clamping blocks have been removed. The adjusting screws and lock nuts are still on there although they've been backed way out.
A shot of the lower adjuster oval in stock form.  You can see how you'll have to rotate that threaded hole upwards to make some room to grind the oval taller.  Also note the hood above the oval that needs to be ground back to clear the new position of of the locking screw.
A shot of the lower adjuster oval in stock form. You can see how you'll have to rotate that threaded hole upwards to make some room to grind the oval taller. Also note the hood above the oval that needs to be ground back to clear the new position of of the locking screw.
It's difficult to get up in there but I did attempt to draw some lines with a sharpie to help me know when I'd increased the oval by the 6-7 mm I was shooting for. (I ended up going about 8mm)  Also, note that the hood hasn't been cut yet in this photo.
It's difficult to get up in there but I did attempt to draw some lines with a sharpie to help me know when I'd increased the oval by the 6-7 mm I was shooting for. (I ended up going about 8mm) Also, note that the hood hasn't been cut yet in this photo.
Here is the locking screw, the lock nut and the clamping block. (you have two sets of these)
Here is the locking screw, the lock nut and the clamping block. (you have two sets of these)
Here you can see how I used two old engine stand bases and some wood to provide a platform for the wheels.  Lowering the lift a tad would rotate the threaded locking hole upwards to give me more room to grind.
Here you can see how I used two old engine stand bases and some wood to provide a platform for the wheels. Lowering the lift a tad would rotate the threaded locking hole upwards to give me more room to grind.
The larger bit is the 1/2" carbide bit that I used to open up the hoods.  The other is a cylindrical bit that I didn't end up using.  See the tool shot below for the 1/4" bit I did use.
The larger bit is the 1/2" carbide bit that I used to open up the hoods. The other is a cylindrical bit that I didn't end up using. See the tool shot below for the 1/4" bit I did use.
This is the carbide bit I used for the ovals, along with the junky 45 degree grinder I purchased for the job.  Also shown is my standard die grinder with sanding flap wheel for smoothing everything out after grinding.
This is the carbide bit I used for the ovals, along with the junky 45 degree grinder I purchased for the job. Also shown is my standard die grinder with sanding flap wheel for smoothing everything out after grinding.
Here's a shot showing how the hoods have been opened up. The ovals are not yet elongated.
Here's a shot showing how the hoods have been opened up. The ovals are not yet elongated.
Finished.  The hoods are opened up and the ovals are elongated.
Finished. The hoods are opened up and the ovals are elongated.
'58 Speedster
'56 VW Deluxe Microbus 

User avatar
Vic Skirmants
Registry Hall of Fame
Posts: 9279
Joined: Tue Oct 27, 2009 5:02 pm
Location: SE Michigan
Contact:

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

#6 Post by Vic Skirmants »

Excellent post, Greg. Couldn't have been clearer.
I'm sure Barry will save this in the appropriate location.

User avatar
Dirk Heinrich
356 Fan
Posts: 571
Joined: Wed Sep 03, 2008 12:44 am
Location: Pasadena, CA

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

#7 Post by Dirk Heinrich »

Hey Greg,

Glad to see it worked out well! Did you have to cut the rubber stops for the upper suspension arms - I did about 1" ?
Do you want to post a picture that shows how the car is sitting now!?

User avatar
Greg Scallon
356 Fan
Posts: 781
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 1:12 pm
Location: Los Altos, CA

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

#8 Post by Greg Scallon »

Thanks Vic.

And excellent question Dirk. Yes, I forgot to mention that part of the lowering process is to cut about 1" from the pointy end of the front suspension bump stops. It was super easy. I just unscrewed the stops from their mounts, clamped them in a vise, then used my sawzall to cut off the tips. The sawzall went through them like butter and left a very clean cut. It's also worth noting that I did this prior to doing the grinding work. You don't want to be hitting the bump stops when you're pushing down on your front end trying to get your adjusters to go lower. :-)

Good catch. And thanks again!

-Greg
ps: I'll definitely post some shots of the car as soon as I can get some weekend time when it's not raining around here.
'58 Speedster
'56 VW Deluxe Microbus 

User avatar
Greg Scallon
356 Fan
Posts: 781
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 1:12 pm
Location: Los Altos, CA

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

#9 Post by Greg Scallon »

I was finally able to snap some shots of the newly-lowered speedster. I'm very happy with how it all turned out.

-Greg
Attachments
Speedster4.jpg
Speedster3.jpg
Speedster2.jpg
Speedster1.jpg
'58 Speedster
'56 VW Deluxe Microbus 

User avatar
Greg Scallon
356 Fan
Posts: 781
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 1:12 pm
Location: Los Altos, CA

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

#10 Post by Greg Scallon »

Here's a link to a the How-to on lowering the rear:
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=24968
Last edited by Greg Scallon on Fri Nov 20, 2015 2:26 am, edited 1 time in total.
'58 Speedster
'56 VW Deluxe Microbus 

User avatar
brett kerkhof
356 Fan
Posts: 20
Joined: Fri Mar 06, 2015 11:29 pm
Tag: San Diego, CA

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End

#11 Post by brett kerkhof »

Greg Scallon wrote:Hello All,
Awhile ago I lowered the front end of my car using the stock adjusters which turned out to be a pretty easy procedure. Unfortunately I ran out of adjustment about 2 cm shy of what I wanted. I have since completed the project of grinding open the adjuster slots to allow for more drop. Below is a write-up of the steps involved.

The Goal: Lower the car a bit further than the stock adjuster mechanism would let me.

The Car: Same as before. 1958 T-2 Speedster.

The How-to:

Step 1: Jack up the front end and put jack stands in place. Or use a lift like I did.

Step 2: Climb under the car and locate the adjusters, right in the middle of your front beam. (see Porsche manual, Elfrinks, etc for what they look like)

Step 3: Remove the steering damper as it is in the way of the adjusters.

Step 4: Unscrew both of the screws and lock nuts from each adjuster mechanism. Also remove the clamping blocks that slide under each locking screw. Keep track of which go where. Note: Each of the two adjuster mechanisms have two screws and two nuts. The top screw is the adjusting screw and the bottom screw is the lock screw.

Step 5. Clean the parts you just removed, then climb under the car and clean the adjuster area really well, then clean some more. Having a clean work area makes this project ten times more palatable. I used carb cleaner on a rag and some Simple Green. Remember to remove all hot lights from the area if you're going to be squirting carb cleaner or other solvents up there.

Step 5. Once everything is clean, get your tools laid out and ready. You'll need a die grinder and two different carbide bits. I found that a 1/4" Christmas tree shaped bit with a slightly oval head worked perfect for grinding the slots and a larger 1/2" cylinder bit with an oval head worked perfect for grinding the hoods. (see photos) I ordered a super crappy 45 degree angled pneumatic die grinder for around $13.99 at Harbor Freight. It's probably the worst tool I've ever purchased but it lasted through this job and the 45 degree angle was a must.

Step 6. OK. Let's get a good look at what you're going to be grinding. See the two ovals that used to be obscured by the set screws and clamping blocks? You need to elongate those upwards by some amount. I opened mine up by about 8mm. That's a lot but I didn't want to ever have to do this job again. In addition to the two ovals, you need to open up the metal "hoods" above them so you can get to your set screws once they're pushed upwards into their new positions. Again, see the photos.

Step 7. You can see that in order to get a grinding bit in to elongate the oval, you have to rotate the threaded lock screw hole to make room. You do this by lowering the front wheels onto ramps or blocks or stands or something. When the suspension is compressed the torsion leaves rotate along with the threaded center clamping mechanism. So get ramps or something and lower the suspension such that the threaded hole is about 50% open to the top of the oval. When you've increased the oval to where you need more space, lower the car a bit more and the threaded part will move upwards providing you with more free space. Again, the photos do a better job of illustrating this.

Step 8: Grinding. First, be sure to cover yourself well. I recommend a turtle neck, coveralls, gloves, a tight hat and definitely tight goggles. You really really want to make sure no metal shavings get in your eyes. I learned that lesson a few years ago and it wasn't fun. Next, I'd start with the hoods. Use the larger of your bits on the 45 degree die grinder to grind open the hoods. See photos. Once you're done grinding, use some kind of sander to smooth everything over. I used a flap wheel on my standard straight die grinder which worked surprisingly well.

Step 9. Grinding. Next install the smaller 1/4" bit on your 45 degree grinder and after making sure you won't be grinding into the threaded inner clamp, begin grinding your ovals larger. This requires patience and is fairly tedious, but it's not difficult. Just keep checking your work along the way and making sure you're on track. Also, note that it's important to not make the ovals wider, just longer. This is because all of the cars side to side forces come to bear on those set screws. You don't want to give them room to move around.

Also, I chose not to use heavy grease or anything in an attempt to catch the metal shavings. It would have made a mess and keeping everything clean allowed the shavings to fall straight down onto the floor. I don't believe I got metal shavings anywhere they'll do any damage. After all, this entire mechanism, including the adjuster holes, is basically open to the environment even in stock form.

Step 10. Once done elongating the ovals, clean them up with a sanding wheel of some kind.

Step 11. Jack the car all the way up off the wheels again. You should see the set screw hole back somewhere in the center. Install your the locking screws and clamping plates and clamp them down as they are. This will insure that the top and bottom torsion leaves are equally flexed. Then install the adjuster screws and lock nuts and snug them up against the clamping blocks. Now, if you want to lower the car you can back each adjuster screw (top screw) by an equal amount, loosen the bottom lock nut to free up the locking screw, lower the car down onto your ramps until the clamping block pushes up against your adjusting screw and then tighten everything down again. Get it set the way you want and you're done.

Step 12. Reinstall the steering damper.

Step 13. Check the alignment of the front end if you'd like.


And that's it. Good luck.

-Greg

ps: A big special thanks to Dirk Heinrich who answered a bunch of questions prior to my starting this job. Thanks Dirk!
What is the brand of that lift? I want one!
Vin#121841
1963 356 B S90

User avatar
Martin Benade
356 Fan
Posts: 12181
Joined: Wed Nov 23, 2011 10:52 am
Location: Cleveland, Ohio

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

#12 Post by Martin Benade »

Lowering the wheels onto those tall tippy stands looks worrysome. I bet you did it really carefully!
Cleveland Ohio
62 Cabriolet
56 VW
02 IS 300
04 Sienna

User avatar
Larry Coreth
356 Fan
Posts: 1930
Joined: Sun Apr 20, 2008 12:48 pm
Location: NE N.CAROLINA

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

#13 Post by Larry Coreth »

Greg,

Is that the low maintenance California lawn ? Visiting leaky British vehicles must bring their own drip pans ? :) :P
Larry Coreth
Roanoake Rapids, NC

User avatar
marcsherriff
356 Fan
Posts: 99
Joined: Sat Apr 05, 2014 1:29 am
Location: Perth, Western Australia.
Contact:

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

#14 Post by marcsherriff »

Greg,
You mentioned you elongated the slots by 8mm, which you suggested was a lot. Do you have any indication how much this actually allowed you to lower the front?
Marc Sherriff
Marc and Cars
www.youtube.com/c/marcandcars

Perth.
Western Australia.

User avatar
Greg Scallon
356 Fan
Posts: 781
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 1:12 pm
Location: Los Altos, CA

Re: How to: Lowering the Front End (Updated!)

#15 Post by Greg Scallon »

Hello Marc,
I'm afraid that don't have a great answer for you. I do know that I needed to drop the nose by about an inch or maybe a bit more and elongating the slots by the 8mm I did gave me way more lowerabilty (is that a word?) than I used. I would guesstimate that after elongating the slots I could drop the car by two or three inches from it's regular stock height. That's just a guess. If you really want to get your front end low, you could always try the slot elongation and then if that doesn't get you low enough you could consider dropped spindles or something along those lines.

And I'm just now noticing the comments and questions I missed back in the spring. Brett, the lift is a Snap-On Mid-rise lift. They don't make it anymore, but it's similar to a Bend-Pak mid-rise. I do love the Snap-On though due to it's solid metal surface. And Martin, you bet your life I lowered the front end onto the stands carefully. :-) The good thing is that the lift descends very slowly. It actually wasn't a problem.

It's been five years since I did this work and lowered my speedster and I still absolutely love it this way. It's lowered just a tad, but not too much, by my estimation at least. I've had zero issues with handling, drivability, maintenance, or anything else. Love my car and drive it all the time.

Good luck with all your projects and as I mentioned in my original post, if anyone has any questions about lowering the front or rear of your car, don't hesitate to ask.

Regards,
-Greg
'58 Speedster
'56 VW Deluxe Microbus 

Post Reply