Lowering a 356

For those who couldn't care less how their 356 left the factory!
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Jarrod Hartwig
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Lowering a 356

#1 Post by Jarrod Hartwig »

I'm hoping that someone here might be able to shed some light on the best route to go about lowering a 356? I did a search but only came up with information on the rear torsion bars but nothing on the front. Thanks in advance.
60' Coupe

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Mike Smith
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Lowering a 356

#2 Post by Mike Smith »

Perhaps the Porsche Gods are telling you to leave it alone ?
Mike Smith (Essex - UK)

Jing Pong
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#3 Post by Jing Pong »

The front beam is adjustable, but it's probably hidden due to goop. Ie undercoating.
1965 356

Joseph Kuntze
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lowering 356

#4 Post by Joseph Kuntze »

thee are 2 allen wrench head screws ont the front beam. turn the upper one (facing up)
not the lower one (facing back)
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Mark Pribanic
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#5 Post by Mark Pribanic »

If adjusting the allen heads is not enough you could always add dropped spindles as another alternative. There is a thread discussing it on hear somewhere. I'll see if I can find it & post the link.

It all depends on how low you are wanting to go.
Mark Pribanic
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Mark Pribanic
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#6 Post by Mark Pribanic »

Here it is. There is also another link in this link at the end:

http://356registry.com/forum/viewtopic. ... highlight=
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Tom Coughlin
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lower

#7 Post by Tom Coughlin »

What year? I have heard that really old ones are a bit different!
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Mark Pribanic
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#8 Post by Mark Pribanic »

Tom,

His 356 talk signature says 1960. I was assuming it as that but you ask a great question.
Mark Pribanic
Registry# 13617
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Neptune Beach, Florida USA
Instagram: Mark.Pribanic

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Lowering a 356

#9 Post by Guest »

Mark,
Chopping the hoop is not the way to lower the car, it has
its merits but for another reason. The lowering of the rear
of the 356 is a compromise between camber and height, the
lower you go the more negative camber you introduce into the
rear. Negative camber is not a bad thing but too much makes
the tires wear badly, you can have a less grip and bumps and
driveways become an issue.
There is a very limited amount of hoop you can change and
also the throttle linkage has to be modified to make a
straight connection.

Alan

Mark Pribanic wrote:
Here it is. There is also another link in this link at the end:

http://356registry.com/forum/viewtopic. ... highlight=
<http://356registry.com/forum/viewtopic. ... highlight=>


------------------------------------------------------------------------

Drive 'Em!

Mark Pribanic
1958 Coupe
Neptune Beach, Florida
Registry# 13617
Florida Owners Group
www.356FOG.com <http://www.356FOG.com>




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Jeffrey Fellman
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Lowering a 356

#10 Post by Jeffrey Fellman »

Well, what we used to do was get 195/55/15 tires, put them on 6" rims that
we had tricked out at Bolton Wheels with 3/8" extra ofset in at the rear and
3/8" extra offset out at the front, decamber the rear to 1.5 - 2.0 degree
negative and grind out the slots at the front to allow us to drop the front
bars top and bottom until a spirit level on the rocker is level. This drops
the car a full inch, who in their right mind wants more? Also it will handle
like a son of a bitch, just make sure ALL the steering and suspension,
bushings, shocks, bearings, tie rod ends, steering coupler, steering box,
rear trailing arm bushings, I mean ALL are 100% perfect. If you want to
spend a little more have the front spindles "C"'d and decambered by a pro .
This will aid handling but not drop the car. We did a few with 205/50/15's
but that is an awful lot of meet under a 356, you better have some serious
poop to go with it or you are just jerking off Walter Mitty style.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Alan Klingen" <stable356@earthlink.net>
To: <356talk@356registry.com>
Sent: Monday, September 21, 2009 9:04 PM
Subject: [356Talk] Lowering a 356

Mark,
Chopping the hoop is not the way to lower the car, it has
its merits but for another reason. The lowering of the rear
of the 356 is a compromise between camber and height, the
lower you go the more negative camber you introduce into the
rear. Negative camber is not a bad thing but too much makes
the tires wear badly, you can have a less grip and bumps and
driveways become an issue.
There is a very limited amount of hoop you can change and
also the throttle linkage has to be modified to make a
straight connection.

Alan

Mark Pribanic wrote:
Here it is. There is also another link in this link at the end:

http://356registry.com/forum/viewtopic. ... highlight=
<http://356registry.com/forum/viewtopic. ... highlight=>


------------------------------------------------------------------------

Drive 'Em!

Mark Pribanic
1958 Coupe
Neptune Beach, Florida
Registry# 13617
Florida Owners Group
www.356FOG.com <http://www.356FOG.com>



------------------------
Alan Klingen
Owner, The Stable






Post generated using Mail2Forum via email.
 

S.J. Szabo

#11 Post by S.J. Szabo »

Mr. Hartwig:

Here's another 2 cents worth....

To evaluate the appropriateness (for you) of advice on this subject you should first answer two questions:

A) Do you wish to "lower" or do you wish to "slam"?

B) How will the car be used post-alteration?

If the answer to A is "slammed", the answer to B is "stylin'" and it won't matter much how radical you get because you will be goin' low and slow a very few miles at a time.

If the answer to A is "lowered", then the answer to B becomes critical to satisfactory results.

If the answer to B is racing, then a couple-three deg. of neg. camber is appropriate as you will not be going in a straight line long enough to suffer the downside consequences of excessive camber.

If the answer to B is road work, be aware that more than a degree, maybe a deg. and a half will have an adverse effect on the overall driving experience. In this case, the best results are acheived by setting up the rear first and then to lower the front as required to achieve a suitable angle of attack.

Know your goal.


Keep 'em flying.

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Charlie White
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lowering a 356

#12 Post by Charlie White »

Some time ago, I got the bug to lower my 65 356-C. Probably a throwback to my high school days when I had a lowered 49 Ford. If I remember, lowering the 49 Ford had something to do with heating the front coils and rear springs with a torch till the desired lowered height was achieved. But that was long ago about 1959! Re the 356-C, I asked around like you're doing, but my mechanical ability to do all that complicated stuff was limited. Someone mentioned, get some 14 inch rims. So I did! I ended up with 5.5 x 14 inch (Porsche) Fuchs and I believe 60 series tires front and rear. Lowered the car all around about an inch and a half. It accomplished exactly what I wanted to do. I did have to make some minor adjustments. The metal lip on the upper bump stop up inside the rear fenders had to be ground down to keep the rims from rubbing when the suspension traveled. In additon, spacers were needed to move either the front or the rear wheels (I forgot) to keep from rubbing. I'll figure that out again when I put the 14's back on. Most of the time, I have my stock 5.5 C chrome wheels on, but for those times when I want a change, I put on the 14's, quick and easy! This is one way to accomplish "a lowering" without a lot of complicated mechanical work. A neat side affect is much zipper 2nd and 3rd gear, but top end is reduced, much fun around town!

CW
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Jack Staggs
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#13 Post by Jack Staggs »

On of the benefits of using lowering spindles on B/C cars is that you get to remove the factory stronger large diameter units and replace them with thinner, weaker ones. Quite an incentive! Oh, I forgot. Its not about actually DRIVING them...

Cliff Murray

#14 Post by Cliff Murray »

Yesterday, I was going to post that lowering too much is a bad thing but I am trying to reduce the number of negative posts that I make. Since I didn't start it, I will confirm that the two cars that I bought that were lowered drove like crap and were quickly raised up. Large amounts of lowering destroys what makes these cars superior to their contemporaries. If you want a car that jumps, bangs , and skips all over the road, buy a Healey or a Morgan. However, a small amount of lowering, SMALL AMOUNT, can help handling.

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Ron Hetherington
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Re: lowering a 356

#15 Post by Ron Hetherington »

Charlie White wrote:stock 5.5 C chrome wheels
Charlie, were 5.5" wheels ever "stock on a 356 C?

rh

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