Rear axel alignment

[Rabbit TD]

I had a wreck with my Rabbit a while back and have it all fixed and painted again, it came out real nice.  I kind of suspected the rear axel was off a little and checked today with some straight edges and levels ect.  I took a 4 foot level and placed it flush against the brake drums with the rear bumper on jack stands and marked the floor at the front where it touched on both sides and used a plumb bob in the door sill area adjacent to the mark on the floor and marked those positions too.  They both measured pretty close to the same amount but one was inside and one was outside showing it was actualy shifted a bit.  I tried loosening the mountings and using a digging iron I tried to shift it back but there wasn't enough travel left in the bolt holes in the mounts to allow it.  I saw that the spindles were bolted on so I decided to see how much of a shim it would take to bring it back so both marks would be close to the same.  I had some galvanized roofing tin here and cut 2 peices about 1/2 X 4 in and placed one shim behind the flange touching the bolts at the rear on one wheel and on the other wheel in the front and tightened it all back up with the impact gun and it's damn near pefect now.  It's amazing how much the distance changes out there 4 feet away from just something as thin as a strip of roofing tin.  Yeah I know that technicly the flange isn't 100% flush with the other part but it's not going anywhere.  I couldn't believe I didn't have to take any of the brake hardware off to get to the bolts, just a 15 m/m deep well impact socket and the gun and it's just hanging there.   After seeing the 2 little studs that holds the mounts on it's a wonder these axels  don't just fall off completely

[maxfax]

That's actually how a rear alignment is done on these cars..   Except most of the commercially available shims are  plastic! 

[Rabbit TD]

That's actually how a rear alignment is done on these cars..   Except most of the commercially available shims are  plastic! 

I knew there are shims out there like that for some cars, I remember seeing pictures of them during an alignment class we took one time.  From what I remember you can use 2 of those together to adjust toe and camber at the same time.  I didn't know they had them for these old cars.  Where do you buy them anyhow?  All I ever saw was a picture of one, never saw one up close.

[maxfax]

Where I used to work years ago, we got them directly from a Hunter Alignement Rep..     Most of them were a universal fit for a dozen different cars..    All they are is a plastic disk slightly thicker on one side..  There were llittle charts you would put them on that would tell you which way to install it to get the adjustment you needed..  Then there woudl be markings on the chart on where to cut out notches for the bolts to hold the spindle on..  I'm thinking it was a common Chrysler shim that fit VW's.. Might have even been for Horizon's/Omlettes...

[Rabbit TD]

Where I used to work years ago, we got them directly from a Hunter Alignement Rep..     Most of them were a universal fit for a dozen different cars..    All they are is a plastic disk slightly thicker on one side..  There were llittle charts you would put them on that would tell you which way to install it to get the adjustment you needed..  Then there woudl be markings on the chart on where to cut out notches for the bolts to hold the spindle on..  I'm thinking it was a common Chrysler shim that fit VW's.. Might have even been for Horizon's/Omlettes...

.
Thanks, I kind of thought they probably came from a place like that.  I thought I remember the instructor saying NAPA carried them but I never had the need for one before and never checked them out.  I bet they were for the little Chrysler cars like you said, they had a lot of interchangeable parts then.

[maxfax]

Napa used to be able to get them..  I would imagine they still can, if you can find a parts monkey that knows what you're talking about..  We origianlly got them through napa till the local store closed..


The Omlette is just the red haired step cousin of the Rabbit family..   

[Rabbit TD]

Napa used to be able to get them..  I would imagine they still can, if you can find a parts monkey that knows what you're talking about..  We origianlly got them through napa till the local store closed..


The Omlette is just the red haired step cousin of the Rabbit family..   

Those cars are a lot heavier than the Rabbits aren't they or by how much?  I've always wondered if anyone ever used one of our diesels for one of them.  My cousin had an Omni with the 2.2 and blew the head gasket finaly and junked it.  That little thing was imaculate though inside and out.  I'd have fixed it for him if he wasn't so damn tight and he won't do anything for anyone else.  I probably should have bought it and saved it for a diesel.

[maxfax]

Curb weight on an Omni is rougly 2300lbs.. I think that's with the 2.2 and manual trans.. A little heavier than a MK1 Rabbit little lighter than a MK2 Jetta... They'd be an ideal candidate for a diesel swap, especially if you started with a pre '84 that already had the VW 1.7 in it..  I keep finding those things for sale around here in amazing shape..  Most of them are later models though..