Extreme positive camber rear wheels after being raised

[Buddydog]

I had a chance to get underneath my 230SL this weekend in an effort of solving the leaking differential issue.  I had raised the rear of the vehicle by the trailing arms point in yellow (not my car or pic):



Once the car was lowered, the rear wheels now developed an extreme positive camber:



I can't imagine this is normal but hoping it's minor.  Will it settle flat again once I drive the car?

What did I do wrong??

[Cees Klumper]

Nothing wrong, it will settle the moment you start driving it again.

[Buddydog]

Thank you so much.

I lost some sleep over this last night. 

Now back to cleaning the rear end....hopefully it's something easy like over filled issue and not the pinion seal. 

[Mechudo62]

I agree with Cees, all Pagodas exhibit this positive camber on the rear wheels when lifted, but return to normal once you drive it a few yards.

[vande17941]

It's an awesome feature...when you are pushing it though a corner hard, and then chicken out and let off throttle , the weight transfers to the front, the rears  go positive  camber, lose grip instantly,  and the ass of the car comes around and hits you in the face so fast you didn't even see it.....the widow-maker rear axle.

[mbazinet]

Thats funny !

[Benz Dr.]

It's an awesome feature...when you are pushing it though a corner hard, and then chicken out and let off throttle , the weight transfers to the front, the rears  go positive  camber, lose grip instantly,  and the ass of the car comes around and hits you in the face so fast you didn't even see it.....the widow-maker rear axle.

Good thing that's not quite true. You have to hit the brakes pretty hard to get that kind of rear axle response, which isn't something most drivers can or would do while pushing hard through a corner. That, or I drive differently than most. 

[66andBlue]

.....the widow-maker rear axle.

Vande, what would you call this one? 

[GGR]

lifting in the middle of a corner while driving hard with a Pagoda or any MB of the era is definitely an issue. There is a natural mass transfer that happens with any car, but the change of camber in the rear at the same time definitely compounds the issue. This is why I did all I could to minimize this on my Pagoda: stiffer springs in the front, sedan center spring in the rear (stops pushing earlier), negative camber to start with and adjustable Konis which act on rebound, which slows the rear lifting. This was a great improvement but still trail braking on a track remains a bit of an issue. Better brake well before the corner and then stay on the gas pedal all along the corner.

[Fintail]

Hi
Has anyone fitted the rear axle support bush. part number 110 350 12 75. Surely this part should be allowed to swivel! the distance from upper stops on inner chassis to full extention of shock absorbers is far far more than a solid silent block could move without tearing the internal rubber of the bush. I have seen before a shorter version with the tail that locates in the propshaft seal housing a seperate item allowing the bush to swivel. Is this bush Mercedes supply for the open axle shaft version. As for the donuts in the trailing arm to me unten means facing up and as the donut can only be fitted from one side unten is facing the installer (upwards). Donut fits the chassis mount perfectly this way.
Hope I have not put the cat amongst the pidgeons its only my opinion

Thank you

John

[ejboyd5]

I always wonder how many of those discussing the handling characteristics of the Mercedes suspension have actually driven their cars hard enough to experience same as opposed to those who are merely repeating book or internet lore.

[GGR]

http://www.sl113.org/forums/index.php?topic=15521.msg147912#msg147912

and

http://www.sl113.org/forums/index.php?topic=15521.msg158182#msg158182

not Loeb ligue, but doing my best to have the handling match the added power and torque as a result of my conversion.

I also nearly killed myself one day with a stock w112 Coupe as I had to lift the gas pedal in the middle of a corner as a dog ran accross the road. I watched the rest of the corner through the side window having steered fully into the skid and floored the gas pedal.

[Fintail]

A correction "unten" translates to "under" according to Autopress 1959-1963. My next question was at what angle is the axle before tightening the 3 bolts to clamp the axle support bush. Is it fully extended, fully compressed or is axle horizontal? I can find no reference in my books. Suspect its horizontal using the support frame 111.589.07.61. Surley that huge bush secured in the wrong place will influence handling

regards John

[stickandrudderman]

I also nearly killed myself one day with a stock w112 Coupe as I had to lift the gas pedal in the middle of a corner as a dog ran accross the road. I watched the rest of the corner through the side window having steered fully into the skid and floored the gas pedal.

Oh yes, the old "A dog ran out in front of me" excuse. I've used that a few times too!

[Benz Dr.]

A correction "unten" translates to "under" according to Autopress 1959-1963. My next question was at what angle is the axle before tightening the 3 bolts to clamp the axle support bush. Is it fully extended, fully compressed or is axle horizontal? I can find no reference in my books. Suspect its horizontal using the support frame 111.589.07.61. Surley that huge bush secured in the wrong place will influence handling

regards John

The pin going through the trunk floor needs to be at 90 degrees to the left side axle tube. I do all of that measurement using a level.

[Benz Dr.]

I always wonder how many of those discussing the handling characteristics of the Mercedes suspension have actually driven their cars hard enough to experience same as opposed to those who are merely repeating book or internet lore.

I see evidence of this on a daily basis. People repeat what they hear, what their told, or what they think; until done enough times, it becomes fact. And, these same people will often exchange  common beliefs with actual facts so that it suits their science or bolsters their POV. 

Why just this week, on this very site, I had a discussion about our cars with a guy who seems to think that his beliefs are more accurate than my facts based upon the example above.   

[vande17941]

I can tell you through years of racing experience,  and by driving Pagodas at the absolute limit, with 100% certainty that a Pagoda at the limit can be steered with the throttle, and abrupt lifting will throw its ass in your face so fast that it makes a 1985 Porsche 930 Turbo or 1991 MR2 Turbo seem docile.

[Dave]

The "Wheeler Dealers" show on Velocity just went into our beloved swing axle rear suspension in great detail as they restored and improved a 1963 Corvair convertible.  An aftermarket transverse spring installed side to side under everything to address this very problem.  Independent rear suspension was the next evolution, not too far after this period, making our swing arms a temporary step along the way.  Swing arms solved many problems, and was a tremendous step forward, but left a few challenges for us to deal with.