Herald Rear Suspension

[Martin Parkes]

New member and new to Heralds, thought I'd try here for a sensible answer instead of FB!

My '65 one owner 21,000 mile Herald is being re-commissioned at a relatives garage, someone said that there is a mod that can be carried out on the rear end to get rid of the horrible camber.

What work do you think I should carry out on it whilst its in the air to improve the ride and handling?

Please don't suggest fitting Vitesse suspension, TIA

[Casper]

Welcome to Herald ownership, and this message board.

The previous owner coped since 1965 and most of us are quite happy with the OE setup.  Back in the day some motoring writers made a big thing of the setup and it really isn't that bad.   The thing to note is that you don't lift off or brake IN  a corner - do it beforehand, as you should anyway.  Or carry a bag of cement in the boot!

The suspension was developed and later Spitires use a 'swing spring' arrangement which vastly improves the situation.  This can be fitted to Heralds and requires a stronger ARB (fromm a late Spit) at the front to balance it.  I am not sure what rear spring it would need - someone would know. 

Other modifications are wpossibe but expensive

C.

[NonMember]

7 minutes ago, Casper said:

requires a stronger ARB (fromm a late Spit) at the front to balance it. 

You don't actually need the stiffer ARB. The swing spring works fine with a Herald ARB, you just get a tiny bit more body roll when cornering.

[Pete Lewis]

the simplest and cheapest de camber is to just fit a spacer block between the spring and the diff 

eg  Alloy Diff Spacers : Canley Classics

i used a swinger on my vitesse and it was awfull if you carry more than 2 up and some boot content it just sinks lower and lower

spacer is easy to fit , but need to remove the studs from the diff and maybe use longer ones ..all available 

if you get carried away any spring removal needs a lot of space to extract the unit from one side of the car so you need 5ft of clear space .

tip  always do the cheap and simple jobs before you dive into emptying the wallet with many associated headaches 

the original set up has lasted well for 50 years , but we all agree the camber spoils the look of the car

3/4" block would correct all this  but you must check the rear toe in after any changes 

Pete

[Clive]

Herald estate, or better, courier, spring with a 1" lowering block.

As pete says, late swing spring works great if only 2 people.

[68vitesse]

Had a 68 Mk1 2L Vitesse since 1995, same suspension setup as Herald, never been a problem but I have a half inch lowering block fitted and lowered front springs.

All the best with your new car.

Regards

Paul.

[Martin Parkes]

1 hour ago, Pete Lewis said:

the simplest and cheapest de camber is to just fit a spacer block between the spring and the diff 

eg  Alloy Diff Spacers : Canley Classics

i used a swinger on my vitesse and it was awfull if you carry more than 2 up and some boot content it just sinks lower and lower

spacer is easy to fit , but need to remove the studs from the diff and maybe use longer ones ..all available 

if you get carried away any spring removal needs a lot of space to extract the unit from one side of the car so you need 5ft of clear space .

tip  always do the cheap and simple jobs before you dive into emptying the wallet with many associated headaches 

the original set up has lasted well for 50 years , but we all agree the camber spoils the look of the car

3/4" block would correct all this  but you must check the rear toe in after any changes 

Pete

That's what I was after, great posting and thank you.

[Pete Lewis]

the clues on canley give you some idea of which thickness to try  , if one thin one doesnt do all you want you can stack them 

at 1" you will need longer studs and the cover plate wont fit .needs a modification , 

Pete

[johny]

2 hours ago, Martin Parkes said:

That's what I was after, great posting and thank you.

Your spring being low milege probably still has the original pronounced curve (this reduces with usage + load and the camber steadily becomes more negative) so I would suggest that the 1/2" spacer wont be enough. So unless youre going to do a lot of driving with 3 hefty passengers I think you'll need at least 3/4" and, as Pete says, this shouldnt need a change of studs...

[Jon J 1250]

Standard Triumph used to race/rally Heralds and Vitesses with the original swing axle suspension so they certainly can handle ok, trick is to get the camber neutral or slightly negative with spacers if it doesn't settle down naturally as the car rolls.

If you go too negative it'll be no good for carrying any weight and spoils the looks of the car in my opinion (makes it look clapped out!).

JJ

[Jon J 1250]

PS. we have similar tastes in low mileage Heralds (though mine was originally blue, and will be again one day...)

[Colin Lindsay]

If you’re a new Herald owner I’d try the car with the original setup first, and only then modify it if it really needs it. You may end up adversely affecting the driving experience without discovering how the car handles as standard.