Dodge Dart Drag Car Alignment! Gorgeous 1970 Dodge Dart in for help. From Lucore Automotive

[@LucoreAuto]

Looove the look of this car but she needed a LOT of front end steering/suspension work! Fortunately, we're pretty familiar with that ;) Anyone ELSE ready for racing season!?

[@artillerybuff2000]

Great video! When I built my first drag car way back in 1977, a 1971 Plymouth Duster with a 440 big block, the Direct Connection racing manual recommended using the lighter 6 cylinder Torsion bars because they would allow more suspension movement to help the car transfer weight to the rear tires. I also set it up with the maximum amount of caster that I could get out of it along with zero camber and toe-in. Had a lot of fun with that car, sure wish I would have kept it...

[@tint661]

The local guy that does front end alignments is a drag racer himself. The torsion bars being off set alone would throw things off. I can't believe they had the car toed in. That is crazy also. I learned to align front ends on an old Hunter alignment machine. We used a wooden yard stick to get the back and front tires in some kind of alignment. I've never aligned a car with upper adjustable a arms. That has to be easier than adding shims or adjusting eccentric bolts and washers. I'm sure it's going to launch and go down the track much better.

[@keithsims86]

I having alignment issue with my Duster getting it align the guy told me the right frame rail rolled in.

[@keithsims86]

I took my Duster to alignment shop the guy said he couldn't align it front right frame rail rolled in never it. Have you heard of that?

[@ragingbull3406]

I wanted to see that "test" hit!

[@ShannonLandsberger]

The differing / higher right spring (tortion bar) pressure is likely to help counter the engine torque and deliver power to the rear right more quickly so it stays planted and maintains traction. I'm not sure that making them even is what the owner would have wanted. I would have asked the owner about it before making that specific change.

[@LucoreAuto]

The owner was with us the entire time, especially on a project like this we ALWAYS check with the owner/driver before making changes. In many cases you are very correct, it can be set up that way for a reason. In this situation with how incredibly out of whack the entire front end was when we got our hands on it the decision was to set the car up properly to see how it does then make adjustments once they have some on track data/experience with it. Essentially, let's set a GOOD baseline, then go from there.

[@richardlucore6813]

Thank you for your feedback.... The customer purchased the chassis and has never been happy with the handling.... We have to start with a baseline to figure out what is its best set-up. I chose to square up the chassis to see what results we achieve. As we make test hits and practice runs we will watch video and and get driver feedback to make adjustments to the chassis. There is no right answer to setting up a chassis as they all have different requirements to make them run straight. Different chassis builds, frame reinforcement, engine torque, chassis flex etc... every car gives us a new challenge, we try to make it as good as we can and then make it a little better. It's a process. There will likely be a follow up video on this car so we can figure out solutions to other issues that may be welded into this chassis.

[@thatdudeinorange2297]

Not 💯 percent sure, but think you like this car! Would be really interesting to see how a bumpsteer kit looks and works, maybe for another video?

[@LucoreAuto]

Oh we definitely like it! Very cool car and had a look we really enjoyed. Plus sitting 2 bays over from it was a 73 Charger you'll see in the episode coming next week so we were in a Big Block Mopar kind of mood! We show a little of that on SRC Billy's alignment video we did a few months back but can certainly do a video dedicated to bump steer if it's something people are interested in

[@donbraham411]

I’m impressed of the Professionalism of this guy. 👏 great job

[@LucoreAuto]

We try to be as honest as we can be, and not pull any punches when it comes to stuff like this. Especially when it's a race car traveling at high speeds, the difference between a great pass and tragedy can be "almost good enough"

[@NilesJStJohn]

Very informative video and great looking and sounding Dart !! I am a lifetime Mopar man .

[@dannybellmore2574]

Where do you purchase your bump steer kits?

[@geralddrury4829]

Finally A alignment tech that gets it! These cars are uniquely built!

[@LucoreAuto]

You have NO idea how often we hear that! Apparently this sort of thing is more of a "lost art" than even we understood.

[@rayrussell6064]

Awesome looking and sounding Mopar I so enjoy your channel you have a lot of knowledge in setting front ends this the perfect channel for youngsters that are starting out and for old ones that are hard headed to learn from. I personally know about bump steer but I'm down for you to have video a out it. It's difficult to find a awesome front end guy like yourself. It's not just front ends that you have a lot of knowledge in. I had a accident in 2007 that left me disabled so it's hard to find someone to work on my vehicles due to they think I don't know anything it couldn't be further from the truth I was a heavy line gas and diesel tech for Ford so I've heard everything. You sir I enjoy watching. God bless you guys and as always be safe 👍

[@TheProchargedmopar]

i always thought a flimsier bar (slant 6) is best for weight transfer in drag racing. I picked up some for my 71 satellite.

[@LucoreAuto]

Somewhat so yes, there's a fine line between flimsy for weight transfer and flimsy that makes your chassis flex/rebound too much. You DO want some of that "give and go" but we don't want to this thing twisting and all over the place. If you're interested, we have a WHOLE bunch of new suspension parts coming from Firm Feel for the 73 Charger, they have a wide selection of new bars depending on use.

[@TheProchargedmopar]

@@LucoreAuto I'll be watching. 👍

[@bikinicarwash6320]

oh my GOD i love that color! soooo pretty!

[@LucoreAuto]

Agreed! She sure is perty, and sounds great too!

[@MichaelBrown-um8qc]

Wow So pretty in the orange🥂❣️Great vidio👍

[@LucoreAuto]

Thank you! This thing was definitely one good looking drag car!

[@robertbriggs4176]

What were your final caster, camber numbers? What do you shoot for in a drag car?

[@unclesquirrel6951]

Personally I blame squirrels

[@LucoreAuto]

Dunno who did the alignment before we got there, but it damn well could been!

[@Loki13M]

@@LucoreAuto A blind squirrel finds a nut now and again... but this shows how many they miss.

[@LucoreAuto]

@@Loki13M so so SO often something we have to deal with!

[@Noneyurbusiness]

*Man knows his suspension geometry*

[@LucoreAuto]

Been down this path a time or two ;)

[@watsisbuttndo829]

You can actually see the toe out when you push up on that old canoe, my 65 gto did not need any measuring to see the bumpsteer either, clearly visible with the naked eye. Took a lot of fiddling to get it right but it was worth it.

[@LucoreAuto]

Definitely something we try to educate people on, there's a lot to be desired in the old rigs! Properly setup they don't have to steer or track like a tanker ship! The differences you can make is just a few small upgrades and modern setup can be HUGE on classics. IF it's a street car too, even something as a big sway bar can make a world of difference!