C4 (84-96) Corvette Uprights (knuckles)

[Joest]

The Corvette C4 uprights are made of forged aluminum and will package inside of a 17" wheel to minimize scrub radius. They also have the benefit of using a sealed hub assembly that bolts in. I am thinking of using them on a future race car suspension. This is obviously not a novel idea so I was thinking that someone out there may have accurate measurements on ball joint locations, steering arm pivot, king pin angle, or even an accurate CAD drawing. If so, please leave a post. Thanks.

-Joest

 

[MarkEE]

I am planning to do the same thing only with the C5 suspension. I have tried to find the suspension parameters for the C5 but have not been successful. I purchased an upright and digitized it in cad but I don't think it is accurate enough for the Racing by the Numbers suspension geometry program that I use. The next thing I'm going to try is purchase the Corvette Black Book 1953 - 2004 by Mike Antonick that just came out for the C5. Good luck!

MarkEE

 

[mloew]

Joest/MarkEE,

With the introduction of the C5 Corvette, GM allowed several Technical Documents to be published and presented at the 1997 SAE Congress. There may references to the information you seek in these documents as there are comparisons to the C4 parameters in many of them, as I remember. Here are links to the documents:

[li]970097: Synthesis of Chassis Parameters for Ride and Handling on the 1997 Chevrolet Corvette (www.sae.org/servlets/productDetail?PROD_TYP=PAPER&PROD_CD=970097)[/li][li]970370: The 1997 Chevrolet Corvette Suspension Crossmembers (www.sae.org/servlets/productDetail?PROD_TYP=PAPER&PROD_CD=970370)[/li][li]970098: Ride and Handling Development of the 1997 Chevrolet Corvette (www.sae.org/servlets/productDetail?PROD_TYP=PAPER&PROD_CD=970098)[/li][li]970091: Objective Ride and Handling Goals for the 1997 Chevrolet Corvette (www.sae.org/servlets/productDetail?PROD_TYP=PAPER&PROD_CD=970091)[/li][li]970089: The 1997 Chevrolet Corvette Structure Architecture Synthesis (www.sae.org/servlets/productDetail?PROD_TYP=PAPER&PROD_CD=970089)[/li][li]970092: Design Synthesis of Suspension Architecture for the 1997 Chevrolet Corvette (www.sae.org/servlets/productDetail?PROD_TYP=PAPER&PROD_CD=970092)[/li]



Best regards,

Matthew Ian Loew
"Luck is the residue of design."
Branch Rickey

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips Fora.

 

[HDS]

Would a Mitchell's (not related to the software) frame repair manual have this info? Stop by a body shop and look at one.

 

[xs650]

"They also have the benefit of using a sealed hub assembly that bolts in."

Also has the advantage of letting vendors charge well over $200 for the wheel bearings for one wheel.

"The next thing I'm going to try is purchase the Corvette Black Book 1953 - 2004 by Mike Antonick that just came out for the C5. ....
MarkEE"

MarkEE, it's an interesting book if you are a
Corvette fan, but don't expect to find any useful suspension oinformation in it. It's not there.