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Re: Mojave Tan - A 1956 400 Saga
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Kevin.
The lower A arm is a bear..to remove bushings.
Posted on: 4/4 22:54
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Riki
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Re: Mojave Tan - A 1956 400 Saga
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Quote:
It's connected correctly. The VW switch has blade terminals and the previous owner made new wire terminals and connected them. I didn't realize the VW switch has a delay either, but that makes perfect sense now. Riki - that's what I was afraid of. But from what I understand it's the upper arms are the most important.
Posted on: 4/4 23:49
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Kevin
1954 Clipper Super Panama | Registry | Project Blog 1938 Super 8 1605 | Registry | Project Blog 1953 Clipper Deluxe Club Sedan | Registry | Project Blog |
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Re: Mojave Tan - A 1956 400 Saga
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The engineers that designed and built the Torsion Level Suspension wrote and presented a paper on the subject to the Society of Automotive Engineers in June of 1955. Available in the Literature Archive, The New Packard Torsion Level Suspension, is worth reading for their description of the design, engineering, construction, and operation of the suspension.
Posted on: Yesterday 12:51
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Re: Mojave Tan - A 1956 400 Saga
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Thanks for the link, I've read it a few times. Though I misremembered the spring rate values; it's 66 lb/in front compared to 90 lb/in conventional. I may have been thinking of the 121 lb/in "export" type for the 2:1 comparison. Here is the relevant section. As stated, the bushings provide some spring reaction themselves, but the main source of spring reaction is the leveling bars. Recall as well that those torsion bars are thinner than the mains, to provide sufficient twistability over their length without greatly disturbing the front-to-rear axle coupling. "Individual wheel rates on the Packard car are 66 pounds per inch front and 69 pounds per inch rear. Ride rates are approximately 3 pounds per inch less. When the front and rear wheels are deflected in equal amounts simultaneously, the front wheel rate is approximately 100 pounds per inch and the rear wheel rate, 104 pounds per inch. Ride rates are approximately 7 pounds per inch less. The front wheel and ride rates include 26 pounds per inch due to the front suspension and stabilizer rubber bushings. The rear wheel and ride rates include 40 pounds per inch due to the rates of the compensator bars and the torque arms and track linkage rubber bushings. These rates contribute toward pitch but are low compared to the equivalent standard suspension rates, making the car relatively pitch free under most normal conditions. Pitch frequency is ap-proximately 40 cycles per minute and bounce frequency approximately 54 cycles per minute for the Packard car with 4.5 passenger load. Roll stability of the car is higher than that of our standard cars due to the location of the attachment points of the long torsion bar levers at the rear and the fact that the combined spring rates act on the body in roll. The roll center is approximately on the ground surface at the front wheels and approximately 11.75 inches above the ground at the rear wheels."
Posted on: Yesterday 13:31
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1955 400 | Registry | Project Blog
1955 Clipper Deluxe | Registry | Project Blog 1955 Clipper Super Panama | Registry Email (Parts/service inquiries only, please. Post all questions on the forum.) service@ultramatic.info |
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Re: Mojave Tan - A 1956 400 Saga
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Home away from home
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Did you know that a 1956 400 has about 18 feet of heater hose? Now you know.
 New hoses all the way around. I went with modern screw type clamps because the outer diameter of the hose was even so slightly smaller than stock 1". The original spring clamps would not hold well enough, and I didn't want any chance of leaks.   I'm happy to report no signs of leaks from any of the hoses. I do have a small leak on the radiator that I saw before I installed it. It was located on a middle tube that couldn't be reached. So I'll put a Stop Leak tab in there at some point so I can continue test drives. Test drive was only about a mile to get the car up to temp. Observations: 1.) The steering is hard to control. It feels very squirrely and unpredictable. My guess is the old bias ply tires are a big part of it, but it could be bushings and alignment too. I almost never have to correct the wheel on the Panama. On the 400 I'm both hands on the wheel trying to keep it on the road. 2.) Brakes are slightly better but still not great. I will change all the other wheel cylinders to be sure, probably the hoses too while I'm at it. 3.) Charging system is definitely not working. After a one mile drive the battery was down to under 11.2V and the car wouldn't start. So it's on the charger now and I will need to dig into where the problem lies. Alternator was rebuilt in the past. 4.) Starter makes a horrible noise when the engine starts. Like grinding. I'm assuming the pinion gear is not retracting fast enough? 5.) Car seemed a bit more level during the drive. I had TL off most of the time. Here it is at rest....looks like the rear is natively sitting slightly high. But that could also just be the surface it is on. The asphalt isn't perfectly level like the concrete in the shop. 
Posted on: Yesterday 14:13
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Kevin
1954 Clipper Super Panama | Registry | Project Blog 1938 Super 8 1605 | Registry | Project Blog 1953 Clipper Deluxe Club Sedan | Registry | Project Blog |
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Re: Mojave Tan - A 1956 400 Saga
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1.) I wouldn't expect the tires to cause that. Next time the car is in the air, just disconnect the pitman arm, then check that the wheel has a slight amount of binding/resistance on-center compared to closer to the lock position. If not, then the play between the worm gear and sector gear needs to be adjusted. I made a video on this one time but have yet to edit/upload. But all the instructions and test specs are in the manual anyway. Just be sure to read the correct section instead of the manual steering section. 2.) Good plan.  3.) How does your ammeter read? Should be to the right of center if charging. But if the wires are swapped or a 55 gauge was installed then it will read backwards. 4.) That seems unusual. Next time it's on the lift, disconnect the wires and unbolt the motor; check for free play of the components and that the teeth are not excessively worn, likewise check the flex plate. Confirm any suspicion by turning the engine over by hand (ratchet on front engine bolt, not a pry bar on the teeth please) to check all the teeth. 5.) A little high but nothing of concern for now.
Posted on: Yesterday 15:05
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1955 400 | Registry | Project Blog
1955 Clipper Deluxe | Registry | Project Blog 1955 Clipper Super Panama | Registry Email (Parts/service inquiries only, please. Post all questions on the forum.) service@ultramatic.info |
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Re: Mojave Tan - A 1956 400 Saga
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Home away from home
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Some added info to the above:
Steering: it feels like the car is moving side to side, like the tires are playing against each other. There does feel to be a lot of play in the steering wheel, so I will look into the steering gear adjustment. Charging: the dash gauge is always sligtly on discharge. When I turn something on (lights, fan) it bumps further into discharge territory. So I don't think the gauge is hooked up backwards. I don't think the system is charging at all. I'm trying to make sense of the manual on how to test the voltage regulator. That's foreign territory for me. The regulator on the car is Echlin, so it must have been replaced.
Posted on: Yesterday 15:41
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Kevin
1954 Clipper Super Panama | Registry | Project Blog 1938 Super 8 1605 | Registry | Project Blog 1953 Clipper Deluxe Club Sedan | Registry | Project Blog |
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Re: Mojave Tan - A 1956 400 Saga
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Forum Ambassador
 
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Presume your power steering pump is working and has proper pressure. If that is out of whack there is essentially nothing keeping the control valve centered in the neutral position within the valve so without being held stationary, the pitman arm connection to linkage is loose and it feels like there is a lot of play in the steering.
With wires hooked up to gen and regulator, battery connected, and key off, try polarizing the generator again before you do much more in troubleshooting the charge circuit. It might help and an extra time or two wont hurt if things are connected properly and correct terminals are jumped. If no change after polarizing then start looking for where the problem lies. 
Posted on: Yesterday 16:37
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Howard
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Re: Mojave Tan - A 1956 400 Saga
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Thanks Howard. Those instructions were helpfully printed on my voltage regulator cover. Unfortunately it didn't seem to work. Another test drive showed slight discharge the entire time with a bigger jump toward discharge when opening doors, turning on fan, etc. Incidentally when I turned on the TL system during the drive it immediately lifted the rear and threw the nose down. I had it off most of the drive and it stayed level. When I turned it on I was going about 45-50 on a flat road and not accelerating or decelerating. Not sure what that's all about. I'll probably just drive with it off for now.
Posted on: Yesterday 17:42
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Kevin
1954 Clipper Super Panama | Registry | Project Blog 1938 Super 8 1605 | Registry | Project Blog 1953 Clipper Deluxe Club Sedan | Registry | Project Blog |
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