Front suspension

From GTM Workshop

Contents 1 Build Manual 2 Kit components required 3 Donor Parts required 4 Assembly Build Manual Build Sequence Monocoque Front End Rear End Doors Finishing Donor Components Rover Metro Donor Components Rover 220/420 Components Build Sections Battery Beam end covers Bonnet and front spliter mould Boot bootlock and hinges Brake lines Carpets Dashboard cover Doors Engine cover moulding Engine frame Engine and auxiliaries Exhaust Front suspension Gear change Handbrake lever cables and calipers Door panels Trim Headlight covers Heater and pipework Lights Part trim panels option Pedal box and master cylinder Perspex screens rear and side Petrol tank filler neck and cap Pipes and services through the tunnel Radiator ducting and splash moulds to monocoque Radiator mould radiator and pipework Rear suspension Roof panel Seat belts Seats and runners Separate instrument option Setting up the car for the road Soft trimming Spare wheel mould and spare wheel Steering rack and column Throttle pedal Trimming hard panels Windscreen and rear bulkhead screen Windscreen washer bottle pipes and jets Wiper motor and blades Wiring Wiring loom insruments and fuse box 1800 gear change p.g.1 gearbox 1800 engine mountings 5AS alarm units Hydraulic clutch 1800 engine steady Spyder Supplement Top Seatbelt Mounting Hood Boot Engine Compartment Grills Stainless Steel Mesh

The Libra uses a conventional unequally length double wishbone suspension at the front It uses two Metro front hub assemblies with the standard top ball-joints but special bottom joints. The outer part of the drive shaft assemblies used on the Metro are used to secure the front wheel bearings and hubs, these are machined on exchanged by GTM Cars Ltd.

The top and bottom wishbones are specially made components and utilise special inner bearings. These bearings are held by mounting brackets, these are in turn bolted directly to the front of the composite monocoque. A 3mm shim is used on all the mounting brackets between them and the monocoque to enable fine adjustment to be made once the car is completed. Separate 1mm shims are provided for this purpose. Inside the monocoque spreader plates are used to spread the loads into the monocoque.

Adjustable seat height coil over shock absorber units bolt between the lower front wishbone and the front damper mountings which in turn are mounted to the monocoque in a similar manner to the wishbone mounting brackets.

The shock absorbers have their adjusters towards the bottom of the shock absorber. The GTM steering arms replace the standard Metro steering arms. These face forward rather than backwards as in the Metro. THE L.H.S. METRO HUB IS USED ON THE R.H.S. OF THE LIBRA AND THE R.H.S. HUB ON THE L.H.S.

Kit components required

• T0200 / T0201 - FRONT TOP WISHBONES.
• T0202 / T0203 - FRONT BOTTOM WISHBONES.
• T0204 FRONT W/B MOUNTING BRKT
• T0205 FRONT W/B MOUNTING BRKT SPREADER
• T0206 FRONT W/B MOUNTING SHIM
• T0207 FRONT SUSPENSION BUSH ASSEMBLY
• T0208 FRONT BOTTOM SWIVEL
• T0209 / TO210 - STEERING ARMS
• TO211 FRONT DAMPER SPRING
• T0212 FRONT DAMPER MOUNTINGS
• T0213 FRONT DAMPERS.
• T0214 FRONT DAMPER MOUNTING SPREADER
• T0215 NUT AND BOLT PACK.

The top wishbones TO2OO/TO201 are difficult to recognise in terms of passenger and driver side and the top and bottom of the wishbone. Looking at the pointed end of the wishbone, which holds the top swivel and the taper, hole faces down towards the ground. This taper also faces forward slightly. With the wishbone in the correct position the front leg of the wishbone is slightly longer than the rear leg.

Donor Parts required

Two front hub assemblies complete with top ball joints, brakes, gallopers, brake pads, and outer part of drive shaft assembly. Steering arm mounting bushes.

Assembly

Start to the assembly by a putting the front suspension Bush assemblies T0207 into the top and bottom wishbones. These bushes should be assembled using molybdenum type grease. Pushes the bushes into the wishbones squarely using a simple press i.e. vice. The bushes should be assembled complete with there stainless steel inner sleeves.

The position of the wishbone mounting brackets and the top damper mounting holes are indicated on the monocoque by a small indentation. By referring to the exploded drawing of the front suspension it is possible to cross-reference these holes. Mount the front wishbone mounting brackets TO204 to the top and bottom front wishbones using the 10mm x 50mm long bolts.

Holding the wishbone assemblies next to the monocoque in the correct position and align one hole in the forward and one hole in the backward mounting bracket that line up appropriately with the indentations on the monocoque. Remove the wishbone and drill those holes out with a small drill. Now drill out these holes to 6mm clearance. Mount the wishbones to the monocoque using two 6mm bolts in the holes drilled and using the assembly as a jig drill out the remaining holes Loosely mount the front wishbone mounting bracket on to the monocoque remembering the 3 millimetre spaces between the mounting brackets and the monocoque, fitting the spreader brackets on the inside of the Monocoque.

The 3-millimetre spaces are used to enable some adjustments to be made to the front suspension by the removing or adding different thickness of spaces provided in the kit.

The wishbone mounting brackets Ire attached to the tub using six-millimetre socket cap bolts 35 millimetres long. Spare 40 millimetre and 45-millimetre socket cap bolts are provided to be used in the areas where the thickness of the monocoque is too great for the thirty five millimetre socket caps to be used along with the nyloc nuts. Use the shortest possible bolts in all applications.

Now mount the top and bottom wishbones complete with their bushes to the mounting brackets on the monocoque using the 10mm diameter x 50mm long bolts and nylon nuts. Note that no washers are used in this assembly to enable the nylon nuts to fully penetrate the bolts.

Once you are satisfied that everything appears correct tighten all nuts. The special bottom swivels TO208 can now be mounted to the bottom wishbone using the 7-millimetre socket cap bolts, 25 millimetres long, washes and nylon nuts.

Mount the front damper mountings TO212 to the monocoque in a similar manner to the front wishbone mounting brackets. The front suspension dampers TO213 complete with the springs TO211 can now be mounted between the damper mounting and the bottom wishbone using the 12 millimetre bolts, 65 millimetres long at the bottom, and 60 millimetre long at the top mounting.