VMac822 Posted August 19, 2017 Share Posted August 19, 2017 Hi all, first post here! I bought a 1938 Special sedan a couple months ago that's in good original shape. It has 104,700 original miles and I have enjoyed taking it on a few drives. One thing I notice though is the tires really bounce when I hit even fairly mild bumps in the road and sometimes the front tires bounce pretty intensely. It causes the whole car to shudder considerably. It has wide whitewall nylon reproduction tires. I don't know how much of it is the tires and how much it's the shocks. I do need to check the oil on the fronts, knee action shocks are a new thing for me. I have no idea how old the rears are either. But when the car is sitting and I bounce it the shocks seem to dampen it quite well, seems they're doing their job. But realistically with old suspension technology and 79 year-old car with nylon tires what is the best I can expect? The nylon tires do a lot for the appearance of the car but if radials help I may switch them out eventually. Thanks much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFranklin Posted August 19, 2017 Share Posted August 19, 2017 Most of what you describe sounds like inefficient shocks. Make sure the tires are at proper inflation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary W Posted August 19, 2017 Share Posted August 19, 2017 You could also check your front coil springs. After 80 years and over 100,000 miles they may have lost their temper. But I would start with the shocks. If they are not dampening the rebound, you'll get the "bounce". Good Luck and welcome to the Forum! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thriller Posted August 19, 2017 Share Posted August 19, 2017 A number of folks have talked about tires ad nauseum. My 1941 rides very nicely with bias ply tires and some have said the ride on these old cars can be poorer with radials. I've never done such a switch myself except on the 1966 Wildcat which is a very different car. That said, changing tires without verifying suspension condition would be unwise in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VMac822 Posted August 19, 2017 Author Share Posted August 19, 2017 OK thank you for the input. I'm glad to hear the ride can probably be improved quite a bit. I would also appreciate some pointers on where to buy parts. I'll start with new rear shocks and doing maintenance on the knee action units up front but do you think it would be worth pulling them off and going through them? Is it very difficult to rebuild them? At one time my car was owned by a gentleman in Minnesota who specializes in prewar Buicks but his name escapes me at the moment.. My car came from Minnesota in 1996 and now lives here in Eastern WA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Manes Posted August 20, 2017 Share Posted August 20, 2017 VMac822, What might be perceived as bouncing tires from inside while driving, especially if it is from the frond end, may actually be a violent shimmy due to either mis-alignment , or worn tie rod ball joints. You may want to check for any play either back and forth, up and down and in and out, while front tires are off the ground on a jack. Glenn Manes Wheat Ridge CO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MCHinson Posted August 20, 2017 Share Posted August 20, 2017 VMac822, Welcome to the AACA Discussion Forum. I would suggest that you first try refilling the shocks before attempting to remove them. I would also suggest you purchase a Factory Service Manual. These can usually be found on Ebay or from the usual parts suppliers. My personal primary source for reproduction parts is Bob's Automobilia. http://bobsautomobilia.com/ Another good reproduction parts source is http://www.oldbuickparts.com/index.php. Making sure that all of the front in parts are up to factory specifications, shocks are in good working order and full of fluid, and that the tires are properly inflated will probably solve your problems. If not, then you probably need to consider tire replacement. The guy who the car came from might have been Dave Tacheny. He is the best source of used parts for any 1936-1941 Buick. He is best reached at 763-427-3460 between 4 and 7 pm Central. I hope you will also consider joining the 36-38 Buick Club. You can check it out and download a membership application at http://www.3638buickclub.org/. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Den41Buick Posted August 20, 2017 Share Posted August 20, 2017 Apple Hydraulics does a nice job on rebuilt shocks. I have used them on my 41's, and they work perfectly. I would start with the shocks first. The new ones made a big difference in the ride. As far as tires are concerned, I have radials on my Roadmaster and bias-ply on my Special. Yes they both ride differently and neither of them are bouncy. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinneyhill Posted August 20, 2017 Share Posted August 20, 2017 The old Simple Shock Test is to manually bounce a corner a few times as high as you can then release (e.g. hop up and down on a bumper). If the car bounces again without your input, shocks are not working. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigersdad Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 Id say worn tie rods and ball joints. King pins? Or misalignment. Had them all in the 32 and 34 Buicks and the 31 Cadillac. Jay El Dorado Hills, CA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenz38 Posted August 23, 2017 Share Posted August 23, 2017 I wuold also check the inner bearings//bushing of the upper control arm/ Shock unit....in my case they was worn out and resulting in the same problem where i bought the car 2004.. M2C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VMac822 Posted August 24, 2017 Author Share Posted August 24, 2017 Thanks again for the great suggestions! I'm going to pull the tires and get into it soon and see what all it needs. The good news is it tracks straight and steers well and doesn't seem to have much play in the steering so I think a lot of the components are pretty sound. I know king pins wear relatively fast so I'll definitely check that. Yes the car used to belong to Dave Tacheney. He bought it from the second owner I believe, and I'm the 5th owner. Here are a couple pics. Some of the paint has been redone but about 2/3 of it is original. All the gauges work, everything else but the clock and radio. It no longer has the original radio and one from a '39 I believe was installed in its place, but the last owner gave me a '38 radio that I'm going to tinker on and get working and install. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LAS VEGAS DAVE Posted August 24, 2017 Share Posted August 24, 2017 NICE LOOKING CAR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinneyhill Posted August 24, 2017 Share Posted August 24, 2017 (edited) On 8/24/2017 at 4:35 PM, VMac822 said: I'm going to pull the tires and get into it soon and see what all it needs. Leave the wheels on until you have given them a good wiggle and diagnosed the problems. There is more leverage and you will see and feel movement more easily than if you take them off then try to wiggle the suspension. During the Warrant of Fitness test here, they use a crow bar and fulcrum to push the wheel up (front end on stands) and someone underneath watches for movement in the king pin and other connections to the chassis. You will also be able to feel wheel bearing movement with the wheel on. Edited August 26, 2017 by Spinneyhill (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VMac822 Posted August 25, 2017 Author Share Posted August 25, 2017 Good idea, thanks Spinneyhill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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