Rear Arch Clearance (1.9 Gti)

[mattg 3]

Hi chaps,

so the build of my 205 is nearly complete and I have a query. I have fitted a refurbished rear beam and am running the standard ride height with 195/50 Yokohama Parada 2 tyres. The clearance between the tyre and the inner arch is a touch different side to side. I can almost get a finger between the tyre and inner arch on the passenger side but can't on the drivers side so I guess about 2-3mm difference.

 

My question is threefold really.

 

1) Is this normal

2) how close should the inside of the tyre be to the inner arch running the spec mentioned above.

3) If not what the blooming heck is wrong with it (i know the shell is good as I know it's history over the last 10 years)

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Matt

[Tom Fenton 1,540]

Who has built the beam, what is the clearance on the trailing arm seal like?

 

A common mistake I see is the seal carrier ring gets pushed too far onto the end casting of the beam tube. It is not supposed to sit right up to the shoulder, there is a definite gap.

 

If the seal carrier has been pushed right up, in order to get the seal clearance right the beam can lose some width.

[Cameron 16]

Something I've always wondered but never bothered to check.. is there a clearance around the front mounting studs of the beam, or do they sit snugly in the holes? From the top the holes are certainly a good 4-5mm larger in diameter than the widest part of the stud, but I don't know whether that carries all the way through each skin to the bottom or whether it's just to account for tolerances in aligning the chassis panels.

 

If so, maybe that could be the cause of the small amount of misalignment. If not, what he said. ^^^

Edited November 6, 2011 by Cameron

[mattg 3]

Thanks for the replies chaps.

 

I'm confident that the beam has been put together properly as Jord294 built it and he certainly knows his stuff.

 

I wonder if it could be an issue with mounting hole tolerance as mentioned... Might drop it down and see if I can manouvre it a bit the other way.

Edited November 6, 2011 by mattg

[Cameron 16]

Just loosen the bolts a turn and see if you can move it.

 

It's not out of the question that it's just down to manufacturing tolerances, either. 2-3mm side-to-side doesn't sound too bad.

Edited November 6, 2011 by Cameron

[mattg 3]

Just loosen the bolts a turn and see if you can move it.

 

It's not out of the question that it's just down to manufacturing tolerances, either. 2-3mm side-to-side doesn't sound too bad.

 

Cheers Cameron, will give it a whirl and report back.

[welshpug 1,655]

also quite possible for the arches to be dented.