Viking Crusader busted bushings, ideas?

[JB_2010GT500]

Hi guys,

So I've had this issue with a very stiff-feeling rear suspension since last year. It seemed that no matter what C/R settings I would use, the rear axle always felt bolted to the chassis. I even tried bottoming out my settings to 0/0. With 150# springs, I would've expected a fair amount of bounciness. Not the case. I assumed it was due to my ride height being too low, causing the bump stops to hit. Cut the bump stops, and no improvement.

Anyways, I went to adjust the ride height the other day and found that, when moving the perches in either direction, the ride height stayed the same. I also noticed that the car did not spring up and down when I'd push down on the trunk. When we disconnected the shocks, the car lowered down significantly, indicating one or both of the shocks were frozen in place. I moved the trunk liner and saw that the shock bushings were completely destroyed:

These shocks have a few thousand miles on them and probably 50 or so 1/4 mile passes. They were installed in the Spring of 2016. Mid 700 whp range. I believe the specific model is B326AM, which is the 0-2" ride height with >600hp. Does anyone have any ideas how this could happen in such a short period of time? Thanks.


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[mikes35]

I'd call Viking. They are very willing to discuss and help troubleshoot.


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[Catmonkey]

BOTH were frozen? Could the shocks have bottomed out and broken something interenally?

 

[JB_2010GT500]

I did speak with Viking. They said to send them in. I'll have more color when I take them out. The passenger side is frozen, for sure. Will know about the driver side by tomorrow.


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[Catmonkey]

Judging by both bushings, they're both toast.

 

[JB_2010GT500]

Is it even possible there could be installation error? I thought these were pretty simple to install.


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[Catmonkey]

I can't imagine it would be an installation error. Did they ever work properly or have they been like this since you put them on? They were obviously damaged some kind of way. Either someone forced the knobs our of their adjustment ranges or the shocks bottomed out and damaged some control mechanism. Let us know what Viking tells you.

 

[JB_2010GT500]

They've always seemed pretty stiff since day 1. But, I attribute that, at least in the beginning, to my stock bumpstops not having enough clearance (about 1/4") after lowering about 1.5" (which should be within range of the spec of 0-2" lower) with dead hooker spring package. But even after putting in some Ford racing bump stops, and cutting them down to give adequate clearance, I noticed the ride was still harsh and had not improved any. The C/R adjustment knobs each had the correct number of clicks (18 and 21, respectively) so I don't think they were ever out of range.


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[Catmonkey]

I'd be curious to see of you even move the shaft up or down after they've been removed. To destroy those bushings, I have to think it's either taking significant force to move them or they won't move at all. I suppose it could be a defect too.

 

[ZOMBEAST]

So they were adjusted all the way counter clockwise?

 

[JB_2010GT500]

Yes.


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[RedVenom48]

Hmmm, well the good news is that they are rebuildable. I have mine set to 0C 2R on the street. Havent made a pass at the track with them yet, but I imagine having them set to kill mode all the time could take their toll.

 

[SCGallo2]

Here are some pics of a properly installed QA1 shock with similar mounting hardware for comparison: