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SETUP - The only way to change left side or rear percentage is to physically move weight in the car. No matter how the weight jacks are manipulated. The
percentages in your car don't change.

UNSPRUNG WEIGHT - Reducing unsprung weight can help make your car respond more quickly. Understand, however, that a significant change in unsprung weight requires shock and spring changes to bring suspension back to a balanced condition

ROLL CENTERS - IMCA type modified and stock cars can increase the effective height of the GM spindles by approx. 1" by using the ball joints that raise roll centers. This increase should raise the front roll center to 3" or 4" above ground level.

ROLL CENTERS - Hobby or street class cars that have stock front suspensions usually have a very low front roll center. Any modifications that raise the front roll center or lower the center of gravity height will greatly improve handling on these types of cars.

SPRING SPACERS - When installing a coil spring spacer in a stock clip, the spacer should be tacked in place. Welding prevents the spacer from interfering with the shock during suspension travel.

THROTTLE RATIO - On dry slick tracks where throttle action becomes critical, try lengthening the throttle rod (between the carb and gas pedal) to slow the throttle action for the driver.

ADJUSTING WEDGE - To put wedge in the car without drastically changing the cars height, try a turn on the RF, turn off RR, turn on LR, turn off LF. This will minimize the ride height change.

STAGGER VERUS WEDGE - Changing tire stagger always changes wedge in a race car unless compensating adjustments are made on weight adjusters. If no compensation is made, a 1" change in rear tire stagger roughly changes wedge 10#. Decreasing stagger increases LR weight; Increasing stagger decreases LR weight.

DIRT CAR WEDGE - Excessive left rear bite can cause looseness getting in (because the left rear gets more traction under braking and wants to turn the car) and looseness coming off the corner (because the tire loading is so uneven that neither tire works properly). Keeping bite in the 30 - 80 pound range will work in nearly all conditions for dirt late models.

SPRING CHANGES - To change a coilover spring and not change wedge on the car, measure center-to-center distance of coil-over mount bolts with car on the ground. After changing spring, reinstall unit on car and adjust until that
measurement is obtained.

SPRING RATES - It is very important that spring split be kept within a balanced range. As a general rule (in coil-over applications) front spring split should be kept at equal to 50# with a maximum difference of 100#. Rear spring split should be 25 - 50# (usually stronger on left) with certain conditions calling for no split or as much as 75#.

SHOCKS - Generally soft shocks will cause a tire to become loaded or unloaded (due to dynamic weight transfer) more quickly than stiff shocks. 

PANHARD BAR - Panhard bar mounts to the front of the rear end and from the left frame rail to the right side of the pinion tend to offer better handling characteristics on dirt cars than bars mounted to the back side of the rear or from the right frame rail.

LEAF SPRINGS - There are a few handling effects you may experience when experimenting with different arches on leaf springs: higher rear roll control (less roll and less side bite), higher chassis height, changes roll steer (may help car to turn).

LEAF SPRINGS - Monoleaf cars work best when the leaf springs are straight and have proper arch. As a regular step in maintaining the car you should check your springs for bends, twists, sideways bow and proper arch specification. Also check that the clampon spring pads have not turned on the axle tube.

LEAF SPRINGS - Cars with leaf spring suspensions (ie: Chrysler street stock, some IMCA) can benefit by running a 5" arch on the left and a 4" arch on the right to help put some left rear bite in the car.

LOWERING BLOCKS - Using 2 ½" to 3" lowering blocks between the monoleaf and housing provides best compromise on side bite and forward bite of leaf spring cars. Normally, coilovers should mount in front of the axle housing.

BRAKES - Residual pressure valves maintain a nominal amount of pressure in the brake system to alleviate fluid from draining back towards the master cylinder and causing excessive pedal travel. Use 2lb. RPV's when the master cylinder is mounted below the level of the disc brake calipers to prevent brake fluid from draining back down into the master cylinder. Use 10 lb. RPV's with all
drum brake applications to offset return spring tension.

MASTER CYLINDERS - Master cylinder bores are built with close tolerances. Stroking the master cylinder dry can cause damage to the internal rubber seals causing leaks, soft pedal, and lack of pressure. Never clean a master cylinder with carburetor cleaner or similar products as they will cause seal damage.

ALUMINUM ROTORS - In most cases when running aluminum rotors, more pressure than volume is required to achieve a firmer brake pedal, try two 7/8" master cylinders.

BRAKE DUCTING - When ducting your brakes for cooling, be sure to direct the air to the inside of the rotor. The rotation of the rotor will draw the air from the inside to the outside and promote cooling most effectively.

ROTOR CARE - Whenever possible, break in new brake rotors with used brake pads. This procedure will help guard against rotor cracking and warping and will increase the performance and life span of the rotor.

PAD CARE - Removing brake pad build up on used rotor surfaces when changing compounds or brands of brake pads will assure the proper transfer of friction material onto the rotor surface and increase the performance and wear life of both pad and rotor.

CALIPER MOUNTING - Brake calipers should be mounted square with rotor to prevent excessive piston knock-back and uneven pad wear. While looking at brake area, have someone apply brakes. Caliper should not move (square itself to rotor): only the pistons and pad should move. If caliper is not parallel with rotor, shims should be used between mounting bracket and caliper ears for proper alignment. Caliper brackets should be strong enough not to deflect under heavy braking. All caliper mounting bolts should be of the highest quality and wired for safety.

BRAKE PEDAL CHOICE - Proper brake and clutch pedal ratio, location and style can increase performance as well as provide better driver comfort. Stock Car Products offers a wide selection of pedal brands and sizes to fit any need.

BRAKE FLOATERS - Brake floaters remove brake torque from suspension components by directing the brake forces through separate radius rods. By adjusting the angle of the brake radius rods, brake influence on handling can be tuned.

BRAKE BIAS - Excessive amounts of brake bias sometimes cause rapid temperature rise in brake systems. As temperature rises, bias characteristics change sometimes to the point that the bias loses its affect on the chassis. Using a brake pad with a wide temperature range can help guard against this problem.

BLEEDING - When bleeding the brakes on a car with dual master cylinders, try bleeding one caliper on the front and rear at the same time. This will help eliminate balance bar binding.

MASTER CYLINDER CHOICE - When tuning your brake system be sure to consider that when two different sized master cylinders are used the smaller cylinder produces more line pressure. When different sizes of pistons are used in the calipers, however, the larger size produces the most brake pressure.

BRAKES MAINTENANCE - Racing brake calipers, if properly maintained can generally be used for several racing seasons. Frequent replacement of caliper pistons and seals will increase caliper life and performance.

BRAKE FLUID - Avoid the temptation to try silicon based brake fluid. It may be better on painted surfaces (if spilled) and may have a higher advertised boiling point, however, it will destroy seals and o-rings in racing type master cylinders
and calipers.

SHOCK LOADING - Racing shock stiffness cannot be checked by hand feel. A higher shaft velocity is needed to accurately see the force value of the shock that determines actual racing conditions stiffness. Hand feel, however, should be consistent within the same rate.

TESTING - Complete lap times, with the stopwatch, are a good indicator of how well you stack up against the competition. However, a better method is to dissect the racetrack and compare times through the various sections. For example, record how quickly the car enters turn one, to a point at the exit of turn two. This data, in addition to the complete lap time, may help determine where you need to start making changes first.

REAR SUSPENSION -  It is very important to know what happens to the rear tires when suspension moves up and down. Rear end steer during body roll or weight transfer can be a valuable tuning area when working on corner entry and bottom roll problems. Talk to your chassis builder or graph on paper the front to rear movement of each rear tire when the suspension moves.

AIR GAUGE CHOICE - Racing type tire pressure gauges are most accurate in the middle of their range. Avoid using the bleed feature to deflate over inflated tires. When a gauge is "pegged" at high pressure the needle gear is stripped and destroys the accuracy of the gauge.

FIRE BOTTLES -  5# fire bottles are capable of supplying one or two nozzles adequately, do not use more than two. Also, periodic cleaning of lines with compressed air is recommended.

SEATS & HEAD & LEG SUPPORTS - SCP highly recommends the use of head and leg supports with our Kirkey seats. Not only do they increase support under heavy cornering, they also provide added safety especially in the case of a side impact. A good fitting, comfortable seat will also help maintain consistent lap times by keeping the driver positioned properly.

RADIATOR CAPS - Radiator caps are often overlooked as a source for overheating problems Every one pound of cap pressure increases the boil point of the coolant 4º.

OVERHEATING - Overheating problems could be caused by many things. Always check radiator core for debris, pressure cap for weak spring, fan distance from radiator, air-fuel mixture, and install a water restrictor in thermostat housing to slow water flow in effort to keep water in radiator longer to cool it.

OIL COOLERS - In today¹s world of high-performance high-dollar racing engines, every racer should realize the necessity of protecting their investments. Oil temperature in excess of 220ºF will quickly breakdown petroleum based lubricants preventing them from their primary goals - lubrication and cooling.

RADIATORS - Aluminum Radiators must be checked after experiencing a ³blown² head gasket. Air pumped into the radiator will expand the tubes and block airflow through the fins. Radiators must be replaced when this happens or overheating will occur.The overflow hose on an aluminum radiator is very important. Wire ties or tight mounts that collapse the hose will limit the pressure bleed-off and can cause permanent radiator damage.

ELECTRIC FANS - Electric fans have improved tremendously in recent years, in both quality and reliability. Electric fans now outperform mechanical fans in nearly every application, except towing and dirt oval track racing.

FAN SHROUD - When using a mechanical fan, a properly designed shroud must be used. Most mechanical fans are not designed for high RPM use: they can have serious vibrations problems, due to air turbulence, when run over 6,500 RPM. This is a turbulence problem, not a balance problem, and will destroy the water pump and components in front of it. The large fans preferred by dirt oval track racers can consume up to 18 horsepower at 6,500 RPM. Do NOT run a mechanical fan that is any larger than required for the application.

PANHARD BARS - What length panhard bar do you need? When ordering, measure center to center and deduct 3 1/2" for heim joints.

IDLER ARMS - Squaring the steering box to idler arm - it is important to square the parts so that your centerlink is in the proper position , measure from the centerlink end of the of the steering box to the front pivot of the idler arm and then from the centerlink end of the idler arm to  where the pitman arm bolts on. Compare the measurements to each other. Then add washers or shims between the steering box and frame or idler arm and frame until the pitman arm and idler arm are parallel to each other. Then compare inner tie rod centers to inner lower control arm pivots and add or subtact shims or spacers until center link is centered to lower control arms.  Use our idler arm shims and make it easy.

TOP LINKS - Our 22020 spring loaded top links work really well when you are required to run narrow tires on dirt on asphalt by adding extra rubber biscuits. When you run a lot of angle in your cushion top link for more forward bite, sometimes you will get wheel hop while braking into the corner. A cure for this is to remove the front rubber and install a TB22, the telescopic link. It should be mounted 10 or more degrees uphill to the front of the car. This link will control your pinion angle after you remove the rubber from the front of 22020 top link and stop the wheel hop.

FIRE SYSTEMS - To choose the proper size system , use the following reference: 1 lb. of Halon sufficiently extinguishes 17 cubic feet of space. When installing complete fire systems, you should mount bottle behind seat instead of on the drive shaft tunnel.

CLUTCH STOPS - A pedal stop MUST be used with all hydraulic release bearings to prevent overtravel. If pedal stop is not used, damage to the bearing and / or clutch may occur.  

SWAY BAR - Instead of using a positive heim joint link on left side swaybar hookup, use the SCP bump pad system so when the left front tire encounters speed bumps or rumple strips on inside of turn on some race surfaces, the left front tire will float over these surfaces without upsetting the car and still perform its function

OVERHEATING - Overheating problems could be caused by many things. Always check radiator core for debris, pressure cap for weak spring, fan distance from radiator, air-fuel mixture, and install a water restrictor in thermostat housing to slow water flow in effort to keep water in radiator longer to cool it.