I forgot to measure the stock ride height of my ute before I started pulling it apart. For a legal lowering job, you're supposed to retain 2/3 of your bump travel.

Can some one with stock suspension please measure the ride height for me?

From the inside face of the strut tower to an easily recognisable mark in the strut, i.e the joint where the strut bolts up to the steering arm.

Dont jack the car up, just put the steering to one side for access and chuck your measuring tape up the strut tower. It will take about 30 seconds

Thanks.

i measured 54.5cm from tower face to the join where the strut bolts up in my 1200 sedan..

Awesome. thanks tappet....... But that does sound a bit short. I was expecting more like 57-58 cm. has your ride been lowered at all?
What's your guard spacing like?

stock unladen strut length is 615mm (my 78 ute) and the total shockie travel (from memory) is 170mm, so that would give 100mm of bump travel...... or maximum ride height drop of 33mm or about 1/14"

I was kind of hoping for more than that

Do you really need to worry about it that much. Up here in queensland the rule is still the same but i have never heard or seen anyone get picked up for it. As long as you have 100mm clearance it seems to be all sweet. Any lower and you will get a nice defect.

660mm to the middle of headlights to the ground.

But I can measure from the centre of the hub to the guard lip (front and back) on Sunday if you need it. I know my stocker 1200 is as "stock as a rock".

its a stocker. im measuring face to face, not to the base of the steering arm where the bolts are.... the face where the steering arm joins the strut..

Tappet- sounds like you were measuring the right bits.....hmmm. the problem is that mine currently measures 55 cm with the stanza struts and cut down springs and its definatley lower than it was, so I'm struggling to workout what has changed.

Dattodude- that would be real useful if you could check..... a good bit of info for the archives too.

Freak- that's pretty much the deal here too, but the distance from the bottom of the strut to the bit that you unscrew to remove the shock insert is longer in the stanza strut, so you can't lower your car as far as you can with stock suspension. I'm trying to work out the exact details of it all so when people do this conversion they know what exactly to expect out of it.......

Dattodude-

using the jack to adjust the height, 660 to the centre of the light gives me 355 from the centre of the hub to the guard, 580 on the strut and 90 from the edge of the guard to the shoulder of the tyre (about 70 from the edge of the guard to the highest part of the tyre).

If this is all correct, then the total bump measurement at normal ride height is 90mm, so the maximum *legal* ride height drop is 30mm for standard struts, less for the Stanza setup.