83MONTESS 496/8.5 build

[godlemmy]

thanks for the caddy links.i think i'm going to try a set of the 8.5 inch control arms.i've measured the 8 inch on there now and the extra .5 in. will bring the spindle about straight up.and i'll have room to add shims.as it stands now the center shaft is all the way to the frame with no room to shim it.i just thought of something...i've only seen the speedway arms on 81 and up g-bodies,i wonder if the 78-80's might be a little different.i'm going to have to look up the alinment specs to see if there's a difference.when i get a little further along i'll start a build thread.keep the updates coming.its good to see another ohio monte guy on here.

 

[-83MONTESS-]

Alright I think I have an issue with the uppers. After I set the engine in, the front dropped MAYBE 1/2". All the parts in the front suspension are new but I figured an all iron big block would drop it more than that. The front suspension barely budges when I lift it from the control arms. Here are some pics of the car sitting on its own, no jack. Both front tires show massive negative camber. When I lift the car up on the jack and let the suspension hang nothing changes. The tires are still showing negative camber. When I put the new uppers on I made sure to keep the shims in the right spots. I know when using the Speedway tubular uppers you need to buy 2 right side arms. Is it possible I have 2 lefts???
front end by bwollens1983, on Flickr
front end 1 by bwollens1983, on Flickr

 

[Alerch]

That control arm looks close to the frame!! Personally I wouldnt those type of a arms without a bump stop.

 

[pontiacgp]

If you find the problem with the ride height the uppers will come up. I have mine set above the horizontal point to I get the camber gain I want when cornering...I also set my camber up at -1º

 

[-83MONTESS-]

If you find the problem with the ride height the uppers will come up. I have mine set above the horizontal point to I get the camber gain I want when cornering...I also set my camber up at -1º

I have loosened the lower control arm bolts, set the car on it's wheels and re-torqued them with the weight of the engine and nothing changed. I put the jack under the control arm and even lifted the car from it and slammed it down to the ground and still nothing. Both sides sit at 8" off the ground measured from the ground to the bottom of the frame by the firewall where the first set of body mounts are. I measured the arms and they are the correct 8" arms.

 

[pontiacgp]

springs must be the issue then.....

 

[-83MONTESS-]

springs must be the issue then.....

The springs I have are the Moog 5606. I have read a few forums and the stuff going around is saying that they take awhile to sit down all the way. One guy even said up to 6 months but it dropped over an inch when they did set. Im thinking (hoping) thats the case here because I HATE messing with coil springs. After seeing one bounce off the shop ceiling TWICE in high school I pucker everytime I have to compress one!

My next issue is my crossmember. I modified the original to work with my TH400 and dual exhaust but the big block headers are too close to it to run an exhaust on the drivers side. So now I gotta figure out if I can modify it more or shell out the $250 for a new one. Does anyone know if a crossmember out there that will clear big tube dual exhaust and bolt up to a TH400 WITHOUT using the 200-4R frame extension???

 

[mebe007]

Get iceman's crossmemberhttp://www.maliburacing.com/iceman/

 

[-83MONTESS-]

Get iceman's crossmemberhttp://www.maliburacing.com/iceman/

The link doesnt work. Im gonna try to tweek mine because I really dont have the money to buy a new one right now. I will work at it tonight and see what I can come up with.

 

[jfg69]

http://www.maliburacing.com/iceman/

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