I traded the 64

[Inked Monkey]

Sweet! I'm a member of KCISS which is a car club for my 96 impala ss. I just went over there and changed my avatar to a ford racing emblem.

They should get a kick out of that!!!!!!!!!

 

[FlatBroke]

You are probably going to have to put it up on 4 stands between the the tires to let the chassis "relax" (for lack of a better term) and make sure that all the doors and hinges are still lined up before welding in place.

Something else to keep in mind, If the car has that much TQ/HP you may need to preload the chassis before welding also.

But always lets get some more thoughts on this. I'm no expert...

 

[Inked Monkey]

I'm a newb, what do you mean by preloading the chassis?

 

[donsrods]

My Son has an '84 Capri. It's been in the family for about 10 years, and he and I keep selling it back and forth to one another. It was a 4 cylinder car, owned by a girl, she blew the engine, but the body is absolutely mint.

In the time we have owned it, the car has evolved to where it now has a D and D tubular front suspension, with coilovers and is completely stripped to become a drag only car. We have subframed it and he has a 10 point cage kit laying inside that we are going to install some day. The subframe made a WHOLE lot of difference in stiffness, and when you jack up one corner now, the entire front or rear will rise...........no twist at all. The cage should really stiffen it up. We've also reinforced the torque boxes in the rear (a weak spot with fox bodied cars with high HP) with battle boxes.

It's got a built 8.8 with C clip eliminators, 3:73 gears, and aftermarket upper and lower bars and springs.

I was building it as a 460 car, and still have the built 460 sitting. Don is a small block guy, and the 306 he is using for his T bucket was originally destined for the Capri. We work on it for a while, then it goes back under a tarp for a few more years. He just mentioned the other day that he wants to start on it again, now that his move is finished.

Here are some pictures of the engine room and front suspension.

Don

 

[Inked Monkey]

Sweet Don! I'll probably be asking a bunch of questions once I get it home.

Did you make the cage or buy it? Through summit I can get an 8 point for about $160 and a 10 point for about $220. All that I need is a swing out door bar to make it easier to get into.

I went to a metal shop yesterday and priced the metal for the subframes. I can get 1/8 inch wall 2x2 for $3.12 a foot. So I'd be spending the same amount of money as buying a set, but they would be a lot stronger.

 

[FlatBroke]

Chassis preload: Is a trick that can be built in cars so that instead of carrying 1 front tire down the track, it carrys both.
What you would do is flex the chassis in the opposing direction before anything got welded in.
EXAMPLE: old camaros with big motors will carry the right front tire, in order to PRE-load the chassis , put it on jack stands and let the right front sag (this is the preload) before you weld in subframe connectors. You are essientially twisting the frame the "wrong way" and then braceing it.

Did that make any sence at all?????

 

[Inked Monkey]

Yeah, that makes sense.
Don, since you have built one before, do I need to do this? I'll probably start welding them in next weekend sometime.

"You might be a gearhead if you start to work on the car before you actually own it!"

 

[Inked Monkey]

Well, I almost died today. I went over to my buddies and picked up the capri and luckily I didn't sign the title over to him yet. The car is sweet and has loads of power, but on my way home the right front wheel and hub assembly decides to break off......at 70mph. That was an experience. Luckily it was the passenger side so I skidded about 150 yards on the asphalt then about 100 yards on the gravel. If it had been the driver side I would have went into oncoming traffic and probably killed. That really got me and another friends heart pumping!!!!!!! I went back to his house and got the keys for the bone collector back.

He said he could have it back on the road in a week, but I'm gonna take this as a sign and keep the 64. But I might have to change the name to "Herpies" because right when I think I got rid of them they spring back up!