[maddox07]

guys,

this may be one of those questions only i can answer, but i would like to hear some suggestions!

I'm planning to make some changes with the: 1.)engine 2.)suspension 3.)transmission 4.)wheels/tires 5.)drum to disc...etc.

in which numerical order should i approach these in? should i beef up the suspension before i increase the hp? should i switch to disc before i invest in wheels/tires? etc.

i want to cut down on double work along with added expenses that come along with "double working"!!

thanks in advance,
Brian

[guccieng]

i would recommend subframe connectors and solid body bushings before making any kind of serious horsepower. wheels and tires next with the brake upgrade. then pick between driveline or suspension based on which one you want first: twisties or haulin' in a straight line.

[Arch Stanton]

Can you be a little more specific in what you're wanting to achieve?

Some are kinda linked together-in-a-way.

Me?
1. brakes, but be aware of rim & tire fitment issues if you get big brakes.

2. suspension, but what tranny are you planning on, and is this a more "handling" or "drag race" or "stock cruiser" type of car focus.

3. rims/tires, cause you've figured out what direction you want to take the car from doing the above

4. engine. Although that is hard to put last, 'cause we all see everybody elses stuff roarin around.....

#2 & #3 can be switched around due to the possible brake caliper fitment issues from #1.....

This is being kinda generally speaking.....not knowing the focus you want.

[maddox07]

Originally Posted by Arch Stanton

Can you be a little more specific in what you're wanting to achieve?

Some are kinda linked together-in-a-way.

Me?
1. brakes, but be aware of rim & tire fitment issues if you get big brakes.

2. suspension, but what tranny are you planning on, and is this a more "handling" or "drag race" or "stock cruiser" type of car focus.

3. rims/tires, cause you've figured out what direction you want to take the car from doing the above

4. engine. Although that is hard to put last, 'cause we all see everybody elses stuff roarin around.....

#2 & #3 can be switched around due to the possible brake caliper fitment issues from #1.....

This is being kinda generally speaking.....not knowing the focus you want.

john,

this will be more strictly street and occasionally to the strip! i have a 327 that I'm going to rebuild and get 400hp plus

i currently have a 10 bolt 8.2 and i will be putting in an Eaton posi with 3.73 gears. i have power glide but will either be going with a th350 or possibly 5sp(undecided)!

on the suspension piece; i would like to go with the hotchkis tvs

thanks,
Brian

[400bird]

I would go with safety related items first

so, that would put brakes first, but the suspension may have to come apart to do that (and the suspension can also be considered safety related
so, suspension (including bushings, ball joints, and steering components) and brakes at the same time, and rims/tires if your brakes force you to get larger rims

then to engine and trans together to save having to redo some work

if budget is an issue for you too, then this spaces your steps out a little further, but you don't end up repeating things

[Arch Stanton]

I'll echo 400Bird's thoughts too, engine, last, as you don't want to be constantly breaking the tranny, axles, & stuff. That way, you won't be spending $ on stuff you broke while you're going through all the projects.
Yes, it's hard to wait for the engine, yes, I'm waiting to do my engine project....and waiting, and waiting, but I don't want to do things 2 or 3 times 'cause I put my sledgehammer engine in before the rest could take it and started breaking stuff.
Make sense?

[Badbird]

I'm guessing the chicken came first before the egg!

[Pro-Street69Camaro468]

I say start with the chassis,do a back half for some big feet,lower the stance,install a small 572 crate,and some tubular control arms up front. Get some weld wheels and tires with brake to fit,and come out and play. But this just one opinion having some fun. Does this sound like I'm recruiting.

[maddox07]

Originally Posted by 400bird

I would go with safety related items first

so, that would put brakes first, but the suspension may have to come apart to do that (and the suspension can also be considered safety related
so, suspension (including bushings, ball joints, and steering components) and brakes at the same time, and rims/tires if your brakes force you to get larger rims

then to engine and trans together to save having to redo some work

if budget is an issue for you too, then this spaces your steps out a little further, but you don't end up repeating things

400bird,

thanks for the advice;sounds logical...but damn its gonna be hard to wait on the engine,oh well; I'm all about working smarter and not harder!!!

oh yeah; budget is always an issue!!!

thank you,
Brian

[tgifford5]

I started off with doing the engine and tranny. But that was just to get them in more of a respectiful condition. I was not putting any great HP together. But I would agree with 400Bird about safety first. I wanted to get new wheels and tires but I did not want bad alignment to ruin them. So I got the wheels and tires and shocks, fr and rear springs, bushings, ball joints, steering box, sway bar, idler arm, pitman arm, brakes, brake lines I'm sure I left something out. I should have done the subframe bushings to at the time. But I did just get that done this weekend. It's not a hard job at all. A lot easier than I thought. Your number 2, 4 and 5 kinda go together. But you need to know what your plan for 1 and 3 will be to help out in your decision. Have fun and ask a lot of questions if you are planning on doing it yourself.

[DenRS]

I think the best thing to do is to develop a plan with a budget and stick to it as much as possible. First off complete the safety items. I believe suspension and brakes are really considered safety items in my eyes. However, you can't pick certain items until your know you decide what type of engine/hp you want. For example you can't pick the front springs until you know what type of engine your going to use or what the intended use of the car will be.

I basically reworked my whole car. I had a plan and strayed a bit from it, but for the most part I stuck with it. I started with the front suspension: ball joints, Hotchkiss sway bar and front springs, new poly bushings. Then I gave my car a tune up since it needed one. This wasn't part of my plan, but they is always unexpected items that come up. New distibutor, coil, wires, plugs and then I had to redo my cooling system since it overheated. Once the bigger radiator, new fan and clutch were installed, it was back to the plan. I needed to install some gauges since I only had the gas gauge worked. I put in a covan classic panel with autometer gauges. Found out my brake light was on all the time. Checked out the braking system and it all needed to go. So I converted to power brakes, installed new brake lines and added disk to the front. Glad i did that as only the front manual drums were working. Then I rebuilt my tranny/new clutch and had my floors fixed while the tranny was getting rebuilt. I drove it for a few months before I redid the back half. New hotchkis leafs, moser 12 bolt, new gas tank, fuel lines etc. The last thing I did was the engine, which was rebuilt a few weeks ago and just installed back in the car last week.

[JimM]

ahhh... it's almost as much fun doing things over as it is doing a 2 foot panic stop with drum brakes!

'Course that's easy for me to say, I have my engine and trans out for the third time in 4 years...
Only reason I skipped a year was to finally get rid of those drum brakes.

[scblucam]

Mone has been running for 15 years(hasn't gone very far) but I am currently just ammassing parts for the next large step. If you have to drive the car it is more difficult. I can remember the 3:00am trans changes to get to work. Follow the advice above. Don't overpower the the car before it is ready.

[jay'srs/ss]

It all comes down to your plans for the car like pro-tourer, cruiser, drag, etc. If I were gonna do it again, I would go in this order:

1. Suspension: your ride height will dictate what size rim you can run, which will dictate what size brakes you can run. So it'd be better to start there than get tires/rims & brakes and try to lower it and end up with rubbing or clearance issues.

2. Brakes: The thickness of your rotors/hubs will effect you future backspacing of the rims. So better have those numbers set or else your backspacing might be off.

3. Wheels & Tires: Once your suspension/brake dimension is set to how you like it, then you can figure out how much rubber you can fit.

4. Drivetrain: A nice match up of a sweet engine, tranny, and rear end to make for a perfect combo.

That's just my opinion. I upgraded my 67's suspension, brakes, & wheels. It took a lot of research to find the exact parts I wanted, especially when it came down to backspacing of the rims. I had a close call when I mounted my rims before I lowered it and changed to Baer brakes. The Baer brakes were thicker than the stock ones, pushing my rims deathly close to rubbing country. Luckily it worked out to fit perfectly.

[maddox07]

Originally Posted by jay'srs/ss

It all comes down to your plans for the car like pro-tourer, cruiser, drag, etc. If I were gonna do it again, I would go in this order:

1. Suspension: your ride height will dictate what size rim you can run, which will dictate what size brakes you can run. So it'd be better to start there than get tires/rims & brakes and try to lower it and end up with rubbing or clearance issues.

2. Brakes: The thickness of your rotors/hubs will effect you future backspacing of the rims. So better have those numbers set or else your backspacing might be off.

3. Wheels & Tires: Once your suspension/brake dimension is set to how you like it, then you can figure out how much rubber you can fit.

4. Drivetrain: A nice match up of a sweet engine, tranny, and rear end to make for a perfect combo.

That's just my opinion. I upgraded my 67's suspension, brakes, & wheels. It took a lot of research to find the exact parts I wanted, especially when it came down to backspacing of the rims. I had a close call when I mounted my rims before I lowered it and changed to Baer brakes. The Baer brakes were thicker than the stock ones, pushing my rims deathly close to rubbing country. Luckily it worked out to fit perfectly.

jay,

once Ive done the hotchkis tvs system and changed over from drum to disc; on the measuring piece to distinguish what clearance i have. should i just go to the "sticky" section in wheels/tires. i have noticed allot of guys measure from ground to wheel wells or middle of the tire! what is the best way to find out what wheel/tire combo will fit (ie.17x8 front/18x10 back). i know the two major issues will be backspacing and over all tire height..anything additional to know?

thanks,
Brian