Suspension rebuild - Almost done 5/26/08 update

[rkellerjr]

Wow, what a lot of work this was. We worked on the project for two and half days straight and didn't quite finish the project. But, before I go into all that I want to point out two very special people...

A huge, big, large, gargantuan thanks goes out to Matt (mwieczorek) who drove all the way down from Ohio to Virginia (10 - 11 hours) to help me with this suspension build and who was the brains behind getting it done. I would have been lost and in deep doodoo without him! Also, his wife (Christina) and their adorable boy (Ben) also came down with him. It was such a joy to have them here!! The other person is Bobby (W72transamowner) who came over for a day and a half to help. Bobby has been such a good friend, always coming over to help me with my projects. Like me, he doesn't know a lot about these cars mechanically but, he's willing to get his hands dirty and help. Thanks to these folks, an impossible project was completed. You don't get better friends then these. I'm humbled and honored to be called their friend.

The build consisted of the following...

Rear...
Leaf springs and shackles - From Pro-Touring
Monroe Gas-matic Shocks

Front...
Springs - From Pro-Touring
Monroe Gas-matic Shocks
Steering Kit (Tie rods, Inner/Outer Super Duty sleeves, Center links, Idler Arm)- From Pro-Touring

Other...
Sub-Frame Connectors - From a friend
Solid Body Bushings - Pro-Touring

Approximate Cost: $1,000

I also had to spend money on tools to be able to do the job...
26 gallon Air Compressor w/tools
Impact sockets
Two sets of jack stands
2 1/2 ton floor jack
Wrench Set (metric/standard)
Die Grinder
Approximate Cost: $450

Costs that occurred from us not finishing the job...
Front spings/shocks,
Remaining body bushings
Front end alignment
Approximate Cost: $300

Total Cost for project, approximately: $2000

The total time it took us to do the job...
Thursday 9:30am - 9:00pm
Friday 10:00am - 11:00pm
Saturday 10:30am - 4:00pm

The timing above seems a little much when comparing just a suspension swap however, we ran into a few snags and if weren't for Matt's welding abilities (he actually brought his welding tools) I would have been up a creek without a boat! Anyway, here's the story interlaced with pics....

The weather couldn't have been better here in Virginia, bright, sunny, and temperatures that hovered around 72 degrees each day. It was nice having the garage doors open, which allowed us to have a lot of room to work.

Day 1, the start of the nightmare project (at least from my perspective).
The measurements from tire to fender lip is 3.5 inches in the front and 4.5 inches in the rear...

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Here is Matt and I all bright eyed and bushy tailed that morning..

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Here are some dismantling pics, the first thing we did was to chock/block the front tires, jack up the rear and put jack stands underneath.

Tires taken off, first time I've ever used an impact wrench.
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Gas tank was pulled and the rear end put on jacks.
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Rear shackles were removed from the leaf springs.
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[rkellerjr]

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Oh, Oh, OOOH (My Tim Taylor impression), got to use the impact removing the spring plates and sway bar shackle.
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And now we run into our first problem. On the drivers side, just to the rear of the spring cavity, a rusted hole. This presented a problem as the inner body was separating from the outer body and the stress in that area needed to be shored up.

Here we are cleaning up the area to add a patch.
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Here's Matt fabricating a patch panel for the area. This is to ensure the inner/outer body remains intact.
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And pics of it coming together...
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Here are some random shots of the day. Bobby showed up later that evening to give a hand.
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[rkellerjr]

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Day 1 ended with the dismantling of the rear end and patching a sore spot on the car.

Day 2 started with the plan of adding the rear body bushing and getting the sub-frame connectors on. Low and behold we discovered that what we thought was going to be a bolt in job was a welding/frabication job as they didn't fit very well. Once we moved the brackets we primed and painted the connectors.

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And since I couldn't be of any help, I moved on to cleaning and painting some parts...

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[rkellerjr]

Then, we found another problem, we noticed that one of the brand new leaf springs had its bushing pushed in way too far. Bobby and I ended up taking it to my buddy Steve and we figured out how to "fix" it. I didn't take an after shot of it but the left one now looks like the right one.

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Here are some random pics of the day...

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Day 2 also had one other problem. We broke a few of the frame clips (no pics) where the rear perch plate attaches to the frame rail. These are used so the bolts have something to screw into. The Pro-Touring kit did not come with the proper clips so we again, had to go to the store and get a die grinder and we removed the small lip so the fender clips that were supplied could be used. At the end of the day, the rear end was done and we had started on the front. Here's the rear end completed...

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The evening of Day 2 we had the front end up and had started removing the spring from the passenger side.
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Day 4 we were planning on completing the front end however, another snag caused some changes in our plans. To remove the front spring, the bottom control arm has to be removed, it doesn't just swing down on a '75, which then we could have dropped the spring and replaced it. Having found this out late in the day I decided to forego the replacement of the springs and shocks and just replace the steering components. The springs and shocks would be completed by Steve, my good friend and mechanic who's worked on the car since I've owned it.

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[rkellerjr]

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At the end of Day 4, I was pooped! All of the setbacks had really drained me. Bless his heart, Matt was still raring to tackle the springs but, we were just running out of time as he and his family were headed back the next morning and I wanted to spend some amount of time just visiting with him and his family. So, at 4:30pm, here is the car headed out to have the springs and shocks replaced as well as getting a front end alignment...

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This was quite an experience and a very big job for one person. Much more so then I had expected. The CAM replacement last year was much, much easier. I've got to hand it to Matt though, the guy knew what he was doing every step of the way and nothing, I mean nothing, riles this guy. Every snag we came across he just goes about "fixing" it. He's also a hoot to be around.

Even though the car caused pain, I think the three of us had a great time. I wouldn't trade the experience and the bonding of friendship for anything. Thanks Matt, Christina and Ben for driving all the way down here to help a fellow firebird lover. And as always, thanks Bobby for your friendship and help. Your always coming to my aid when I need an extra hand on the car.

The car drove very nice, the ride was way different when driving it up to the shop. I can't wait to have the front end completed and take her out for a cruise. Finally getting off those nasty air shocks was a pleasant change.

I hope this thread helps others plan and do a suspension swap and some of the pitfalls that you may encounter when doing such a job. If you have any questions, feel free to ask, I'm eager to help you do the same.

Oh, and I'll certainly post up some pictures when I get the car back so you can see the final stance and I'll give my comments on the ride. I'm scheduled to have the car back probably by Wednesday, Thursday at the latest.

[grn95t/a]

looks sweet brother! great work!

[Lt1junkie]

good deal

[edcmat-l1]

:thumbsup:

[The_rabbit1]

i want pics of the front springs replaced...

[novajoe]

Looks nice. I had Don help me do the front of the S10 a couple weeks ago and I know how much work that was

[rkellerjr]

Hopefully the front springs will settle down about an 1".

Here is what she looks like now...

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[grn95t/a]

looking sweet!