My Duster is under the knife....TKX going in

72bluNblu said
Huh. Yeah I still don't like getting rid of the upper part of the crossmember. Obviously it looks like they did a lot of work to the lower brace to make sure it can support everything it needs to, but for a torsion bar car that crossmember is pretty important.

One thing I don't like about that bolt in brace is (in my mind) it would require de-tensioning the torsion bars before dropping the transmission. I guess someone could ignore it, but I wouldn't.

72bluNblu said
I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, I know I looked into a TKO briefly when I was considering the T56 swap. I came to the conclusion that it was going to take enough cutting that I might as well just go a little further and install the T56. Plus the ToddRon crossmember for the T56 keeps the upper hoop.

I still think the TKX will be a smaller cut than a T56 and will make for a really nice setup. Plus the TKX has the option to still keep the mechanical clutch setup if someone wanted to save that potential for later. I was really close to pulling the trigger on one, but will probably go T56 if only for the .5 OD. With 3.55 gears and a 25.6" tire, that would duplicate the ratios my R/T had.

72bluNblu said
Pained him? Wow. I mean, I'm not for hacking stuff up just to do it. But if someone is really worried about it later they make reproduction crossmembers and floors. Reversing something like that is still less work than the rust repair that a lot of these cars require. I dunno about the specifics of your car, but in my case I wasn't too worried about a '74 /6 Duster.

That's something I completely understand. While it is probably less work than some of the rust repair I have seen, it is still work I don't have to do if I don't cut it. In the end though, replacement parts and the absolute need for more gears has won me over. Even though my car is more desirable than a /6 car, I'm going to cut mine for a T56 (assuming the Lord doesn't come first and I can get the parts).

In the end, if I am worried enough about hurting the value of the car that I am willing to give up some of the enjoyment of driving it, then I should sell it and buy something I don't care if I have to cut up. The whole reason I have the car is to enjoy the drive. If I compromise on the drive, then why have the car?