Big Blocks and Handling

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Jim Lusk said:
It can be done and done easily. All iron 383 (except intake), four speed, alum radiator and ALL-STEEL body (oh, and it handles well without the huge tires, too):

1384045803_96e126c954_o.jpg
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That pic looks bad-***!! Post some more please.

Wylde1.
 
needsaresto said:
One iten that is quite heavy and overlooked is the window regulator. In a hardtop 2 dr Dart,there are 4 of these suckers. Ditching them and going with a simple pull strap and snap system is another 80 lb's easily.
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What are you talking about? do you have a picture? The whole window system or what?

And engine setback would be relatively easy. The firewall on my duster is practically begging me to move it.
 
bjkadron said:
What are you talking about? do you have a picture? The whole window system or what?

And engine setback would be relatively easy. The firewall on my duster is practically begging me to move it.
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Removing the cranking mechanism from the window,plus all unnecessary items inside the door and rear side window areas. Then the windows get held up with a snap and strap system like you might see in a track car.

You still need the window guides/tracks to keep the window square in the opening.It's a sneaky way to lose weight,kinda like aluminum bumper brackets :)
 
needsaresto said:
Removing the cranking mechanism from the window,plus all unnecessary items inside the door and rear side window areas. Then the windows get held up with a snap and strap system like you might see in a track car.

You still need the window guides/tracks to keep the window square in the opening.It's a sneaky way to lose weight,kinda like aluminum bumper brackets :)
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Ahhh! Sweet!
Do you have a picture of the snaps?
 
Jim Lusk said:
moper is right. The other factor in my son's car is that folks would be amazed at how little we actually spent to build it and race it. If we had one limitation it was horsepower as we built a good handling street car that he wanted to autocross. We had a ~400hp big block in a 3,400lb car going against ~500hp small blocks in 2,700lb cars that were also physically smaller (first gen Mustangs). We still held our own and due to number of events, won the CP class for the season in the local SCCA chapter. A stock oiling system is what eventually doomed this effort (i.e. spun rod bearings from lack of oil in the corners).
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I'm shore I can make you an oil pan to solve the oiling prob.
 
Yeah, we could, but he's trying to get the car back together to sell. The main thing is that handling and braking were NOT a problem.
 
To OP,

I'm working on this right now. Have a 440 scamp and it handles like crap. Bottoms out all the time etc. But it has original leaf springs, old shocks, 0.890 torsion bars, and it had no sway bars= crap handling.

So far i've added PST front sway bar 1 1/8" and PST rear sway bar 1" = huge improvment.

Santa (UPS man) just delivered PST 1.08" torsion bars (i'm in the middle of swapping them in right now). And Santa just delivered Hotchkis rear leaf springs 5 min. ago.

I'll get it all installed within a week or so and give a new driving report. I havent weighed my car yet but it has iron block, iron heads, aluminum intake, aluminum rad., aluminum water pump/housing/neck, no power steering, no power brakes. Heater has been removed along with radio, and original alternator has been swapped to the "denso" Toyota type. I'll try to get my car weighed on Monday.

Fiberglass front and rear bumpers are awaiting installation too. Need to work on new brackets for them.

Take it easy,

Bad Shrimp

P.S.
PST sway bars that I bought dont have a "twist" like the originals, and they are slightly longer than the originals. The extra 1/16" length did not effect install, and with no "twist" just had to install the new T.B. with the suspension compressed instead of @ full droop (no pun intended).
 
Bad Shrimp said:
To OP,

I'm working on this right now. Have a 440 scamp and it handles like crap. Bottoms out all the time etc. But it has original leaf springs, old shocks, 0.890 torsion bars, and it had no sway bars= crap handling.

So far i've added PST front sway bar 1 1/8" and PST rear sway bar 1" = huge improvment.

Santa (UPS man) just delivered PST 1.08" torsion bars (i'm in the middle of swapping them in right now). And Santa just delivered Hotchkis rear leaf springs 5 min. ago.

I'll get it all installed within a week or so and give a new driving report. I havent weighed my car yet but it has iron block, iron heads, aluminum intake, aluminum rad., aluminum water pump/housing/neck, no power steering, no power brakes. Heater has been removed along with radio, and original alternator has been swapped to the "denso" Toyota type. I'll try to get my car weighed on Monday.

Fiberglass front and rear bumpers are awaiting installation too. Need to work on new brackets for them.

Take it easy,

Bad Shrimp
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damn santa was really really nice to you this year..
 
Santa loves me, I grinded out over 400 hrs of overtime this year to make parts for his stupid jet powered sleigh. That little **** owes me lol.
 
as origianal owner of 67 GTS that I am still driving after going on 44 years I have never really noticed a big problem with handling that I have been hearing. I once owned a 68 Camaro SS396 375 hp 4 speed that did not outrun or handle as well as the Dart to me so after 3 weeks went back to Dart. That being said I am sure if you just loaded up the front with BB without the suspension and braking that came on GTS from factory then you would have problems, Joe
 
right now i have 920 t bars and the hellwig tube sway bar and kybs with all the original rubber with the slant, it handles great after i stick the 400 in it im sticking 1" t bars and i was planning on a fiberglass flat hood from aar and a set of stealth heads in the end maybe move the battery to the trunk. i am also going to look at moving the engine back before i weld the mounts to the k frame for more room for a fan. with parts i have used on my other projects i found no weight savings with aluminum radiator or headers but will be using both. its all how you set it up. you can have a crappy handling small block car too if you want.
 
Just buy yourself one of those aluminum hemis for X-mas and that will keep the weight down
 
I dropped a 440 4 speed in my 67 Fastback. It has eddie heads, aluminum intake , aluminum rockers, aluminum pullys, aluminum water pump and housing, fiberglass hood, tti under chassis headers 2" , and a lakewood bell with a 833 attached to it. I also added disc brakes and lite weight convo pro wheels. My question is how much heaver do you think this combo is compared to the 273 automatic that the car came with?
Thanks for the help guys.
 
1.08" torsion bars in,,,,,Hotchkis leafs in,,,,,Axles and disk kit tommorow,,,,,hopefully drive test and weight check in two days.

P.S.
First time i've disassembled suspension on an older Mopar. A lot easier to work on in my opinion over Chevy Camaro's and Monte Carlo's i've had in past. No need for spring compressor, no cutting springs to adjust ride height, no mounting cups on forward end of leafs like on 2nd gen maro etc etc.
 
Bad Shrimp said:
To OP,

I'm working on this right now. Have a 440 scamp and it handles like crap. Bottoms out all the time etc. But it has original leaf springs, old shocks, 0.890 torsion bars, and it had no sway bars= crap handling.

So far i've added PST front sway bar 1 1/8" and PST rear sway bar 1" = huge improvment.

Santa (UPS man) just delivered PST 1.08" torsion bars (i'm in the middle of swapping them in right now). And Santa just delivered Hotchkis rear leaf springs 5 min. ago.

I'll get it all installed within a week or so and give a new driving report. I havent weighed my car yet but it has iron block, iron heads, aluminum intake, aluminum rad., aluminum water pump/housing/neck, no power steering, no power brakes. Heater has been removed along with radio, and original alternator has been swapped to the "denso" Toyota type. I'll try to get my car weighed on Monday.

Fiberglass front and rear bumpers are awaiting installation too. Need to work on new brackets for them.

Take it easy,

Bad Shrimp

P.S.
PST sway bars that I bought dont have a "twist" like the originals, and they are slightly longer than the originals. The extra 1/16" length did not effect install, and with no "twist" just had to install the new T.B. with the suspension compressed instead of @ full droop (no pun intended).
Click to expand...

Thanks Bad Shrimp for the info.

Bad Shrimp said:
1.08" torsion bars in,,,,,Hotchkis leafs in,,,,,Axles and disk kit tommorow,,,,,hopefully drive test and weight check in two days.

P.S.
First time i've disassembled suspension on an older Mopar. A lot easier to work on in my opinion over Chevy Camaro's and Monte Carlo's i've had in past. No need for spring compressor, no cutting springs to adjust ride height, no mounting cups on forward end of leafs like on 2nd gen maro etc etc.
Click to expand...

Please keep us updated on your weight check and driving impressions! :read2:
 
Its going to be a lil' while before drive test, I remembered everything except matching lug nuts and wheel studs for the axles.........slight issue lol.
 
godfatherofchry said:
you would also be surprised what a 1inch motor set back will do..
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I know this is an old post, but I was just thinking about the engine setback issue.

Seems like if I am willing to make some motor mounts a B/RB engine could move back (and in my case down) maybe more than an inch once I get the dizzy from the back to the front of the engine. In my (SB) car the dizzy is the 1st thing to hit the firewall.

Anybody ever measured how much further back a BB can go compared to a SB?
 
We looked at a few things and basically determined that none of it was necessary or even desireable considering the work involved. BUT, if I were to do this I would think about a B-body four speed so as not to move the shifter too far back. Lowering the motor kills ground clearance, especially on a car that has already been lowered. If you can't be happy with the level of handling we achieved than I would look at better shocks and rear springs first, then tires.
 
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