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#1
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Front Sway Bar & Shocks
Hello all,
I'm slowly working at getting my 68 back onto the road. It did some time as a bracket racer and then some really hard time in storage. I want to drive it again. Years ago I removed and tossed the factory front sway bar and need to get a new one. I'm not interested in high-G cornering but as I recall the factory bar was pretty soft. Just looking for a nice predictable modern ride. I see sway bars spec'd at diameter but have not seen any that talk about how much stiffer they are than stock. Any recommendations for a nice upgrade without going to crazy? Also while I'm at it. I'm going to toss the 90/10 drag shocks. I'm still running factory control arms...any suggestions on shocks? Thank you in advance for the thoughts.
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1968 Firebird IAIIa 522 340 E-heads Northwind with XFlow TBI 4L80E 3.50:1 Rear |
#2
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my 68 has PST gmax 1 1/8" bar. nice ride.
kyb shocks. regular ride. not too stiff. the front springs make more of a difference on how it rides.
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[SIGPIC] Steve |
#3
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A 1 inch bar will be plenty! Any more & you will just get a ton of under-steer.
KYB shocks are great and most are made in America. Bilstein better. Koni, best!
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"At no time did we exceed 175 mph.” Dan Gurney's truthful response to his and Brock Yate's winning of the first ever Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining Sea... Still have my 1st Firebird 7th Firebird 57 Starchief |
#4
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On my 67 firebird 400 convertible I went with 1 in sway bar and bilsteins shocks. I also rebuilt the whole front end and put new moog springs for stock height and ride. All this made a big difference in ride and handling.
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The first betrayal is what they did to you. The second betrayal is what you do to yourself. 1967 Firebird 400 convertible 4 speed #'s matching 2002 SOM Trans Am WS6 Convertible 6 speed bone stock 1970 GTO convertible auto #'s matching |
#5
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I initially replaced my shocks with more or less stock replacement Monroe’s. They sucked. I replaced them again with the mid priced Bilsteins. Great shock at a reasonable cost. Something like 75 bucks each. Would highly recommend as the beat bang for the buck.
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1967 Firebird 462 580hp/590ftlbs 1962 Pontiac Catalina Safari Swapped in Turd of an Olds 455 Owner/Creator Catfish Motorsports https://www.youtube.com/@CatfishMotorsports |
#6
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I run the Hellwig bars on my 69 bird. The front is 1 1/4" hollow, which makes it about the same stiffness as a 1" solid, but slightly lighter. I also have their adjustable sway bar in the rear, which I would recommend as well.
For a stock suspension otherwise on a cruiser only, it's hard to go wrong with the Bilstien HD or the Koni Classic. Even if you're staying with the stock springs, do yourself a favor and add a .5" tall ball joint to the upper control arms, then have a modernized alignment done. Specs around: -.5* camber +2* caster 1/16" toe in That combination above is going to ride nice and you'll be surprised at just how well it will handle.
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-Jason 1969 Pontiac Firebird |
#7
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Is the toe in 1/16" each side or total for both sides?
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1967 Firechicken, 499", Edl heads, 262/266@0.050" duration and 0.627"/0.643 lift SR cam, 3.90 gear, 28" tire, 3550#. 10.01@134.3 mph with a 1.45 60'. Still WAY under the rollbar rule. |
#8
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Thanks for the suggestions guys. Much appreciated.
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1968 Firebird IAIIa 522 340 E-heads Northwind with XFlow TBI 4L80E 3.50:1 Rear |
#9
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Quote:
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1968 Firebird IAIIa 522 340 E-heads Northwind with XFlow TBI 4L80E 3.50:1 Rear |
#10
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I ended up ordering the Hellwig 1 1/8" sway bar and it arrived today...wow...it's big
It came with everything I need except the bolts that hold the brackets to the car frame. I did a little surfing last night and wasn't able to turn up what the proper faster should be. I was also unsuccessful in finding a place where to purchase them. Does anyone know what type of bolt is needed for the sway bracket to frame would be? Plated, length, thread, grade, washer? (flat or lock). Thank you.
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1968 Firebird IAIIa 522 340 E-heads Northwind with XFlow TBI 4L80E 3.50:1 Rear |
#11
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Get one of these:
https://www.amazon.com/Bolt-Thread-C...8332595&sr=8-1 It's paid for itself in time and trips to the hardware store. For suspension components, I like to use grade 8 bolts. Can't help you on the length, maybe you can get a long undersized bolt or rod and see mark how deep it goes and measure that. I'd probably use a lock washer with it, just to be sure it doesn't back out.
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"The Mustang's front end is problematic... get yourself a Firebird." - Red Forman |
#12
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You are an enabler and I am a tool junkie Thanks for the suggestion.
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1968 Firebird IAIIa 522 340 E-heads Northwind with XFlow TBI 4L80E 3.50:1 Rear |
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