[Greg Reid]

Originally Posted by First Bird

1) Not putting on the hood when I mocked up body panels before paint. I only fit the doors and fenders. If I had fit the hood, it could have tipped me off that the subframe was misaligned.

2) Not using gage holes to align subframe. I trusted only diagonal measurements. I believe the Competition Engineering solid subframe bushings shifted out of the hole in the subframe . They are just one piece, not two pieces. And they have only a small ridge in the bushing to keep it centered in the hole.

I'm nearing the end of a three year frame-off resto of my 1968 Firebird. Till now, I thought I'd been careful enough that I wouldn't have a doozy to contribute to this thread. But now I'm going backwards fast. I find myself having to cut welded subframe connectors to re-align the subframe. Exhaust will probably have to be refit some too.

After installing the painted fenders, I installed the hood and found its front edge is ahead of one fender and behind the other fender. The front body work is shifted toward the passenger side. I have ruled out the radiator support being off center and realize the only possibility is subframe misalignment. It's not that I didn't try to align it. I actually went to great lengths to ensure the frame and subframe were straight because the car had collision damage. Before disassembly, a frame shop pulled the rear frame and verified the subframe was straight. When I installed the subframe I measured diagonals between points on the front and rear frame. These points were the lower ball joints, LCA mounting bolts on the subframe, and several places on the rear axle. Diagonals were within 1/8" so I felt confident the subframe was on correctly.

Oh well. That's amateur car building for you. Sometimes going backwards comes with the territory.

I think we have a winner. That sounds like a nightmare.