The Work Continues...           back to racing      back to Vettes

 

 

One of the first changes we made was to the cooling system.  Originally, we had installed an electric fan. Then we added a second electric fan.  This was still not doing the job.  

So we went back to a mechanical fan and fabricated a shroud to direct the air flow.  The temperature dropped 40 degrees and we haven't had a problem, even in rush hour traffic.

Fabricated fan shroud

Mechanical Fan

We have had two problems with the car...handling and yokes breaking.  Handling problems seem to be related to an improper spring balance, however, we are also using different alignments to correct a bad oversteer/loose problem (just about the opposite of what I was expecting).

Broken and twisted yokes

Damaged bearing due to yoke breaking

As far as the yokes, we are looking into putting in a Van Steel set-up or changing to a quick-change solid axle.

We ordered a new transmission; a Keisler TKO II, 5-spd, so we will have a better 1st gear to make it easier to get the car rolling and a high gear for cruising down the highway.

Keisler TKO II, 5-speed

Installed, the shifter looks stock.

The shifter looks stock

We received our trailing arm assembly back from Van Steel with new, heavy-duty yokes and driven plates installed.  Included were the super-sized half-shafts.

Trailing arm back from Van Steel

Comparison of original and Van Steel axles

 Van Steel Yoke installed, old yoke for comparison Original half-shaft next to the Van Steel half-shaft

Diff with heavy duty yokes installed

In order to install and be able remove the diff (if necessary), we cut and re-bonded sections of the jack compartment and battery box areas.

 

Right side cut

 Another view of the right side

Left side cut

Another view of the left side

The new spindle installation

Center shot of the differential

The half-shaft installation.

Left half-shaft installed

Right half-shaft installed

Left rear brake assy & half-shaft w/ 1/2" wheel studs

Drive-shaft fitted into place

Clearances were tight, but adequate.

 Strut-rod assembly Another view of the strut-rod assembly

Rear spring shot

Spring assembly

Rear view of the relocated brake cable pulley.

 Parking brake cable

Note the close clearance between the shock and the spindle flange.  This would cause problems when the car was at ride height.  The interference between the shock and the flange was solved by welding in a 1/2" thick ellipse between the lower shock mount and the trailing arm mount. 

To balance out the car's acceleration, we needed to improve the brakes.  The first priority was to get rid of the iron calipers.  We choose to go with Outlaw calipers.  They are a great bargain when you balance capability with cost.  As you probably know, virtually no calipers bolt into the stock mounts on a C3. Close up photo of our caliper adapter We worked on the rear setup first.  These are pictures of the adapter mount used to change to the more universal 3-1/2" bolt pattern. Trailing arm assembly with adapter
There are many calipers that will fit this particular bolt pattern and these are the stock diameter rotors. A view of the thickness of the adapter Notice the washers safety wired to the adaptor.  These allow for precise alignment when centering the caliper. Outlaw caliper mock-up With the caliper temporarily mounted you can see both bolt patterns.
3 qtr view of caliper mock-up In this picture you can see the open design of the Outlaw 4000 caliper.

A view showing alignment of caliper to rotor

 Another advantage of using the after-market calipers is the differential piston sizes contained in the calipers.

LR Brake Assy

We are using perfomance friction pads RR Caliper Installed We will be using flexible stainless steel brake lines between the stock block connector and the calipers.

Rear brake assy with wheel mounted

 On the fronts we are going with a larger diameter disk.
Here is the new disk next to the old 12" disk.

The new rotor has directional vanes

A comparison view of old and new front rotors

 In order to mount the new calipers, we had to fabricate new brackets, which were bolted to the spindles using the original bolt holes. 
New front caliper bracket bolted on spindles Spindle with caliper bracket mounted on the car. The new front disks are gas slotted, heat treated, balanced and, oh yeah, they float! Brake assembly mock-up We are always sure to safety wire everything, as you can see in the next picture.
Installed and safety wired The next shot shows the brake pads installed. Pads installed We had to buy some special fittings to hook up the brake lines. New brake line setup
The new rotors fill the wheel opening nicely! A close up shot of the new front rotor and caliper A look at the new rotors from a short distance After bleeding the brakes, we took a short test drive today and this setup is awesome!  Seat belts are definitely mandatory now.  (03-13-06)