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Well, a little over a year ago I picked up a cloned 1970 442. For the last year it has just occupied a bay in my garage since I've had no time to do anything with it. Although I still have no time I decided to get after it with the goal of getting the car solidly in the low 10's. I will update this thread as progress continues.
Day one
The project begins
Interior stripped out
Last edited by gear head; Apr 2, 2019 at 11:59 AM.
Reason: pictures
The original frame was rotted from the rear axle back; luckily Alek72us hooked me up with a frame in good condition. A couple weeks ago I kicked my wife out of the garage to move the frame in and start boxing it up.
Goodbye, weak *** control arm mounts..
The beginnings of a Hellwig “Frame FX” kit…
Last edited by gear head; Apr 2, 2019 at 12:45 PM.
Very nice, evicting the wife's ride in my house would not be pleasant.
Thanks.
Haha, if the weather goes bad that eviction will be flipped on me.
Originally Posted by oldsmobiledave
very nice work so far.
What are you planning to motivate this into the low 10s?
Thanks.
Right now the power plant is up in the air. I have a 425ci big block and a 350 diesel block sitting in the garage. Not sure which I'll do yet but, either will be able to achieve adequate power.
Last edited by gear head; Nov 10, 2014 at 08:19 PM.
Thanks, they're Billet Specialties Street Lite Black wheels. They weren't my first choice but, I'm happy with them. Initially I was after Centerline Convo Fuel wheels but, they couldn't make them in a 5.5 backspace.
Damn, It's been a busy winter so far... It is winter, right?
I haven't gotten much done on my junk but, aside from fabbing up some gussets for the rear upper control arms and a transmission crossmember the chassis is about done.
Rear Lower control arm mounts and frame welded in.
Rear Anti-roll bar welded in.
Now I need to figure out a mounting solution for the Fuel cell and battery box.
Last edited by gear head; Apr 2, 2019 at 02:20 PM.
like the way u are stiffening up the frame. from all the work u are doing I think this is not your first rodeo with this kind of set-up. I guess if u are looking at the low 10s u will be pulling the wheel when u launch it off the line. I am restoring a gold with the black strips, would like to have a street/strip black with the gold strips like yours. maybe one day. keep posting pics. as u go your post is very educating.
I likey... It always makes it easier when you have the body off the frame.
Yeah, this would have not been a fun time with the body only raised up.
Originally Posted by NDERISE
like the way u are stiffening up the frame. from all the work u are doing I think this is not your first rodeo with this kind of set-up. I guess if u are looking at the low 10s u will be pulling the wheel when u launch it off the line. I am restoring a gold with the black strips, would like to have a street/strip black with the gold strips like yours. maybe one day. keep posting pics. as u go your post is very educating.
If I get the rear set up right, they should come off the ground a few inches. Good luck with your project!
Right now I am shooting for a front crossmember height of 4.5", that seems to be where the a-arms are happiest. These arms required 0.300" of shims to zero out camber and have 0.5*caster built in...I was hoping for a bit more caster but, you get what you pay for. I will also end up with a scrub radius of 3" which will be very managable with manual steering.
I have all the measurements taken down to map everything out for the front end(short of bump steer) and will probably post all that up since there really isnt any real info on aftermarket a-arms.
Last edited by gear head; Apr 2, 2019 at 02:25 PM.
Power will be provided by a nitrous injected 440ci diesel block, heads will more than likely come from rocket racing. Will be shooting for 750hp when set on kill.
Not really much going on since the last update but, I have gotten my 12 bolt back from the welder. I had ford ends, adjustable lower mounts, caliper brackets and the tubes fully welded. The guts are 35 spline strange axles with 5/8" studs and spool, I will decide on a ring & pinion at a later time.
I guess the next plan of attack would naturally be the body....LAME.
I've done some investigating and it's not looking good..
I currently have sheetmetal en-route. I'm going to set a goal to have the bodywork and the cage done by the end of winter...LOL, we'll see how that goes.
Last edited by gear head; Apr 2, 2019 at 03:06 PM.
Thanks guys, as long as there's interest, I'll keep posting.
Well, about a week ago we got back from the chaos known as the 25hr of Thunderhill. After that whirlwind I took a few days off work and actually got to spend a bit of time with the Olds, so I started to attack the front driver floor pan and inner rocker area.
Last edited by gear head; Apr 2, 2019 at 03:43 PM.
Yes, the original color was red (paint code 75) Not sure if the correct name is Rallye, crimson, matador,etc. Right now I'm planning on a black car with the 442 stripes ghosted in.
Last edited by gear head; Apr 2, 2019 at 03:47 PM.
Yes, the original color was red (paint code 75) Not sure if the correct name is Rallye, crimson, matador,etc. Right now I'm planning on a black car with the 442 stripes ghosted in.
Code 75 Matador red, Rallye red(orange) would be code 73 or just a dash for special order color. I do really like these cars black but still surprised the red was painted over. What size tire are you running on the rear? I was thinking of using 325-50's on one of mine.
yeah, it was a nice color but he covered up much worse than that, lol. The rears are 325/50's on a 10" wheel, they fit very nice. After I cut the tubs out for repair I'm going to see how well a 315/60 will fit.
Last edited by gear head; Dec 14, 2015 at 09:13 PM.
I am glad you brought this thread back to the top. I understand how things pop up which distract from a project. Looking forward to see you post more progress on this project it is really looking good so far.
Well, I ended up with some free time and dug into the right rear quarter panel. I found exactly what I suspected, crappy work buried under a half inch of bondo. Still a little ways to go but it's mostly there.
Last edited by gear head; Apr 2, 2019 at 06:30 PM.
