Stock LCA's with SC&C uppers?

[Mike Davis]

Is this going to be detrimental in any way? As i am going i have to buy 1 piece at a time, And as i understand, you get the camber and adjustability out of the upper CA's.....right? Will this affect the suspension if being used for the summer?

Thanks

Mike

[dipren443]

Why would it? You get added caster out of the lowers, but there is no reason you cannot just run the uppers.

[John Wright]

I'm running the stock LCA with Delalum bushings, and the adjustable UCA. I didn't see alot of advantage with the tubular LCA unless you go to a coil over type shock vs traditional coil springs.

[BonzoHansen]

You'll be fine. I have what JW has.

John, I think some of the new LCA push the LBJ forward a tad for more caster. DSE's might and I think SPC's arms do.

[John Wright]

John, I think some of the new LCA push the LBJ forward a tad for more caster. DSE's might and I think SPC's arms do.Will this help keep the tire off the rear of the inner fender liner?...I'm thinking it will for those who are trying to get the most caster out of their combo.

[dipren443]

Will this help keep the tire off the rear of the inner fender liner?...I'm thinking it will for those who are trying to get the most caster out of their combo.

You are correct, they definitely help remedy this issue. DSE, Hotchkis and SPC all have relocated LBJ's.

[wmhjr]

The SPC lowers also help out in another area for some of us. The stock LCAs can have some fitment issues with headers in the center "inside" of the LCA. The SPC tubulars have more clearance there and eliminate this issue.

[67 goat]

Will this help keep the tire off the rear of the inner fender liner?...I'm thinking it will for those who are trying to get the most caster out of their combo.


I had this exact problem and the SPC lowers completely eliminated my interference issues with the aft side of the front fender. I think they move the LBJ forward about 1/2".

[ROEINONDUBS]

does anyone have a write up on the sc&c uca installation?

[John Wright]

Hadn't thought about writing it up...it is a fairly straight forward bolt on type of an installation. Setting it all up after you bolt it on may be worth a write up. But any alignment shop worth their salt should be able to take care of ya. You still need to get the toe and camber somewhere close before you venture down the highway to the alignment shop so that you don't scrub off too much tire or make it unsafe handling.

[wmhjr]

Agreed. I'm not sure exactly what more you'd write up. The included instructions are pretty straight forward for the uppers.

[Marcus SC&C]

All of our suspension packages will work with stock lower A arms. They`re really not bad pieces, they`re lightweight and they`re free. :) That said, there are some advantages to running some aftermarket lower A arms. True, most are tubular copies of stock lower arms. I can`t speak for everyone`s arms but I will say that the SPC lowers are much different than stock. The adjustable ride height feature is really cool, it`s been a real problem solver for us at the shop and for lots of clients. Using the full set of SPC spring height adjusters we can adjust ride height a total of about 3.75"! 2" down and 1.75" up. The uber beefy delrin bushings are a nice plus, they`re true delrin bushings BTW not steel or aluminum bushings with thin delrin sleeves. The full delrin bushings provide much better NVH isolation for less road noise. The caster thing is a bit misrepresented, we can get all the caster we want and more out of the SPC adj. upper A arms. We don`t need the lowers to do that. The offset we designed into the SPC lowers is not to gain more caster, it`s to center the wheels in the wheel wells at higher caster settings, lowered ride heights and with nose down rake. It doesn`t sound liek a big deal but we`ve had several cars in the shop that had to have their caster settings compromised because the tires hit the upper rear portion of the inner wheel wells in bump. The SPC arms allowd these cars to run the proper specs with no clearance issues at all. In these particular cars it was a real game changer! Other features like adjustable sway bar fit/rate in some models and provisions for late model progressive rate jounce bumpers are also nice to have. They`re "devil`s in the details" features that don`t make a huge improvement alone but conspire with many other mods to make a much better driving and performing whole car package. There`s more but I already sound like a freakin infomercial here. :)

There`s also another issue... The stock arms were designed by GM engineers for regular everyday driving. They didn`t have R compound 17" tires, 13" brakes and 1G handling for these cars in the 1960s. So we`re pushing these parts way beyond what was ever expected of them. They let`s take into account 30-40 years of use, abuse and millions of fatigue cycles and the toll that takes on thin sheetmetal stampings. Let`s also remember that they hold the whole front end up and if they fail...you crash, no ifs ands or butts. :drive2: Yeah, 99% of them won`t but that`s no comfort to the guys I`ve worked with who`s did. I have pics of several of them in my upcoming book. I`ve come full circle on this and now recomend rubber bushings in stock lower A arms to prevent isolating too much shock in the already over fatigued stampings. It`s also a good idea to strip them to bare metal check them very closely for stress cracks. It`s suprising how many we find on arms that looked good with a thick coat of paint on them. Deburring the edges of the stamping helps reduce the number of stress risers where cracks are likely to start and magnafluxing isn`t a bad idea either. It may sound extreme but it`s really cheap insurance. Or...replace them with new, stronger, more rigid arms with a bunch of other cool features. Mark SC&C

[Tony_SS]

If you can afford to upgrade and have it all apart anyway, I'd do it.

[BonzoHansen]

That is interesting Mark. I've not seen LCA issues at the bushing (ignoring impact damage). I have seen the area around the LBJ being a weak spot through the years. But my experience is more from DD/street cars, not more high perf usage like you see more regularly.

And yes, that is what I meant with the caster deal - it's not a matter of more it’s a matter of rubbing. My RF rubs a bit at ~5.5*.

I want a book!

[Lowend]

I ran stock lowers with del-a-lum bushings for years. Worked fine.
The ride height adjust bit is a pretty cool feature

[John Wright]

in my upcoming book..... Mark SC&COh...do tell! What is this about a book?:)

[John Wright]

If you can afford to upgrade and have it all apart anyway, I'd do it.
If ya can't do it all at once, it isn't that much work to pull it back apart at a later date as funds allow.....I'm getting very interested in see the SC&C lowers, especially after the short infomercial. I wasn't aware of the adjustable lowers.

[DAVE68]

I have the SPC lca's with oe style upper and lower Moog bj's, oe uca's and the oe short spindles on my chevelle, i want to upgrade to the SC@C adjustable uca's. Question is i know i have to use the tall upper bj, comes with the stage 1 kit, but do i also need the tall lower bj when using the short a-body spindle? Thanks!

[L & H Kustoms]

I have the SPC lca's with oe style upper and lower Moog bj's, oe uca's and the oe short spindles on my chevelle, i want to upgrade to the SC@C adjustable uca's. Question is i know i have to use the tall upper bj, comes with the stage 1 kit, but do i also need the tall lower bj when using the short a-body spindle? Thanks!

You dont have to run the tall lower bj but it will help improve the bumpsteer found in the A bodies.

[ponchopwr70]

I ran stock lowers for a while, in my lemans...but if you are going to autocross or road racing I wouldn't trust them. I seen some crack and like Marc said they are old real old now. I run the spc lowers in my car, I feel better about it now. As for my s10 its mainly street so I didn't feel a need to change. Also dave68 you don't need to change lowers but search the site you will see if you do the bumpsteer goes away, I personally noticed a difference and is why run them on my fun car and strret truck.

[DAVE68]

Ponchopwr70, i also have the SPC lca's, have you had any issues with the sway bar end links?

[wmhjr]

Ponchopwr70, i also have the SPC lca's, have you had any issues with the sway bar end links?

I've got them also. When using a different front sway bar and Energy Suspension end links, I had to machine the end link spacers down to make them fit. HOWEVER, when I recently switched to the Hellwig tubular bar, everything fit like a glove. I do have a minor issue with the oversized tie rod adjusters slightly rubbing the sway bar, but that was during installation with the car not yet aligned and no weight on the suspension. According to Marcus, it'll be a non-issue after alignment and with the car on the road.

[ponchopwr70]

Yea a little. My endlinks are on a little extreme angle, and I actually bent one side last time I went to the autox. I'm going to make my own now with a hiem end, I think there is thread on chevelles.com that shows it