how low is your firts gen camaro?

[robertjra]

so my camaro is still in mock up and i want to know how low everyone's front frame is i have pics of mine tell me what you thing a good ride height would be
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/01/398601_337796282905539_100000255100572_1-2.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/01/386339_337795322905635_100000255100572_1-1.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/01/377415_337794166239084_100000255100572_1-2.jpg
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/01/397178_337794716239029_100000255100572_1-2.jpg

[robertjra]

bump?

[tandk22]

4inchs at the cross member

[bbcc]

Not a FGC, but my lowest ride ('89 S10 Blazer) is 4" at the front crossmember and 4.5" at the frame rails and it takes a good amount of care to not bottom out/tag stuff on city streets. Mind you the streets are horrible up here. My daily driver (TBSS) is 5" and it makes a world of difference.

[AUTOMD]

That's pretty low

[exwestracer]

"Correct" ride height would be to have the LCA pivot bolt and centerline of the lower ball joint at the same height.

[robertjra]

4inchs at the cross member
todd what have you done to the car to get that ride height? do you have any prob with city, and mountan roads? thanks for the reply!!

[robertjra]

"Correct" ride height would be to have the LCA pivot bolt and centerline of the lower ball joint at the same height.

thanks this helps!!!!

[Bryce]

"Correct" ride height would be to have the LCA pivot bolt and centerline of the lower ball joint at the same height.

do this

[robertjra]

do this

I will and i will see how low the frame is, do you have a first gen? if so how low do you have your car?

[overZealous1]

there is room to redrill the lower a-arm bolts up an inch or so. i was taking a look at it to help with keeping the lower arm more level. but bumpsteer would need to be looked at. also didn't look at bumpstop clearance. but there is a chance to gain more possibly.

[tandk22]

I have 2" drop spindals and I have 14" rims with 225 tires. I don't bottom out hardly ever (i do watch the road and try to avoid potential hits)but I have a tough time with the speed bumps. I have since bought 18" wheels and do not know my new clearance yet, but my tire are about half inch taller so I will go up some, but I will trim the springs to get the right ride height with the new wheels. I also have shorty headers with the exhaust tucked up close, so the cross member is the lowest point. Hope this helps, to make a long story short I was happy with the clearance I had. Todd

[robertjra]

I have 2" drop spindals and I have 14" rims with 225 tires. I don't bottom out hardly ever (i do watch the road and try to avoid potential hits)but I have a tough time with the speed bumps. I have since bought 18" wheels and do not know my new clearance yet, but my tire are about half inch taller so I will go up some, but I will trim the springs to get the right ride height with the new wheels. I also have shorty headers with the exhaust tucked up close, so the cross member is the lowest point. Hope this helps, to make a long story short I was happy with the clearance I had. Todd
thanks!!! do you have any pics of your car? if you do can you put them up so i can see it thanks you have bin a big help!

[Bryce]

I will and i will see how low the frame is, do you have a first gen? if so how low do you have your car?

Ray's recomendation was based on proper suspension geometry. I have a ford falcon.

[Bryce]

there is room to redrill the lower a-arm bolts up an inch or so. i was taking a look at it to help with keeping the lower arm more level. but bumpsteer would need to be looked at. also didn't look at bumpstop clearance. but there is a chance to gain more possibly.

Moving the LCA up is almost the same as moving the UCA down. This is a good plan. I think nessumsar did this on his Nova.

[AintQik]

Pretty low with room to go. I would say this is not a practical driving height, but I'm not a practical kind of guy. Tough to get these to look good and still be fully functional.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2011/08/DSC_2507-1.jpg

[dontlifttoshift]

Moving the LCA up is almost the same as moving the UCA down. This is a good plan. I think nessumsar did this on his Nova.

Then you need to relocate the centerlink accordingly, right?

[Bryce]

One would need to be well versed in suspension geometry, especially bumpsteer and ackermann. I do not have any camaro suspension files to experiment with the changes.

[exwestracer]

Then you need to relocate the centerlink accordingly, right?

You can't move the LCA mount all that far vertically (without major mods). I think Jon's (Nessumar) Nova was pretty much the limit with stock type components. It might still be possible to correct bumpsteer with the adjustable tie rod ends.

[Nessumsar]

I have the rails on my Nova at 3.75". As OverZealous mentioned, there is room for the LCA to move upward on the frame, but they also have to move outward. I was able to move my LCA up .75", but only after moving them out .75". You can see what I mean in my thread: https://www.pro-touring.com/showthread.php?77444-The-FAB53-72-Nova&highlight=

I would probably meet in the middle of where you think it looks good, and where the LCA is level. You can always use some coil spring adjusters to alter the look.

edit: Ray got in before my reply. He is right, we had to modify my LCA a lot to make the changes possible. I also have some tom foolery going on with my spindles, which really helped out my bumpsteer issue; although I haven't taken the time to measure and map it out.

[tandk22]

https://www.pro-touring.com/showthread.php?85021-Todd-69-Camaro-from-Vancouver-WA&highlight=.

Here's a link to my intro post with a picture before I started upgrading wheels brakes shocks and swaybars. I did put heavy springs and bilstien shocks to control the bounce. Todd

[Hotwhilz]

"Correct" ride height would be to have the LCA pivot bolt and centerline of the lower ball joint at the same height.

How do you determine the centerline of the BJ?

By the way mine, mine is 2 and a1/4 of an inch
The worst of this is dragging the headers flanges, other than that handles great and don't roll that much!

[exwestracer]

How do you determine the centerline of the BJ?

By the way mine, mine is 2 and a1/4 of an inch
The worst of this is dragging the headers flanges, other than that handles great and don't roll that much!
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

I just measure about 1/2 way up the outside housing of the joint.

[robertjra]

thanks for all the help but i dont want the car any lower and i have air ride so i can make adj on the fly just want to make sure that i can drive this thing on the road and still have good ground clearance and suspension geometry.

[Hotwhilz]

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

I just measure about 1/2 way up the outside housing of the joint.

Thanks Ray, I'll go out and measure up, thanks for the tip.

Ben

[68camotion]

Low is always good but the first gens are difficult to do right.

[Finnan]

What aftermarket frame would be best for keeping it at its lowest yet still drivable? Which protrudes beneath the body the least? I personallly would like to go Art Morrison or possibly even the roadster shop

[exwestracer]

What aftermarket frame would be best for keeping it at its lowest yet still drivable? Which protrudes beneath the body the least? I personallly would like to go Art Morrison or possibly even the roadster shop

The stock rails are only 2 1/2 inches tall along the floor of the car. I doubt anyone makes one with smaller than 2" beam height, so you're not likely to gain much regardless. Pulling the body mounts out and bolting (or welding) the stub solid to the floor will get you about an inch, but that brings it's own problems...

[Nessumsar]

The stock rails are only 2 1/2 inches tall along the floor of the car. I doubt anyone makes one with smaller than 2" beam height, so you're not likely to gain much regardless. Pulling the body mounts out and bolting (or welding) the stub solid to the floor will get you about an inch, but that brings it's own problems...

Not only would this drop the car .75-1.0", but it can also stiffen up the car considerably. As Ray said though, this can make other problems; trans tunnel clearance can be an issue, my TH350 barely fits in the tunnel.

[67zo6Camaro]

If it's any help.... my Fab53 Camaro has 3.5" of clearance all the way from the front cross frame support to the back 4 link and exhaust. I have had no drivability, scraping issues. Only thing different is that I have several modifications that gave me clearance, but it is do-able if you like that "low in the weeds" look. Just as most have suggested... start with the corret suspension set-up and then make modifications as needed to get the look you want.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif
You can see the frame clearance in this shot pretty good.

Good luck.

[68Formula]

How do you determine the centerline of the BJ?


Never done one before, but I assume you'd look for the slit. Just be careful, you don't get squirted in the eye!

(Sorry I just couldn't resist.)

[robertjra]

If it's any help.... my Fab53 Camaro has 3.5" of clearance all the way from the front cross frame support to the back 4 link and exhaust. I have had no drivability, scraping issues. Only thing different is that I have several modifications that gave me clearance, but it is do-able if you like that "low in the weeds" look. Just as most have suggested... start with the corret suspension set-up and then make modifications as needed to get the look you want.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif
You can see the frame clearance in this shot pretty good.

Good luck.

thanks!! I like the way it looks!!!