12 Bolt to 9 Inch

[Bill71]

I bought a 71 Camaro earlier this year to build into a track day car. It is now stripped down to the shell and I am making upgrades. This car came with a 12 bolt rear that some previous owner put in. It has 4:88 gears and either a posi or spool. I believe the rearend will be more useful to a restorer so I want to switch to a Ford 9" to benefit from the better axle retention and ability to change gears more easily. My decision however is hanging on whether I want to stay with leaf springs or convert to a link system. The car will have a full cage and I am not tubbing it if that influences your opinions. I am not a blank check kind of guy so I guess my ultimate question is can you quantify the benefits of links over leafs?

[5spd540]

There are some awesome track cars using leafs but it is harder to get where you want to.

[FatfreeGTO]

Have you looked into caltracs?

http://calvertracing.com/caltracs.php

[Bill71]

Have you looked into caltracs?

http://calvertracing.com/caltracs.php

Caltracs are for drag racing, right? They would not apply here as I want to have good handling.

[FatfreeGTO]

Yes you are correct they are. Honestly I forgot which site I was on when I responded, since I'm on LS1tech a lot and most of those guys drag. Good luck with your search for info!

[exwestracer]

Yours might be an ideal case to swap in a torque arm suspension. Are you set up to fabricate your own parts?

[Bill71]

Yours might be an ideal case to swap in a torque arm suspension. Are you set up to fabricate your own parts?
I have the tools but I wouldn't trust my welding skills. Are these available as bolt in kits?

[SLO_Z28]

I am not a blank check kind of guy so I guess my ultimate question is can you quantify the benefits of links over leafs?

If you have a well engineered 3 link setup built you will be MARGINALLY better than a guy on leaf springs. It is impossible to package a correctly set up 4 link setup in a 2nd gen. In the end you're really chasing fractional performance increases, so it boils down to what kind of car and driver are you? Are you a 10/10ths guy? Or do you just want to have fun on a budget?

[Bill71]

Fun on a budget... I like the sound of that! The term marginally sounds to me like the driver has more effect on the performance than leaf vs link. Would that be a correct statement?

[srh3trinity]

Yes, the driver makes a bigger difference. Mary Pozzi was as fast as most anybody on leafs and with less hp. She has a four link and more power now, but I think that decision was due to a vendor giving her a chance to have new technology and easier adjustability.

[SLO_Z28]

Fun on a budget... I like the sound of that! The term marginally sounds to me like the driver has more effect on the performance than leaf vs link. Would that be a correct statement?

Absolutely. Spend your money on something like the http://evoschool.com/ and you can see real and immediate results in every car. If you decide to go to a 10/10ths car later, hothckis makes a hell of a nice bolt in 3 link, Mary Pozzi has had some success with it.