Chevelle 2.0

[Yelcamino]

Since Photobucket kinda messed up my original Chevelle thread, I decided to just start fresh with a new one. So here goes Chevelle 2.0, AKA, The Blue Car.

The plan is to make this version a more dedicated track car along with some autox. The first step is to update the chassis and I decided to build my own (more or less) because my budget doesn't allow an aftermarket chassis.

This has been going on for some time so there will be an overload of pictures with or without comments just to get caught up.

As a side note, this is the first chassis I’ve built. You may see some things that don’t make sense to you or it may seem like I’m doing things the hard way, and I probably am! I’m learning as I go and ask for help when I need it.

This is the donor '66 chassis I started with:

00001 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

The first thing I did was to strip it down to the bare frame.

00006 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Next I got it sandblasted.

00007 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Then I sprayed some primer on the areas that I was going to keep.

00008 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Once I got the frame mounted on the frame table, I installed all of the suspension from my car on to the new frame. That way I could locate the front and rear axle center lines. Once I cut the front and rear sections off the frame, I needed to know where to put the new stuff.

00009 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

00010 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Speaking of new stuff, back when I worked at ridetech, I bought a front clip from Scott Mock that uses C5 components.

00012 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With the suspension mounted I was able to locate the front axle center line. To ensure I put the new spindles in the same place, I made a pair of stands that I could bolt to the hubs and table to keep things from moving around.

00013 by Yelcamino, on Flickr



00014 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

After I felt confident about the center line, I placed the new front clip on the frame to get an idea of where I needed to cut.

00015 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Instead of cutting off too much, I chose to be a little more cautious. First I cut the main cross member off…

00016 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

And then I followed that up with more precision cuts.

00017 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

After I was happy with the cuts, I lowered the new clip in place to see how it fit.

00018 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

00019 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

00020 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

After I got it in place and the fit seemed good, I needed to fine tune the location. I did that with string, bubble levels, and spacers.

00021 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

00022 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

00023 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

After I was happy with its location, I tacked it in place and started figuring out how to permanently attach the clip to the side rails.

00024 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

00025 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

00026 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With that out of the way, I made a wheel fitment tool because I’m too cheap to buy one!

00027 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

With my new tool, I was able to mount a 315/30-18 tire and adjust the back space to simulate a wheel to check for clearance around the frame and suspension components.

00028 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

00029 by Yelcamino, on Flickr

Next comes the rear suspension…