Newbie Checking in

[68RS/SS454]

Hi all, stumbled onto this place while looking for what upgrades to do to my 68.
It's not a Pro-Touring car YET but it will be someday.
Right now I am trying to figure out what to do first with about a $4k budget for the 2005 year.

[Ralph LoGrasso]

Welcome to the site, Ron. '68--good year . Pro-touring on a budget? I'd say get a good set of stiff shocks and springs - Koni adjustables work great, as well as bilsteins. Depending on how harsh of a ride you could tolerate, I'd run some stiff springs up front since you've got a big block. 650+lbs. You could also do the guldstrand mod, which is almost free, except for time. I'd get a good front sway bar, 1" solid or 1 1/8" hollow, and a faster ratio steering box. Or have your steering box rebuilt with a faster ratio, DSE does this. Then a good set of drop leafs in the back, Detroit Speed, Global West, or Hotchkis comes to mind. Next, I'd upgrade the brakes. You could either fab up your own C5 kit, or buy one from someone like Touring Classics. I'm not too sure on the price, but I believe it's fairly inexpensive. Get some solid body bushings, and some Del-a-lums for your stock control arms. These mods should give you some pretty good performance, and I'm pretty sure even with all that you should come in below 4k, if you shop around and do the work yourself. In order to do the brakes, you'll need 17" wheels, though, which will probably put you over the top on your budget. You could alwyas go with a nice set of used 17s, and some good sticky tires, and hold off on the brakes until next year.

Some links for the places I mentioned:
www.detroitspeed.com
www.globalwest.net
www.hotchkis.net

For info on the guldstrand mod and a wealth of other suspension info, do a search for one of our moderators, "David Pozzi". The link to his site in his sig will have lots of info.

edit: I'm sure you'll get many more opinions on this. This is just what I would do on that budget. Good luck!!

[68RS/SS454]

Thanks Ralph, I'm in no hurry so I wouldn't say it's going to be a "budget" Pro-Touring car, it's just gonna take me a few years to get it the way I want it.

[derekf]

Welcome aboard, Ron.

[Piet]

Welcome... Nice ride.