This is the video I've been searching/waiting for. Thank you so very much for sharing. Update: So I just did mine and it sits a lot lower that the front even with the engine and tranny. I love the lower ride high but not I need to lower the front which already have adjustable coilovers at its lowest setting.
I almost ordered that kit for my 69 Camaro but the position of the coil overs is way too low, about 3” away from the ground, looks wired like you are dragging the coil overs.
Congrats! I may have grinded down on the dog ears a bit not much. Just to reduce any large gaps on the axle. And remember, don't install the upper control link fully shortened, if they are adjustable leave your self a half inch of length before you set your jig or before you weld the dog ears. After you install you can move the axle left and right a little bit for best adjustment. Meaning if you need to pull it to pass side, shorten the passenger upper control link you simply make a small reduction in length to the passenger side upper link , and make the opposite adjustmet lengthing the driver side link.it will pull the axle to the pass side if that makes sense. I used a standard threaded bolt. After drilling. Thats all.
Hey Matt, when you set the cradle in place, did the front tube of the cradle touch the body (as the instructions tell)? Mine has about a 1/2 inch gap before it touches the body and I'm curious if you had the same issue. If yours doesn't touch as well, have you noticed any issues or does everything else fit pretty well?
Hi Warren, the front tube is snug to the body. Little to no gap. After I sunk the bolts it was pretty easy. Also i would note that you should adjust the length of the upper link bars by un threading the ends a couple twists prior to welding in the dog ears then set you jig to the length.. That gives you a little wiggle room to adjust the rear end side to side(left to right) once you fasten it and do a final alignment. When adjusting, if you twist one side in, the other side needs to come out. If thay makes sense.
@@mattlind3724 Thanks, that is super helpful. Since the upper and lower bars are adjustable, I'm thinking I'll have to dial these in based on the set pinion angle. I mocked up the rear end and can see that i'll be adjusting/extending the lower bars pretty far. Pretty much not following the instructions of having the upper bar at 9 3/4 inches. In your set up, after everything was set in, did you check whether your axle sits center in the wheel well? Curious how significant this is. I notice mine might sit forward about an inch from center.
@@warrensf I am not sure If the wheel was centered in the wheel well from the factory. I looked at my car currently.. The wheel is closer to the front also by about an inch. Personally I would probably only extend the upper control arms out by 1/2". And the lowers 1/4" inch.. just for minor adjustments if needed. Once those dog ears land on the axle and weld them the axle should be center.. However, mine was about 3/8" to the passenger side. So I released the upper control arms from the dog ears. I shortened the driver side by 1.5 full revolution, and Extended the passenger side 1.5 revolution. By doing that the axle moved over towards the driver side. My axle is now about 1/16 off to the passanger side. You have to shorten one and extend one. Otherwise you won't get your bolts back in. That's as close as I could get it. It barely changed my pinion angle. Once you get that in place you can get your drive shaft built to length. I bought a 6" yoke for the transmission and got the axle made to the length I measured. I installed it and I also had to shave the yoke down about 1/4" . It was just a little tight to push in and out of the rear u joint.. you know you get the perfect length if you can just barely slip on the u joint!
@@mattlind3724 Thanks for the tips! I'm realizing it just takes a bit of dialing it in. All of the pieces are there and they provide instructions but feel this is more of a guide than anything else. I might come back to you when i get to the driveshaft. =D
how does it ride with the ridetech 4 link behind there, i have full front ridetech coilover setup on a 70 nova which is fine but debating on the 4 link or torque arm. thanks for any input
Comparing to my old mono leaf. It is more responsive when cornering. The recoil is fast and smooth. I feel less bouncing and better wheel grip. It weighs quite a bit less than the old steel springs as well. It does ride different as I don't think it has as much vertical travel as the leaf spring. The coil over shock has a rebound adjustment as well. All in all I like it
I don't believe it has an option to order specifically. I know the F body of the camaro and the x body to the nova may differ on the leaf spring. I think the camaro was a multi-leaf, the nova was a single leaf. The axle mount should be the same.. here is the part number from speedway motors 99067691. This was suggested to me from their tech team. The also helped me pick out the third meber as well.
It's solid. Ride tech says you can also put some spot welds in place, for additional reinforcement. I opted not do that since it was painted, therefore I didn't want additional corrosion to deal with. I relied on the bolt hardware. It fits snug in that space.
Good questions.I feels energetic. not stiff. For comparison, I had a mono leaf originally. It felt as spongy and weak as you could imagine. I put air shocks on the mono leaf and basically created the complete opposite. I , and it was not nice. I would say they ride similar to a modern vehicle like a camaro or similar. they absorb shock quickly and rebound nicely. the weight of your car will also determine how stiff it feels. I think there is about 4" of travel. It does not feel like a big heavy car, it does not feel overly stiff either. it does have rebound adjustments and I have it adjusted about right in the middle. I think I may soften it up a bit. My car rattles a bit when i hit potholes, or chunks in the road. but I don't know that you will find a better shock . I do prefer this over the mono leaf. here is the link to what I purchased. www.speedwaymotors.com/RideTech-11266510-HQ-Series-Rear-Coilovers-68-74-Nova,337982.html
Most people 255/60 15 will work,but note.. The factory axle should measure 55" flange to flange. And 2.5" from flange to back of rim. My upgraded disc brake kit added 3/16" of width on both sides which is problematic to the outer width. If you use a factory drum brake it should fit a 255/60/R15. Ideally if you do a disc conversion you would consider custom ordering a wheel with a 5 3/4" backspace to use up the inner wheel tub vs the outer which is already tight. My car has 1 1/4" of inner wheels spacing still available on each side and very little spacing on the outer fenders. I trimmed the fender as far as I could. I am sure the body shop may have to mod my body, or I custom order rear rims to move inward.. hope this helps
I’m running a 9.5” wide rear rim with just a hair over 6 inches of backspace (Bmw style 37) 255 tires fit great I’ve heard of people going to a 275 in this set up as well.
@@cameronfeltz2875 what size rim and type of rim you are running? I have a 15x8 with a 5.5 backing space. I'm running a 275/60R15 slight rub. Also has about a 5inch drop.
18x9.5 Bmw m parallel rear. Same rim up front but 18x8 fits perfect. A lot of guys run these wheels on novas. Check out the white one on autotopia’s Chanel he has them😎
@@cameronfeltz2875 ive seen that what's the backing space on the fronts and rear? I dont really like the look of those wheels but have been looking at other bmw wheels. Hardest part is backing space especially because my car sits very low
Part #76811267199 from speedway motors. I chose this particular one because the 2- lower 4 link stabilizer axle mounts will mount directly to the original leaf spring mount on a GM. (Less welding). The axle I ordered from speedway (#99067691) also had an option to add the gm leaf spring mount which I opted for. If you change axles you should call speedway and let them know what you have They are very informative. With my assembly options I only had to weld the dog ears on the top of the axle which support the 2- upper 4 link supports. Hope this helps.
This is the video I've been searching/waiting for. Thank you so very much for sharing.
Update: So I just did mine and it sits a lot lower that the front even with the engine and tranny. I love the lower ride high but not I need to lower the front which already have adjustable coilovers at its lowest setting.
Clever using the 3 cheapo scissor Jack's. Would've been nice to see how the upper bars attached to the car.
Very helpful
Nice work!
I almost ordered that kit for my 69 Camaro but the position of the coil overs is way too low, about 3” away from the ground, looks wired like you are dragging the coil overs.
I see you got the single adjustable rods. What's the double adjustable for?
How is the cornering? Thinking of buying one for my car, still trying to figure out if I want to do this or a torque arm.
I finally got my 9” and 4 link! Did you have to trim the dog ears at all? Also wondering if you used self tappers or riv nuts on the cradle?
Congrats!
I may have grinded down on the dog ears a bit not much. Just to reduce any large gaps on the axle. And remember, don't install the upper control link fully shortened, if they are adjustable leave your self a half inch of length before you set your jig or before you weld the dog ears. After you install you can move the axle left and right a little bit for best adjustment. Meaning if you need to pull it to pass side, shorten the passenger upper control link you simply make a small reduction in length to the passenger side upper link , and make the opposite adjustmet lengthing the driver side link.it will pull the axle to the pass side if that makes sense.
I used a standard threaded bolt. After drilling. Thats all.
Hey Matt, when you set the cradle in place, did the front tube of the cradle touch the body (as the instructions tell)? Mine has about a 1/2 inch gap before it touches the body and I'm curious if you had the same issue. If yours doesn't touch as well, have you noticed any issues or does everything else fit pretty well?
Hi Warren, the front tube is snug to the body. Little to no gap. After I sunk the bolts it was pretty easy. Also i would note that you should adjust the length of the upper link bars by un threading the ends a couple twists prior to welding in the dog ears then set you jig to the length.. That gives you a little wiggle room to adjust the rear end side to side(left to right) once you fasten it and do a final alignment. When adjusting, if you twist one side in, the other side needs to come out. If thay makes sense.
@@mattlind3724 Thanks, that is super helpful. Since the upper and lower bars are adjustable, I'm thinking I'll have to dial these in based on the set pinion angle. I mocked up the rear end and can see that i'll be adjusting/extending the lower bars pretty far. Pretty much not following the instructions of having the upper bar at 9 3/4 inches.
In your set up, after everything was set in, did you check whether your axle sits center in the wheel well? Curious how significant this is. I notice mine might sit forward about an inch from center.
@@warrensf I am not sure If the wheel was centered in the wheel well from the factory. I looked at my car currently.. The wheel is closer to the front also by about an inch.
Personally I would probably only extend the upper control arms out by 1/2". And the lowers 1/4" inch.. just for minor adjustments if needed. Once those dog ears land on the axle and weld them the axle should be center..
However, mine was about 3/8" to the passenger side. So I released the upper control arms from the dog ears.
I shortened the driver side by 1.5 full revolution, and Extended the passenger side 1.5 revolution. By doing that the axle moved over towards the driver side. My axle is now about 1/16 off to the passanger side. You have to shorten one and extend one. Otherwise you won't get your bolts back in. That's as close as I could get it. It barely changed my pinion angle. Once you get that in place you can get your drive shaft built to length. I bought a 6" yoke for the transmission and got the axle made to the length I measured. I installed it and I also had to shave the yoke down about 1/4" . It was just a little tight to push in and out of the rear u joint.. you know you get the perfect length if you can just barely slip on the u joint!
@@mattlind3724 Thanks for the tips! I'm realizing it just takes a bit of dialing it in. All of the pieces are there and they provide instructions but feel this is more of a guide than anything else. I might come back to you when i get to the driveshaft. =D
how does it ride with the ridetech 4 link behind there, i have full front ridetech coilover setup on a 70 nova which is fine but debating on the 4 link or torque arm. thanks for any input
Comparing to my old mono leaf. It is more responsive when cornering. The recoil is fast and smooth.
I feel less bouncing and better wheel grip. It weighs quite a bit less than the old steel springs as well.
It does ride different as I don't think it has as much vertical travel as the leaf spring. The coil over shock has a rebound adjustment as well.
All in all I like it
@@mattlind3724 I appreciate the input thank you. Looks like I’ll try it out. Thank you again
Did you get the mono or multi leaf mounts on the 9 inch?
I don't believe it has an option to order specifically. I know the F body of the camaro and the x body to the nova may differ on the leaf spring. I think the camaro was a multi-leaf, the nova was a single leaf. The axle mount should be the same.. here is the part number from speedway motors 99067691. This was suggested to me from their tech team. The also helped me pick out the third meber as well.
Hows the quality on this shock bar
It's solid. Ride tech says you can also put some spot welds in place, for additional reinforcement. I opted not do that since it was painted, therefore I didn't want additional corrosion to deal with. I relied on the bolt hardware. It fits snug in that space.
What spring rate do you have and does it feel soft or stiff with that? Trying to figure out what go get to my 70 Nova with 4 link.
Good questions.I feels energetic. not stiff. For comparison, I had a mono leaf originally. It felt as spongy and weak as you could imagine. I put air shocks on the mono leaf and basically created the complete opposite. I , and it was not nice. I would say they ride similar to a modern vehicle like a camaro or similar. they absorb shock quickly and rebound nicely. the weight of your car will also determine how stiff it feels. I think there is about 4" of travel. It does not feel like a big heavy car, it does not feel overly stiff either. it does have rebound adjustments and I have it adjusted about right in the middle. I think I may soften it up a bit. My car rattles a bit when i hit potholes, or chunks in the road. but I don't know that you will find a better shock . I do prefer this over the mono leaf.
here is the link to what I purchased.
www.speedwaymotors.com/RideTech-11266510-HQ-Series-Rear-Coilovers-68-74-Nova,337982.html
I got 10 inch tires under my 71 am I able to keep that size tire under it?
Most people 255/60 15 will work,but note..
The factory axle should measure 55" flange to flange. And 2.5" from flange to back of rim.
My upgraded disc brake kit added 3/16" of width on both sides which is problematic to the outer width.
If you use a factory drum brake it should fit a 255/60/R15.
Ideally if you do a disc conversion you would consider custom ordering a wheel with a 5 3/4" backspace to use up the inner wheel tub vs the outer which is already tight.
My car has 1 1/4" of inner wheels spacing still available on each side and very little spacing on the outer fenders. I trimmed the fender as far as I could. I am sure the body shop may have to mod my body, or I custom order rear rims to move inward.. hope this helps
I’m running a 9.5” wide rear rim with just a hair over 6 inches of backspace (Bmw style 37) 255 tires fit great I’ve heard of people going to a 275 in this set up as well.
@@cameronfeltz2875 what size rim and type of rim you are running? I have a 15x8 with a 5.5 backing space. I'm running a 275/60R15 slight rub. Also has about a 5inch drop.
18x9.5 Bmw m parallel rear. Same rim up front but 18x8 fits perfect. A lot of guys run these wheels on novas. Check out the white one on autotopia’s Chanel he has them😎
@@cameronfeltz2875 ive seen that what's the backing space on the fronts and rear? I dont really like the look of those wheels but have been looking at other bmw wheels. Hardest part is backing space especially because my car sits very low
which ridetech kit are you using
Part #76811267199 from speedway motors. I chose this particular one because the 2- lower 4 link stabilizer axle mounts will mount directly to the original leaf spring mount on a GM. (Less welding). The axle I ordered from speedway (#99067691) also had an option to add the gm leaf spring mount which I opted for. If you change axles you should call speedway and let them know what you have They are very informative. With my assembly options I only had to weld the dog ears on the top of the axle which support the 2- upper 4 link supports. Hope this helps.
@@mattlind3724 thank you, i have a 9" i plan to fit so might opt for the weld on 4 link brackets