Have finally installed the engine and tranny. Now that the weight is on the frame, I need to go over all of the bolts and ensure that they are all torqued cotter pins in place, etc. Where can I find a good source or source's to locate all the #'s for torqueing the front/rear suspensions - motor assessories, etc. I have found some in the Chassis restoration book, the AIM and the manual? But some items I cannot find, bell housing? tranny? Any other items/problems I should look for, be aware of before I place the body on? Ground staps? Would anyone put the rear wiring harness on the body before it is placed on the frame? Any other tips will be greatly appreciated. Getting close! Thanks.
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Re: 64 coupe rolling chassis
Assembly Manual but there are a lot of things that shouldn't be torqued till the weight of the body is on. Rear spring, A-frame bushings, rear shocks , just to name a few. Mike -
Re: 64 coupe rolling chassis
Bob -
The torques that aren't shown in the A.I.M. are in the back section of the "63 Shop Manual and '64 Supplement. None of the suspension bushing bolts should be torqued until the body is back on and the car is at design curb height. All wiring (except the engine harness) was originally installed in the body prior to Body Drop.Comment
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Re: 64 coupe rolling chassis
Don't get too hung up on exact torques, I doubt many mechanics use a torque wrench on everything. It can be very important for especially long bolts, since ideal torque is when the bolt is just on the verge of stretching. But the clamping force applied by a given torque depends on many factors and is particularly affected by lubricants on threads. For some general torque recommendations by bolt size, thread, and material, try this site:
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Re: 64 coupe rolling chassis
Where do you get this list of what needs to be torqued down after the body is in place?
I assume you would snug everything down first (How snug is snug??) before torqueing.
I'll be doing this on a C3 rather than the C2 but I'm sure that it applies as well.
Steve L
73 coupe since newSteve L
73 coupe since new
Capital Corvette Club
Ottawa, CanadaComment
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Re: 64 coupe rolling chassis
Steve -
Front upper control arm shaft end bushing bolts
Front lower control arm-to-frame bushing bolts
Rear trailing arm front bushing bolts
Rear camber strut rod bushing bolts
All of the above are noted in the A.I.M. not to be torqued until the suspension is at design curb (suspension geometry-setting) height (except the first one, which was already torqued while set at the correct angle at the supplier - it came to St. Louis as a pre-assembled unit). Just install the bolts and run them up finger-tight; after the car is completely assembled, it will be at curb height - then torque them to spec.
The O.D. of the rubber bushing is bonded to the I.D. of the outer steel sleeve, which is locked into the arm; the I.D. of the rubber bushing is bonded to the O.D. of the inner steel sleeve, which becomes locked solid when the through-bolt is torqued up (which is why the ends of the inner sleeve are serrated, to "bite" into the frame). When the arm moves up and down, only the rubber part of the bushing absorbs that motion, so they need to be torqued with no twisting force on the rubber part of the bushing, or they deteriorate rapidly from bushing "wind-up" torsional stresses - the design requires the rubber portion of the bushing to be un-stressed at curb height, so that's where they are "locked" in place by torquing the through-bolt.Comment
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When does body sit at right height?
I just got the body on my '63, and the suspension still sits very high. The only things left to add are seats, bumpers, radiator and a tank of gas. I have my doubts that these will bring the suspension down to "design height" to do the final torquing.Comment
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Re: When does body sit at right height?
Pete:
The proper trim heights @ both curb and as shipped weights can be found in the AIM in the front/rear suspension sections. These dimensions are not correlated to tire size, so they will still be valid even if you are running M&H Racemasters on the rears.
JoeComment
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Re: 64 coupe rolling chassis
Steve:
Also, do not torque the 4 rear spring-to-differential rear cover bolts until the car is at "as shipped" or "curb" weight. This item is in the AIM, in the rear suspension section, which shows rear spring installation. I have a 1965 AIM, so I cannot give you page numbers for 1973.
JoeComment
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Re: When does body sit at right height?
Pete -
Those items will add 200#-250# to the car, and you need to roll the car back and forth a bit to take the lateral load off the tires first to check suspension height after you let it down on the floor.Comment
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