Has anyone put a big block into their Mav without removing the shock towers? I just got a good 400 with a C-6 and a 9 inch rear end. (My brother gave me a Bronco without a title). I would like to back half the car, put in a cage and drop in the engine and trans with the rear end narrowed to fit. Any suggestions are appreciated.
I've seen a pic of a Maverick with a BBF in it and the shock towers 'appeared' to be stock. After further examination (and someone on this board emailing them) it was learned the shock-towers were moved outward. Most (of us) do the shock tower modification (cut and weld a plate in place) to allow access to headers and plugs - but not to put a BBF in it. From what I remember, the shock towers "looked" stock - to the untrained eye. After I saw his set-up, I wished I would've looked into going that route before I modded my towers. Anyone save a pic/story of that Mav (I think it was on ebay)?
RE: How he did it. Can anyone tell by looking at the picture if the shock tower housings were shaved where they meet the inside fender - thus, heretofore, thereafter, widening the engine bay? 'Must have small custom small diameter 'hugger' type headers also (??).
wonder if they might have cut away the original frame rails and moved them outward a couple inches? Just a thought..but it looks factory nonetheless.
Take a look at the steering shaft. Notice that there is no rag joint where it would tie into the steering box. He has had to make some changes to get the sterring to work around the motor/exhaust. Also notice that he is running a motor plate eleminating the need for motor mounts. If he had "shaved" the outer edge of the shock towers, the upper A-arm would be repositioned outwards by a certain amount. He would then have to move the lower arm out by a similar amount or deal with a very mismatched alignment. It should not be a problem to move the lower arms outward a similar amount. With the use of the motor plate to attach the motor to the frame directly, there is no motor weight on the lower horn of the shock towers. This eleminates most of the leverage that typically would pull the shock towers inwards. Since this is obviously a straight line car only, who cares if it corners well. I have to agree about the custom small tube headers. I put a 429 into a 70 Mustang and found that it was very difficult to get decent sized pipes between the engine and the frame without a ton of extra work. The biggest problem was wrapping around and avoiding the suspension and steering geer......even using manual steering.
Don't think he could just move the upper and lower control arms out, because then the wheels would also be moved out getting up against the fenders. I saw a mav at Ohio Valley Dragway that had a cleveland with decent sized tube headers in it. after talking to the owner he showed me how he had shortened the upper control arms after moving the shock towers out. Gave him a little extra room to work with. I think he had moved them about 1 1/2".
If I remember corectly.... they said they cut the towers on the fender well side and moved them back there......and are using coil over shocks for front suspension.....thats how they got away with the shock tower mods......and I do believe they are using a rack instead of the gear box.....but I could be wrong
