Has anyone ever found that not having shock tower braces causes any problems. I can not fit mine in any longer and didn't know how much effort I should put into strengthening the front end. Running about 240 hp.
The front shock towers can shift without them, these cars can be pretty soft, so you'd be better off trying to get them back on.
Maybe I'll try making a complete over-engine type bar like the modern riceburners and tie it into the firewall somehow.
I wonder how far they are from fitting back on. It could be the frame that is mounted to the floor pans.
DO they not fit due to the engine or due to the towers moving in? You can just spread the towers and install the factory braces if that is your issue.
http://mmb.maverick.to/showthread.php?t=91327 Different engine. The car is straight as an arrow, I guess I should keep it that way!
I guess I'm gonna have to get creative. The ones to the firewall will need to be curved to wrap around all my intake and inter cooler piping. And again on the front of the engine the piping will still get in the way. I bet the first time I have to change spark plugs ill hate myself for the torture. It'll take 3 hrs ripping all this crap off. I found a guy on eBay who custom makes these out of stainless.... But I'm guessing there will be trial and lots of error.
May be best to avoid the heim joints too even though they look so pretty and allow slight adjustments. Biggest problem is that they also allow slight movement which defeats some of the bars intended purpose in the first place.
Well, I use them on my shock tower braces, my ladder bars, front strut rods..................and they use them most all race cars............don't see how they can allow slight movement as long as they are installed correctly with the correct hardware. If they use them on F1/NASCAR they are good enough for me.......................IMHO
Of course they have their uses and I can only tell you what others who build monte carlo bars and tower braces have said and tested on these unibody cars. Shock towers dont just want to flex towards the firewall.. they want to flex up and down as well. Heim joints will allow that kind of flexing without much restriction.
Mine don't flex or move at all. When I installed them, I cranked them to where they are putting a slight pressure outwards. Not enough to move the metal, but enough to take all the slack out of the joints. I could REALLY feel the stiff difference immediately after installing them.
Heim joints are made to move...it's in their design. You may not see the movement but they are moving up and down. The reason you could feel the difference is because something is better than nothing. The factory tower braces have slotted and over-sized holes and will fit even if things got tweaked out of shape. If you don't believe me then loosen all the nuts and bolts and wiggle the brace. I modified a Mustang export brace to fit my Maverick and it really made a big difference over the factory setup. I want to make a Monte Carlo bar to fit my six cylinder but it will have to be a 2nd choice in design instead because it won’t be a straight bar. I’m thinking about a H-beam design similar to what is on the late model cars if I have the hood clearance
