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His wife had wanted a classic muscle car for a while, so salesguy01 had to do the thing any dutiful husband would do. A month later, the happy couple had a gleaming ‘67 Firebird 400 in their driveway. The auction listing hadn’t detailed all the issues with the car, but they had provided a running, stunning, mostly functioning car that pleased both him and his wife. Most importantly, it was rust free and very easy on the eyes, even if it had been repainted in a non-original color—one of the few issues which hadn’t been disclosed.
The first order of business was upgrading the footwear. Out went the misstenciled Rally II wheels and in went a set of Rally-inspired wheels in black.
Turning his attention inside, he found an oil-soaked carpet; the previous owner had had butterfingers when trying to install an oil pressure gauge. While pulling the carpet, he decided to improve the Firebird’s insulation and laid down a few layers of Thermo-tec.
The brakes were another issue. True, this car came with the disc brakes as advertised, but the rotors were chewed through and the calipers in need of an overhaul. As this wasn’t meant to be a Concourse car, he ponied up enough to buy an entry-level Wilwood brake kit. Installation was no walk in the park; endless issues with the stainless lines had him cursing and almost throwing his tools, but soon after, the stoppers were working flawlessly.
The headaches continued with the installation of the Vintage Air system, but relief wasn’t far off. An encouraging chat with Hotchkis helped him put together a near-ideal suspension setup for his vehicle. With springs suited to the weight of his smallblock and most of the entire Hotchkis catalog, he’d have the roadholding he was after.
Then came a big palette laden with pricey goodies not related to the suspension. With a Champion 4-core radiator, twin fans from a Formula Firebird, a bored and stroked ‘71 400 block, ARP studs, Ross forged pistons and forged H-beam rods, Edelbrock aluminum 87cc Heads, an Edelbrock Performer intake, a Tanks Inc. fuel tank, a Walbro Sump Fuel Pump, and a FiTech ECU, he’d had the power he needed. After checking this items out for hours, he had to return to the then-current issues with his project to avoid thinking about this most recent bill.
Some of the issues were:
1. Changing Steering box to late model quick ratio and Pitman arm. Because he was using metric o-rings, he had to get adapters for the lines.
2. Patching a couple holes and cracks on the A/C box.
3. Changing heater core.
4. Changing blower motor.
5. Detailing the engine bay, spraying paint inner liners and firewall flat black, then gloss coating the exposed subframe.
After two weeks of nonstop labor, the time came to mate the 4L80E to the new motor and drop it in its new home.
For a quieter idle and a modern sound, he ordered a set of Doug’s coated D-port headers and a Magnaflow stainless exhaust system. His installer wasn’t happy with the fit of the pipes, since he had to custom fabricate from the collectors to the x-pipe, but the finished product was clearly worth the headache.
After putting the new quick ratio Cardone box on, Salesguy01 realized there was tons of play in the steering wheel. His irritation only grew when he went to get the car aligned at his buddy’s shop and failed to get the settings he was after. The guess was that the frame was sagging and he was in need of offset cross shafts.
He took that as a sign to go ahead and get some tubular upper and lower control arms and, as recommended by a knowledgeable friend, he went with Hotchkis. With this latest addition, he’d have everything the company makes for the ‘67 Firebird, save for their rear swaybar.
However, this caused him to get far too much camber. He tried flipping the cross shaft around and this only worsened the problem. After a little more research, he found that Global West built a set of upper control arms which would accept offset cross shafts. Though he liked the idea of sticking with one brand, he knew he’d have to replace the Hotchkis arms for the footprint he was after.
And with that, the car was riding comfortably with the tires squarely on the road. He’d dedicated so much time and energy to this build, he felt that a little tune-out from forum posting was necessary. After four years of silence, he returned and notified his curious followers what he’d done in the interval: a Comp cam—that’s it. When planned out properly, well-crafted things rarely require tinkering once they’re up and running.
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