Before we finished bolting our shocks in
place, we stabbed in our 2-inch lowering
springs, which feature a 130-lb/in rate.
UMI Performance offers 1-inch lowering
springs as well. The lower control arms
feature provisions for a stock sway
bar, but we’re running the UMI chassis-
mounted sway bar.The rear control-arm frame mounts are
thin pieces of metal welded to the frame.
Despite a thin factory brace from the frame
to crossmember, there’s still flex in this
area. UMI Performance includes a brace and
grade-8 hardware to connect the upper and
lower control arms. The brace is adjustable
merely to aid in fitment. Our frame has
a minor deflection on the driver side and
required an extra turn of adjustment.We started by installing our UMI upper
controls arms onto the rear axle. The
adjustability will allow us to change
the pinion angle for the new LS1. We’re
running Moog replacement bushings in
the rear axle, but you can also use UMI
Performance Roto-Joints here. Strange
Engineering recommended a ball-joint
installer tool, which we rented from a
local auto-parts store for free. Remember
to swing your grease fitting where you
can access it later.P
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Our conveniences often
add complexity, such as
adding a parking brake.
Luckily, the Wilwood brake
kit is relatively simple. It’s
essential to test-fit without
red Loctite first. We needed
to remove the backing plate
three times to get the right
caliper shims. The caliper
needs to be centered on
the rotor by changing the
shims between the caliper
and bracket mounts. We
required the addition of
a parking-brake cable kit
(Wilwood PN 330-9317,
$129.54).Right: We built half of the
Wilwood 13-inch rotor on
the bench, safety-wiring
the bolts with 0.032-inch
stainless-steel safety
wire from McMaster-Carr
(PN 8860K63, $13.29)
and some Harbor Freight
wire twisting pliers
(PN 45341, $12.59). The
hub is bolted to the disc
using Red 271 Loctite.
The outer bearing races
come preinstalled. We
pack and lay our inner
bearings in place and
install the seal.40 CAR CRAFT AUGUST 2019